There was some good and there was some bad from NYCFC in dealing with the Union’s typical chaos. None of it may have mattered as much as referee Chris Penso though, I wrote about it all with @theoutfield.nyc.
❤️
There was a lot of criticism for Seymour Reid last weekend after he had two chances to put the game away and failed. At the same time, it's so rare to have a player contributing as a true center forward at his age. In MLS just Ricardo Pepi and Julian Hall have had more xG before turning 18.
It’s preview tiiiiiime
@catabush.com tells us not to ignore the elephant in the room in Denver and @kierdoyle.bsky.social talks about Boston Internationals. Our friends at @xowngoals.com dropped audio previews for both teams today as well!
www.americansocceranalysis.com/home/2026/3/...
He’s like if Mr Potato head was peeled and didn’t have a mustache
Top notch analysis from @kevinnelson.theoutfield.nyc with video breakdowns. Last weekends game was a tough one against one of the best defensive teams in MLS, and NYCFC turned it into a track meet that they won.
In fact, of MLS players with more than 100 minutes before their 18th birthday, Seymour Reid is second all time in npxG per 96 minutes played, just 0.009 behind Pepi. No one else is within 0.15.
Reid is a special talent and a couple rough moments doesn't diminish that.
There was a lot of criticism for Seymour Reid last weekend after he had two chances to put the game away and failed. At the same time, it's so rare to have a player contributing as a true center forward at his age. In MLS just Ricardo Pepi and Julian Hall have had more xG before turning 18.
ICYMI:
See why I describe Oscar Pareja’s seat as “Toasty”
There is definitely a correlation between minutes on field and success. I just don’t see a coherent collection of talent on Montreal right now. There’s some good players but not enough
I think that Donadel probably isn’t the best manager, but I think the players just aren’t good. I could be wrong, but I don’t think switching managers is going to change much
This is a definitely a *correct* assessment but doesn’t really address the how.
I feel like set pieces are a natural outcome of positive attacking positions. Is there a specific defensive approach that gives away fewer set pieces from those positions?
For me, the thing that stood out in the NTSC game was his speed. Wasn’t sure if he would look fast at the next level but he had great burst and ground cover the whole game. The second really good fast break chance where he started it off w/ a 1v2 dribble before sprinting upfield was a great example
I'm not saying Edouard Nys, who had 1.1 xG, 11 progressive carries, and was a general menace with North Texas SC in his debut, is the answer.
I'm not NOT saying it either.
Johnny is at least an elite defender but there are several MLS midfielders I’d take over Tessmann.
Morris’s issue is that he needs 100 touches a game but isn’t all that effective with those touches, you’ll get the good moments eventually but he needs a progressive partner (looked good w/ Berhalter)
He’s better than Tessmann and better than Johnny on the ball
The snarky reply is that he only passes sideways but that was a nice assist
After Keaton Parks underwent his third surgery to address a blood flow issue in his legs, he wondered if he would be back on the pitch for #NYCFC. On Sunday, he was in the Starting XI in the club's dramatic win over Philly
nypost.com/2026/03/01/s...
Yeah, should be 0.15
New York City FC has had a very positive start to the season.
However, they're also dead last in set piece xG in MLS with just 0.07 over two games. CF Montreal, the second to last place team, has 0.015.
Minnesota and Austin lead MLS at 1.73 set piece xG each.
To fix set pieces, having an empty 6 yard box at the time the kick takes place makes sense.
It would also make sense to punish unfair physical defensive play (the wrapping and hugging in particular) with a yellow card and a re-kick.
Solves the meat wall/GK interference prob without being too harsh
This game too
Ok heart rate time to return to normal
Lovely bit of team soccer to get the first goal for NYCFC. Fantastic to see
Dani Pereira’s hairstyle could be best described as “hedgehog crawling through a lint trap”
Kayden McDonald is 6’2”, 326 lbs, and projected to be the top nose tackle in the NFL draft.
But what if an enterprising Premier League team signed him for their meat wall instead?
Yes, but are they even telling good stories about those teams?
Chinese brands do NOT pull any punches
