DISQUS

You my friend are an idiot. A team loses one game and they are crap and embarassing. A team wins 4-1 and you critize for not winning 8-1. You critize MLS even though one CCL does not a trend make. are you an objective writer or an idoit who likes to feel important. You constatly get facts wrong and wrongly critize teams. Dumb ass

I'm not sure about CUSA but New England and DC are in shambles mentally and that is affecting the results that we see in CCL. They both obvoiously want nothing to do with this competition. And as you say excuses abound. The reality isn't a lack of quality in MLS since DC used a completely C team and still lost on a completely fluke goal. the reality is they are not in it mentally and have been burned. I think he losses in the last CCC with balls going through perkins hands have screwed with their psyche. It seems that there are new teams coming up that have the mentality to win (Crew would be one). But i find it funny how at the beginning of this year Garber berates DC for not trying harder in CCC but then for CCL defends them and brings out excuses of MLS cup is more important. The league realizes the black eye and i'm hopefull will do something next year to remedy it.

I like your site and i thnk you have some good observations about MLS, but i seriously have to question your writing and motivation to bash MLS (whidh with all it's faults at least we have a league to complain about). You keep saying that no MLS team has beaten a Costa Rican team in a two legged tie when that in fact is blatantly not true. In the 2007 Concacaf Champions Cup, Houston did in fact eliminate in their first round match up Puntarenas FC of Costa Rica in a two match tie. The league has plenty of issues that it can be criticized for, but you loose more credability than eh very league you criticize when you can't even get simple facts straight.

I think New England went for MLS CUP and sacrificed CCL. CCL is not the Champions league and there is no overwhelming prestige to winning that cup like there is in europe. Maybe in the future MLS teams will see more prestige in wining CCL but that will only be when the tournament means something. CONCACAF tournaments mean nothing to MLS and FMF. MLS is all about MLS cup which i think is a biproduct of us americans being fixated on our on country (ie. how can we call MLB champ world champ when they don't play world. Very pretentious.) FMF wants libertadores because of the money and the noteriety of SA football. Its too bad NE mailed it in, i wonder if they had tried to win what might have happened, but had they moved on it would definately would have placed them at a huge disadvantage to the rest of the league. It seems only DC places a high regard on winning outside MLS and thats too bad. I agree with the writer when i see this as a huge embarassment for MLS that we should all be ashamed about. But as long as MLS makes money off of Superliga and interliga, and owners get the profits CCL will be seen as nuisance. too bad becasue nothing would bring more respectability to MLS than consistently challenging for CCL. that would bring high regard for the league and bring in better players. and as fans have shown, if you bring in better palyers and raise the level of play they will come out and in great numbers.

But all in all i see it as an embarrassment. Its embarassing that we are saddled with 18 man rosters and a 2.3 million dollar salary cap. Its embarassing to see TFC gutted because of how the league schedules their matches, but that is MLS. and until fans exert more of their will through the one thing that makes owners listen which is their money, things are not going to change any time soon. Shame on NE for mailing it in, becasue if that was an honest effort than MLS is in dire dire straits.