Soccer Saturday
Lots of soccer. Lots. Check out the full schedule here.
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We’re 10 weeks into this now. Over a quarter of the season is gone. Just like that.
There’s still a lot to learn though. Here’s what to keep an eye on this weekend.
Nashville host Atlanta United today. And – what I’m about to say goes against the established MLS deep magic written 27 years ago, but I’m going to do it anyway as your brave and fearless leader – it’s not a rivalry.
Not yet, anyway. There have been decent games. Plenty of fans make the little-less-than-four-hour trip to either stadium. But it’s missing something. A key ingredient. It’s hard to explain exactly what, but consider the first meeting ever between these two teams coincided with Josef Martínez tearing his ACL and the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Just immediate bad vibes.
The rest of the meetings have largely been handled by Nashville as they take care of business against a not-so-great Atlanta side. Even last year’s match at GEODIS Park, one of the first in the stadium’s existence and a wild atmosphere before the game, featured a couple of hours' worth of rain delay that put a damper on the entire experience. Throw in some cultural reasons that basically boil down to “neither city really minds each other, seems like a nice place to visit” and you’re missing the juice needed to make this interesting.
Maybe today can provide that extra bit of oomph. I’m optimistic for a few reasons. One, Atlanta have a ticket program this year that allows season ticket holders to claim free tickets to away games. The club expects 1,700-plus Atlanta United fans at GEODIS Park today. Atlanta fans normally travel well, but that’s a different level.
Second, for the first time in the series history, both teams are good. Audi MLS Cup Playoffs-caliber good. Thanks to Atlanta messing around for the first few years of Nashville’s existence, that hasn’t happened yet. The Five Stripes will be depleted a bit without Giorgos Giakoumakis (who could probably start a rivalry on his own), but should still have plenty of talent on the field as they try and contain Hany Mukhtar and break down the best defense in the league.
Maybe a sunny day, a loud crowd with some unwelcome guests and two quality soccer teams is enough to get this thing up and running.
Later in the day, there’s a battle for the top of the Supporters’ Shield standings. New England host Cincinnati at 7:30 pm ET with both teams entering the day on a league-best 20 points.
There’s no real reason to expect either team to get too far from the top of the standings regardless of tonight’s result. Other than their players being a little too good at soccer and being swooped up for large amounts of money by European teams. Looking at you, Revs goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic and Cincy striker Brandon Vazquez.
Anyway, let’s assume those folks stick around. The Revs have figured out a formula that feels eerily similar to their record-setting 2021 season. There’s a league-best goalkeeper, multiple attacking threats, and Carles Gil doing Carles Gil things. Thing is, now they also seem to have stabilized things in midfield with the addition of Latif Blessing and a leap forward from Noel Buck. That’s a great recipe to pick up a ton of points over the course of 34 games.
Meanwhile, Cincy have an outstanding record but still feel like they have another gear to reach. Brenner is gone in July, but Sergio Santos is a capable replacement and they’ll have an open DP spot to operate with in the summer. They’ll be more than fine at striker, which means now they just need to put everything together to make it feel a little like 2022 in attack. I thought Calen Carr on Extratime made a great point about this Cincy team feeling like last year’s Union team that struggled to get going in attack before turning into a juggernaut in the summer. It seems like the Garys are just a couple of steps away at any moment.
So, there ya go. Two stellar teams that are going to hang around at the top for a while this year. Maybe the very top. Who knows? Maybe the points earned and lost today become very important down the line.
I don’t mean to pick on Sporting Kansas City or CF Montréal any further, but it wouldn’t be The Daily Kickoff if we didn’t encourage you to drop everything you’re doing tonight to watch the two teams at the bottom of each conference go head to head. Nothing says “Oh no, we have to burn everything down” like losing to an unfamiliar, but still clearly bad team. It’s everything you could ever want from an MLS game if you’re a total weirdo. And, well, you’re reading The Daily Kickoff. So.
Portland Timbers sign midfielder Caliskan: The Portland Timbers have signed midfielder Noel Caliskan through the 2023 MLS season with options in 2024-25. Caliskan, 22, was selected by Portland in the first round (No. 15 overall) of the 2023 MLS SuperDraft presented by adidas out of Loyola Marymount University. He signed his first professional contract with T2 ahead of the 2023 MLS NEXT Pro season and has since scored three goals in four appearances (three starts).
Inter Miami sign homegrown midfielder Ruiz: Inter Miami CF have signed homegrown midfielder David Ruiz through the 2025 MLS season with options for 2026-27. Ruiz, 19, is Miami’s sixth academy product to sign with the first team. He’s already played 17 minutes for the Herons in MLS play this season while called up on short-term loans.
- Jonathan Sigal explained what you need to know and how to watch each MLS game this weekend
- Schuyler Redpath has your Round 10 guide to MLS Fantasy & Gaming
Good luck out there. Share a game with someone important.
