Ledesma (45) came alive against the Indy Eleven after a quiet first game. Photo credit: Robbie Mehling/Soc Takes

FC Cincinnati attacker Emmanuel Ledesma has this whole chance creation thing down pat.

In 2017, Ledesma produced an insane chances created rate while plying his trade for the NASL’s New York Cosmos. In only 19 appearances (17 starts) and 1,393 minutes, the Argentine generated a league-leading 73 chances. The next-highest total was 56 chances created by now-teammate Nazmi Albadawi, who was then with North Carolina FC. Albadawi played 2,815 minutes, more than double Ledesma.

Image credit: NASL

Ledesma’s ridiculous playmaking ability was further highlighted by some of his more obvious “counting” stats: 10 goals and six assists. The Cosmos were an entirely different animal when he was on the pitch last year. With the car keys in Ledesma’s hands, the club nearly rode his skills to an NASL title, falling just short in the final 2-0 to the now-defunct San Francisco Deltas.

The question coming into the 2018 season, of course, was how his creativity would translate to a new system in Cincinnati?

If FC Cincy’s second match of the year was any indication, the answer appears to be: fairly swimmingly, but still a work in progress.

In Week 1, Ledesma was uncharacteristically held in check by the Charleston Battery. He created zero chances, but did send in four crosses. FC Cincinnati gutted out a 1-0 road win and Ledesma’s nondescript showing kind of got lost in the shuffle.

But against the Indy Eleven in Week 3, the Ledesma of old returned — well, sort of. Indy actually forced the 29-year-old into an inefficient outing. Here’s his distribution map, including set pieces:

Image credit: USL/Opta

That’s a lot of red (unsuccessful passes); it’s also an impressive amount of yellow (key passes and assists).

Ledesma only completed 56 percent of his passes for the game, but offset that with four chances created and an assist to Emery Welshman. On the night, the Eleven did a solid job shutting down passing lanes and being disruptive. But sometimes one chance is all it takes against a footballer of Ledesma’s caliber. FC Cincinnati left Lucas Oil Stadium with a 1-0 win and three points despite getting outplayed by Indy.

Ultimately, what makes the Argentine a special player is that at any given moment he’s capable of producing a quality opportunity for himself or a teammate. And he does so consistently.

FC Cincinnati returns to Nippert Stadium tonight to host defending-champion Louisville City FC at 7 p.m.

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KJboxing.

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Photo credit: Victor Araiza

U.S. men’s national team stalwart and recent Houston Dynamo left back DaMarcus Beasley is now a member of the Indiana Soccer Hall of Fame.

“Run DMB,” who’s from Fort Wayne, Ind., was announced as an inductee for the Class of 2018 earlier this week.

It is truly a honor to be inducted into the Indiana Soccer Hall of Fame. On behalf of myself and my family, I want to say thank you to everyone who voted and has appreciated my career on and off the soccer field(thus far) I love my city, I love where I’m from. Thank you Indiana!

— DaMarcus Beasley (@DaMarcusBeasley) January 16, 2018

Beasley began his professional career with the Chicago Fire from 2000-04 before joining PSV Eindhoven. He was later loaned to Manchester City, and also suited up for the Glasgow Rangers, Hannover 96 and Puebla. The veteran wingback returned to MLS in 2014 to play in Houston, where he remained a regular through the end of the 2017 season. Beasley is currently out of contract with the Dynamo, however.

His impressive longevity has seen him partake in four World Cups for the USMNT: 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014. Along the way he’s amassed 126 caps.

Beasley’s importance to U.S. Soccer as a whole is immeasurable, let alone the impact he’s had in his home state. Congrats, DaMarcus!

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Photo credit: Jared Allen/Charlotte Independence

Sometimes a nil-nil scoreline isn’t indicative of a match’s excitement level. Other times, unfortunately, it looks every bit the part.

Saturday evening at the Sportsplex at Matthews the latter type of stalemate developed, with the Indy Eleven and Charlotte Independence settling for a point each from the snoozefest. The final stats were fairly even, and fairly ugly: Charlotte held a tiny edge in possession at 52-48 percent, but didn’t put a single shot on target. Indy only had two shots on frame, hardly troubling the hosts as well.

As difficult on the eyes as the match was to behold, it didn’t lack action entirely.

Indy left midfielder Tyler Pasher linked up with forward Jack McInerney to create one of the few dangerous opportunities for either side in the first half which nearly produced a cheeky tally. Pasher served in a low cross to the near post to McInerney’s feet in traffic, but Jack Mac’s backheel attempt was blocked. Neither team had much to boast about at the break.

In the 68th minute, Pasher darted forward with a series of dribbles and found enough space for a shot, but didn’t get all of it as his attempt trickled wide of frame.

The Independence surely thought they’d opened the scoring when Joel Johnson played a ball in from the end line in the 72nd minute. His astute pass found an open Jorge Herrera a little outside the six-yard box, but his shot that appeared destined for the back of the net struck the underside of the crossbar instead, allowing Indy to clear danger.

Photo credit: Jared Allen/Charlotte Independence

What the match lacked in imagination it tried to make up for with a subplot, but even that proved uneventful and left a lot to be desired. Independence striker Eamon Zayed faced his former club in just his second appearance of the season after having to wait for approval of his P-1 visa.

For the second game in a row, Zayed came off the bench and barely touched the ball. He and his teammates seem to be gelling at a snail’s pace in his limited minutes thus far. Zayed is a classic box striker who requires service, and he simply hasn’t gotten it — or anything close to it — yet. He attempted and completed just one pass on the night. The Independence will learn the hard way if they continue to be unable to funnel the ball to their Irish-Libyan striker, as Zayed simply doesn’t do enough “other things” outside of poaching to positively impact matches if he isn’t getting opportunities near goal.

For Indy, solid shifts by midfielders Matt Watson and Tyler Pasher were worthy of man of the match consideration. A case could be made for goalkeeper Owain Fon Williams or a defender for securing a road clean sheet, but the backline simply wasn’t tested enough to deserve too many accolades. Watson was smooth in his pitch generalship, changing the point of attack when needed while making few errors. Pasher caused several headaches with his pace, dribbling ability and service.

Central midfielder Kevan George was one of the few bright spots for Charlotte. He completed an impressive 71 total passes and 13 long passes, while also winning nine of 14 duels. Defensively, he contributed five tackles, four interceptions and two clearances.

Indy will get the chance to avenge its lone loss of the season Wednesday at home against FC Cincinnati. The two Eastern Conference powerhouses both played Saturday, so it’ll be interesting to see how head coaches Martin Rennie and Alan Koch manage their rotations on short rest.

The Independence will enjoy a full week off before heading south to face the Charleston Battery on the road Saturday.

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KJboxing.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WESTFIELD, Ind. (Nov. 15, 2018) — A new soccer-themed television show will soon invade digital platforms and Indiana airwaves.

Soc Takes and the ISC Sports Network have joined forces to launch “Soc Takes TV,” an all-soccer television program presented by Sogility that will cover the sport nationally and globally while maintaining a heavy local focus. Soc Takes co-founders Kevin Johnston and Nipun Chopra will co-host the show, with ISC Sports Network vice president Greg Rakestraw serving as the executive producer.

“When ‘Rake’ calls you up and wants to work together, you kind of just drop everything and say yes,” Johnston said. “Seizing the opportunity to work with someone as talented and experienced as Greg was one of the simplest decisions we’ve ever made. He’s done so much for the game around here — and all Indiana sports, for that matter.”

Rakestraw is the voice of the Indy Eleven for MyINDY-TV and hosts his own weekly radio show, “Soccer Saturday,” for local ESPN affiliate 1070 The Fan. He also provides Indianapolis Colts postgame coverage for the station and commentates for the IHSAA Champions Network. Rakestraw joined the ISC Sports Network in 2018.

Johnston and Chopra launched SocTakes.com, an Indianapolis-based soccer news site, in February 2017 and together host their own podcast, the “Soc Takes Pod.” The website covers the same spectrum that “Soc Takes TV” will, i.e., all things soccer with a local emphasis.

“One of the central goals of Soc Takes is to grow awareness of the sport of soccer, both here in Indiana and nationally,” Chopra said. “Our collaboration with ISC Sports Network and Sogility is a natural extension of the same. We look forward to bringing you quality soccer video content and analysis.”

Chopra is a former contributor at FourFourTwo.com and regular on the Manchester United-centered “United in Focus” podcast. Additionally, he co-hosts a soccer videocast entitled “Lower League America” with SiriusXM FC’s Jason Davis as part of a collaboration between Soc Takes and Compass Football.

Johnston covers professional and amateur soccer as a freelance correspondent for The Indianapolis Star, including working the part-time Indy Eleven beat since 2016. He also lends his hand to the IndyStar’s high school football, high school basketball and boxing coverage.

The show’s title sponsor, Sogility, is a recently launched soccer-specific training facility located just north of Indianapolis in Westfield. “Soc Takes TV” will be filmed on-site at Sogility.

ISC Sports Network is currently available on Apple TV, Android TV, Roku and Amazon Fire TV, as well as directly from ISCSportsNetwork.com. It’s also carried by numerous local cable providers in select Indiana markets. Headquartered in Lafayette, Ind., the network was founded earlier this year.

The show’s topics will include the Indy Eleven, in-state college, high school and club soccer, MLS, USL, top European leagues and international soccer. “Soc Takes TV” will begin filming in mid-November and air shortly thereafter, with new episodes produced monthly.

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Photo credit: Arturo Pardavila III (Creative Commons license)

When it was announced on May 21, 2013 that Major League Soccer (MLS) had granted a franchise in New York City — to be owned by Manchester City conglomorate City Football Group (CFG) and the New York Yankees, no less — high expectations were immediately placed on the nascent NYCFC.

Part of the expectations came from the simple fact that the club would be playing in the largest market in the league, which was very much untapped despite the presence of the New York Red Bulls across the Hudson River. Similarly, the success of the Red Bulls — who have made every iteration of the MLS Cup Playoffs, finishing at or near the top of the Eastern Conference and ultimately winning the Supporters’ Shield in 2013 — added the weight of a certain level of on-field performance to the new fan base’s expectations.

But because of the size of the market, as well as the fact that CFG and the Yankees represented what was certainly among the wealthiest ownership groups in the league, there was an added burden — the team was expected to spend as big as was possible under the confines of the restrictive MLS salary cap. That meant three Designated Players (DPs), utilizing the new allocation money systems to the fullest and stocking up on premier domestic talent.

The club’s first signing was no slouch, as World Cup winner and Spanish international David Villa would mark the club’s opening epoch — ultimately providing the club with their first beloved captain. Controversies aside, the signings of Frank Lampard and Andrea Pirlo (midway through the year) ticked the big-name box and placed a firm check next to the “three DPs” requirement. Additionally, the club used the new Targeted Allocation Money (TAM) clause to bring in a young U.S. men’s national team member over the usual DP threshold in Mix Diskerud. While the latter didn’t quite pan out — at all — the big names many expected were present in abundance.

With CFG aware of the struggles traditionally encountered by foreign ownership and foreign coaches in MLS, the club reached out to a proven winner to lead from the bench in year one, agreeing to terms with Jason Kreis, winner of the 2009 MLS Cup with Real Salt Lake, as the club’s first head coach. Kreis filled the remainder of his roster with a mixture of his RSL boys from his previous gig, some foreign internationals and loans scouted out by CFG, and a few unknown domestics such as RJ Allen and Kwadwo Poku.

Year one didn’t go as planned for NYCFC, finishing outside of the playoffs with 37 points. Kreis was fired, Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira was brought in and behind the scenes CFG tinkered and toyed with their USA-based club’s building philosophy. The changes in construction methodology are worth examining, as NYCFC from 2016 forward has been a regular contending force near the top of the league. So what changed?

2015

We begin in the club’s inaugural season. The annual salary information available through the MLS Players Association enables us to look and paint a clear picture of the philosophy that went into building NYCFC’s first team in year one.

The immediate item of note is the number of players in the low-end range (

Image credit: MASL

Welcome back to our preview series for the upcoming 2018-19 Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) season. If you missed part one, click here to take a look.

The South Central Division is new for this season, comprising teams from the Eastern and Central Divisions last season. With five teams, it’s the largest of the four divisions and covers the largest geographic area, stretching from Milwaukee to central Florida.

Florida Tropics SC – Lakeland, Fla.

* Founded: 2016 * Home venue: RP Funding Center (6,500) * Head coach: Clay Roberts * Last season: 10-12, 3rd in Eastern , DNQ

* Average attendance: 2,433, 9th

The Tropics have switched divisions, joining the recombined South Central Division, meaning that they might actually have better luck at making the playoffs for once. They’ve come awfully close twice now, and in their third season, few things would be nicer than postseason play. The coaching staff has all returned for a third season, though their seats might start to get warm if the Tropics once again finish below .500.

Kansas City Comets – Independence, Mo.

* Founded: 2010 (2014-15) * Home venue: Silverstein Eye Centers Arena (5,800) * Head coach: Kim Roentved

* Last season: 7-15, 3rd in Central, DNQ

Ever since Vlatko Andonovski left the Comets in the summer of 2016, the team has gone through a noticeable decline. In his three seasons as head coach, Andonovski won the final MISL championship, then debuted in the MASL with a 20-0 season and a conference finals appearance followed by a 17-3 season and another conference finals appearance. Under Roentved, the Comets finished below .500 for the first time since their debut in 2010. Not good. They’re bringing back some talented players and retooling the roster, so maybe this season will be better, but honestly, who knows?

Milwaukee Wave – Milwaukee, Wisc.

* Founded: 1984 (2014-15) * Home venue: UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (9,500) * Head coach: Giuliano Oliviero * Last season: 17-5, 1st in Central, lost Eastern Conference final

* Average attendance: 4,101, 1st

The Milwaukee Wave are the oldest continually operating professional soccer team in the country. Period. They’ve existed without missing a season or reorganizing as a new entity ever since their founding in August 1984. They’ve been playing since before Harrisburg coach Pat Healey was born. Anyway, last season was yet another solid campaign for the Wave, making the conference finals for the second consecutive season, and finishing its ninth consecutive winning season. Always expect the Wave to be good. Always. They haven’t finished a season with a losing record since 1993. Literally the only complaint I have about Milwaukee is the switch from blue as the accent color to electric lime. It’s not nearly as pretty or wavy.

Orlando SeaWolves – Kissimmee, Fla.

* Founded: 2018 * Home venue: Silver Spurs Arena (8,000) * Head coach: TBA

* “New” for 2018

Orlando is kind of half an expansion franchise and half what remained of the Cedar Rapids Rampage, which folded at the end of last season. Most of the players on the roster came to Orlando from Cedar Rapids, although there’s entirely new ownership, management and likely coaching staff as soon as it’s announced. Considering the Rampage were easily the second-best Central Division team last season, Orlando has a promising core already.

St. Louis Ambush – St. Charles, Mo.

* Founded: 2013 (2014-15) * Home venue: Family Arena (9,643) * Head coach: Hewerton Moreira * Last season: 3-19, 4th in Central, DNQ

* Average attendance: 2,605

The Ambush, in five professional seasons including four in the MASL, have never made the playoffs, have never even come close to a .500 record and have won just nine games across the past three seasons combined. That’s pretty horrible, and attendance has consequently suffered. Hewerton Moreira took over as head coach last season and while there was an improvement — three wins compared to one — it’s still not looking great. Short of poaching all the former staff from Sonora, St. Louis is in for a slow rebuild.

Follow John on Twitter: @JohnMLTX.

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INDIANAPOLIS — The Indy Eleven and Tampa Bay Rowdies, both currently well above the playoff line in the USL Championship Eastern Conference, dueled to a scoreless draw Wednesday night at Lucas Oil Stadium.

A 20th-minute second yellow card to Eleven defender Paddy Barrett caused the hosts have to cope with a potent Rowdies attack down a man for the vast majority of the match. Ultimately, however, Tampa Bay proved unable to crack a stingy Indy defense.

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Follow Robbie on Twitter: @RobbMeh.

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• Westchester United FC, based in Westchester, N.Y., is the WPSL‘s latest expansion side, the league announced Thursday. The team will debut in 2021. The 4-year-old club already fields a…
• Indiana Futsal director Justin Becht joins host Kevin Johnston for a discussion on the latest happenings at Indiana Soccer, coaching, his trips to Cuba to build futsal courts, Fulham,…
• U.S. Soccer unveiled head coach Gregg Berhalter’s roster for the upcoming U.S. men’s national team friendlies against Wales on Nov. 12 and Panama on Nov. 16. The Wales match…
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Image credit: Indiana Futsal

INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Futsal and Indy Parks and Recreation have teamed up to offer drop-in futsal every Tuesday evening at Garfield Park from 6-8 p.m. beginning April 30.

The weekly futsal games will be held indoors at the park’s Burrello Family Center. It’s $3 at the door to play.

“Indiana Futsal is excited to bring the game to Garfield Park with this affordable program for adults 18-plus,” said director of Indiana Futsal Justin Becht. “Tournaments and youth programs coming soon!”

Indiana Futsal’s drop-in program previously ran for seven years at Ellenberger Park prior to relocating this year. Nestled on Indianapolis’ near south side at 2345 Pagoda Drive, Garfield Park is the city’s oldest park. It was founded in 1889.

For more information or questions regarding Tuesday drop-in futsal, call 317-327-7220 or visit IndianaFutsal.org.

Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to exclusive content and supporter benefits. Click here to become a patron today.

Related

• Westchester United FC, based in Westchester, N.Y., is the WPSL‘s latest expansion side, the league announced Thursday. The team will debut in 2021. The 4-year-old club already fields a…
• Indiana Futsal director Justin Becht joins host Kevin Johnston for a discussion on the latest happenings at Indiana Soccer, coaching, his trips to Cuba to build futsal courts, Fulham,…
• U.S. Soccer unveiled head coach Gregg Berhalter’s roster for the upcoming U.S. men’s national team friendlies against Wales on Nov. 12 and Panama on Nov. 16. The Wales match…
• Norwich City turned in its most comprehensive attacking display of the season Saturday in a 3-1 away victory at Bristol City. Following the conclusion of the weekend’s fixtures, the…