MLS Crystal Balls Revisited

Way back in March, I wrote a post with the preseason predictions of some of the most widely read soccer pundits. Among the prognosticators that went so far as to designate playoff teams were Ives, a consolidation of ESPNSoccernet writers, Bruce McGuire of DuNord and seven others. In all, I collected the predictions of 17 posts. From those posts there were nine predictions of conference tables and ten single table predictions. Some of the conference table seers were willing to select a playoff eight while others were only willing to pick the top two in each conference. Probably a smart move given the parity that prevails in MLS.

Now before anyone gets their pants in a wad, I am aware that things change during the season. Players get injured, others get signed, etc. So just keep in mind that this post is about what was known back in March and the pundits(and I) took our best shots with what was laid out before us.

Observations Back Then

From the 10 full table power rankings:

All 9 of 10 rankings have Columbus either 1 or 2.

No one had Seattle lower than 4th.

No one had New England higher than 9th.

5 of the 10 picked Philadelphia to finish 16th.

Everyone had Columbus, LA, and Seattle in the top 8(playoff position).

Dallas had the biggest spread, from 3rd to 16th.

From the 9 conference ranking predictions:

All 9 rankings had Columbus 1 or 2 in the East.

6 of 9 had Seattle 1st in the West.

Who Ate All the Cupcakes gave the highest ranking to newcomer Philadelphia(6th in East).

8 of 9 had DC United missing the playoffs.

SJ and Philadelphia were the only teams that no one picked to make the playoffs.

So how'd we do??? Here's a look at the average finish predi! cted by those who looked into their crystal ball and saw a 1-16 power ranking(10 pundits plus me). Also listed is my preseason table along with the actual final 2010 MLS table.

Predictions Actual
Final
Table

Playoffs Peter

AvgInOut

1CLB1.8110CLBLA

2SEA3.4110RSLRSL

3LA3.5110SEANY

4RSL4.492NYFCD

5HOU5.592LACLB

6CHI6.892CHISEA

7FCD8.274TFCCO

8TFC9.565FCDSJ

9DCU9.747KCKC

10CO10.138HOUCHI

11NY10.747CHVTFC

12CHV10.929PHLHOU

13KC11.229NENE

14NE11.8011COLPHL

15PHL14.0011SJCHV

16SJ14.5011DCUDCU

EastWest

PunditsPeterActualPunditsPeterActual

CLB1.11CLBRBNYSEA1.56RSLLA

CHI2.56RBNYCLBRSL2.11SEARSL

NY4.11CHIKCLA3.00LAFCD

TFC4.22TFCCHICOL4.78FCDSEA

DCU4.78KCTFCHOU4.89HOUCOL

NE4.78PHLNEFCD5.67CHVSJ

KC6.89NEPHLCHV6.00COLHOU

PHL7.56DCUDCUSJ7.78SJCHV

Observations and Surprises

Working down from the top of the final table ...

Unlike last year the Galaxy were a solid pick by most. Also last year almost everyone had RSL challenging for a top 4 spot. After their MLS Cup win, this season they lived up to expectations during the regular season. The average of pundits had the Red Bull out of the playoffs after the disaster last year. But they were good before the arrival of Henry and Marquez, and stayed good afterward. FC Dallas finished strong last season and got better this year. Everyone had Columbus near the top. Their end of season swoon has most writing them off for the Cup. Seattle overcame a slow start, but they came on like gangbusters after moving Ljungberg to Chicago. They repeated as Cup champions and I suspect they'll show better in next year's CONCACAF Champions League. After being knocked out of the playoffs on the final day two years in a row, the Rapids finally crossed the threshold with the top forward duo in the league. The big surprise is San Jose. No one had them making the playoffs.

Kansas City was just pl! ain inco nsistent. Jimmy Conrad had a subpar year. The seven point gap to the playoffs was the largest since the league returned to two conferences in '02. Chicago was a major disappointment. Conde didn't look good, Thorington couldn't stay fit, but Sean Johnson looks to be a big find. Preki couldn't get it done in Toronto. DeRo had a fine year, but de Guzman and Mista didn't fulfill expectations. You can create a pretty decent team with TFC castoffs. Most had Houston in the final 8. I didn't see how they would overcome the loss of DeRo, Clark and Holden from the midfield, and they didn't. New England and Philadelphia were pegged pretty well. Chivas USA didn't transition well after Preki left. DC United didn't look good sqeaking into the playoffs last year, and with only the 55th pick in the draft and some questionable personnel moves, they sunk to the bottom.

And Next Year?

So now we start hot stoving over who will be exposed in the Portland/Vancouver expansion draft. I did pretty well guessing who Philadelphia would select(4 of 10). Doubt I'll do so well this year.

Here are some early thoughts on 2011 rolling around in my head ...

• I think Colorado will be stronger next year.
  
• Can't wait to see how the Red Bulls play with Henry and Marquez from the start.
  
• Dallas will keep the momentum going. They have a nucleus of young talent. Look for Brek Shea to have a breakout year.
  
• Will Taylor Twellman return?
  
• Can RSL sign Saborio to a long term deal? Easily the newcomer of the year in my mind, with Joel Lindpere running a close second.
  
• San Jose overcame their penchant for giving up late goals and they're in the playoffs. With Convey returning to form, they could remain playoff contenders next year.
  
• Last year in Chicago it was Rolfe, Segares and Blanco gone. Now McBride, CJ Brown and uncertainty about Ljungberg. While Segares returned, Thorington can't stay healthy and the defense remains suspect despite the emergence of Sean Johnson in goal. Could ! be anoth er tough year.
  
• Philly played tough all year and with another year's experience, I see them contending for the playoffs.
  
• Along with many others, I think the Northwest is gonna be a fun place for footie fans.
  

Related posts:

MLS Crystal Ball Edition Some Starters The new MLS Website.. Du Nord: Top 10...

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