5 things we learned in MLS Week 10: Crew meltdown a sign of deeper issues
Week 10 of MLS action was highlighted by a bit of controversy in Columbus as 18 of the league's 20 teams clashed over the weekend. Toronto FC finally returned home to a packed BMO Field, too.
Here's what we learned in Week 10:
There's a big problem in Columbus
The Columbus Crew had a bit of an embarrassing, public tantrum to deal with as two of its star players, Kei Kamara and Federico Higuain, squabbled over which one of them would take a penalty against the Montreal Impact. Check it out:
After the match, Kamara was in a foul mood, telling the broadcast reporter: "I haven’t really had to depend on Pipa at all," Kamara said, according to MLSsoccer.com. "How long have I been here? How many goals have I scored? How many have come from his assists? One, maybe two. I don’t depend on him. I depend on Ethan [Finlay], I depend on my outside backs to pass me balls."
Having the relationship sour so quickly and so publicly between your two best players is, well ... not so good for the Columbus Crew, and head coach Gregg Berhalter will need to take a stand on this issue.
It seems his immediate reaction will be trying for a trade as Wednesday's trade deadline fast approaches:
Whether Kamara leaves or not, the Crew's main issue isn't that their players are fighting with one another; it's that their attacking midfielder and striker haven't been connecting, period. Higuain was good for three assists to Kamara's 31 goals with the club so far. That's simply not good enough for a pair of attackers.
While the Crew, understandably, have built a team that revolves around Higuain getting the ball out wide for a winger to find Kamara in the box, that strategy is way too one-dimensional. The lack of attacking variety makes Columbus easy to stop. And now that they've been figured out, the Crew are suffering for it.
In any case, the situation in Columbus has soured, and the Crew need to right the ship fast or expect 2016 to be a complete write-off.
Toronto FC is doing the '6' proud
There was a renewed energy in Toronto on Saturday as 30,000 fans packed the newly-renovated stands of BMO Field, kept warm and dry on the rainy night by the canopy roofs that now adorn the city's lakeshore grounds.
Under the glow of its new lights, fans watched as Michael Bradley pulled the strings of an outright tirade, a barrage of chances, held firm from behind by a no-nonsense back four. It was, in truth, a display of Torontonian pride, spurred by Sebastian Giovinco's trickery and Jozy Altidore's impressive hold-up play.
One clear lesson emerged from the evening: Toronto FC no longer projects a fantasized air of confidence - this team now breaths it every day.
Sporting KC's slump, explained
Sporting Kansas City started the year off with so much promise, but Peter Vermes' side hasn't managed a win in their last six matches. A devastating 2-0 loss to Western basement-dwellers Houston Dynamo didn't help this week, either.
This is a side that plays its best football as the sum of its parts, not on the individual merits of its star players. And, unfortunately, Vermes isn't happy with some of those parts:
"I think there were certain players that absolutely hindered us throughout the game," Vermes said according to Sam McDowell of the KC Star. " ... there were certain people that really hurt us in the game tonight. They lacked a competitiveness that you need in this league to keep yourself in the game."
Jordan Morris is the real deal
Seattle Sounders forward Jordan Morris is on fire.
The much-heralded and highly-touted U.S. forward has scored in his fourth consecutive match for the Sounders, helping his team to a 2-0 win over the San Jose Earthquakes at CenturyLink Field.
Is he the next Landon Donovan? Maybe. The American Lionel Messi? Probably not. But is he everything Seattle needed him to be, and then some? You bet.
Lampard's heart belongs to another
If there was any doubt over Frank Lampard's immediate concerns with New York City FC, let them now be quelled, for the perennially injured former Chelsea man is now off to France for a spot of banter at Euro 2016 as a pundit with the BBC Sport broadcast crew.
As such, it's probably safe to say we won't be seeing Lampard play at Yankee Stadium until after July.
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