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Matchday One Recap
And a Yanks Abroad Update
Mason Palmer
February 29, 2024
What’s up gang!
Welcome to all 36 new readers this week. We have soccer on every weekend for the next 10 months. Life’s good, let’s get to it!
2️⃣ Matchday One Recap
🇺🇸 Yanks Abroad Update
🏟️ Attendance Numbers
🏆️ US Open Cup Update
⚽️ Goal of the Week
🤣 Meme of the Week
Matchday One Highlights
Portland Timbers 👀
The Timbers were the biggest surprise from matchday one. But the 4-1 route of a revamped Colorado Rapids team might not be as good as it looked. They had only 3 shots on target (one goal was an own goal) and a .54 eG (expected goals). A blissful start to the Phil Neville era might be tough to repeat but they do get four starters back soon.
CCL Fatigue 🥱
MLS teams that played midweek CCL games went 0-1-5 (W-L-D). Early season schedule congestion is real. Not a good sign for Orlando City, Nashville, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, Houston, and New England who have midweek games this week.
LA Galaxy Attack 💨
We love Sunday night footy and this game did not disappoint. Joseph Paintsil looks like the early favorite for best signing. The guy has so much pace and was giving Jordi Alba issues all night. Combine him with Puig and Pec, and it’s a three-headed monster in LA. Are the Galaxy back?
Replacement Refs 🟥
Are we the only ones who thought the replacement refs actually did… okay? Don’t get me wrong, that second yellow on Mark Delgado was egregious and might have cost Galaxy the three points but other than that it might just be confirmation bias that we assume these refs will be far worse.
Yanks Abroad
A bit of an American Renaissance you might say. Our boys abroad have been balling lately so we gotta update you with the good news.
In total, 13 different USMNT players have scored in Europes top 5 leagues this season. Here’s a look at the Yanks with a goal or assist last week:
Weston McKennie has been one of the best midfielders in Italy this season. On Sunday, McKennie led the team with 7 shot-creating actions and 2 goal-creating actions, leading to 2 assists, including this sick touch.
Chris Richards scored his first-ever EPL goal, crediting his new hairstyle for the header in his postgame interview.
Josh Sargent can’t stop scoring for Norwich City in the Championship. He has 7 league goals in 2024 which is tied for second most in all of Europe with Bukayo Saka.
Johnny Cardoso is tearing it up since moving to Real Betis. Look at this golazo he scored last weekend 👀 . And he was just named the La Liga U-23 Player of the Month in February.
Malik Tillman has 5 goals and 5 assists in 17 Eredivisie games this season, pretty crazy for a 21-year-old loanee. Take a peek at his ‘Key Passes’ and ‘Carrying” below, Tillman is going to be special.
Attendance Booms
“Butts in seats” is the saying in the sports ticketing world. The MLS had plenty of those this past weekend.
With Atlanta and Seattle playing away games it’s no surprise who had the highest attendance - the atmosphere in Charlotte looked electric! The total MLS matchday one attendance reached 350,330, with an average attendance of 24,933.
The LA Galaxy broke two records on Sunday night. One for a record crowd at Dignity Health Sports Park and another for the highest-grossing game in stadium history. I guess that Messi guy makes an impact 🤷♂️
US Open Cup Update
This would mean Seattle, LAFC, Atlanta, RSL, Dallas, Kansas City, and San Jose will join Houston in the Open Cup.
Look at the replies to this tweet to see how MLS fans feel about this - PISSED. One of the greatest soccer traditions in our country may never be the same. Hopefully the MLS figures this out.
Goal of the Week
Game Winna 😍
Take a bow, Mateusz Bogusz 🤩💫
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer)
Feb 24, 2024
Meme of the Week
Funny story about the center ref for the Miami vs Galaxy game… he’s also a well-known musical composer. He’s even performed in front of the Obama’s and the Pope. Refereeing is his hobby. Gotta find these refs where you can 🤷
