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MLS analysis

Americans in MLS: Vazquez continues run, Clark & Edelman lift RBNY, and more

ASN's Brian Sciaretta rounds up how players in the USMNT and USYNT player pools performed in MLS over the weekend. 
BY Brian Sciaretta Posted
August 29, 2022
2:55 PM

THE WEEKEND IN MLS has been important on a lot of fronts as the playoff picture is becoming clear about who is in, who is out, and who has a chance. Surprisingly, some very good teams could be left out. From an American perspective, it was a productive weekend for youth players but mixed on players in the full national team pool.

As we do every MLS weekly column, we start with a look at how players in the youth and senior national team pools performed.

 

Senior national team pool

 

The biggest winner of the weekend is Brandon Vazquez who scored his 16th goal of the season for Cincinnati in a 2-2 draw with Columbus. It was a very nice goal where he showed strong movement on a run where Luciano Acosta played him past the backline. On the flip side, Vazquez also had a very tough miss earlier in the game which he should have scored.

Vazquez may or may not make the roster for Qatar, but he’s raised his game and deserves to be in the equation and at least a chance to showcase himself with a September call-up. If he doesn’t make it, there is no reason why he can’t continue to push for a spot next cycle too.

Also in that game, Matt Miazga scored the second Columbus goal. It’s rare when Miazga gets involved in the offense (absent a set piece) but he scored this goal with his feet. Miazga has helped give more stability to Cincinnati’s backline, but it probably isn’t going to be enough for the U.S. team before Qatar. 

Sean Johnson made a few impressive saves for NYCFC but could not stop a hard driving, close-range header off a corner in stoppage time as Orlando won 2-1. Johnson still looks like a safe bet to be the third keeper on the roster in Qatar.

Jordan Morris and Seattle fell on the road to Portland. Morris was playing up top in a two-forward set as opposed to as a winger. He’s not getting on the ball a lot in this formation, and it isn’t playing to his strengths. Seattle, meanwhile, is in serious jeopardy of missing the playoffs. Also with Seattle, Cristian Roldan continues to miss time after his groin surgery.

Kellyn Acosta went the distance for LAFC in a surprising 4-1 away loss to Austin FC. He was decent and was far from LAFC’s primary problem of being extremely sloppy in the back and not playing with nearly enough fire.

Paul Arriola and Jesus Ferreira both started and played 90 minutes for FC Dallas in its 1-1 draw at home with Real Salt Lake. Arriola played well and created most of Dallas’ best chances on the day. Ferreira, meanwhile, was a lot quieter. A big problem for Dallas right now is that they have been lacking intensity in recent games.

Aaron Long started for the Red Bulls on Saturday in a 3-1 win over Orlando but left in the 56th minute due to discomfort in his heel. That is a potentially very serious problem for Long because that is where he suffered a serious Achilles injury last season.

In that same game, DeAndre Yedlin started for Inter Miami but did nothing of note as Miami was reduced to 10 players in the first half.

Walker Zimmerman was rested for Nashville in a 3-0 win over Vancouver.

 

Youth National team round up

 

Here are thoughts on some of the youth internationals in action this weekend.

 

The big story for the weekend in youth national team games was in New Jersey. U.S. U-20 co-captain Daniel Edelman started in defensive midfield for the Red Bulls and scored team’s go-ahead goal in the second half of a 3-1 win. On the play, he stripped the ball from Miami deep in the attacking half and fired home a powerful shot. It was his first goal for the Red Bulls. For Edelman, he is starting to come into his own and his last three outings have all been very good.

Edelman remains a good pick for a breakout player in 2023 – both with the Red Bulls and the U.S. U-20 team.

Caden Clark also subbed into the game in the second half and scored the final goal. On the play he took a headed pass from Dylan Nealis and calmly finished inside the box. For Clark, this was his first goal of what has been a very difficult season as he has not played as much has he had hoped. But his minutes have been increasing and Gerhard Struber seems to change his mind on players frequently. Perhaps this is a sign of things to come.

The Philadelphia Union routed Colorado 6-0 and, as usual, several youth internationals were involved. None of the U-20 players started the game but U.S. U-23 hopeful Leon Flach started in the midfield. He wasn’t on the ball a ton over his 90 minutes (42 touches) but he was effective defensively and in winning 50/50s. If his offense ever clicks, he’s going to be a very good player.

 Paxten Aaronson was also feisty off the bench with three shots over his 13 minutes. Jack McGlynn was relatively quiet over his 27 minutes, but he still helped in possession over a 10-man Colorado team and his shot late in game forced a rebound for the team's fifth goal. Quinn Sullivan, however, only managed a few late minutes.

The Chicago Fire saw their playoff chances all but collapse with a 2-0 loss to Montreal at home. Gaga Slonina made four saves in the loss.

U.S. U-20 hopeful Daniel Leyva started for the Seattle Sounders in a tough 2-1 loss to Portland and Leyva struggled over his 58 minutes.

Caleb Wiley started at left wingback for Atlanta United in a 3-2 win over DC United on Saturday and performed well – setting up a great shot early in the game. He’s had some tough games this year but overall it’s been a great season for the 17 year old who has played far more than he has expected.

 

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