The MLS playoff system is arguably the most unfair in the world of soccer. You have a league that essentially crams a full league year into 7 months of play. Almost half of the teams in the league (14 out of 30) make the playoffs. From there one game can erase everything that you did in the entire year. LAFC are probably the team that likes this playoff format the least. They’ve arguably been the best team in MLS for the past couple of seasons, but they haven’t been able to lift the MLS Cup. Is this going to be their year? We’ll have to wait and see! Particularly since we don’t see them in the first round of the playoffs. Here are the matchups that will be taking place in the first round of the MLS playoffs, when they’ll be taking place, and who has a better chance to win.
New York Red Bulls vs Cincinnati – Saturday, October 15th 12am EST
This is probably going to be a very evenly matched game. These two teams played against each other on August 20th, and the final result was a 1-1 draw. Expect even more parity in this matchup when both teams are looking to fight another day. This game is certainly too close to call, but the Red Bulls are hoping that hosting the game will make a difference for them.
LA Galaxy vs Nashville – Saturday, October 15th 3pm EST
Another matchup between two teams that have recently faced off against each other with that game having ended in a draw. LA Galaxy have been able to find their groove as of late. However, just like most MLS squads they still have those awkward outings where they’re blown out by a team you’d never expect. For their part Nashville has proven they have a potent offense we can’t count them out just yet.
Austin vs Real Salt Lake – Sunday, October 16th 3pm EST
We really thought that Real Salt Lake were dead and buried in the East heading into the playoffs. They had a decision day win that propelled them into the final available spot. Can they really catch lightning in a bottle again? They almost played themselves out of the tournament with a dreadful September. For their part Austin has been one of the most consistent squads in MLS. Their September though wasn’t great either. Actually, their best most recent win is a 3-0 against Real Salt Lake. We may see a repeat of that.
Montreal vs Orlando City – Sunday, October 16th 8pm EST
Orlando is another team that we pretty much counted out after such an abysmal outing against Inter Miami. They regrouped though, and picked up a decision day win that got them into the playoffs as well. Montreal just like Austin at the 2 spot in the other conference have been consistent. We have to go back to the 4th of July to find their last total meltdown which came against LA Galaxy. They look like the much better team on paper, and they should be able to reflect that on the field.
New York City vs Inter Miami – Monday, October 17th 7pm EST
This is an older slower Miami team against New York City who are literally built on speed. Ironically enough it’s probably Miami who will want to look for the space on the counters. If Campana can’t go up top with Higuain though, the Miami team does lose an important presence. For their part New York City just has to go out and play their game. Their speed itself may be too much for Miami to handle. If that happens we’re looking at the end of Gonzalo Higuain’s career.
FC Dallas vs Minnesota – Monday, October 17th 9:30pm EST
Dallas could surprise some people, then again if you’re surprised by Dallas you maybe weren’t looking too closely to begin with. They have plenty of options up front who are supported by the Texas kids in the middle. The concern though is that Minnesota has enough talent to exploit the weaknesses of the Dallas 4-3-3 system. We’ll see if Emanuel Reynoso is going to be on his game! If so even though Dallas had a great year they could get bounced.
