Carlos Vela is rumored to become LAFC's first designated player when the team begins MLS play next season, and the Mexican attacker took the first step toward that goal Tuesday. Real Sociedad announced Vela would be leaving the club for MLS in January.
The L.A. Galaxy are in a major rut and everyone is piling on, from opponents to technology. In a 3-1 loss to the Portland Timbers on Sunday, the Galaxy were one of the first MLS clubs to have a goal disallowed by video review. Then the Timbers slammed home two of the best goals of the weekend to rub it in and spoil the debut of Jonathan Dos Santos.
L.A. thought it had scored in the 12th minute when Gyasi Zardes poked home from short range. But the officials checked the tape and discovered Zardes had handled the ball prior to the goal.
David Villa’s first two seasons in MLS with New York City FC were remarkable, but his third season with the club is poised to be his finest yet. Fresh off being selected for his third consecutive All-Star Game and having just received the 2017 ESPY Award for Best MLS Player, Villa took his league-leading tally to 17 goals from 22 games with his first-ever hat trick in America.
The Champions League and Europa League have used end-line assistants for a few years now. The Confederations Cup used VAR this summer, and Major League Soccer will start using video review on Saturday. The English Premier League has popularized goal-line technology and this year will have a panel to suspend those who dive or feign injury.
It’s taken a while, but soccer is finally getting its shit together when it comes to officiating the game.
Back in 2010, MLS signed an eight-year deal with Adidas worth $200 million. It was seen as a watershed moment for the league, signed just years after an eight-year contract with ESPN.
In 2014, the broadcast deal for MLS changed dramatically when ESPN, Fox Sports and Univision signed new agreements totaling around $90 million per-season, five times more than the previous deal.
Last night’s match between Chivas U-20s and MLS Homegrowns was a stage for young players to strut their stuff. This Chivas defender certainly understood that. Watch him lay it all out in style with an incredible scorpion goal line save.
| The scorpion clearance from a Chivas u20 defender v the MLS homegrown team. pic.twitter.com/AK7qGyuTsI
— Footy Scouted (@FootyScouted) August 2, 2017
A Sebastian Giovinco double helped Toronto FC to a 4-0 victory over Eastern Conference rivals New York City FC on Sunday. Giovinco skipped around an attempted tackle from Andrea Pirlo like he wasn’t even there (which is close to the truth) and curled in his first goal from distance.
Saturday’s El Clasico at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami gave over 66,000 spectators the opportunity to watch the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Gareth Bale, but the lasting legacy of this match will probably be the confrontation between Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic and American referee Jair Marrufo.
Rakitic’s goal in the 7th minute gave Barca an early 2-0 lead, but his 73 minutes on the pitch weren’t entirely enjoyable.
Jonathan dos Santos is officially an LA Galaxy player. The 28-year-old joins his brother Gio in California after sealing a move from Villarreal. He will immediately become either the best midfielder in MLS or very very close.