IIn the first weeks of each new MLS season, there is a race to gather as much information as possible. Offseason expectations have been reshaped. New opinions arise. Popular recordings are deleted from the digital archives.
Welcome to the first edition of the Guardian’s 2024 MLS power rankings, where we’ll be in full swing throughout the year.
These aren’t your standard, run-of-the-mill wealth rankings. We still rank teams from worst to first. But along with the rankings, we’re taking a deep dive into a handful of teams from around the league that are doing particularly interesting things.
The Italians might care
29.Austin F.C
28. Colorado Rapids
27. San Jose earthquakes
26. Chicago Fire
25. New York City FC
24. Toronto FC
Many people, including myself, thought Toronto FC would struggle mightily in 2024 after “beating” the Wooden Spoon last year as the worst team in MLS.
Maybe, just maybe, I was wrong about this team. In the first two games of the year, they earned a point on the road against last year’s Supporters’ Shield winners in FC Cincinnati and toppled the New England Revolution to earn three points in another road game. John Herdman’s team was not elite; they have been second best in terms of creating chances in both games so far. But there has been a huge, season-changing change in Toronto: the Italians actually seem to care.
Despite that of Federico Bernardeschi public Wanting to return to Juventus in the most recent January transfer window, he is still in MLS. Herdman uses him as a right wing-back in a 3-4-3 shape, and… it kind of works? Certainly, Bernardeschi’s lack of defensive effort places an extra portion of responsibility on central defender Shane O’Neill. But in attack, the 30-year-old is menacing as an inverted wide player when Toronto pushes up the field.
Then there is Lorenzo Insigne, who is not alone scored a beauty against New England last week, but he also tracked back to win the ball in midfield in the first half. Yes, you read that correctly.
If Herdman continues to push Insigne and Bernardeschi to buy what he’s selling from the sidelines, Toronto FC will be a real threat in every match they play this year. After all, the quickest ticket to success in the MLS is for your Designated Players with big money to perform at a high level. Things aren’t quite the same in Toronto. Consistency is still a question, as is quality along the backline and up top. But Toronto FC is climbing.
Holding in Canada…
23. Charlotte FC
22. Nashville SC
21. CF Montreal
20. Vancouver Whitecaps
19. New England Revolution
18. Orlando City
After Thierry Henry resigned as manager of CF Montréal in February 2021 for family reasons, the club promoted one of his assistants to the top job: Wilfried Nancy. Nancy couldn’t quite help Montreal cross the playoff line in 2021, but they came back stronger in 2022, finishing second in the Eastern Conference.
Charmed by Nancy’s success, Tim Bezbatchenko, president of the Columbus Crew, lured the Frenchman away from Montreal prior to last season. The crew took full advantage of Nancy’s tactical insight and won the MLS Cup in December.
Still looking for a manager to restore the same bold attacking principles that Nancy used to great effect during his time at the club, CF Montréal hired Laurent Courtois from Columbus Crew 2 as their new coach for this season. No doubt influenced by Nancy in Columbus, Courtois would bring beautiful, effective football back to Montreal after the club finished 10th in the East in 2023.
In Courtois’ first two games at the helm this year, CF Montréal has returned to a more patient, Nancy-like approach. According to Opta, their direct attack speed has fallen from 1.85 meters per second under Hernán Losada last year to 1.67 this year. They are also in a familiar 3-4-3 with a careful build-up. But Courtois is stuck with a six-match road trip to start the year and is trying not to push his luck. During the 0-0 draw at Orlando City and a 2-1 win at FC Dallas, Montreal averaged just 42.5% possession. The 45-year-old manager is not afraid of a little pragmatism now that his ideas are starting to take hold.
All press is good press
17. DC United
16. Houston Dynamo
15. Sporty Kansas City
14. Real salt lake
13. Portland wood
12. Minnesota United
The Loons came out to fly against Columbus in a 1-1 draw last weekend, with more intensity than in any of their previous seven MLS campaigns.
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With Adrian Heath gone and Khaled El-Ahmad appointed as the club’s new chief football officer, we’re seeing a stylistic shift towards high-pressure in Minnesota. Erik Ramsey, the now former Manchester United assistant who at 32 will become the youngest coach in MLS when he manages his first match later this month, will further highlight that shift.
Against the Crew, Minnesota United used a 4-1-4-1 shape as the structure for their intense pressing. Their two No. 8s discouraged Columbus’ double-pivot move. Their wingers were aggressive in closing down the ball. Striker Teemu Pukki split the field in two with his move upfield. Few teams have troubled Columbus’ offensive game this past year, but Minnesota did just that for the first 25 minutes last weekend.
The match started well, but then everything fell apart. Columbus began to find the gaps either side of Will Trapp at the base of the midfield. Then they started breaking into the attacking half. Then they started to find Cucho Hernández in the box. And then the ball was in the back of the net. Despite its shortcomings, the press seems to be a real asset for Minnesota United. The Crew are better at adjusting possession patterns in real time than any other team in MLS.
Will anyone else in the league be able to play this??
Emanuel Reynoso, the team’s best attacking midfielder, will ask questions to the press when he returns from injury. Can Ramsey get Reynoso to play defense when that’s not really part of the deal these ball-dominant stars sign when they come to MLS?
New year, new New York Red Bulls
11. FCDallas
10. St. Louis City
9. New York Red Bulls
8. LA system
7. Seattle Sirens
6. Atlanta United
By signing Emil Forsberg to replace Luquinhas in the off-season, the Red Bulls improved their attacking midfield. It’s still early, but that trade is a reality, with Luis Suárez replacing Josef Martínez and leading Miami in terms of net value added at any position during the offseason.
Last year, Luquinhas ranked in the bottom third in expected assist goals among his positional peers, according to FBref. He was press resistant, for sure. But able to create opportunities? Not so much. In direct contrast to the DP he replaced, Forsberg is already unlocking new possibilities for the New York branch of the Red Bull family. In RBNY’s early-season draw against Nashville SC, Forsberg found his teammates with clever distribution from both feet (and his head!) in the attacking half.
However, it is not just Forsberg who is changing the games and how they are played for the Red Bulls. It is also the 21-year-old Swedish central defender Noah Eile, who – and I am not exaggerating here – one of the best passers of the back line ever seen on this side of the Atlantic. The young defender adds a new dimension to the New York Red Bulls’ direct, urgent approach. He occasionally gives them a sense of calm and adds a little finesse when the pedal-to-the-metal football with energy drinks doesn’t work or doesn’t suit the moment.
The Red Bulls are more talented, more versatile and much more fun to watch this year than last year.
Win now mode
5.Los Angeles FC
4. Philadelphia Union
3. FC Cincinnati
2. InterMiami
1. Columbus crew
FC Cincinnati is looking for an encore. After finishing with the best record in MLS in 2023, Cincinnati’s front office has put together a trade that strengthens their roster and (temporarily) weakens a conference threat. On Monday, Cincinnati officially acquired former USMNT team right back DeAndre Yedlin from Inter Miami.
Yedlin, 30, isn’t just a game changer at this point in his career. But it’s been years since he’s played on a consistently good team and his players should benefit from the talent and structure around him in Ohio.
For Pat Noonan, Yedlin fills a clear position of need as a right wing-back. Santiago Arias simply wasn’t on the field often enough in that spot last year and left in the offseason, opening the door for Yedlin to become a regular threat on the overlap. He will widen the field even further for Lucho Acosta in attacking midfield and Aaron Boupendza in the attacking line.
Even with these incremental improvements, big questions remain about how good FC Cincinnati will be this season. Four points in two games is a great start, but they looked far from dominant in their opening draw against Toronto FC and last weekend’s narrow win over the Chicago Fire. There are now five new starters in Noonan’s presumed first choice.
It’s usually a safe bet to rely on general manager Chris Albright’s eye for talent, but this group has good chemistry to build.