ExtraTime Radio Podcast
LISTEN: It's Wednesday night and there are eight games on MLS LIVE ... that's what the ExtraTime boys call heaven. Andrew, David and Matt banter through a wild slate of games, then talk 24 Under 24 Top 10 before US U-20 coach and US youth technical director Tab Ramos joins to add his expertise (38:07). Subscribe now and "Like" our Facebook page so you never miss a show! Download this episode!
You probably saw that 24 Under 24 came out this week. Whether you hate the list or not the scouting takes are... super interesting. Sometimes for the wrong reasons:
That, to me, is the best part of the list, and can be revealing.
But what I'd really love to see is the age cut-off dropped from "24 Under 24" to "22 Under 22" – in other words, "21-and-Under."
There are so many complete, polished, fully functional 22 and 23 year olds in MLS right now that it almost defeats the purpose of looking at this as a developmental list, which is what it was in the not-so-recent past. Dropping it by two years would give us this, based upon the 24 Under 24 panel's votes:
- Jack Harrison (NYCFC)
- Alphonso Davies (Vancouver)
- Yangel Herrera (NYCFC)
- Tyler Adams (RBNY)
- Alberth Elis (Houston)
- Erik Palmer-Brown (SKC)
- Justen Glad (RSL)
- Ballou Jean-Yves Tabla (Montreal)
- Jefferson Savarino (RSL)
- Brooks Lennon (RSL)
- Artur (Columbus)
- Andrew Carleton (Atlanta)
- Jackson Yueill (San Jose)
- Latif Blessing (SKC)
Those were the 21-and-unders who got three or more votes by the panel. Here are the others who made the short-list:
- Tommy Redding (Orlando City)
- Derrick Jones (Philadelphia)
- Paxton Pomykal (FC Dallas)
- Marco Farfan (Portland)
- Kortne Ford (Colorado)
We're up to 19 players. We can add in RSL left back Danilo Acosta, Chicago central midfielder Djordje Mihailovic, NYCFC winger Jonathan Lewis and d-mid James Sands, Atlanta United forward Brandon Vazquez and defender Anton Walkes, FC Dallas attacker Jesus Ferreira, Sounders left back Nouhou Tolo, RBNY defender Michael Amir Murillo and attacker Derrick Etienne, Jr., Timbers forward Jeremy Ebobisse, LA winger Bradford Jamieson IV, D.C. United attacker Bruno Miranda, and SKC winger Daniel Salloi.
There's not one super-deep cut in there. Everyone above has played MLS minutes this year and a good chunk have figured into their respective national teams on one level or another. One dude scored the game-winning goal in the US Open Cup; another basically just eliminated the Quakes. And the big difference in "22 Under 22 vs. 24 Under 24" is that none of those guys – not even Harrison, Herrera and Elis – are finished products.
I like that better. It feels less scattered and more representative of players who "are about to be," instead of "players who already are," which would in turn make the reasons behind the voting totals less inscrutable.
"How," you would ask, "could Carleton finish so high when he's barely played?"
"Well," I could answer, "he's just that special of a talent." Comparing him to Harrison is still apples to oranges, but at least those are both fruits. Comparing Carleton to Miguel Almiron is a comparison of apples to a perfectly cooked steak.
Do me a favor and pull from the list of players above to make your own 22-under-22 list in the comments below. And before you ask about Abu Danladi and Alex Muyl: Both those guys turn 22 before the season's up, so they miss the cut-off.
Here's a quick look at the weekend to come:
Dig Your Own Hole
FC Dallas buried their 10-match winless skid on Wednesday night by getting around the edge and banging two past Colorado's Tim Howard. It wasn't a dominant performance, but it was a clinical, smart showing in which they jumped out to the lead then held it by holding the ball. A lot:
It is much easier to do that at home against a Rapids team that didn't seem to know how to get any sort of pressure on the ball than it is on the road against anyone. Orlando City aren't exactly a juggernaut despite Wednesday's 6-1, card-enabled thrashing of New England, but they're 2-1-1 in their last four. FCD have their work cut out for them on Saturday (4 pm ET; Univision & Facebook.com in the US | MLS LIVE in Canada).
OCSC have been playing a diamond midfield as of late (Kaká was very much a second striker on Wednesday), and the way you usually try to attack that formation is to pull it apart. A diamond needs to stay compact.
To that end, look for Dallas to try to do what they did to the Rapids. As I said, they "got around the edge." If they do the same in Florida, they'll be in complete control of their own playoff destiny.
I'll also be watching:Yoshi Yotun. He's been doing some really pretty stuff, but maintains his propensity for destructive turnovers.
Part of that is lack of familiarity with his teammates, part is lack of familiarity with the league. Regardless, he'll attract special attention on the Dallas scouting report.
Let Forever Be
Toronto FC crashed to earth last week, at least temporarily. They had three losses on the season entering the week, and five exiting.
This is not a crisis for them, since those losses are easily chalked up to a few factors: Alex Bono having a shocker against Montreal, too many absences on the backline (four of their top five center backs were out, and it'll be only one this weekend), and too many consecutive games without Jozy Altidore and Sebastian Giovinco.
Altidore is healthy for Saturday's battle against the Red Bulls (7 pm ET; TSN in Canada | MLS LIVE in the US), and Giovinco might play a role. Let's recall what they've been missing:
If/when those guys are out there, you can pretty much throw out the rest of the scouting report: You have to match Jozy physically and you have to track Seba wherever he goes. If you can start thinking of stuff beyond that, you're obviously playing a very good game.
This is a potential Supporters' Shield clincher for TFC. If they win they become the first Canadian club to grab it.
I'll also be watching: Set pieces and RBNY's ability to play through the lines. They have to do better on the first (they are the league's worst defensive team on restarts), and they have to be better at taking advantage of the second. It might be time for Gonzalo Veron to get into the starting lineup.
Galvanize
Seattle, like Dallas, pulled themselves out of a prolonged slump on Wednesday night, ending a five-game winless skid with a 3-0 thumping of Vancouver. They did it by transitioning quicker from back-to-front than they had been managing over the past two months, simply murdering the 'Caps on turnovers.
I can't remember the last time I saw four Sounders running forward. They should get their chance to do more of that on Sunday at Philadelphia (1 pm ET; ESPN & ESPN Deportes in the US | TVAS & MLS LIVE in Canada), as ball security has been something of an issue for the Union this year.
Seattle's underlying numbers remain superb, by the way.
I'll also be watching:Keegan Rosenberry going up the right side. After spending most of the season on the bench, the second-year right back has worked his way back into the XI and as a result the Union are much more comfortable building on the overlap.
One more thing to ponder:
Happy weekending everybody.
