We’ve played a month of the 2022 Major League Soccer season – a four-game sample for every team in the league. With the understanding we’re still in the early days, which clubs should be concerned about their form out of the gate?
That’s one of the topics debated by Andrew Wiebe, Matt Doyle and David Gass on the latest edition of Extratime presented by AT&T 5G.
Sporting KC worries
Sporting Kansas City, a perennial title contender, are 12th in the Western Conference standings with three points from their first four matches (1W-3L-0D). The storm clouds hovered early when it was announced Designated Player forward Alan Pulido would be lost for the season due to a knee injury.
Ilie Sanchez then walked to LAFC, and they arguably haven’t filled his void at defensive midfield. The injuries have mounted, too, as wingers Daniel Salloi and Johnny Russell, who had career seasons a year ago, were both out, along with forward Khiry Shelton, during a 3-1 loss at Chicago Fire FC in Week 4.
“They’re just really old at a lot of spots and it looks like three or four of those guys have maybe hit too old at the same time, and they’re not going to get 35 goals from their wingers again to bail them out, and they don’t have their DP center forward all season long, and they still don’t have a D-mid on this team,” Doyle said. “That’s a long list.”
Doyle is confident that SKC manager and sporting director Peter Vermes will find solutions, though worry is apparent after they challenged for the Western Conference regular-season title in 2021.
"I still bet on Peter Vermes to figure most of it out, but even figuring most of it out might just push this team to the fringes of playoff contention rather than being the Sporting Kansas City that we've known every year since 2010 with the exception of one," Doyle said.
Vancouver regression?
A year ago, Vancouver Whitecaps FC went on a second-half tear under then-interim head coach Vanni Sartini, making the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs before a Round One defeat at the aforementioned SKC.
The interim tag has been lifted for Sartini, but the club, also dealing with injuries to forward Brian White and DP playmaker Ryan Gauld, while taking a step back at goalkeeper after trading Maxime Crepeau to LAFC, are winless in their first four matches (0W-3L-1D) and sit last in the West.
“Even with Brian White and Ryan Gauld out, it just felt like we went back in time with Vancouver to being toothless,” Gass said. “And it just felt there was no avenue to generate chances. They’re not able to control midfield at all, so everything has to be in transition. And outside of a few moments from [Cristian\] Dajome, there is no fluid attack.”
That comes in spite of Vancouver returning most of their roster's core from 2021. Their only major incoming offseason transaction was landing defender Tristan Blackmon.
"They've taken steps back and I thought part of their advantage this season was that they're already ready to go, similar to what we've talked about with RSL, to pick up points early, to get ahead and then maybe you start to have issues and you have something to fall back on," Gass said. "Now they have to chase again."
For the full discussion and more from Extratime, check out the latest episode here.
