Randon MLS Thoughts

• It's a shame that Alexi Lalas didn't spend much time this offseason working on solidifying the Galaxy's porous defense. Less than a minute after Tyrone Marshall tied the match yesterday, Taylor Twellman responded with a goal that gave the Galaxy yet another home defeat.
• How bad will it be for the league if David Beckham ends up on a team that losses early in the playoffs or worse yet fails to qualify for the playoffs. The season is early, especially LA's season but the Galaxy have a lot of question marks, and may just be too young to win anything this season.
• I think Jason Kreis has already gotten through to the underachieving Real Salt Lake side. Freddy Adu had possibly his best game in MLS on Thursday Night, with several dangerous runs down both flanks and some spectacular footwork. Also the defense was much better organized and held its shape than it had under John Ellinger.
• Joe Cannon is the best keeper in MLS, but for a team lacking in consistent attacking options, I do not think LA should have traded Herculez Gomez. Gomez is almost single handidly keeping a shaky Colorado side in every match. Well Gomez, and Roberto Brown (one of the best foreign acquisitions this year nobody noticed) are keeping the Rapids afloat.
• Even though Red Bull NY lost midweek to the Galaxy in a US Open Cup qualifier, it was nice to see Juan Pablo Angel score on his debut.
• It was no shock to see Danny Dichio score a goal and get sent off in the same match today. Dichio is one of the more accomplished players MLS has signed in recent seasons, but the reason he was available is that in his native England he has developed the reputation of a thug. I asked an English friend of mine via email today after the match what he thought of Dichio and he responded, " Dichio is a dangerous psychopath who can score goals but should not be allowed to walk the streets." I think that sums it up. No word on whether MLS will attempt to sign disgraced Man City midfielder Joey Barton who like Dichio can score goals but also must be placed in the dangerous psychopath category.
• As much as I raved about DC United before the season, I'm beginning to believe they are one of the worst teams in the league if they keep their current roster. Their backline seems to be wearing down, their midfield doesn't play well together, and they lack a clinical finisher beyond Emilio. Besides every other team in the East seems to have a certain spark that DC thus far has lacked. Perhaps after a grueling CONCACAF Champions Cup United is just going through the motions, but even in their win against Chivas USA I didn't see much to convince me that my prediction of a runaway title winner was a very smart one.
• The inconsistency of FC Dallas is due to the relative youth of the midfield. Steve Morrow knew his team would have growing pains when he dumped Ronnie O'Brien and Richard Mulrooney in the off season, but by year's end I remain convinced that the Hoops will be among the league's elite.
• What a great night it must have been for Kansas City to break the magic 10,000 fan mark! Right now soccer lovers all over the San Fransisco Bay Area and state of Florida are wondering what exactly they did to lose their MLS teams. (okay, maybe in Tampa they are wondering why they lost their team but in south Florida many may not have known the Fusion ever existed.)
• Guillermo Barros Schelotto had his first MLS assist tonight and he should help to turn the Crew into winners in his time in Columbus. Schelotto is exactly the type of player MLS had to sign from a quality standpoint even if he doesn't bring any marketing ability with him. (Jeff Rusnak the well respected soccer writer stated last year that he'd rather see MLS sign Paul Scholes than David Beckham for exactly the reason why Schelotto needed to be signed by the league.)