• Oklahoma City Energy FC presented two stadium options to the Oklahoma City – City Council on Aug. 6 as it lobbied to earn a spot on the upcoming MAPS 4 ballot in Oklahoma City. A recap and details from the club’s city council presentation can be read here. The…
• OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma City Energy FC ownership presented a detailed stadium plan to the City Council of Oklahoma City on Tuesday, revealing two options for a new stadium while sharing its credentials to why its initiative should be included on the upcoming MAPS 4 ballot in the city….
• It’s almost time for USL action once again. The league is back as the permanent Division 2 league with a new brand, loads of new teams and some exciting changes for the 2019 season. The USL is now fresh off a (relatively) quiet offseason. No teams folded, no new…
• Since beating Tulsa 1-0 to open the season, the Energy have lost four games in a row. This is their longest losing streak since their inaugural season, back in 2014. They have scored a grand total of three goals all season, and have conceded 10. That’s bad. Really, really…
• While it’s awfully common for clubs to seek out local players to help connect with their fan bases, OKC Energy U23 has taken the personnel strategy to a whole new level. Hey, why go “loco” when you can go local? On Tuesday, the team announced the addition of 11…
• Brickyard Battalion president Josh Mason guests to help preview the Indy Eleven’s inaugural USL campaign and make Eastern and Western Conference predictions for the 2018 season. Mason touches on some of the ways the Eleven’s move to Lucas Oil Stadium will affect the supporters’ group. The panelists also analyze…
• Oklahoma City Energy FC announced Thursday that it mutually agreed to part with coach Jimmy Nielsen on Thursday. It was a surprising move from a club that was a penalty shootout round away from making its first USL Cup earlier in November. First, a few notes about what happened…
• LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Louisville City FC outlasted New York Red Bulls II by a final score of 1-1 (4-3) to win the USL Eastern Conference title Saturday in an edge-of-your-seat penalty shootout at Louisville Slugger Field. LouCity will now host the Swope Park Rangers in the USL championship game…
• Soc Takes understands that OKC Energy have signed Andy Craven as a trade deal for Danni Konig; as first reported by Soc Takes. The 25-year-old striker heads back to OKC Energy having made just three appearances for FCC. His final appearance against Bethlehem Steel resulted in him being given a four-game…
• With forwards Andy Craven and Djiby suspended, FC Cincinnati are poised to sign Danni Konig from OKC Energy FC. While the contract has not been finalized, Soc Takes understands negotiations are at an advanced stage and are likely to be completed this weekend or early next week. Konig will…

In an annual tradition that has spanned many podcasts, Ian presents the gang with his preseason MLS tiers while John and R.P. critique them. In this first part, they go through the bottom two tiers.

• Related: Front Porch Discourse: MLS tiers Part II

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Image credit: FC Cincinnati Communications

FC Cincinnati‘s inaugural season in MLS has all but hit the skids. Sitting on a measly 17 points through 24 matches, good for dead last in the Supporters’ Shield standings, it’s time for the club to turn its focus toward the future.

That’s precisely what the club has done after announcing multiple significant moves recently to acquire left back Andrew Gutman, one of the best young fullback prospects in the American player pool, and 22-year-old midfielder Derrick Etienne Jr.

First, FC Cincy obtained the MLS rights to Gutman from the Chicago Fire via trade. The winner of the 2018 MAC Hermann Trophy was acquired along with a 2020 SuperDraft third-round pick. In exchange, the Fire received $50,000 in GAM this year, with the potential to get up to $150,000 more in GAM from FC Cincy in the future if Gutman ends up on the roster and reaches certain performance-based metrics. Chicago will also get a cut of any future loan or transfer fee if Cincinnati ships Gutman outside of MLS.

Of course, actual rights trump theoretical rights, the former of which were still held by Celtic at the time. Gutman trialed with Rangers FC after graduating from Indiana University, but ultimately got offered a contract from its biggest rival instead and decided to sign with the Scottish club.

Due to work visa roadblocks, Celtic’s plan from the jump was to loan Gutman to the Charlotte Independence to play in the USL Championship. Well, actually the original plan was to loan him to Nashville SC, but the watchful eye of MLS nixed that idea due to Nashville’s imminent move to MLS in 2020, which would’ve presented a conflict of interest with the Fire holding his Homegrown Player rights.

Alas, Gutman headed to Charlotte and ended up starting 14 games, delivering three goals and an assist before briefly returning to Celtic. Shortly after acquiring his rights, FC Cincy worked out a loan deal with Celtic to bring Gutman to the Queen City.

The move signals a commitment by FC Cincinnati to turn its eyes toward 2020 and beyond. It also provides insurance at left back for veteran Greg Garza, who’s been hurt most of the year and certainly isn’t getting any younger.

Moreover, the addition of Etienne Jr. on loan from the New York Red Bulls further cements the club’s future-focused approach and bolsters a very weak FC Cincy attack. Etienne Jr., who’s the same age as Gutman but already has significantly more professional experience, joins after contributing one goal and one assist in 11 appearances this season for RBNY. Only five of those cameos, however, were starts. He tallied five times in 2018 despite playing less than 1,000 regular-season minutes.

Gutman’s loan runs through the end of the 2020 season, while Etienne Jr.’s contains an option to buy at the end of 2019.

FC Cincinnati also recently brought in attacker Joe Gyau, who has U.S. men’s national team experience and has spent the last several years at various levels of the German pyramid. At 26, he doesn’t have the prospect label that Gutman and Etienne Jr. do, but still has plenty of good football ahead of him and possibly hasn’t even settled into his prime yet.

If the past couple weeks are any indication, look for new head coach Ron Jans and FC Cincy’s front office to continue making decisions for the rest of 2019 with the clear-cut goal of developing a roster that’s much more competitive in the coming years. It’s unequivocally the correct approach after a more-than-forgettable inaugural MLS campaign.

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KJboxing.

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Photo credit: Creators Network via MLS Communications

The most exciting factor of any playoffs is that often the best team of the regular season doesn’t win the championship. And the full domination of Los Angeles FC by the Seattle Sounders was not the exception to the standard rule.

LAFC broke or reached every MLS record, became the best team in the history of the league and had the MVP of the 2019 season. However, Los Angeles FC is now a statistic.

The elimination at the hands of Seattle turned a fantastic campaign into a book of numbers. The weight of LAFC’s failure will remain longer in the memory of the fan than the functionality of the team during the regular season, because in the end, the functionality failed.

Bob Bradley’s squad exhibited punctual deficiencies in defense during El Trafico. Nevertheless, LAFC surpassed LA Galaxy, which represented more a mental rival than a quality football team.

The Sounders took advantage of LAFC’s declining backline. Also, they disarmed its potent offense with the most basic principles of football: order and coordination. Brian Schmetzer lined two blocks of four men to defend the last 35 yards of the Seattle’s field, and put special effort in disconnecting Carlos Vela from the game by leaving him in a two-v-one disadvantage. The same two lines of four deployed Jordan Morris, Raul Ruidiaz, Joevin Jones and Nicolas Lodeiro in counterattacks.

Between the experience of Lodeiro, ability of Ruidiaz and physical form of the squad, the Sounders surpassed the mythical LAFC side with authority. Scoring three goals at Banc of California Stadium was not even the best part of their match; the Sounders unplugged Vela’s creativity. LAFC barely generated offensive opportunities and looked like a rookie team instead of a record squad.

Schmetzer outplayed Bradley in the most crucial match in LAFC franchise history. Seattle executed a perfect match, conceding one goal on a free kick and scoring three goals in five shots on target. For the third time in four years, the Sounders will play for the MLS Cup.

What LAFC did during the 2019 season was valuable. However, they failed during the playoffs. And while records matter, championships are more prestigious.

Follow Luis on Twitter: @LFulloa.

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WESTFIELD, Ind. — Co-hosts Nipun Chopra and Kevin Johnston ramble on about everything from FC Cincinnati and Indy’s Eleven Park development to the ISC Sports Network‘s sorely lacking hair and makeup budget. It’s the latest edition of Soc Takes TV presented by Sogility.

WATCH HERE

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Photo credit: Agencia de Noticias Andes (Creative Commons license)

The relationship of Marcelo Gallardo and the Copa Libertadores feels like the union of two different poles in a magnet: they’ll attract to each other, no matter the circumstances.

After walking through the empty halls of relegation, River Plate found a talisman in Marcelo Gallardo. And it made sense, a player who conquered continental trophies, who used to be an idol, returned in 2014 as a very young coach with fresh ideas.

In one year, Gallardo evolved the identity of River Plate. It woke up a South American giant that saw, during a decade, the success of Boca Juniors, the eternal rival. However, not only did Gallardo transform River’s football, it challenged the era of Boca Juniors.

In the last five editions of the Copa Libertadores, Gallardo reached the final three times. And his team eliminated Boca Juniors in 2015 (round of 16) and 2019 (semifinals). In 2018, River Plate defeated Boca Juniors in the last Libertadores final played in Madrid playing like the symphony of an orchestra: flowing with candor and complexity.

Although, the third final was the unlucky charm to River, losing in the last two minutes against Flamengo. However, the Brazilian team from Rio de Janeiro invested $56.8 million in the last year.

Fla added Rafinha (Bayern Munich) and Filipe Luis (Atletico de Madrid) as free agents, and Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus, a multi-awarded coach with experience in Champions League and Europa League. Jesus currently earns $4 million and Flamengo wants to raise his wages to $5.5 million. Jesus earned the same amount of money in Benfica when he appeared in Forbes’ top 10 coaches salaries.

Flamengo succumbed to money football, something that River Plate can’t do at all. Gallardo’s team spent $14 million from August 2018 to December 2019. Even when multiple Argentinean clubs have worldwide popularity, the Superliga Argentina doesn’t have the money flow that the Brazilian Serie A and the Liga MX have.

The factor that River Plate can’t compete economically with Brazilian squads adds significant value to Gallardo’s work and the momentum that the community of River Plate is living. The stats show that in the last 10 editions of the Copa Libertadores, six different Brazilian teams won the tournament, although none of them played two or more finals in the same amount of time.

The phenomenon of “El Muñeco” Gallardo grew massively, earning praise from coaches like Pep Guardiola.

“What Gallardo has done in River Plate is incredible,” Guardiola told TNT Sports. “It seems that Europe is the only place in the world. I can’t believe how Gallardo isn’t nominated as one of the best coaches in the world.”

Gallardo’s contract ends in 2021, but it seems that there might be soon a new adventure. And who can’t blame his aspirations? Ten titles in five years with River Plate, Gallardo triumphed in South America. He gave more than any other manager in River Plate’s history.

Follow Luis on Twitter: @LFulloa.

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