Race for CCL Spot 2019

[adam]

This weekend's results:

SATURDAY 7/28:
ATL 2 @ MTL 1
CLB 3 @ NJ 2
FCD 3 @ SKC 3
HOU 1 @ POR 2

SUNDAY 7/29:
NYC 1 @ SEA 3

And the resulting standings:



NYC & ATL have now swapped top spot on the table 4 times in 2 weeks! We still have a match in hand and destiny in those very hands as well NJ's loss to CLB at home really tightened things up at the bottom of the table and let us keep the breathing room we need at the top. All the other teams remain at least 9 points behind us and ATL with the number of matches remaining to catch us continuing to dwindle. Can a math person explain how both NYC and ATL have exactly 1.79 ppg with different records and games played? Feels like that shouldn't happen.

As for this week; no mid-week matches thanks to the HG match and All-Star game. Then back to action on Saturday.

SATURDAY 8/4:
TOR @ ATL 4:00
SJ @ DAL 8:00
VAN @ NYC 8:00
PHI @ POR 11:00

SUNDAY 8/5:
LAFC @ NJ 6:00

Only Columbus isn't active. Toronto is looking better and Atlanta hasn't been exactly dominant at home. Can we hope for a All-Star game hangover and Toronto win? Bless the rains. SJ travels to Dallas, which should be an easy 3 points there. We host Alphonso Davies and his almost former team. Watson is suspended for them and we're home Hopefully Ring (and Villa?) and company can secure us another 3 points in the fortress that YS has been all year. Portland hosts Philly who has to travel cross coast, but without Adi, who's on his way to Nashville? Let's see what type of team they are without him scoring all those goals. And then we end on Sunday with LAFC and the greatest player in MLS history taking on NJ. The cross country trip isn't easy, but NJ did just drop 3 points at home to Columbus and maybe Chris Armas is not the coach they were hoping he would be. Let's see how he does against the greatest USMNT coach ever.

 

[adam]

Last week's results:

SATURDAY 8/4:
TOR 2 @ ATL 2
SJ 3 @ DAL 1
VAN 2 @ NYC 2
PHI 0 @ POR 3

SUNDAY 8/5:
LAFC 1 @ NJ 2

That left the table looking like this:



With both NYC and ATL drawing, we still control our own destiny with the game in hand and being 2 points back. NJ gained some ground, but still can't catch us without some help. Even winning their match in hand and beating us at YS on 8/22 wouldn't get them the points they need. Portland's win jumped them over Dallas, but they still have a ways to go to catch the top teams, even with all those games in hand.

This week's CCL matches look like this:

Wednesday 8/8:
LAFC @ HOU 8:30 (USOC semi-final)

Saturday 8/11:
HOU @ CLB 7:30
NJ @ CHI 8:30
VAN @ POR 11:00

Sunday 8/12:
NYC @ TOR 4:00
DAL @ SEA 10:00

Atlanta has the week off, which allows us to get even on game played with them. 3 points in Toronto (not an easy task) would put us back on the top of the table. We can only hope Toronto tires themselves out in their Canadian Championship match tonight in Vancouver. Gio isn't traveling, so he may be injured. If so, that's a huge boost for us as well.

I put the LAFC USOC match up there because they are the best rooting interest for an extra CCL berth opening up at this point. At this rate, an LAFC v ATL/NYC MLS Cup final would almost assure us of a CCL spot if LAFC were to win the USOC. (1. LAFC wins USOC & MLS Cup, opens 2 spots on table. 2. ATL wins MLS Cup, if they finished above us it would open 2 spots on the table. 3. We win the MLS Cup)

Let's also hope NJ has a tough time in Chicago to open up some more breathing room in both the CCL race and the playoff race.

 

[Midas Mulligan]

Last week's results:

SATURDAY 8/4:
TOR 2 @ ATL 2
SJ 3 @ DAL 1
VAN 2 @ NYC 2
PHI 0 @ POR 3

SUNDAY 8/5:
LAFC 1 @ NJ 2

That left the table looking like this:

View attachment 9014

With both NYC and ATL drawing, we still control our own destiny with the game in hand and being 2 points back. NJ gained some ground, but still can't catch us without some help. Even winning their match in hand and beating us at YS on 8/22 wouldn't get them the points they need. Portland's win jumped them over Dallas, but they still have a ways to go to catch the top teams, even with all those games in hand.

This week's CCL matches look like this:

Wednesday 8/8:
LAFC @ HOU 8:30 (USOC semi-final)

Saturday 8/11:
HOU @ CLB 7:30
NJ @ CHI 8:30
VAN @ POR 11:00

Sunday 8/12:
NYC @ TOR 4:00
DAL @ SEA 10:00

Atlanta has the week off, which allows us to get even on game played with them. 3 points in Toronto (not an easy task) would put us back on the top of the table. We can only hope Toronto tires themselves out in their Canadian Championship match tonight in Vancouver. Gio isn't traveling, so he may be injured. If so, that's a huge boost for us as well.

I put the LAFC USOC match up there because they are the best rooting interest for an extra CCL berth opening up at this point. At this rate, an LAFC v ATL/NYC MLS Cup final would almost assure us of a CCL spot if LAFC were to win the USOC. (1. LAFC wins USOC & MLS Cup, opens 2 spots on table. 2. ATL wins MLS Cup, if they finished above us it would open 2 spots on the table. 3. We win the MLS Cup)

Let's also hope NJ has a tough time in Chicago to open up some more breathing room in both the CCL race and the playoff race.

So long as whomever leads this also wins SS, we’d get the berth by being second in your standings, right?

 

[adam]

So long as whomever leads this also wins SS, we’d get the berth by being second in your standings, right?

No, there is no SS spot this season. If ATL won the MLS Cup and NJ didn't pass us we'd get a CCL spot for being 2nd.

Spots are 1. USOC 2017 (SKC), 2. USOC 2018. 3. MLS Cup 2017 (TOR, now best record over 2017/2018), 4. MLS Cup 2018. If any one of these has the same winner, then a 2nd best record 2017/2018 spot would open up.

 

[canchon]

Houston or Philadelphia is getting a CCL spot. There is something fundamentally wrong with awarding it to one team based on their performance over 68 games and awarding it to another team for winning four - in a competition with limited rosters.

I know those are the rules but just doesn’t seem right.

 

[Shwafta]

Houston or Philadelphia is getting a CCL spot. There is something fundamentally wrong with awarding it to one team based on their performance over 68 games and awarding it to another team for winning four - in a competition with limited rosters.

I know those are the rules but just doesn’t seem right.

It's the same in every other league, and Europe too, except there it dependso nthe country. In Germany, they play 6 games, in England (for Europa league qual.) it's 5, etc.

 

[LionNYC]

Houston or Philadelphia is getting a CCL spot. There is something fundamentally wrong with awarding it to one team based on their performance over 68 games and awarding it to another team for winning four - in a competition with limited rosters.

I know those are the rules but just doesn’t seem right.

And CONCACAF can't be happy about either team being in the tournament. Attendance will be weak for CCL games and ticket prices wouldn't be comparable to LA or New York.

 

[mgarbowski]

Houston or Philadelphia is getting a CCL spot. There is something fundamentally wrong with awarding it to one team based on their performance over 68 games and awarding it to another team for winning four - in a competition with limited rosters.

I know those are the rules but just doesn’t seem right.

This 2-year cycle is a special case. Normally they award 4 spots every year, and giving one to the Cup is a good way to make it have some juice. Frankly the USOC is more prestigious and understandable than awarding it to the 1st place team in the conference that doesn't win the Shield, unless that 1st place team is Canadian or wins a Cup, in which case it goes not to the second place team in that conference, but to the next best regular season record in both conferences, as long as that team also is both not Canadian and did not win a Cup, in which case it goes to the next, next best regular season record.

And but for special circumstances, the 68 game spot would not even exist. In each of the 2 years, one spot would go to each of the cup winners. This really is a special set of circumstances from which one should not generalize.

 

[Kjbert]

Houston or Philadelphia is getting a CCL spot. There is something fundamentally wrong with awarding it to one team based on their performance over 68 games and awarding it to another team for winning four - in a competition with limited rosters.

I know those are the rules but just doesn’t seem right.

There's no rule that says you have to play your crappy players against the Cosmos and RedBulls. No one to blame but ourselves.

 

[adam]

There's no rule that says you have to play your crappy players against the Cosmos and RedBulls. No one to blame but ourselves.

Besides USOC limitations on international players. And NYC only having 1 consistent US starter all season (Sean Johnson). Though we do have a good number of green card players these days.

 

[Kjbert]

Besides USOC limitations on international players. And NYC only having 1 consistent US starter all season (Sean Johnson). Though we do have a good number of green card players these days.

How many non Americans can you start in the US Open Cup?

 

[Shwafta]

How many non Americans can you start in the US Open Cup?

I think 5 "foreign"-designated (aka non Americans) players. Players with green cards are not "foreign"

 

[adam]

How many non Americans can you start in the US Open Cup?

5. Green cards count as Americans.

 

[SoupInNYC]

There's no rule that says you have to play your crappy players against the Cosmos and RedBulls. No one to blame but ourselves.

I'd leave the Red Bulls out of that. We played very competitive lineups for our USOC matches with them. We just got beat.

 

[Shwafta]

I'd leave the Red Bulls out of that. We played very competitive lineups for our USOC matches with them. We just got beat.

very competitive, but nowhere near our starting XI.

 

[SoupInNYC]

very competitive, but nowhere near our starting XI.

I think 5 "foreign"-designated (aka non Americans) players. Players with green cards are not "foreign"

 

[Shwafta]

I'm not actually quoting soup bc he didn't write anything, but I need some text in here or the quote won't show up and you'll just see Maxi spiderman'ing the crowd without any context.

 

[Kjbert]

I think 5 "foreign"-designated (aka non Americans) players. Players with green cards are not "foreign"

Correct.

We had an opportunity to play a better lineup and chose not to. That's all.

 

[Seven]

Correct.

We had an opportunity to play a better lineup and chose not to. That's all.

Awuah was one of our 5 foreigners, so yes, we could have had a more competitive lineup

 

[adam]

Awuah was one of our 5 foreigners, so yes, we could have had a more competitive lineup

PVs last present to all of us.