A loaded slate of international fixtures is on tap this weekend, with everything from Euro 2016 and World Cup 2018 qualifiers and just plain friendlies set to take place. Most domestic leagues the world over give their teams the week off during these FIFA dates. Unfortunately, Major League Soccer has the tendency to not do so.
This is evidenced by the fact that ten MLS teams are in action this weekend. Many of them will be missing key players who are on international duty for their respective national teams. Some are more undermanned than others, but perhaps no other club will be missing more players than Columbus Crew SC.
The Black and Gold will be missing a total of nine players, more than any other team in the league. Six of those players are regular starters, including outside backs Waylon Francis (Costa Rica) and Harrison Afful (Ghana), defensive midfielder Wil Trapp (US under-23s), attacking wingers Cedrick Mabwati (DR Congo), Justin Meram (Iraq), and the league’s leading goal-scorer in striker Kei Kamara (Sierra Leone).
Even their opponent this coming Sunday, FC Dallas, will be shorthanded. They lose six players, four of whom contribute regularly to the team. Among their departures include defender Je-Vaughan Watson (Jamaica), veteran Blas Perez (Panama) as well as promising young talent in Tesho Akindele (Canada) up top, and prolific playmaker Fabian Castillo (Colombia).
The questions I have are these: Why are teams forced to play without their key contributors this late in the season due to international call-ups? With the MLS playoff race in full swing, shouldn’t every team be as full-strength as possible for the remainder of their games? It seems pretty unfair to me that half the league is idle while the other half is forced to put their spot in the standings on the line with depleted squads.
There are obviously instances where this simply isn’t possible. Since MLS has a summer schedule (which should never change despite the out-of-touch musings of the current FIFA president), players will inevitably have to leave their club teams for major international tournaments like the recently completed Gold Cup and last year’s World Cup. However, the upcoming fixtures don’t apply and the league is off base in scheduling these games this weekend when there were plenty of open dates elsewhere.
Let’s not forget that there wasn’t a single mid-week game on the schedule until April 8th when Crew SC played Vancouver. It wasn’t until the middle of May that more than half the league had a double game week. You mean to tell me these five games this weekend couldn’t have been played on an open Wednesday, of which there have been plenty this year? I find that hard to believe.
Look, I know the league is often reticent to schedule too many regular season games during the week due to the fact attendance tends to suffer. Still, things are getting better on that front. This season, an average of 17,843 fans have attended mid-week games which is nearly a six percent increase from 2014.
There have been a plethora of “because MLS” moments this year. The pronounced parity of the league, which we saw when San Jose grinded out a 1-0 victory over a loaded LA Galaxy side last Friday, is the positive side of that. On the flip side, however, is the quality of officiating at times and why some teams like, say, the aforementioned Galaxy, get the week off while Crew SC have to play a game without half their starting lineup.
That ain’t right and it needs to change.
It’s high time for the league to get with the program on a more regular basis when it comes to scheduling during these FIFA dates. It’s the opinion of this writer that doing so can only continue to increase the credibility of the league in the eyes of the global soccer fan who may not yet be exposed to the ever improving quality of play on the field. Amid the league’s growing profile on the world stage, it can only help to give the entire league the week off instead of picking and choosing as fans are likely to perceive.
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