Minnesota Soccer Spot

  Minnesota Soccer Spot  Monday, April 8th Loons Tie At Home, Houston Next, A Look Around MLS, CONCACAF Champions  Cup, and the USWNT *Disclaimer: My takes are not thoughtful, and they are NOT based in knowledge.*  Real Salt Lake Recap Late-game heroics have been a theme to start the season, and it continued to be a theme over the weekend: After having trailed for most of the match, Minnesota United found the  equalizing  goal, splitting the points with the visitors. While disappointing on paper, the Loons will take the point against a thriving Real Salt Lake.  Eric Ramsay continued with his 4-3-3 formation, while RSL's Pablo Mastroeni moved some players around from the previous week. Contradicting what I had predicted, Bongi Hlongwane got the start on the left side, and Real Salt Lake started Chicho Arango in the nine position. Arango replaced the position of Anderson Julio, who did not appear against the Loons. Gomez took the place of Hidalgo, Crooks...

  Minnesota Soccer Spot  Monday, April 1st Frustration In  Philadelphia, RSL Next, and A Look Around MLS *Disclaimer: My takes are not thoughtful, and they are NOT based in knowledge.*  The Loons Have Fallen After a four-game unbeaten run to start the season, the Philadelphia Union took down the Loons 2-0 at Subaru Park. In a performance comparable to the excitement of an accounting class, the Loons lacked that spark fans had been seeing to start the year. Were they terrible? No. We didn't see that defensive collapse we've been used to seeing in previous years. But the team lacked urgency in the attack, and two defensive blunders eventually led to their downfall.  In last week's post, I made it a point to say that lineups would be hard to predict. It was difficult to know who would be back, who would be a ninety-minute match fit, who would need rest, etc. Surprisingly, the Union rolled out what many would argue was a full-strength lineup. (Philadelphia fans may ...

  Minnesota Soccer Spot  Tuesday, March 26th Nations League (DOS A CERO), Loons On International Duty, MNUFC On The Road This Weekend, And A Look Around MLS *Disclaimer: My takes are not thoughtful, and they are NOT based in knowledge.*  First, An Apology Before I begin, I apologize for this post being late. I flew home from Dallas, Texas yesterday, and, of course, with my luck, I must've picked up a virus at the Nations League final (still worth it, though). I am not a punctual person, so I will not give the "this isn't normal" excuse. This is who I am to my core: being late, and complaining about soccer. So, let's get into the complaining.  Nations League I did not travel to Texas for the barbecue or the politics. (I may have seen some cattle a little against my will, but that isn't the point). For those of you who don't know, I graduated college this past December. One thing I really wanted to do at some point in my life was to attend a USMNT Vs Mexico ...

  Minnesota Soccer Spot  Monday, March 18th Loons Undefeated, Chicago Fire on FIRE, A Look Around MLS, and Nations League *Disclaimer: My takes are not thoughtful, and they are NOT based in knowledge.*  Loons Undefeated! The Loons own the West! Minnesota United stole all three points at home against the reigning Western Conference champions, LAFC, this past Saturday. Securing ten points in four matches, the Loons sit atop the conference standings with daylight between the rest of the West. This was also the first victory under new head coach Eric Ramsay.  Once again, my lineup predictions were wrong. To be fair, I have made it a point to say:  "My takes are not thoughtful, and they are not based in knowledge"  (see above). I assumed DJ Taylor wouldn't be available. His injury looked more major than it was, I guess. He  maintained  his starting position. Other than Rosales being absent, the starting lineup mirrored the previous week.  With Ros...