The North American Football League (MLS) returns this Saturday with New York City looking to be the first champions to repeat the title in a decade, in a season with new names and others looking to redeem themselves.
Newcomers include Swiss Xherdan Shaqiri, Brazilian Douglas Costa and Italian Lorenzo Insigne, who arrived at Toronto FC in July, while established players such as Argentine Gonzalo Higuaín and Mexico’s Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernández and Carlos Vela fight to win their coveted first MLS title.
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Last season ended only in December, with New York City FC crowned for the first time in their history.
With the Manchester City business group behind them, the New York team is now embarking on a challenge that no one has managed since the Los Angeles Galaxy in 2012: retaining the title.
“MLS is very, very competitive right now,” warned Norwegian coach Ronny Deila. “The level is much higher and there are many good teams. Repeating the title is now much more difficult than it was years ago.”
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Deila counts on the same champion squad, including the continuity, for now, of the Argentine Valentín Castellanos, top scorer of last season and coveted by River Plate of his country.
Among the teams vying for the title in the 27th season of the North American league are also Atlanta United, Orlando City and the New England Revolution.
Led by the Spaniard Carles Gil, MVP (Most Valuable Player) of last season, the New England Revolution was the leader of the regular phase but fell again in the playoffs.
Atlanta and Orlando, in turn, acquired two great promises: Argentine Thiago Almada and Uruguayan Facundo Torres, respectively.
The signing of Almada, 20, for $16 million and Torres, 21, for around $7.5 million, symbolize the MLS’ desire to reveal its new highlights rather than being seen as a retirement destination. .
Commissioner Don Garber celebrated this week that stars like Lionel Messi and Neymar have expressed an interest in playing in the United States one day, but stressed that MLS no longer needs to bring in “great players at the end of their careers because they’ve decided they want to retire from MLS.” “.
“Today the transfer policy has changed a lot compared to the early years, where well-known players were brought in,” Alfonso Mondelo, MLS sporting director, told AFP. “Today they have to come to contribute to this league because it’s not an easy league, it’s very demanding and whoever comes has to be prepared to compete at a high level.”
Pressure in Los Angeles and Miami
Among the teams with the most ambitions, the two Los Angeles franchises, Galaxy and Los Angeles FC (LAFC), and Inter Miami, co-owned by David Beckham, stand out.
Galaxy, the most successful team in the league, chose to sign another big international name, Brazilian Douglas Costa, to form an offensive duo with Mexican ‘Chicharito’ Hernández.
Like its neighbor, LAFC is also under great pressure to return to the playoffs amid doubts about the continuity of Carlos Vela, the absolute leader of the franchise since his arrival in the league in 2018.
LAFC will try to convince him to continue with a squad that includes Colombian Cristian Arango, the best signing in the MLS last year with 14 goals in 15 games.
On the East Coast, Inter Miami is also in a hurry to become a competitive team.
In the second year of coach Phil Neville, Inter are confident that a more adapted Higuain will be the spearhead of a group that will no longer have Mexican Rodolfo Pizarro or veteran French midfielder Blaise Matuidi.
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new attractions
As it happens every year, the MLS has attracted big names from the world football map, including Xherdan Shaqiri and Lorenzo Insigne.
The 30-year-old Napoli captain will leave European football in June to play for the next four seasons with Toronto FC, following in the footsteps of his compatriot Sebastian Giovinco (2015-2019).
Shaqiri, also 30, from Lyon, is expected to make his Chicago Fire debut this Saturday against Inter Miami, in the opening round of the championship.
In anticipation of its start to the 2022 Qatar World Cup, the MLS this season incorporates its 28th franchise, Charlotte FC, which hopes to break the league’s record of spectators (about 75,000) in the opening game of its stadium on the 5th of March.
Source: Gazetaesportiva
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