The loss of Berhalter, combined with Whitecaps player injuries, will make the rest of the MLS season challenging for Vancouver. He will be missed on the corner kicks especially. I am going to the LAFC match on Saturday but am not optimistic.
I expect the transfer fee was modest as Vancouver is desperate for cash. The threat of relocation looms.
Challenging, but they will still be in the league next year.
Where? Thatās anyoneās guess. It is the North American Sports Ownerās privilege to play wherever they want, according the oligopolistsā agreement not to infringe on another.
But, where? All the soccer-hot sites are taken.
I mean, there canāt be 47 teams in one metropolis, after all. That would require several tiers and a variety of unworthy owners.
In Las Vegas probably. That seems to be where pro sports teams are going.
ESPN trying to keep the Neanderthals on the evolution train:
https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/49523086/world-cup-love-premier-league-bundesliga-laliga-season-preview-liverpool-man-city-barcelona-bayern
Surprised they are not touting āESPN+ā as the place to watch many of the leagues they note. But they donāt note ANY of the streaming services to watch these. So, weāre just supposed to follow alongā¦ by reading newspapers? Foreign ones available only at downtown newsstands, and they are a week old?
Also, among all the interesting and risky leagues, they point out the risk-free one, too:
MLS combines familiar faces with the future of the USMNT in a way you might find awfully appealing, though the fun continues further down the ladder. The USL Championship has both recognizable talent
Uh, wait: there is no āladderā in American soccer. There is an unfinished basement with no flight of stairs, and no ladder, either.
Thereās a ladder. Itās just that itās individuals that move up and down the ladder, not teamsā¦and the top of the ladder isnāt in the US.
Best not to have a psychopath as a manager that repels stars from your club.
Barcelonaās ātriangularā match? Unusual preseason fixture explained - ESPN https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/49560010/barcelona-playing-triangular-match-vs-udinese-nottingham-forest-unusual-preseason-fixture-explained
Not gay, if itās in a three-wayā¦
Move over, The MLS and Saudi Leagues. There is a new Retirement League in town!
https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/49591252/fenerbahce-sign-romelu-lukaku-napoli
Just in time, too, as Fenerbahce play Lyon for a Champions League spot the next two midweeks.
Donāt really think of Turkey as a retirement league, unless the likes of the Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal etc have hit that level.
Yeah, yeah, Super Cup, blah, blah, blah.
The (alleged) terrorist that was banned from entering the US was the Referee.
I would like if they moved to Vegas
Apparently local billionaire Arthur Griffiths is preparing a bid that would keep the Whitecaps in Vancouver. He is the former owner of the Vancouver Canucks and the Vancouver Grizzlies.
If his bid fails, it looks like you will get a good soccer team in Vegas.
In Mexico, second division teams want pro/rel. Once it goes away, itās hard to get it back, cuz rich owners donāt want that much risk, and they have enough power (money) to keep preventing it.
There were some vague rumors about Lukaku coming to Atlanta. I was chatting with some other season ticket holders, and everyone was against it. A couple said they were going to cancel their season tickets if the team signed him.
Heād tear up the Beer League.
Fenerbahce team looks half-decent on paper.
The trouble teams for those in Pots 1 and 2 are the ones who got good recently but donāt have the UEFA points, so are āstuckā in Pots 3 or 4.
FEN, VIL, LEN. Letās see how they play out.