5 Things You Need To See In MLS: Week 10
If you follow MLSAces on social media (if you don’t, you should) or frequent the MLSAces blog, you’ve likely stumbled across my Team of the Week posts before. Actually, probably not - not many people actually read those posts (not that I’m bitter or anything…). In light of this, I am starting a new weekly piece covering my top five moments from the previous MLS weekend. Yes, I know - sometimes there are mid-week games. I will try to touch on these games as well, but the weekend is where most of the action is!
Below are my top 5 Things You Need to See in MLS - Week 10. If you missed any of these five moments, make sure you go back and watch them - these are must-see!
1. Nani has worked himself into the MVP race
I know I just said this would mostly be a weekend review, but how could I not encompass what Nani did over the course of both of Orlando City’s games this past week? Orlando beat San Jose and Miami by a combined score line of 7-1 (the 5-0 win over San Jose sure helps). With an offense that includes the likes of Daryl Dike, Chris Mueller, Benji Michel, and Tesho Akindele, any MLS fan would be feeling confident about their squad. Now add in a global superstar in Luís Carlos Almeida da Cunha – AKA Nani – and it’s easy to see why this Orlando attack is next level. Nani led the way for the purple lions this week and, in his 155 minutes on the field, he was able to score two goals and assist on three. That means that Nani contributed to FIVE of the team’s seven goals this week. He helped make Daryl Dike’s return to MLS special, as Dike had a brace against San Jose (As did Michel). Orlando City now sit 2nd in the Eastern Conference and 5th in the Supporters’ Shield standings. With Nani cracking himself into the top five of the Golden Boot race and competing with several others in the assist race for MLS, Nani has to be considered an MVP candidate.
To watch some of Nani’s highlights from this weekend, check out this write-up/video from Matt Doyle of MLS.
2. Sullivan took his bike for a ride
I know that the Fire got a huge result this past weekend in their 3-3 draw against the Philadelphia Union. That is wonderful for Fire fans, as the Fire looked much better this week than in week’s past, but the must-see moment of this match came from #DOOP youngster Quinn Sullivan. As the Union went down 1-0 on the road after an early own goal, Sullivan came up huge in his first ever MLS start and only his fifth appearance of the season, scoring his first ever MLS goal. Obviously, your first goal is special, but he made the moment even more memorable by pulling out the bike! Jamiro Monteiro put a ball into the box from the corner that bounces off Francisco Calvo to end up in the PERFECT spot for Sullivan to tee up a bicycle kick over his head and into the goal. What makes things even better about this goal is the immediate embrace that Sullivan got from Sergio Santos and Corey Burke: the kid had a special moment and they immediately recognized that. However, what made the moment borderline-hysterical was the very awkward, elbows-out clap from Jim Curtain. Do better, Jim - do better.
To see Sullivan’s ridiculous goal, check out this highlight from ESPN.
3. Chicharito makes his case for El Tri
Honestly, if you are reading this or anything about Chicharito and you are annoyed by how much coverage he is getting… you have yourself to blame. Last season, it seemed like all everyone wanted to hear about was Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez’s failures and struggles in MLS. I think it’s clear that he was listening and is coming back with a vengeance in 2021. This weekend, the Galaxy took on the San Jose Earthquakes in the Cali Classico rivalry match, which already made this a more hyped matchup than a typical game. All of the Galaxy’s exciting new players were finally showing their connection to and chemistry with the Mexican legend. In the 11th minute, Galaxy winger Samuel Grandsir swung one into the box for streaking Chicharito, who started the scoring and created a 1-0 lead. 40 minutes later, Chicharito scored again, but this time Kevin Cabral got into the party. Cabral slipped an easy ball into the box where a wide open Chicharito was able to tap it past JT Marcinkowski. The brace led the Galaxy to a 3-1 win over their in-state rival and Chicharito to a spot atop the 2021 Golden Boot race. Should Tata Martino and El Tri consider an in-form Javier Hernandez for this summer’s Gold Cup and World Cup qualifying? Yes. Does uncertainty about Raul Jimenez’s future make this a more urgent issue? Yes. Will we see him for El Tri? Probably not.
To see Chicharito’s goals from this weekend, check out this article by Ari Liljenwall of MLS.
4. Run, Thiago, Run!
There are certain solo performances in MLS history (and in soccer history) that really make you sit back and say “WOW!”. When I think back, I remember the famous Wayne Rooney slide tackle, recovery and pass that led to a late winner for D.C. United, or Zlatan Ibrahimović’s famous half-field goal in the first year of the El Trafico rivalry. Well, I think we had another one of those moments this past week in NYCFC’s match against D.C. United. NYCFC scored a late goal in the 84th minute which would have been a late game-saving and point-saving goal at the time. However, as the 90th minute approached, the sideline referee raised the board to indicate four minutes of added time. With 6 seconds left in added time, NYCFC ‘keeper Sean Johnson rolled a ball out of the box to Thiago Andrade, who had tons of space to run down the right side of the field. Andrade sprinted past Donovan Pines, who was trying to get back on defense and even attempted to grab Thiago’s jersey to pull him down. Despite this, Thiago was able to dribble into D.C.’s 18 yard box, cross up Pines (sorry, Donovan) and hit a low ball that barely beat ‘keeper Bill Hamid for the game winner. If you have not seen this run, you need to follow the link below - it was a thing of beauty. Thiago now has two goals in two games for NYCFC. Hey Ronny Deila, maybe give this guy some more minutes? Please?
To see Adrade’s amazing run, check out this article by Cameron Albert of SBI.
5. Salloi Silenced The Haters
Sporting Kansas City had two tough games this week, as they had to face the Colorado Rapids and LAFC, who are both tough teams to handle in their own right. The Rapids were climbing up the table while LAFC have arguably the best player in MLS in Carlos Vela. In their mid-week versus the Rapids, Daniel Salloi ended things early. He scored the opening goal in the 14th minute, after finding space in the box to tap one past William Yarbrough. Then, in the 38th minute, Salloi found another opportunity after some excellent link-up play with Felipe Hernandez. Salloi was able to get the ball into a great spot to line up a rocket past Yarbrough AGAIN. Things didn’t end there for Salloi - he would later setup a Felipe Hernandez’s goal, leading SKC to a 3-1 win over Colorado. In the LAFC match over the weekend, things were tense. LAFC scored early, then a red was issued to LAFC defender Tristan Blackmon, then SKC’s Alan Pulido tied things up in the 61st minute. At this point, late in the game with everything on the line, who would step up for this SKC squad? None other than Daniel Salloi. In the 87th minute, Salloi put in a BEAUTIFUL curler past Pablo Sisniega for the win against LAFC. This was a fun one to watch, even for a neutrals and causals.
To see Salloi’s incredible late goal against LAFC, check out this highlight via ESPN/MLS.
