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When the MLS season kicked off in March some questioned what life after David Beckham would be like for North America’s top flight. Nine months later no such concerns persist, following a highly entertaining and successful campaign for the league, with expansion a key buzzword in 2013.
So with Saturday’s MLS Cup final between Sporting Kansas City and Real Salt Lake looming, it’s time to look back at who has shined this year.
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The Coach of the Year award has been handed to Portland’s Caleb Porter, something that is difficult to argue with. Mike Petke has done a wonderful job at the New York Red Bulls but he took the club to the Supporters’ Shield title with one of the highest payrolls in the league. Jason Kreis’ reputation as one of the league’s brightest young coaches has been strengthened this year, taking Real Salt Lake into Saturday’s MLS Cup final.
However, the improvement at the Timbers under Porter has been staggering. When the 38-year-old took over at the start of the year he found a team coming off the back of a dismal season, in which the side finished third bottom of the overall MLS standings.
‘Porterball’ has turned Portland into MLS’ most dynamic and entertaining team, imposing the league’s closest thing to ‘tiki-taka.’ Furthermore this compelling style of play delivered results, with the Timbers finishing the year top of the Western Conference.
Only Real Salt Lake (56.2%) and Sporting KC (54.7%) boasted a higher average share of possession than the Timbers (54.3%) in 2013, making an average of 379 short passes per game, the second highest in the league. Porter’s philosophy is built on calculated build-up play and this is reflected by the fact that the Timbers scored 37 goals from open play this season (the third highest team tally in MLS).
And Porter made perhaps the two best signings in MLS this season, with Will Johnson and Diego Valeri both enjoying exceptional seasons in the Pacific Northwest.
The duo have been central to Portland’s revival, with Johnson the pass-master general and Valeri the classy playmaker. The former averages the most passes per game of any Timbers player, with 50.9, and the latter leads the team’s key passes column, with 1.8 per game. Playmakers have thrived in MLS this year, with both MLS Cup finalists Sporting KC and Real Salt Lake relying on their respective creative figures, Graham Zusi and Javier Morales.
Although the Columbus Crew endured a turbulent season, Federico Higuain still underlined his ability as a bustling playmaker, averaging a league-high of 4.1 key passes per game.
Looking at the best strikers in MLS a number of names stand out. Italian veteran Marco Di Vaio set a club scoring record for the Montreal Impact, netting 20 goals over 33 appearances. Mike Magee struck 21 times, making the switch from the Los Angeles Galaxy to the Chicago Fire midway through the year.
But it was Camilo Sanvezzo who finished as the league’s top scorer with 22 goals, though the Brazilian remains somewhat underrated. Without Camilo, who scored 22 of his side’s 53 total goals (42%), the Vancouver Whitecaps would have floundered near the bottom of the Western Conference. He averaged more shots per game than any other MLS player, with an average of 3.8 per game, also making 1.2 key passes per game, a relatively high tally for an out-and-out striker.
Going by WhoScored rating, Thierry Henry and Robbie Keane were the league’s two best forwards this season. The Irishman in particular enjoyed a stellar year, netting 16 goals in 25 league appearances for the Galaxy, also laying on 11 assists in the process.
At the other end of the pitch the New England Revolution’s Jose Goncalves was voted MLS Defender of the Year. The Portuguese played every minute of New England’s 34 league games, beating US national team duo Matt Besler and Omar Gonzalez to the accolade, who were second and third in the voting respectively.
Indeed, Goncalves was crucial in Jay Heaps’ development of the Revolution as a resolute defensive unit but strangely he doesn’t feature in the top 20 tacklers or interceptors in MLS. In fact, the Portuguese averaged only 1.8 tackles per game (the league high is 3.8) and only 3.3 interceptions per game (the league high is 5.3).
When looking at the statistics someone like Aurélien Collin appears more of a rounded centre-back, averaging 4.1 interceptions and 2.5 tackles per game. Jamison Olave also impressed in his first season with the Red Bulls, averaging 4 interceptions per game, facilitating Petke’s system of building from the back.
In terms of pass success rate, so often the yardstick of midfield prudence and effectiveness, Osvaldo Alonso takes the honour of MLS’ most accurate passer, completing 88.6% of his passes. But in terms of passes with purpose (or key passes) Dillon Powers leads the way for true central midfielders (with an average of 2.2 per game).
Powers was a popular choice as the league’s Rookie of the Year, playing a big part in the Colorado Rapids’ late surge into the playoff places, recording five goals and five assists while giving Oscar Pareja’s side presence in the middle. 20-year-old DeAndre Yedlin also excelled in his rookie season, attaining an average rating of 7.06, and is tipped by some for the USA’s World Cup squad next summer.
Saturday will see a fitting end to the MLS season, with two entertaining and dynamic teams competing in the final. It is perhaps fitting that in the year following Beckham’s departure the showpiece event will feature two shining examples of MLS clubs and several players looking to cap an exceptional season.
