MLS regular season play resumes this weekend after a brief break for the Leagues Cup. Most of the better teams in the league just jammed in three games against Mexican opponents, with some coming out with some tough injuries (Messi and Rusnak are top of mind for me). Congrats to the Sounders, Miami, Galaxy and Orlando for moving on. There may be a bit of rotation for these clubs over the next two weekends as they prepare for midweek clashes August 19-20, but probably not too much. Though Leagues Cup has been fun and produced some great games, it will be nice to get back to normal in league play.
Week 23 Quick Rankings
Goalkeepers
Andre Blake (7.5m), Brad Stuver (8.9m), Joe Willis (9.8m), Roman Celentano (7.6m), Dayne St. Clair (7.7m)
Defenders
Kai Wagner (12.5m), Brendan Hines-Ike (9.1m), Walker Zimmerman (8.9m), Luca Orellano (10.8m), Anthony Markanich (8.6m)
Midfielders
Evander (15.7m), Martin Ojeda (15.4m), Anders Dreyer (15.1m), Hany Mukhtar (14.8m), Philip Zinckernagel (13.9m), Marco Reus/Joseph Paintsil (11.1m/8.5m), Miguel Almiron/Alexey Miranchuk (9.2m/8.7m), Pedro de la Vega (6.1m)
Forwards
Denis Bouanga (13.5m), Sam Surridge (13.4m), Petar Musa (11.2m), Prince Owusu (10.7m), Brian White (10.0m), Jesus Ferreira (8.4m)
Week 23 schedule
This weekend has a roughly even split between Saturday and Sunday, so it will be easier to space out your squads. Saturday night kicks off at 4:30pm Pacific with New England against DC, Philadelphia vs Toronto, and Montreal hosting Atlanta. Three great games where you can gamble on the home teams early on your bench and then shift to other options later if they don't work out.
5:30pm is the busiest slot of the weekend – we have Austin vs Houston, Chicago against LAFC (maybe with a Son cameo?), Dallas hosting Portland, St. Louis against Nashville and then Kansas City against San Diego (at 5:45pm). The Dallas derby will be a fun game, and the other matches are all a weaker team hosting a top playoff squad. Those kinds of games can produce lots of goals.
The lone late match Saturday night is San Jose facing Vancouver. Both these teams got to (had to?) sit out of Leagues Cup and could come back roaring. I'd expect a Vancouver win, though doubting any involvement from Muller yet.
Saturday has three matches at 3:00pm Pacific: Cincinnati vs Charlotte, New York Red Bulls against Salt Lake and Minnesota hosting Colorado. Sunday Night Soccer has Orlando vs Miami (minus Messi) as the feature derby match at 5:00pm, then the Galaxy play Seattle at 7:00pm to close out the weekend.
Bye: Columbus and NYCFC, as their game was postponed due to the sorry state of Citi Field.
Thoughts and Players
Defenses
Philadelphia - They are playing Toronto this weekend, both teams having skipped Leagues Cup. Toronto seemed to be building something after a 1-1 draw against Atlanta and a gutsy 1-0 win at San Diego, but have been shut out and lost their last two matches against Nashville and Charlotte. Mihailovic is a reinforcement, but I doubt his involvement will be that big right out of the gate. Philadelphia is an even tougher nut to crack, allowing a league-low 24 goals. Kai Wagner (12.5m) adds significant attacking bonuses on top of those defensive returns.
Austin - Austin has won six of their seven home games against Houston (including one Open Cup win this year) in their young history. They have one of the best defenses in MLS again this year, surrendering just 24 goals. Ponce is questionable for Houston so maybe downgrade Austin a bit if he can go, but I think this is one of the better earlier matchups. Brendan Hines-Ike (9.1m) is a solid, reliable option that I like.
Nashville - St. Louis has not been shut out at home since April, but Nashville is another top tier defense. With Walker Zimmerman (8.9m) back, he's a solid option to pick up some bonus passing points. Of course, you could pick Najar and hope it is one of his good offensive weeks.
Cincinnati - Charlotte will be missing Pep Biel for the time being, and both clubs are coming out of Leagues Cup having struggled a bit, going 1-1-1 and losing their respective shootouts. Cincy is still second in the East and in league play had three straight shutouts, twice against Miami (once without Messi) and on the road against RSL. Plus, Luca Orellano (10.8m) seems back to his old self, with two goals and three assists in his last seven league matches.
Minnesota - Colorado just traded away their best player in Djordje Mihailovic. Even though the Rapids are in position for the playoffs, Djordje decided he was better off going to the 12th-place team in the East. The Rapids seem poised to keep Nafael Navarro, despite rumblings that Fluminense was trying to poach him, but Minnesota is a top tier defense that has proven tough to beat. Anthony Markanich (8.6m) has emerged as perhaps the most goal-dangerous defender in the league, scoring six goals in 1346 minutes. His 0.40 goals/90 is better than Emmanuel Latte Lath, Antony and Emil Forsberg, and close to Diego Luna, Rafael Navarro and Christian Ramirez. He's a great weekly pick at this point.
Midfielders
Evander (15.7m) - He's a cold-blooded killer with the ball, and had one of those stat-defying strikes in Leagues Cup. I have to imagine he'll be up for their return to MLS play against a top Eastern rival.
Martin Ojeda (15.4m) - He had three assists in Leagues Cup, and this week he plays Miami in what could be a preview of the Leagues Cup Semifinals. He's been ultra-reliable since his few games getting benched, so this is another great week to pick him.
Anders Dreyer (15.1m) - He's had a few down games compared to other elite options, so maybe not a top-five pick this week on the road as long as Chucky is starting. But I think he is one of the best in the league and worth considering.
Hany Mukhtar (14.8m) - He's an MVP candidate, even though it is Surridge scoring the goals. At St. Louis should be a manageable game for Nashville, they've done great against better competition.
Philip Zinckernagel (13.9m) - Home this week against LAFC, he's grown this year to the most dangerous option since Cuypers' hot start. It will be a tough game, but it's the kind of match that Zinckernagel has to show up in to push Chicago to the next level. They also have the benefit of skipping Leagues Cup while LAFC just played three games. They could be the beneficiary of some tired legs.
Marco Reus/Joseph Paintsil (11.1m/8.5m) - The Galaxy are back enough to move on in Leagues Cup, and these two are a key reason why. Seattle will be missing Rusnak and might choose to rest a few key players who had a lot of mileage in Leagues Cup. And Seattle seems to give up a dumb goal or two every game or so, especially PKs. Paintsil has attempted two PKs and Pec has attempted one, while Reus has been best from the run of play. Could be a great differential option.
Miguel Almiron/Alexey Miranchuk (9.2m/8.7m) - It's been a rough year for Atlanta, and these guys need to have been better. But they are playing away at Montreal, who have surrendered an abysmal 46 goals. And they have been having some good weeks lately. Atlanta on the road is usually one to avoid, but this is really the only fixture I'd consider it.
Pedro de la Vega (6.1m) - Seattle will be missing Kent and Rusnak for the time being, so de la Vega will be asked to step up. And he has been stepping up recently, capable of complete wonderstrikes. Since moving to the left of Seattle's formation three games ago he has four goals and an assist. It will be his spot to hold down for the foreseeable future, and the Galaxy have been accommodating this year.
Forwards
Denis Bouanga (13.5m) - Barring injury or some other blindingly better options, he's an every-week choice at this point. Away to Chicago has treated many other teams well this year.
Sam Surridge (13.4m) - Another road option, he's tied for the Golden Boot for good reason. Without too many clear-cut top options, he stands out.
Petar Musa (11.2m) - Home to Portland, Musa has been one of the hottest strikers in the league, especially since Dallas has dropped Acosta (and who is now on his way to Brazil). Portland's defense has stiffened recently, only allowing one goal in Leagues Cup while down a man and blanking LAFC, but Musa will be a strong consideration.
Prince Owusu (10.7m) - Initially slated to be benched last match before Leagues Cup, he was a late addition to the starting roster and, of course, scored. He also had two goals in Leagues Cup. This week he plays the road version of Atlanta. I think he'll be very popular for good reason.
Brian White (10.0m) - On the road but against one of the most generous teams in the league. If you're not as convinced by the other top-tier road options, White could be a strong choice this week as Vancouver looks to be getting healthy.
Jesus Ferreira (8.4m) - We expect Ferreira will be stepping into Rusnak's central role for the Sounders, funneling play through the middle while de la Vega and Rothrock work the wings. He will play all over the field and will be taking free kicks. He's settled into the Seattle roster and been scoring and assisting at a furious rate over the last month or two. I think people will be quite pleased picking him this week.
Captain Considerations
Evander - An every-week consideration. Sometimes you get burned, other times he goes off for 20 points.
Martin Ojeda - Will probably the best player on the pitch this weekend with Messi injured. He probably has a higher floor than Evander but doesn't quite hit the same heights as often. Still, a Captained Ojeda has almost never been disappointing since he has been locked back into the starting lineup.
Hany Mukhtar/Sam Surridge - I think one of these guys scores double-digits this week. Which one is up to you, Mukhtar has the higher floor but Surridge has had a sky-high ceiling this year.
Prince Owusu - He's turned into an almost automatic goalscorer, seven goals since Week 17 (eight games) and had two in Leagues Cup. That's verrry close to a goal a game and Atlanta has the worst GD on the road in the league allowing more than two goals a game. A strong choice this week in my opinion.
