MLS Power Rankings: Week 11
June 12th, 2008 . 8:52 pm . By: Parrish GloverChicago still sets the pace in the league, but a disappointing home loss to a maudlin United team closes the gap with the rest of the pack. Meanwhile, Dallas is still unable to accomplish anything while and points on the road pop up in the most unlikely of places.
Back up just a second. D.C. United goes on the road, defeats the best team in the league, and drops in the rankings? Yep. The fact is that San Jose’s defeat of Columbus by two goals is more impressive. Also, note the closeness of the two teams after this weekend. A mere 0.2 separates them and they are likely to trade off the cellar spot until Dallas can drop enough points to catch up (which could be this weekend). Odd stat of the week. Only two MLS teams are below .500 at home. San Jose is not a surprise, but Chicago certainly is. Saturday marked the team’s third loss at Toyota Park, measured against only two wins. That the team is undefeated on the road is even more odd. If this trend continues, the Fire might be best served by dropping even more points as the season progresses. Home field for the conference final seems to be no advantage. The Crew’s loss puts the Revs at #2 and the Galaxy hops up to third. New England has been regaining its form for a while, and the Posh Boys actually seem to be responding well to Ruud Gullit. With TFC also doing well with an import coach, it may be time to reconsider some old theories on the importance of having an American at the helm. New England at Houston. The Dynamo have rediscovered who they are, seemingly. They face a harsh test against a Revs side that is hitting on all cylinders. If Matt Reis does what Matt Reis can do, the oranges will be lucky to get out with a point. Columbus at Kansas City. May’s favorite overachiever travels to April’s favorite overachiever. Unfortunately, the game is being played in June. With the East getting crowded at the top, these two need to start acting like they belong among the league’s elites. D.C. United at New York. DC-NY is almost always a fun match. With Jozy traveling tonight on a plane (Can you see the red taillights heading for Spain?), how will Red bull adjust to the loss of a key playmaker. United gets a chance to show that last weekend wasn’t a fluke and that they are actually fielding a team for 2008. Chicago at Dallas. For the first time in years, it looks like the Fire are favorites for the Brimstone Cup. Since Dallas seems to be on the verge of making the Hyndman hire official, this is likely Ferruzzi’s final opportunity at the helm. A victory against a Blanco would be a nice line on the resume. 3 Comments Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI Leave a comment |
I am a little confused even after your explanation that after beating toronto at home, getting a tie with New England on the road and beating Chicago on the road, that DC is in last place. Especially when Chicago and new England are 1-2 on your list and Toronto is 7th.
I agree. It doesn’t make much sense that a team can go 2w, 1t (two of those games on the road) and still be pinned to the bottom of the power rankings. Typically power rankings tend to weight form more than overall totals.
Columbus has gone how long now without a win and yet they are sitting up way at spot #4.
Makes me think the ‘analyst’ of this piece needs to rethink his statistical method (as well as maybe watch a bit of soccer).
New England is definitely on top in power rankings. The Galaxy and Houston are miles ahead of Colorado and Chivas should be above them too.
KC, RSL and Columbus are in the worst shape right now (though KC may be poised for an uptick now that they are back at home).
The 3rd Degree rankings are, and always have been, based on full season results moreso than recent form. I made some tweaks to the system to try to compensate for that, but I’ll admit that I think I can do better. I have no desire to change horses in midstream with a different system, but I assure you that I am “rethinking my statistical method” almost as much as I’m “watching a bit of soccer.” (Four games on tap for today, is that enough for you?)
After last night’s result, it looks like D.C. will jump between four and six spots in next week’s rankings. Better, but still seems a bit low, given current form. I think most teams would rather not have to face United in a match of significange at this point.