Super Liga: Feel the Super-ness
As I type this Houston Dynamo and Club America are just 10 minutes in to their match. The opening matches of the Super Liga have been impressive. The MLS clubs have given the Mexican clubs all they can handle and more. LA Galaxy - without question the worst club in the competition - even managed to win and had FC Dallas not been the victim of an atrocious non-call on a blatent handball they may well have emerged victorious.
The fitness of its players and the physical nature of the league are a couple things the MLS likes to boast about. However, when they have conceded goals it has been due to a lack of mental conditioning as they have not been able to maintain focus for 90 minutes or the Mexican clubs score in the 2nd half as they are able to out run the opposition. I don't get the impression the MLS players are hanging their heads out of disappointment after the match ends, but because they are completely exhausted.
That being said, the level of competition has forced the MLS clubs to play a more attractive and skillful football for large chunks of the match. And no one can question the desire of the players and how committed they are to winning the Super Liga. The goal has to be that by facing the Mexican clubs and having to raise their game the competing MLS clubs will carry that intensity over to league play. Which would then of course trickle down through the rest of the league.
Not to mention clubs not competing should be driven to qualify for Super Liga in the future with the opportunity to play in meaningful matches and collect a cool million in prize money. Plus, the fact that these have hardly been played at an international friendly type of pace and have featured several scuffles cannot be a bad thing. Bad blood and rivalries that can carry over to the next Super Liga will only help with marketing.
And we all know that the MLS loves their marketing opportunities.
So this is a cool deal that gets started just over two weeks before the EPL begins and has the makings of being incredibly tight. Obviously if an MLS club fails to reach the championship match the entire venture will be a first year disaster. You could argue even if an MLS club makes it to the final and it is not a David Beckham led Galaxy the league will be a bit upset.
In the end, these are additional matches to spread the word that MLS has grown in depth and talent over the years and that it is nearly ready to emerge as a legit 2nd tier league. Maybe next time Fox Soccer Channel or ESPN will manage to pick up the English language broadcast rights.
The fitness of its players and the physical nature of the league are a couple things the MLS likes to boast about. However, when they have conceded goals it has been due to a lack of mental conditioning as they have not been able to maintain focus for 90 minutes or the Mexican clubs score in the 2nd half as they are able to out run the opposition. I don't get the impression the MLS players are hanging their heads out of disappointment after the match ends, but because they are completely exhausted.
That being said, the level of competition has forced the MLS clubs to play a more attractive and skillful football for large chunks of the match. And no one can question the desire of the players and how committed they are to winning the Super Liga. The goal has to be that by facing the Mexican clubs and having to raise their game the competing MLS clubs will carry that intensity over to league play. Which would then of course trickle down through the rest of the league.
Not to mention clubs not competing should be driven to qualify for Super Liga in the future with the opportunity to play in meaningful matches and collect a cool million in prize money. Plus, the fact that these have hardly been played at an international friendly type of pace and have featured several scuffles cannot be a bad thing. Bad blood and rivalries that can carry over to the next Super Liga will only help with marketing.
And we all know that the MLS loves their marketing opportunities.
So this is a cool deal that gets started just over two weeks before the EPL begins and has the makings of being incredibly tight. Obviously if an MLS club fails to reach the championship match the entire venture will be a first year disaster. You could argue even if an MLS club makes it to the final and it is not a David Beckham led Galaxy the league will be a bit upset.
In the end, these are additional matches to spread the word that MLS has grown in depth and talent over the years and that it is nearly ready to emerge as a legit 2nd tier league. Maybe next time Fox Soccer Channel or ESPN will manage to pick up the English language broadcast rights.
posted by Anonymous at 9:18 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home