I think everything here makes sense exception v Seattle. Yes they have the best roster, but they never start playing until June and they have 75k games this year. I just don’t see them getting 1st
You might be right, but I get the feeling from folks around the team that they care about the Shield this year. And remember, they started hot as hell in 2021 & 2023 before injuries killed them both times.
They've now got an injury-proof roster, just about. So I'm bullish.
Negatively! Need to assess how they intend to replace them but I find it hard to believe they'll find another player who's as good, which means it's hard to see them in that top tier.
I have no inside info on this but I wouldn't be shocked the Galaxy's U22 No. 9 is Allen Obando, an 18-year-old Ecuadorian full int'l who became a regular with Barcelona (of Guayaquil) during the second half of last year. Has MLS-level physicality and has the profile of a guy who makes a lot of sense 1) as a U22, 2) as a worthy developmental project, and 3) as what the Galaxy need.
I'd also expect them to try to find a cheap veteran with a good track record, like Billy Sharpe a few years back.
Nice going to look him up! Definitely sounds like a high upside investment considering Galaxy have a good set up around the striker position that can really help set up the next striker for success. I've seen some people online saying Galaxy should kick the tires of Kei Kamara. Any thoughts on that?
I think there's a few things to consider as explanation for KC's seemingly few defensive additions.
While KC was a bottom 5 team in actual goals against, they were better in terms of xGA - 66 GA vs 53 xGA. 53 xGA is not great, but it's not absolutely terrible either. Some regression to the mean can be expected.
There have been defensive changes made - new LCB starter Joaquin Fernandez only got two games last season, so he can be treated as almost a new signing with a full preseason. Pulskamp finally gets the #1 job; he could take a step forward given a consistent lineup in front of him and a long string of starts.
KC will almost certainly sign Jansen Miller, one of the top CBs coming out of the draft. Looks like they're thinking of adding Jan Jurcec, Croatian RB. TBD if he's signed or starts, but that's potentially 3 new starters in the back 5. Ndenbe and Rosero are holdovers that probably deserve to retain their starting positions.
Now that KC has 1: said they're going to make significant additions and 2: actually did that with two new DPs, the expectation is the overall team structure in all phases of play improves. More ball possession, better re-press, and fewer fires for the defense to put out. A DP 10 and a 9 that's more comfortable on the ball than our previous one should alleviate a lot of pressure that the defense was put under.
Put it all together, and I wouldn't be surprised if this team sheds 15-20 GA and concedes in the 45-50 range.
With that novel being said, they could still have a rough year for defense. Pulskamp is inexperienced, Fernandez is an unknown, RB is a big question mark, and Radoja looks to be the only real 6 on the roster. It's a team rebuilding, and that can look ugly for a while.
The rebuild so far has been attack focused, as that's where the contracts were mostly expiring. Almost all of the defense for this year is out of contract at the end of the year. I'm guessing there's some plans for replacements heading into 2026.
The new CB pairing is already looking good in camp, which was probably the biggest question mark for the Revs. Do you think the top-end talent just isn’t good enough? Personally, I’m bullish on the Gil-Campana connection.
Gil is great but he's hitting his mid-30s now, and Campana is just an above-average MLS forward at best. Not like an elite guy out there.
Langoni? Chancalay? More questions than answers, and while the CBs have apparently looked ok in preseason, I try not to read too much into that. It's dangerous.
The big thing: Caleb Porter's been a head coach in MLS for 10 seasons, and has missed the playoffs six times – including four of his past five seasons in charge. That's an awful track record.
Come on, Gil is only 32! I hear you though. I think Langoni offers something, if inconsistently, but I'm not sold on Chancalay as more than a TAM player. Ganago has to hit for the attack to work, and it sounds like Porter views him as a wide player.
Like most Revs fans, not sure why Porter is still around. Nothing about last season inspired confidence, but maybe this will be an "on-again" year.
Sounders lack of top end talent? That must be 2024 Ferreira and 2022 Morris and Rusnak...watch out if it's the reverse. (Not to mention the smoke rising form the cleats of Obed and Pedro...)
Um Matt, where do you come up with the Rapids falloff starting before the Leagues Cup? They were 3-1-3 in the 5 games leading into Leagues Cup, including beating Salt Lake and winning the Rocky Mountain Cup in their final game. They were 3-0-2 in the 5 games before that. The only losses the team had between the 2nd of June and the Leagues Cup opener in August were losing to both LA teams in LA. Hardly "bad" losses.
I think everything here makes sense exception v Seattle. Yes they have the best roster, but they never start playing until June and they have 75k games this year. I just don’t see them getting 1st
You might be right, but I get the feeling from folks around the team that they care about the Shield this year. And remember, they started hot as hell in 2021 & 2023 before injuries killed them both times.
They've now got an injury-proof roster, just about. So I'm bullish.
How much does the Cucho news affect your Crew prediction?
Negatively! Need to assess how they intend to replace them but I find it hard to believe they'll find another player who's as good, which means it's hard to see them in that top tier.
Curious to see who Galaxy fill the striker position with
I have no inside info on this but I wouldn't be shocked the Galaxy's U22 No. 9 is Allen Obando, an 18-year-old Ecuadorian full int'l who became a regular with Barcelona (of Guayaquil) during the second half of last year. Has MLS-level physicality and has the profile of a guy who makes a lot of sense 1) as a U22, 2) as a worthy developmental project, and 3) as what the Galaxy need.
I'd also expect them to try to find a cheap veteran with a good track record, like Billy Sharpe a few years back.
Nice going to look him up! Definitely sounds like a high upside investment considering Galaxy have a good set up around the striker position that can really help set up the next striker for success. I've seen some people online saying Galaxy should kick the tires of Kei Kamara. Any thoughts on that?
I think there's a few things to consider as explanation for KC's seemingly few defensive additions.
While KC was a bottom 5 team in actual goals against, they were better in terms of xGA - 66 GA vs 53 xGA. 53 xGA is not great, but it's not absolutely terrible either. Some regression to the mean can be expected.
There have been defensive changes made - new LCB starter Joaquin Fernandez only got two games last season, so he can be treated as almost a new signing with a full preseason. Pulskamp finally gets the #1 job; he could take a step forward given a consistent lineup in front of him and a long string of starts.
KC will almost certainly sign Jansen Miller, one of the top CBs coming out of the draft. Looks like they're thinking of adding Jan Jurcec, Croatian RB. TBD if he's signed or starts, but that's potentially 3 new starters in the back 5. Ndenbe and Rosero are holdovers that probably deserve to retain their starting positions.
Now that KC has 1: said they're going to make significant additions and 2: actually did that with two new DPs, the expectation is the overall team structure in all phases of play improves. More ball possession, better re-press, and fewer fires for the defense to put out. A DP 10 and a 9 that's more comfortable on the ball than our previous one should alleviate a lot of pressure that the defense was put under.
Put it all together, and I wouldn't be surprised if this team sheds 15-20 GA and concedes in the 45-50 range.
With that novel being said, they could still have a rough year for defense. Pulskamp is inexperienced, Fernandez is an unknown, RB is a big question mark, and Radoja looks to be the only real 6 on the roster. It's a team rebuilding, and that can look ugly for a while.
The rebuild so far has been attack focused, as that's where the contracts were mostly expiring. Almost all of the defense for this year is out of contract at the end of the year. I'm guessing there's some plans for replacements heading into 2026.
As a sounders fan I’m never thrilled with losing my “nobody believed jn us card” and will pretend I didn’t see this
The new CB pairing is already looking good in camp, which was probably the biggest question mark for the Revs. Do you think the top-end talent just isn’t good enough? Personally, I’m bullish on the Gil-Campana connection.
Gil is great but he's hitting his mid-30s now, and Campana is just an above-average MLS forward at best. Not like an elite guy out there.
Langoni? Chancalay? More questions than answers, and while the CBs have apparently looked ok in preseason, I try not to read too much into that. It's dangerous.
The big thing: Caleb Porter's been a head coach in MLS for 10 seasons, and has missed the playoffs six times – including four of his past five seasons in charge. That's an awful track record.
Come on, Gil is only 32! I hear you though. I think Langoni offers something, if inconsistently, but I'm not sold on Chancalay as more than a TAM player. Ganago has to hit for the attack to work, and it sounds like Porter views him as a wide player.
Like most Revs fans, not sure why Porter is still around. Nothing about last season inspired confidence, but maybe this will be an "on-again" year.
Sounders lack of top end talent? That must be 2024 Ferreira and 2022 Morris and Rusnak...watch out if it's the reverse. (Not to mention the smoke rising form the cleats of Obed and Pedro...)
Um Matt, where do you come up with the Rapids falloff starting before the Leagues Cup? They were 3-1-3 in the 5 games leading into Leagues Cup, including beating Salt Lake and winning the Rocky Mountain Cup in their final game. They were 3-0-2 in the 5 games before that. The only losses the team had between the 2nd of June and the Leagues Cup opener in August were losing to both LA teams in LA. Hardly "bad" losses.
One win in their final three games heading into the Leagues Cup after having won five of their previous six, in mostly dominant fashion.