Write On Sports LLC - "Major League Soccer: 2007 Eastern Conference Preview" by Jeff Bull

Major League Soccer: 2007 Eastern Conference Preview

2007-04-02 12:30:29 | By: Jeff Bull

Major League Soccer (MLS) kicks off its 2007 season Saturday, April 7, at 12:30 p.m. EST (on ABC). That first game, in which a new-look Colorado Rapids will host league powerhouse DC United, begins a season that will end in November with MLS Cup. So much will happen between Saturday and the championship game - additional competitions like the SuperLiga, hot streaks, scoring droughts, or even more mundane things like injuries and locker-room meltdowns - that it seems foolhardy to predict how the regular season will pan out for any of the teams. But foolhardy has never stopped any pundit, never mind me, before.

A look at the MLS’s Eastern Conference appears below, containing a short list of expectations and individuals to watch for each of the East’s clubs; you’ll also see how I expect those clubs to stack up against one another. Changes in the league’s playoff format renders who will and will not make the playoffs a complicated affair - so complicated, in fact, that I’ll look at that closer to the end of the season. But let’s start with the foolhardiest call of all: who finishes where in the Eastern Conference; the why of each decision follows.

1. DC United
2. Columbus Crew
3. Red Bull New York
4. Kansas City Wizards
5. New England Revolution
6. Toronto FC
7. Chicago Fire

DC United

Key Losses: Nick Rimando (GK); Alecko Eskandarian (F); Freddy Adu (F/M)

Key Additions: Luciano Emilio (F); Fred (M); Tom Soehn (Coach)

Key Men: Christian Gomez (M); Ben Olsen (M); Bobby Boswell (D); Troy Perkinds (GK)

Overview: For a team with only one or two players anyone would dub “marquee,” it’s odd that DC seems an automatic favorite to win the East. But between the continuity from last year’s best regular-season club and impressive additions - highly impressive in Emilio’s case - and an almost intimidating tradition, there’s no where else to place them. Potential pitfalls include: the mystery ailment that rendered their offense punchless and their defense jittery late last season; a grueling “extra” schedule featuring competitions like the SuperLiga tournament, which pits MLS clubs against Mexico’s best and arrives smack in the middle of the season. If they can pace themselves better than last year, however, they’ve certainly got the players to not only win the East, but to win it all.

Columbus Crew

Key Losses: Jon Busch (GK); Richie Kotschau (D)

Key Additions: Andy Herron (F); Danny O’Rourke (M); Robbie Rogers (M/F)

Key Men: Chad Marshall (D); Ned Grabavoy (M); Duncan Oughton (M); Joseph Ngenwya (F)

Overview: While the bug hasn’t bitten across soccer punditry, not a few observers see the Crew as a dark-horse team for 2007. Between their late-season, but ultimately futile, run at the East in 2006 and a sense that they have come out of a transition period, the thinking is that the Crew possesses the makings of a complex and diverse offense; they’re strong preseason - in which they compiled a 9-1-2 record and not all of those against college teams, only reinforces the improving quality of the team. The biggest question mark comes in the defense and in goal, where age and inexperience afflicts the former and inexperience and quality affects the latter. Obviously, I’m buying the dark-horse theory and think they’ve got the answers in place.

Red Bull New York

Key Losses: Amado Guevara (M); Tony Meola (GK); Chris Henderson (M); Youri Djorkaeff (M/F)

Key Additions: Claudio Reyna (M); Dave Van Den Bergh (M); Ronald Wattereus (GK); Clint Mathis (M/F)

Key Men: Seth Stammler (M); Dema Kovalenko (M); Josmer Altidore (F); Marvell Wynne (D)

Overview: This is one of several teams that could break either way. The two generally-recognized problem spots include the center of defense, where Carlos Mendes pairs with Jeff Parke, and at forward, where questions about Altidore’s development await answers. The grit in midfield, between Kovalenko and Stammler, should cover for the central defense, while the arrival of Mathis and an offensive alignment ought to help Altidore. How well either adjustment works should dictate Red Bull’s season; good results could push them above Columbus, possibly even DC, while mixed results should land them in third or fourth. Anything else, well....

Kansas City Wizards

Key Losses: Josh Wolff (F); Dave Van Den Bergh (M); Alex Zotinca (D)

Key Additions: Kevin Hartman (GK); er....a six-pack of rookies?

Key Men: Jose Burciaga Jr. (D); Jimmy Conrad (D); Davy Arnaud (M); Nick Garcia (D)

Overview: Kansas City’s two consecutive seasons of failure constitutes one of the great mysteries in MLS. On paper, they’re solid, but something goes sideways every season; last year, for instance, the blame lay with defensive lapses - though the flipside of that is often as not a stuttering offense. The players key to changing that equation are Davy Arnaud on offense and Nick Garcia on defense: Arnaud by scoring from range, which will open space for this team’s under-confident forwards and Garcia by assuring continuity in the defense while Conrad is away. Says here Kansas City breaks the two-season playoff jinx this year.

New England Revolution

Key Losses: Clint Dempsey (M); Jose Cancela (M)

Key Additions: Six dozen rookies led by Adam Cristman (F); Wells Thompson (M)

Key Men: Taylor Twellman (F); Matt Reis (GK); Shalrie Joseph (M); Michael Parkhurst (D)

Overview: For the lack of signings, it says something that New England had an eventful off-season. A contract/salary dispute between the team and key midfielder Joseph raises the specter of off-field turmoil, while Dempsey’s departure to the English Premier League deprived the squad of its wild card on offense. The Revolution returns the same defense that compiled the league’s best defensive record in 2006 and they’ve got one of the league’s best forward tandems when healthy, but their fate will heavily revolve around the pace at which their rookie class develops.

Toronto FC

Key Losses: n/a - this is their first year

Key Additions: All of ‘em.

Key Men: Ronnie O’Brien (M); Alecko Eskandarian (F); Richard Mulrooney (M); Marco Reda (D)

Overview: Head Coach Mo Johnston showed considerable acumen by drafting a team that most observers believe will be competitive in its first season, but he remains an unproven quantity as a coach. The team has a decent set of attacking options and while it’s likely they’ll take some time to gel, it’s in defense and in terms of depth where people expect this year’s sole expansion team to struggle. But signs of strong home support come with the fact they sold out their season ticket packages weeks before the season kicked off. If they avoid injuries, the first-year excitement could carry a solid first-team above expectations.

Chicago Fire

Key Losses: Zach Thornton (GK); Andy Herron (F); Nate Jaqua (M/F)

Key Additions: Ryan Coiner (F); a bunch of rookies led by Bakary Soumare (D)

Key Men: Matt Pickens (GK); Justin Mapp (M); Pascal Bedrossian (M); C. J. Brown (D)

Overview: Between a minimum of upgrades and a decidedly weak preseason, not a lot is expected from the Fire in 2007; then again, many though the same last season, but the Fire went on a late-season - though not late enough - tear that had some observers viewing them as outside contenders for the title. Head coach Dave Sarachan showed keen managerial sense in producing that run, but, barring a miracle-year from budding star Mapp, the Fire appears to have lost too much offensive firepower to pull the same trick again.

Comments

Gareth Sleger commented,
I'm a little surprised you left Conor Casey off your list of key men for Toronto. I know this is his first year in the MLS and he's coming of a difficult spell at Mainz with injury (which he's recovered from 100-percent) and lack of PT. But I think with his height, German experience and still being only 25 will make him one of the top marked men in the league.
April 4, 2007 2:35 p.m.

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