Colorado Rapids acquire USMNT defender Vines from Royal Antwerp
The Colorado Rapids have acquired defender Sam Vines from Belgian top-flight side Royal Antwerp. The US men's national team left back originally departed Colorado for Antwerp midway through the 2021 MLS season. Now, his new deal lasts through 2027. The 24-year-old became a Rapids' homegrown player ahead of the 2018 MLS campaign, producing 2g/4a in 53 matches before his transfer to Antwerp. He is a 2021 Gold Cup champion with the USMNT and has one goal in nine caps.
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We’re just a few weeks away from the first edition of the Concacaf Champions Cup, AKA “FKA CCL.” The famously Liga MX-dominated competition has gotten a bit of a makeover in 2024. Twenty-seven teams will compete in the tournament, with five teams getting a pass to the Round of 16. Each round will feature two legs until the final on June 2. That means even more MLS teams have a chance to look really promising until they inexplicably play their worst game of the year in the final. We’ve truly been blessed here.
Before that happens though, I figured we’d check in on each of the 10 (!!) MLS teams in the competition, see how things are going this offseason, and take a quick look at their path to the title.
Yeah, I would say things are going pretty well. There are going to be concerns about this team’s ability to put in consistent performances across multiple competitions and a lengthy season, but CCC should be a focus for them early in the year. Honestly, in a strange way, it feels like they might be more likely to win this competition than any other. They get a first-round bye, everyone should be relatively fresh and healthy, and they can relax during some of these early regular-season games.
They’ll face the winner of Nashville SC and Dominican Republic side Moca FC. If their newest major signings (Luis Suárez and Julian Gressel) are clicking, the Herons will be heavily favored. Even if those two aren’t clicking with their new team, you can always try giving the ball to Lionel Messi. That’s a good trick.
The Crew are running it back in 2024. They re-signed Darlington Nagbe, held on to all of their major contributors despite potential interest abroad in guys like Cucho Hernández and Wilfried Nancy, and seem primed to maybe be even better during Nancy’s second season in charge. The reigning MLS Cup champions added U22 right wingback Marino Hinestroza and a high-upside depth piece in midfielder Derrick Jones to help round out an already excellent roster.
They’ll need some outstanding performances from that roster to make it through the continent’s best teams, but we clearly have proof of concept there. They got a first-round bye after winning MLS Cup and won’t see a team like Tigres or Monterrey until the quarterfinals or semifinals.
The Whitecaps, however, will immediately face Tigres. That… uh… typically doesn’t go all that well. But Vancouver still have one of the best 1-2 punches in MLS with Brian White and Ryan Gauld, and that can keep you in the game against a lot of teams. There’s still work to do for the ‘Caps this offseason, though, if they want to compete for one of the top spots in MLS, let alone CCC.
Nashville needed a break after last year’s run to the Leagues Cup final. They didn’t get it until they were mercifully bounced from the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs by Orlando City after sputtering down the homestretch. Nashville failed to score in six of their last seven games.
They took the offseason to regroup and add Red Bulls midfielder Dru Yearwood and Galaxy winger Tyler Boyd via trade. Those pieces should fit, and Nashville should keep doing the whole “play defense then get the ball to Hany Mukhtar then play defense” tactic and that should be enough to get back to the playoffs again. But to truly compete in the league and CCC, they’ll need a lot more from DP forward Sam Surridge.
The Union are the Union. They haven’t changed much from last year’s group and even found a way to lock down fullback Kai Wagner for the next few years. They’ve earned more points than any other team in MLS over the last five years and that rightfully earns them the benefit of the doubt in almost every scenario. That group has come up short when trophies have been on the line, though. It’s tough to envision them breaking through the wall at this point. But they did luck into the single easiest path of any MLS team in this competition.
The Union side of the bracket includes the two weakest Liga MX sides of the bunch, Pachuca and Toluca. Pachuca finished 11th in Liga MX’s Apertura and Toluca finished 12th. The Union wouldn’t have to worry about Club América or Chivas until the semifinals.
It’s been tough to balance concerns about the uncertainty FC Cincinnati are facing at key positions with the excellent core they have locked in place everywhere else. Yerson Mosquera is gone, but Miles Robinson is in. Brandon Vazquez is gone, but Corey Baird is in after scoring the same amount of goals as Vazquez in 2023. Álvaro Barreal could be gone, but Cincy have rapidly transformed into a team you expect to solve problems quickly and efficiently.
It seems like some kind of drop-off is inevitable after a storybook season in 2023, but it might just be a slight one. If that’s the case, this team can absolutely power their way through this competition. Then again, they’d likely see Monterrey in the second round, then Inter Miami after that. The path isn’t kind.
They always say a high-pressing style works better earlier in the year when teams are still getting comfortable being on the ball. Throw in a few critical turnovers and some Roman Bürki saves, and maybe St. Louis can surprise a few folks. It worked pretty well last year, right?
So far, Orlando haven’t quite gone all-in on a win-now approach in the way I think some folks had hoped. They’re limited right now by not being able to sign a full DP to replace Mauricio Pereyra with an elite No. 10. But Nico Lodeiro is still pretty good at this. And we certainly know he understands how to win in Concacaf. He (or maybe underperforming DP Martín Ojeda) will need to put in a vintage performance to push the Lions deep into this one. Right now they feel like a team better set to rack up points in the regular season than take down the continent’s best.
Looking at the Revs’ depth chart is pretty exciting. Caleb Porter’s 4-2-3-1 seems to fit nicely with New England’s personnel. In particular a line of three with Dylan Borrero, Carles Gil and Tomás Chancalay is among the best attacking groups in MLS… in theory. Borrero is coming off a season-ending injury, and we just don’t know what kind of player he’s going to be, especially early on. It might be a moment before this attack is firing on all cylinders. Plus, we still have no idea if DP No. 9 Giacomo Vrioni can live up to his price tag. This feels like a team that might be a bit more prepared to make a Leagues Cup run later this year than a CCC run now.
Houston are one of the most interesting teams in the league this year. Can the US Open Cup champs take that same magic they had in 2023 and translate it to 2024? That seems like a tough ask, and they haven’t made any moves that suggest they’ll be able to survive on talent alone if they can’t recreate that free-flowing style. They’re banking on a lot there.
But if it pays off, no one is going to complain. The Dynamo were a blast to watch. It’s hard to see that being enough to get past some of the continent’s giants, though.
FC Dallas beat Inter Miami in preseason matchup: Jesús Ferreira's early strike earned FC Dallas a 1-0 win Monday evening at the Cotton Bowl Stadium. Ferreira's far-post finish (3') followed a through ball from fellow US men's national team forward Paul Arriola, leaving Inter Miami seeking an equalizer.
New York City FC sign MLS SuperDraft pick Jones: New York City FC have signed winger Malachi Jones through the 2025 MLS season with options for 2026-27. Selected No. 8 overall (first round) in the 2024 MLS SuperDraft out of Lipscomb University, the 20-year-old tallied 12g/15a in 35 appearances over two seasons for the Bison. He twice earned First Team All-ASUN honors.
St. Louis CITY loan Perez to Birmingham Legion: St. Louis CITY SC have loaned homegrown midfielder Miguel Perez to USL Championship side Birmingham Legion. Perez, who can be recalled at any time, tallied 1g/0a in 15 matches (seven starts) last year as St. Louis topped the Western Conference in record-setting fashion.
- Matt Doyle ranked
- Jonathan Sigal picked out 10 MLS clubs with the most work to complete during the transfer window.
- Luciano Acosta set a lofty target for FC Cincinnati in 2024.
Good luck out there. Keep your portfolio up to date.
