This MLS playoff race is an absolute mess

Put on your boots, because we’re about to wade into a mess

The race for the MLS playoffs is promising that Decision Day will be as bonkers as it ever has been.

The final day of the regular season is less than a month away, with 28 of the league’s 29 teams set for two breathless rounds of simultaneous kickoffs, one for each conference (sorry D.C. United, you’re just going to have to follow along at home).

There’s an old MLS truism that a team just needs to stay in touch until late August or so, and that if said team can start to heat up around Labor Day, you’re looking at a major threat coming from what on paper is a low playoff seed. Plenty of teams with multiple MLS Cups in their trophy case have at least one season where they followed this plan to a tee.

However, in 2023 it’s not so much about getting hot at the right time as simply ending up next to an empty seat during a poorly-played game of musical chairs. Seven teams have clinched their playoff berths already, and two more are simply abysmal.

That leaves 20 teams vying for 11 postseason spots in what is an extraordinarily forgiving set-up. The problem is that almost none of this group seems able to get a solid hold on their invite to the big dance.

Put on your boots, because we’re about to wade into a mess:

Natalie Simon to become first Black woman to referee MLS match

Last year, Simon became the first Black American woman to hold a FIFA international refereeing badge

Natalie Simon will become the first Black woman to referee a MLS match when she takes charge of Saturday’s game between the San Jose Earthquakes and Real Salt Lake.

On Wednesday, the Professional Referee Organization confirmed Simon will be the head official for the match when announcing its week 32 MLS assignments.

Simon has served as the fourth official for several MLS games this season, as well as the head official for NWSL and USL Championship matches.

The MLS assignment will be only the latest bit of history Simon has made in her refereeing career. In 2022, Simon became one of four American women to hold a FIFA international refereeing badge, the highest honor for a referee, and the first Black American woman to do so.

Last year also saw Simon take charge of her first U.S. women’s national team match.

“I spent a lot of time wondering if I belonged,” Simon told the Los Angeles Times last year. “I spent most of my career questioning if I was good enough. I think a lot of Black people, especially Black women, can relate to that.”

Simon was the first Black woman to earn a FIFA badge, but she has now been joined by Alyssa Nichols.

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Houston Dynamo get a shot at Messi, Inter Miami in 2023 U.S. Open Cup final

Amine Bassi one-upped Messi’s two assists with three of his own

If Lionel Messi wants another trophy with Inter Miami, he’s going to have to mess with Texas.

Messi and Inter Miami will take on the Houston Dynamo in the U.S. Open Cup final, which will take place on September 27 at DRV PNK Stadium.

The Dynamo emerged with a 3-1 extra-time victory after largely dominating a scrappy, tense U.S. Open Cup semifinal with 10-man Real Salt Lake.

Houston will probably want to send a thank-you note to Miami. As the Herons already claimed a CONCACAF Champions Cup place by winning the Leagues Cup, the Dynamo will now follow suit. Miami’s wild penalty kick win over FC Cincinnati means that the Dynamo qualified for continental competition simply by making the final.

The Dynamo certainly seemed to be cruising towards a date with Messi and Miami, capping a dominant first half off with Héctor Herrera’s easy finish after a disastrous giveaway from RSL’s Andrew Brody fell to Amine Bassi (remember that name).

Corey Baird seemed to score an even scrappier goal with what would have been the final kick of the first half, but referee Lukasz Szpala (after a VAR review) found that Baird had been offside earlier in the sequence.

RSL was struggling to offer much of anything, yet stunningly equalized when Anderson Julio leaped up to power a 64th minute header home.

Despite the goal, Houston was all over the visitors, only to find a late winner elusive. That meant extra time on a typically infernal August night in Houston, but the Dynamo’s control of the match meant the hosts had more gas left in the tank.

All Houston needed was someone to put it all together, and Adalberto Carrasquilla seized the moment. The Panama winger took a dish from Bassi before driving into the area to score the eventual winner.

Houston continued to pour it on, eventually finishing the match with 30 shot attempts. RSL, meanwhile, melted down. Center back Brayan Vera was given a second yellow card (later converted to a straight red by VAR) for swiping out at Luís Caicedo, and then appeared to strike Bassi on his way off the field to boot.

Once that minor melee finished up, Bassi had the last laugh, getting his third assist of the night as Caicedo put an exclamation point on Houston’s win.

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Pablo Ruiz thinks we should all try to score from midfield, just like him

Who needs to get close to goal anyway?

Pablo Ruiz, take a bow.

The Real Salt Lake midfielder scored an unreal goal on the road against D.C. United, firing a 68-yard effort — that is, at least a full yard inside RSL’s half — to open the scoring just before halftime.

This has been a brewing storyline for United this season. Wayne Rooney’s tactical approach has involved bringing Miller up very high in possession. The idea is simple: Miller’s comfort on the ball allows United to create an overload elsewhere in possession, and attacking overloads are more dangerous than being even-numbers.

Rooney has been clear about the risks all season, noting to reporters more than once that eventually United might pay the price on a goal somewhere along the way. From a big-picture perspective, the gains would outweigh the long odds of someone actually scoring from midfield.

Last weekend at Atlanta, Miller paid the price for the aggression baked into his role in a different way. His attempt to cut Giorgios Giakoumakis off on an angled ball saw the Greek striker win the race, sliding home a finish into an empty net.

This time? With all due respect to Giakoumakis, Ruiz’s goal was something from another realm.

The sequence leading to the goal couldn’t have been less threatening. United was playing with a higher line despite going down a man in the 26th minute after captain Steven Birnbaum was given a red card.

RSL was stuck slowly building in possession against United’s 4-4-1 formation when Andrew Brody passed backwards to Ruiz, who had dipped back into some space away from the home team’s midfield.

Ruiz had tried and failed from around 40 yards out earlier, but with no one closing him down, he decided to up the ante with a shot that couldn’t have been placed better. His effort arced into the upper corner of the south goal at Audi Field, tantalizingly out of Miller’s reach.

After the match, Ruiz told reporters that scoring a goal like that was “my dream.”

“I talked to Pablo, so I know this keeper plays more [outside] the area. When I touched [the ball], I looked,” explained Ruiz, noting that he had an inkling that such a goal was possible on the night. “I’m very happy. I’m very happy for the goals, for these three points.”

RSL head coach Pablo Mastroeni compared the strike to one Marco Etcheverry scored for United (ironically enough against the Miami Fusion, featuring Mastroeni as a player in 1999. That goal went on to win MLS Goal of the Year.

“Pablo has a wand for a left foot,” said Mastroeni. “It’s an amazing football play, man. Super happy for Pablo… the angle in which he put it in, the distance from which he shot it, the execution was top class.”

United manager Wayne Rooney — who knows a thing or two about long-range goals — may not have been happy to lose, but couldn’t deny it was a magnificent strike.

“It’s a great strike,” said Rooney. “Sometimes you have to appreciate good goals, and it’s an incredible strike by the lad.”

Watch Ruiz’s otherworldly strike

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David Ochoa gets himself run out of another club

The 22-year-old has left Liga MX side Atlético San Luis in acrimonious fashion

Once again, David Ochoa is leaving a club in acrimonious fashion.

Liga MX side Atlético San Luis announced Tuesday that they had released the 22-year-old goalkeeper amid reports of indiscipline.

The club’s release seemed to confirm something had gone awry, saying: “As a club, our main objective is to transcend by respecting and putting institutional values first by promoting respect, professionalism, ethics and commitment of all our collaborators, as well as having a positive impact inside and outside the community.”

Ochoa made just one senior appearance for the club after signing in November 2022.

The goalkeeper seems to be making a habit of burning bridges, with his time at Real Salt Lake blighted by a tumultuous 2022 season.

Ochoa rose to prominence in 2021, becoming RSL’s starter and leading the club on a memorable run through the playoffs. But things quickly soured last year, as the goalkeeper lost his starting job and then was banished to the club’s reserves due to disciplinary issues.

“[Ochoa] was tardy a couple times, and just training habits weren’t up to par,” RSL head coach Pablo Mastroeni told ESPN last year. “At that point, we had quite a few conversations about being a professional footballer. It’s not always about starting. It’s about understanding how to conduct yourself within a club. We have club rules, we have team rules, locker rules, and you have to abide by those, regardless of who you are, or what you did last year.”

Ochoa was traded to D.C. United at midseason. He would make nine appearances before leaving at the end of the season when his contract expired.

In 2021, Ochoa announced he was committing his international future to Mexico. The California-born goalkeeper had previously represented the U.S. and Mexico at various youth levels. Ochoa has received senior call-ups for both countries, but has yet to earn his first senior cap.

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The 10 MLS newcomers you need to know for 2023

These aren’t big names today, but they will be soon

MLS kicks off its 28th season on Saturday, and as befits a league that wants to be seen as growing, there’s a long list of fascinating new additions to the player pool.

There’s an element of the unknown with this year’s crop of newcomers. MLS’s winter additions don’t include any big-name European stars. Cristiano Ronaldo heard Sporting Kansas City out but still chose Al Nassr, while Inter Miami’s pursuit of Leo Messi remains a situation where Miami is interested, rather than the other way around. There’s not even a Gareth Bale equivalent at this point, though the summer window tends to be when those players arrive.

However, that’s not to say that MLS had a bad time in the transfer market. Teams are able to sign younger players from leagues that used to be fairly inaccessible. They may not have the global cache of a big name in their mid-30s, but we’re talking about the current Europa League assist leader, a top-tier European prospect under the age of 21, and strikers with very promising track records. Casuals may not know their names today, but they’re going to be a big deal in the coming months.

These are the 10 MLS newcomers to pay closest attention to:

Austin FC comes back to beat 10-man RSL in wild MLS playoff affair

This one should’ve been over sooner, but Austin will take any win in the postseason

Austin FC probably should have defeated Real Salt Lake long before penalties in a wild MLS first-round playoff match on Sunday.

But, despite playing more than half of the 120 minutes with a man advantage, Austin needed some heroics from Brad Stuver in the shootout to finally surpass RSL at Q2 Stadium, advancing to the conference semifinal against either FC Dallas or Minnesota United next weekend.

RSL was up two goals inside 15 minutes, but after Sebastián Driussi pulled one back for the home side, the game was turned on its head by a boneheaded red card for RSL’s Rubio Rubín just after halftime.

From there on it was pure survival mode for RSL and they nearly got there, but Driussi’s stoppage-time penalty rescued Austin’s season and sent the game into extra time tied 2-2.

Austin would end up with a whopping 38 total shots, outshooting RSL 25-3 in the 67 minutes following Rubín’s red. But it would take a shootout to finally vanquish RSL.

Sergio Córdova gave RSL the lead just three minutes in when he headed home a perfectly placed cross from Andrew Brody.

It went from bad to worse for the favored home side just 10 minutes later when Jhojan Valencia was called for a handball in the box after a VAR review, and Córdova stepped up to give RSL a two-goal lead from the spot less than 15 minutes in.

But Austin got back into the the match 15 minutes later and unsurprisingly, it was the team’s MVP candidate Driussi who produced an excellent glancing header from Diego Fagundez’s inswinging cross.

 

After a horrendous miss from substitute Emiliano Rigoni from inches away, the game turned on a moment of madness from Rubín. Already on a yellow, the striker made an ill-advised slide while stretching for a through ball that was out of reach and caught Stuver on the leg. Referee Victor Rivas had an easy decision to show a second yellow.

Down a man and with most of the second half left to play, RSL went into a defensive shell. Austin appeared stumped and the visitors were on their way to a famous victory until a stoppage-time twist gave the home side the lifeline they needed.

Scott Caldwell was whistled for a handball in the box, giving Driussi the chance to complete his brace from the penalty spot and send the game into extra time. He made no mistake, and it was 2-2.

The home side would nearly score in extra time but was frustrated time and again, with Driussi seeing a goal chalked off for offside after previously having a goal disallowed in regulation for a handball.

But ultimately Stuver proved the hero, saving two RSL penalties in the shootout and then watching Tate Schmitt’s spot kick fly over the bar to clinch the win for Austin.

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The MLS playoffs begin with three days of potential upsets and chaos

Thoughts and predictions from every opening-round playoff match

After the obligatory long, strange trip, the MLS playoffs are here.

The first round will feature six one-off games, with the higher seeds all hosting. While LAFC and the Philadelphia Union kick their feet up and watch, the remaining playoff sides will try to navigate a first round that is typically volatile. If your playoff predictions are looking pretty chalky, you’re probably off base.

Pro Soccer Wire is ready for the kind of drama MLS virtually always manages to conjure up at this time of the year, and we’re diving into each and every first round match-up with analysis, broadcast information, and predictions.

MLS playoff brackets are set after Decision Day drama

Thoughts on every playoff pairing after Decision Day’s drama

It’s officially playoff time in MLS.

Sunday afternoon saw some high tension in the Eastern Conference that ended with Orlando City coming back to secure the final playoff spot over the Columbus Crew. For the Crew, a season of lost leads ended with Facundo Torres netting an 84th minute penalty kick, giving the 2022 US Open Cup champions a win they had to have to get into the playoff spot.

Fans then watched Minnesota United and Real Salt Lake win the race for the last two spots in the West, defeating the Vancouver Whitecaps and Portland Timbers in what turned out to be effectively an appetizer for the actual postseason. Minnesota largely held Vancouver to little en route to a 2-0 win in St. Paul, while the Timbers controversially dropped midfielder Eryk Williamson and were run over by RSL, falling behind by three goals before a very late goal gave them a more respectable-sounding 3-1 loss.

While the playoff dates and times are yet to be announced, we now know all 14 playoff teams, and what the first round looks like.

Aaron Herrera scores from 80 yards in Real Salt Lake vs. Atlas Leagues Cup match

When you’re 75-80 yards out, why not have a go?

Aaron Herrera decided to make sure the 2022 Leagues Cup Showcase was actually worth remembering.

As Real Salt Lake hosted Liga MX champions Atlas in the latest in a series of dry runs for the 2023 start of the vastly expanded Leagues Cup, Herrera scored an absolutely astounding goal to give the home side the lead.

Seemingly around 80 yards from Atlas’ goal, Herrera received the ball during a spell of patient possession for RSL. You’ve seen this play out a million times: a defensive midfielder shuttling the ball out to the right back while an opposing side in a mid-block shifts its shape a few yards over.

Given Atlas’ shape in the moment, it’s a promising moment to move the ball forward. Maybe a forward or winger checks back, and Herrera can bypass four or five players without much stress. That’s great! Teams love to break lines, and when you can do it with no risk, it means things are going very well.

Except, Herrera — standing roughly in Nevada if our geography is right — noticed something else. Atlas goalkeeper José Hernández was holding a very high line, possibly anticipating a ball over the top for striker Danny Musovski.

With no one pressing him, Herrera stepped up and crushed the ball, pretty clearly shooting despite his position. Based on America First Field’s stated field dimensions of 120 yards x 75 yards, and the grass cut pattern appearing to be in five-yard increments, Herrera was probably around 77 or 78 yards out.

Yet, if anything it looked like Herrera nearly overcooked his effort, as the ball only barely sneaked under the crossbar to give RSL a stunning lead.

Watch Herrera’s incredible long-range goal