This week will be the first without a nationally televised Major League Soccer broadcast by an English language network. However, Sunday’s meeting between the San Jose Earthquakes and LA Galaxy, also known as the California Clasico, will be screened by Spanish language network TUDN USA at 11 p.m. ET.
If you have an ESPN+ or MLSsoccer.com subscription, then you are in for an exciting weekend of proper North American soccer.
MLS news and transfers
It is official, Gonzalo “Pity” Martinez is on his way to Sudi Pro League’s Al-Nassr, leaving an open designated player slot for Atlanta United to fill in the coming weeks. Vice versa, Inter Miami is on the brink of leaving Juventus and signing a deal with Inter Miami, according to an ESPN source. These two Southern sides will meet on Wednesday at 8 p.m. in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
On other news, Nashville SC acquired Venezuelan forward Jhonder Cadiz from Benfica on loan with an option to buy on Wednesday. The 25-year-old stands tall at 6-foot-3 and had two goals and two assists with Ligue 1’s Dijon last season. Cadiz joins Hany Mukhtar, Randall Leal as Nashville’s third designated player.
Dallas FC reached a transfer agreement with Primera Liga’s (Portuguese league) Boavista FC for homegrown defender Reggie Cannon. The transfer comes nearly a month after FC Dallas fans reacted negatively to their player and Nashville SC players taking a knee before their first game back since COVID put a stop on MLS play. The 22-year-old center-back joined the club at the age of 18 in 2016 and became one of the league’s top-rated prospects.
Last but not least, in this week’s “Talk of the Week”, we dive into MLS Next, the future of U.S. player development.
Match of the Week: Sporting Kansas City vs Minnesota United
Western Conference foes Sporting Kansas City and Minnesota United will meet on Sunday at 8:30 p.m. in what looks to be this week’s most promising matchup.
Sporting KC is the current leader in the west with the most wins – five – and 17 points with a game in hand. Given how tight the Western Conference is at this moment, Minnesota United will have a chance to draw the Wizards on points if they find a win against Dallas FC on Wednesday night. This would only make Sunday’s game more interesting.
Sporting Kansas City
The Wizards have not won a game since their first game back to the regular season when they defeated none other than the Loons at Allianz Field. Since then, SKC drew twice and lost twice to the Houston Dynamo.
Sporting Kansas City is first in the west, but with a game in hand. Not bad for a team that relies on academy graduates. Cameron Duke, Felipe Hernandez, Gianluca Busio, Jaylin Lindsey and Daniel Salloi have gained the trust of manager Peter Vermes. In return, Vermes has made Hernandez and Busio, who is playing beautiful soccer out of his natural 10 position, regulars in the squad. Keep an eye out for these academy products on Sunday.
Minnesota United
The Loons were digging themselves in a hole after a successful MLS is Back Tournament showing, losing their first three games since the season restart. The first loss of the three-game losing streak came at the hands of SKC. But last Sunday, Minnesota picked up an important 4-0 win over Real Salt Lake, which put the team back on track for a strong regular season finish.
Argentine Emanuel Reynoso recorded 20 minutes in what was a disappointing 3-0 away loss to Houston Dynamo. Nonetheless, the attacking midfielder enjoyed his first start for the club after arriving from Boca Juniors, helping Minnesota win its first match after four straight losses and assisting winger Robin Lod’s first goal in the process. Head coach Adrian Heath is a manager who expects all his players to be involved, and that is exactly what Reynoso did against RSL on Sunday night.
Talk of the Week: MLS NEXT
Major League Soccer unveiled the future of U.S. player development with MLS NEXT on Monday.
The U.S. Soccer Development Academy ceased operations earlier this year after 13 operating for 13 years, making way for MLS to create its own player development platform. The league will now have the ability to use its vast resources to keep improving the production of future generations of Homegrown MLS stars.
“MLS NEXT advances player development in North America, furthering Major League Soccer’s commitment to developing world-class players through an elite competitive pathway,” said Fred Lipka, VP and technical director of MLS Player Development, in a statement. “Major League Soccer is excited to begin MLS NEXT competition, which will place player development at the forefront while giving players a safe and healthy environment to advance from academies to MLS first teams.”
MLS NEXT’s current membership includes 113 clubs, 489 teams and over 9,000 players across the United States and Canada.
MLS NEXT will begin its inaugural season this weekend, Sept. 11-12. The competition will feature six age groups (U-13, U-14, U-15, U-16, U-17 and U-19) and will follow U.S. Soccer’s PLAY ON guidelines given the ongoing battle with COVID-19. The competition schedule will be released every month to allow for adjustments to evolving health and safety recommendations.
