Word has come down yet again that the MLS Disciplinary Committee has suspended players. This time it’s the Galaxy’s Michael Stephens and Mike Magee, as well as Philadelphia’s Leonard Pajoy. All three of these players deserved to be suspended, but what is more concerning about these and other recent suspensions is the fact that the offenses were red-cardable on the field, but were only issued yellows. Are referees just naturally more lenient than the disciplinary committee, or are referees choosing to err on the side of caution, hoping the committee takes care of the rest for them?
Players, coaches, and fans have complained for years about referees impacting matches by sending players off when they shouldn’t have. For their part, most referees didn’t want to change the game, but felt compelled to make the calls. Sometimes they were right, sometimes they were wrong. Now they can issue yellow cards only and keep players in the game, knowing that players will get disciplined eventually. Is this the kind of precedent MLS wants to set? Everyone knew that the disciplinary committee was going to have some unforeseeable affects, but who would have guessed this? It can’t be long before players figure out that they can make a riskier tackle during the match and get away with it. Sure they may be kicked out of the next match, but the team will still have eleven men the next week. It’s all about getting points, after all.
I’m all in favor of the disciplinary committee, but there needs to be boundaries. Referees can’t consistently be thrown under the bus for working within the parameters they were given. More transparency would certainly go a long way toward helping the committee. Here’s hoping we’ll get some soon.
More Fabian Johnson please!
A lot of praise has already been heaped on Fabian Johnson in his short U.S. career, but it’s all deserved and won’t stop me from giving more. After so many years of wondering who would be the Nats left back, we finally have an answer. First and foremost, Johnson is solid on defense. That was the knock on Jonathan Bornstein and now Edgar Castillo. They can either defend or go forward, but they can’t do both well on the international level. Johnson can. His defense is solid, and that allows him to get forward. After trying a couple of times early in the match last week, Brazil quickly stopped going down Johnson’s side which allowed him to move forward with more ease. Once he did get forward, his crosses were deadly. Johnson’s importance to the Nats lineup really showed through when he was forced to pull out of the match against Canada with a calf strain. The team just wasn’t the same without him and really seemed to have no energy. Good news for American fans, Johnson’s only 24 and tied to the United States. There is one piece of the 2014 puzzle. Now, to find the rest.
Another one bites the dust
The U.S. Open Cup certainly hasn’t disappointed. First it was the MLS Massacre and the miracle run of Cal FC, now it’s matches going into extra time and dramatic finishes. Look at the Harrisburg City Islanders, first they play a wild match against the New England Revolution in which they go down three goals in extra time only to come back, tie the match, and win it on penalty kicks. Now they jump up early on a New York side only to eventually go into extra time where they score two goals to win it. This tournament certainly has it all and is just getting bigger and bigger every year. Maybe it’s time to consider pushing the MLS season even earlier and later to make room of cup dates?
