Inter Miami win Supporters’ Shield, NISA goes full NISA, and more: Thursday Freedom Kicks
Happy Thursday, everyone. There was a lot of soccer on yesterday, so let’s get to the wild news:
Inter Miami win 2024 MLS Supporters’ Shield (MLS)
Inter Miami wins its first Supporters’ Shield, which they were able to accomplish by beating Columbus on the road. They will have homefield advantage throughout the playoffs.
NISA Announces 2024 Playoffs Schedule (NISA)
This news right here is…I don’t even know how to describe it. Despite destroying almost everyone in the regular season, having the top record in NISA, and while at least one opponent forfeited against them, the NISA declared the Maryland Bobcats ineligible for their playoffs because they said they’re “not in compliance with the league nor the U.S. Soccer Federation.”
What? No really, what? How? They don’t explain it in the statement. And the Bobcats don’t know either:
There’s even an explanation for what’s happening…call it what you want, but you have to start with the word “fishy.”
We gotta find out more about this.
Here’s who made the first USMNT roster for new coach Mauricio Pochettino (SSFC)
The new USMNT roster is out, and the main surprise inclusion is Zack Steffen returning to the roster.
Post-Match Recap: Power FC vs. Tampa Bay Sun FC (DC Power)
DC Power had a great first half, but completely lost it in the second half as they gave up 3 goals in a 3-0 loss to Tampa Bay Sun. They’re back in action next Friday in Brooklyn.
Nashville SC 3-4 DC United (MLS)
If you missed this one, Holy Pirani! Down 3-1 after 75 minutes, Christian Benteke scores to pull one back, and then Gabriel Pirani scored in the 4th and 7th minute of second half stoppage time to steal 3 points from Nashville.
Alejandro Zendejas, who isn’t eligible for Mexico, suggests he may switch to Mexico (PSW)
Alejandro Zendejas must not be happy about not getting USMNT call-ups, but now he’s saying he’s keeping his options open on representing Mexico again. Except for one thing: he can’t. He’s cap-tied to Mexico and can’t play for them again. Mexico already played him illegally before he started getting USMNT call-ups, but that won’t fly this time.
Enjoy your Thursday.
All I’ve got to say about the DCU-Nashville match is: Amazing! What a comeback. What heart. There are lots of issues this team has. But it doesn’t quit, they always fight.
NISA is being fishy as hell.
Incredible game by DCU last night. Stunning.
Pirani, who art thou?
I absolutely didn’t think, barring a Ted renaissance that seemed highly unlikely, that this team would have enough offensive juice to challenge for a postseason spot, but Pirani decided he’s a golazo machine at a surprising moment. There’s no denying the quality of either strike, one an unstoppable screamer into the roof of the corner, the other a clever placement that rooted Willis to the spot.
And though Benteke had plenty to do to make sure it went in the net, gotta give credit to Murrell for the assist. Mofo cannot dribble, sprint, and hasn’t shown much lethality with his finishes, but this is the second game in a row he’s helped us get a result with an unexpected move that has undone the defense. Fischy loves him, and I can’t say I have belief in him fully yet, but credit is deserved.
I do think we’re going to have to do better in our team shape to not concede as many goals, cuz I don’t see our last opponents parking a leaky bus the way Nashville did in the last 17 minutes of play. Still, what a game.
I’m coming around on Boris Enow again. He’s looked pretty decent two games in a row coming off the bench. He helped start the sequence to get the equalizer against Columbus, and I think that United benefitted from having a true CDM on the field against Nashville. Klich and Rodriguez certainly have their uses in the middle of the park, but they’re not really effective shields for the defense (although Rodriguez might be the best tackler on the team).
Anyway, good to see a lot of players that had been really unimpressive start to turn things around!
The Mofo doesn’t have great pace, but he can definitely dribble. He has great creativity with his passing. More so than anyone on the roster, he has a knack for being in the right spots, on the break (notwithstanding his lack of pace) and especially in the box. But, yeah, his finishing hasn’t been good — either too softly at the goalie, or wide of the frame. He’s getting chances in his very limited playing time, because he’s finding spots, but tere’s lots of room for improvement. Good news is he is barely 20 years old, didn’t play for a high-level DA club and had only a couple of years at Georgetown. He came into the league very raw. I would bet his chance creation per minutes played is really high.
Will say, I like that Busio is included in the USMNT roster, think he’s a classy and dynamic player that will boost the team.
Zendejas, you made your choice. May sound harsh, but shut the fuck up.
Finally, Don Garber hasn’t yet specified what the qualification for the upcoming Club World Cup will be from MLS, but if he does the obvious thing and awards Inter Miami the spot based on the supporters shield, I’m actually fine with it. If the supporters shield has more importance and weight, and is consistently used in this way, it’s a good thing for the league.
Funny anecdote, though, apparently when an official within MLS was asked how the Clun WC spot would be decided, he apparently said off the record that it would go to the team with the pinkest shirt
Inter Miami gets the spot regardless of any trophy or designation.
Darth Garber is pleased…..
Does that make us the alternates?
Darth Garber has us as alternates….
For Capitol punishment…..
See what I did there………….???
Why is this site boycotting DC United?
I’ve got all kinds of issues with how the team is being run but last night’s win certainly merits MUCH greater prominence on a news site dedicated to DC area soccer.
As much as I appreciate and praise DP, it dropped the ball on last night’s match. There was not neven a match thread for comments; we had to make do with a two day old Freedom Kicks. And there was a post midnight WaPo story for this morning’s Freedom Kicks rather than a bloodless MLS statistical summary.
A rare instance of DP’s dropping the ball — er, scuffing a wide open shot.
I’ve debated whether to make this point, cuz I love the blog. I had no idea this game was happening as a diehard fan, and I realized it’s cuz I’ve come to rely on this blog for that sort of info rather than my own research. It made the chart of games on the Tuesday Freedom Kicks, so arguably that’s an oversight on my part, but for Wednesday games, it seems like someone on the blog should indeed cover that day of and provide a thread. If that’s a current gap that’s tough to fill, maybe it’s time to find a member of the commentariat who can join the team and do so.
Yeah, I’d remind everyone that this blog is a labor of love from people that have outside lives. I know that Vox paid a little bit to blog managers, but it was never very much, and I don’t know that this site pays ANYTHING. The work that the site does do is excellent, and they’re typically very reliable. We’re very lucky to have such dedicated people bringing us the news, especially since The Athletic has really curtailed a lot of its MLS-specific reporting.
I used to write game recaps for a similar blog for the Cincinnati Reds. Doing that every day is a GRIND. And that was back before I was married or had kids, or in some instances even a job.
We all want more, and frankly there should be more robust media in place to deliver that content to us. But for now, we have a team of volunteers. They’re not perfect because they can’t be. So just remember to try and show a little grace if there’s something missing that you think should be here. And remember that this site had to be built from nothing, so there aren’t opportunities to do FanPosts or similar things like there used to be on B&RU to fill in any missing gaps. We can make do.
I agree, but if there’s simply no one to do anything on Wednesdays, that’s a pretty big gap for a team that plays midweek games pretty much exclusively that day. I’m not personally asking more of the current staff if it’s tough, but there’s probably someone here they could trust to join and fill it. Doubt that the writers want me personally to join them, but I’m suggesting they consider adding someone
Yeah, the way that I’ve seen it is that anything we get is a privilege. Things happen, people get busy; the coverage has been great the past couple years, generally speaking. Especially given that there’s no cost associated with the coverage. I know after the SB Nation sites got cut, a lot of the MLS sites went to a paid version of coverage. I think if I was paying for this coverage, I would be more upset if things got missed. But the coverage that DP provides for free, even if a few things get missed or glossed over here or there, has been great all things considered
I agree with the spirit of all the comments above to my own comment about the absence of a game thread last night. I genuinely appreciate all of DP’s coverage and fully understand that it’s all a labor of love by volunteers. For that reason I make it a point to read all DP’s excellent coverage of the Spirit and Loudoun United and thank the DP staff for each post.
Holy cow, Pirani! Those two finishes were so precise and calm. You can see he’s settled more in this squad and his confidence is growing. So happy for the kid after a lukewarm start. Dare I say DC are giving me hope!
Sorry everyone, life gets in the way sometimes for all of us, and yesterday was one of those days. We all have lives, jobs, or are dealing with personal stuff (I personally was tending to a friend who lost their dad as well as checking in with my scores of friends who have been affected by Helene in NC), so sometimes things aren’t going to come out on time or at all. That’s our bad, but we ask for the grace necessary to continue to provide the excellent coverage we can. If a match thread isn’t available for whatever reason, that doesn’t mean we don’t care or aren’t covering the match. It may just mean that life in that instant didn’t find a way, to borrow a phrase.
This^^^^^^
I think everyone gets that. There are a lot of rough things going on.
You guys are terrific.
Hey friends,
I want to address some of the comments here by first asking for some grace. We aim to do our best to provide good team coverage across the board, but this site is first and foremost a labor of love.
The match thread last night was certainly my responsibility and I fell short. I own it. In the spirit of community, I want to be transparent with you about what is going on that has made it a bit hard for my coverage of D.C. United to be perfect.
Most of my family is currently in an active war zone. I am struggling to get through the day while every news alert, every phone call, and every alert has me on edge. Yesterday was a particularly troubling day. I love soccer, I love D.C. United, and I genuinely care about providing coverage for you, but like anyone, I have a personal life, I get sick, I have emergencies.
We are working on a better plan for backup for when “life happens” but again, please understand that things aren’t perfect. We did our best to keep this site and community alive after the rug was pulled out from under us by Vox. We won’t always get it right, but we are trying. We also welcome contributors and collaborators. If you are interested, let us know.
With gratitude,
Sarah
Sarah, I’d seen some of your social media posts about Lebanon and I suspected that this was the explanation but didn’t want to guess.
May your family be safe during these troubling times. And I thought your post was amazingly humble, open, and transparent given the space that you’re in.
I repeat my post for DW2 to you, Sarah, as well. A lot of tough things are going on. Blessings to your family.
Hi, writers. Not gonna lie, your responses, including opening the curtain on your personal struggles and your calls for grace, they’re humbling. You do not deserve criticism, much less rebuke. You’re doing the best with your very precious and limited time.
Perhaps this is an opportunity to relieve some of that burden, and find a solution. I personally currently have some flexibility to check the blog pretty regularly, and can up my research into events. I don’t know if I can provide as quality analysis and write ups as you’re doing, but I think I could cover the issue of creating generic match threads, at the very least.
So, if that sounds like a potential solution you’d like to explore, would be willing to talk about it.
Hey friend,
Thank you for being kind. We would more than welcome any contribution and appreciate the offer. Please drop me an email at: skallassy@gmail.com and I’ll pull you into our team chat 🙂
Went ahead and sent an email and identified myself. Hope it didn’t end up in the spam folder