MLS: 7 Things We Learned During Matchday 2
Matchday 2 in MLS did not disappoint after a lackluster opening weekend. Orlando City SC recorded its first MLS win on Friday and questionable refereeing marred the Toronto FC versus Columbus Crew match.
One of the marquee results this past weekend was the San Jose Earthquakes' win against the Seattle Sounders at CenturyLink Field on Saturday. Real Salt Lake and the Philadelphia Union combined for six goals earlier in the day as well.
New York City FC shut out the New England Revolution in its first-ever home match on Sunday. David Villa scored the team's first goal at Yankee Stadium in a 2-0 victory.
The final match of the weekend saw the LA Galaxy strike in the dying seconds of the second half to snatch a draw against the Portland Timbers at Providence Park.
Here are seven things we learned during Matchday 2 of MLS.
Orlando City SC Needs to Find Another Attacking Outlet
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The 2015 MLS season is only two games old, and as more matches are played, opponents will become familiar with each other.
It seems like the Houston Dynamo coaching staff did their homework on Orlando City SC on Friday. Kaka, who was the clear target man to ignite the Lions attack, was nullified for the majority of the game.
Kaka still managed to produce three shots, one of which produced a brilliant save from Tyler Deric off a free-kick.
However, despite a solid performance from Kevin Molino on the right flank, Orlando continued to attack centrally according to the heatmap on WhoScored.com. In addition, the visitors weren't able to penetrate the Houston back line, hence the lack of activity in the box.
It's expected that Orlando will rely on a player of Kaka's caliber, but the opposition will focus on stopping him. Molino, Lewis Neal, Carlos Rivas and others will be useless if the 32-year-old playmaker continues to dictate the attack.
Vancouver Whitecaps Lacks Composure in the Box
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Octavio Rivero scored his second goal in as many matches to lift the Vancouver Whitecaps to a 1-0 win versus the Chicago Fire on Saturday. The Whitecaps recorded 18 shots with six of them hitting the target, per the official MLS website.
The majority of the accurate shots hardly tested goalkeeper Jon Busch. The other 12 attempts were horrendous misses. Rivero wasted two very good chances, as did Pedro Morales, Nicolas Mezquida and Kekuta Manneh.
If it wasn't for Lovel Palmer's horrible error, the match could have finished 0-0.
The pitch wasn't in great condition due to the windy conditions, but some of the chances the Whitecaps forwards received were near-sitters in front of goal.
The buildup to these scoring chances were executed well, but the lack of composure in the penalty area is slightly worrying. Once Rivero and his teammates earn a few more appearances, this may become a moot point.
Poor Refereeing Overshadows Some Entertaining Matches
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Referee David Gantar sent off Toronto FC's Justin Morrow for what appeared to be a clean tackle against the Columbus Crew on Saturday. The Crew were the better team even before the red card, but it was still a questionable decision by Gantar.
TFC head coach Greg Vanney questioned whether Gantar could see the incident from his angle, saying in the post-match press conference: "The referee is running with the play. He looks at the linesman, who is still running like the play is still going. The next thing I know he’s blowing the whistle. From my perspective, I didn’t see a foul. I didn’t know what the call was."
The penalty leading to Real Salt Lake's third goal against the Philadelphia Union was an even stranger moment.
Maurice Edu extended his arm as Luke Mulholland tried to get around him. Mulholland crumbles to the ground, but Edu makes minimal contact. It certainly wasn't strong enough to knock over a player.
However, prior to Fernando Aristeguieta's goal earlier in the match, Cristian Maidana may have committed a foul throw. His right leg is in the air as he puts the ball back in play. This is rarely called, but it's still an infraction.
Overall, it was not a good weekend for MLS referees.
Sporting Kansas City Needs a Defensive Midfielder
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Matt Besler was clearly missed by Sporting Kansas City against FC Dallas. However, for the second game in a row, SKC's absence of a true defensive midfielder exposed the back line.
Blas Perez's first goal was a prime example of the disorganized formation. Because every SKC player was pushing so high up the pitch, the defense needed to compensate for the open space. Ike Opara moved up and opened gaps for the Dallas forwards.
Fabian Castillo's 73rd-minute strike also showed why Sporting KC head coach Peter Vermes needs a defensive midfielder. Benny Feilhaber, Paulo Nagamura and Roger Espinoza were nowhere to be found. Once more, the back line was all over the place, allowing Castillo to score.
Feilhaber and Espinoza are tremendously talented midfielders. They have vision, technique and great passing ability, but Vermes cannot rely on them defensively.
Servando Carrasco would be a terrific option for Vermes. He's an out-and-out defensive midfielder who deserves a shot.
Brad Evans Had a Game to Forget
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Brad Evans is settling into a new role with the Seattle Sounders this season. He's now starting alongside Chad Marshall as a center back. Evans was decent against the New England Revolution, but was hardly tested. However, against a healthier attack in the San Jose Earthquakes, he crumbled.
Osvaldo Alonso is injured and 29-year-old Evans is still adjusting to his new position. It's understandable that he's struggling early in the season, but some of the mistakes he committed against the Earthquakes were appalling.
Chris Wondolowski was able to win an uncontested aerial duel after Evans was caught out of position and ball-watching. Wondolowski took advantage and scored the first of two goals on the night.
The Earthquakes striker's second goal was gifted by Evans once again. The defender received a pass and tried to head it backwards to goalkeeper Stefan Frei. However, the header bounced straight up off the turf and onto the foot of Wondolowski before he slotted it into the back of the net.
It wasn't a great night for the Sounders captain, but he'll eventually thrive in his new role.
David Villa and Adam Nemec May Finally Be in Sync
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New York City FC's first game at Yankee Stadium was incredible. More than 43,000 attended the match, NYCFC won 2-0 and David Villa scored the first home goal.
Villa also assisted Patrick Mullins' strike against his former club, the New England Revolution. It was a dream home debut for the ex-Spain international.
The 33-year-old was impressive, but so was his strike partner Adam Nemec. The Slovakia international didn't score, but he was creating plenty of chances and had a few attempts of his own.
Nemec was combining with Villa and it seems they're finally developing chemistry with each other. This is crucial for NYCFC as the season continues.
If NYCFC's forwards play like they did on Sunday, these two will become one of the most dangerous attacking partnerships in MLS.
Caleb Porter Has Changed His Philosophy
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When Portland Timbers head coach Caleb Porter first arrived at the club, he instilled a possession-based system. This led to a first-place finish in the Western Conference for the Timbers in Porter's first season in 2013.
However, Portland missed the playoffs a year later, which makes this campaign an important one for the 40-year-old tactician.
Porter has seemingly made some drastic changes to his squad in 2015. The days of tiki-taka are a fading memory, and Portland is now utilizing its speed to become a counterattacking team.
With players like Darlington Nagbe, Alvas Powell, Rodney Wallace and Diego Valeri (when he returns from injury), it will be easy to become a more direct side.
The philosophical switch paid off as Fanendo Adi struck twice against the LA Galaxy—but he was overshadowed by a late winner from Alan Gordon.
Peter Galindo covers MLS and U.S. soccer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @GalindoPW.
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