Category: MLS (Page 1 of 2)

2023 Chicago Fire Salary & Roster Breakdown

May 24, 2023 / Raul

One of my favorite days in the MLS season is when the MLS Players Association releases salary figures for its members. They do this twice a year (Spring/Fall) after a transfer window closes. It started way back in 2007 and its how fans know that Cuauhtemoc Blanco was the 2nd highest paid player in the league during his 3 seasons at Chicago. The current Governor of Morelos could never quite catch up to David Beckham‘s salary of $6.5m but he didn’t do too bad at $2.7m a season. For a salary capped league, it really matters how much you pay each player and what you get out of them. For example, it probably wasn’t the best idea for the Fire to make Nery Castillo the 6th highest paid player in the league back in 2010. But that’s the past, lets see if the current FO has done a better job allocating their resources…

Mexico FIFA 22 Ratings

September 22, 2021 / Raul

It’s that time of year. The newest version of FIFA is about to release and you know what that means: time to argue over player ratings. Of course, ratings tend to prefer Mexicans in Europe but they seem fine to me. Lets just hope they improve Pro Clubs… Besides the top rated players, I added some other players of note as well.

CONCACAF Summer w/Jon Arnold

May 28, 2021 / Raul

This summer is going to be packed full of CONCACAF matches. Starting with the Nations League, followed by the Gold Cup and ending with the opening matches of World Cup Qualifying. With all of that in mind, I knew Jon Arnold was the guy to talk to.

Weekend Roundup: 4/26

April 26, 2021 / Raul

Chicha dropped a comeback performance and Arteaga lifted some silverware. What else happened?

Weekend Preview: 4/23

April 23, 2021 / Raul

Edson Alvarez won the Dutch Cup last weekend and might be able to officially clinch the Eredivisie title this weekend. Also, he scored the equalizer in their mid-week league game. Not a bad week at all for him. He’s not the only one with a game this weekend….

Is the USMNT European Pipeline a Problem for Mexico?

March 18, 2021 / Raul

With both nations announcing their rosters, many were quick to point out the makeup of each side. It started a discussion about the leagues where the players are currently at. With twitter user @xGoalsMX pointing out that Mexico has more (4) MLS players in camp than the USMNT (3). A much larger discrepancy was evident in the number of players in the “Top 5 European Leagues” with US Soccer having 16 players to Mexico’s 5. The question has to be asked, do these numbers indicate Mexico is behind US Soccer in producing quality players for their national teams?

Weekend Roundup: 3/15

March 15, 2021 / Raul

A very meh weekend for Mexicans Abroad but has Efrain Alvarez finally made a decision?

LA Galaxy Reveal New Kit

February 24, 2021 / Raul

I expected this kit or some form of a retro Galaxy last season when MLS was touting its 25th season. Instead, Adidas dropped the ball and MLS clubs had the most boring kits in the world. It’s good to see they are stepping their game up… at least for one club.

TCK Podcast: Business of Soccer

January 27, 2020 / Raul

Walter Franco and I discuss the business of soccer. Our main topics are Chicharito moving to MLS, Chivas TV situation, and what foreign leagues are doing in the US. We also dip our toes into the FMF/SUM relationship at the end of the episode.

Gracias Chicha

January 21, 2020 / Raul

Everyone’s favorite Little Pea is leaving Europe and coming to MLS. Of course the transfer to a “lesser” league will disappoint many but I’m taking a different approach.