5 things we learned in MLS Week 23: Bedoya, Lodeiro highlight back-and-forth weekend
Week 23 of the 2016 MLS season was rather odd. All 20 teams clashed across the continent and deciding a winner in each proved a more difficult task than usual. Resilience was key this weekend, and each team proved itself in that regard.
Here's what we learned in Week 23:
The week of the back-and-forth
We hate to bring up the oldest of old adages in football, but you're never more susceptible to conceding a goal then after your team has just scored - an ancient lesson demonstrated over and over this weekend in MLS.
Ignacio Piatti's 21st-minute goal for the Montreal Impact was canceled out within a minute by New York Red Bulls forward Bradley Wright-Phillips. Columbus Crew and New York City FC attackers Ethan Finlay and David Villa swapped goals in the 80th and 83rd minutes respectively, then again, in reverse order, in the 92nd and 95th minute en route to a 3-3 draw.
FC Dallas forward Tesho Akindele's 66th-minute goal was cancelled out within 120 seconds by Sporting Kansas City striker Dom Dwyer ... who then saw his follow-up 73rd-minute tally that put his team ahead nullified by Maxi Urruti three minutes later.
Finally, Chicago Fire midfielder John Goossens' sixth-minute goal was cancelled out by Orlando City forward Cyle Larin to round off a very strange weekend of back-and-forth action.
Bedoya's Philly role
When Alejandro Bedoya joined the Philadephia Union, there were questions about his exact role in Jim Curtin's midfield, but they might have been answered during a 4-0 thrashing of the New England Revolution.
Bedoya can play in a number of positions - whether centrally or out wide, up top or deep in midfield - and it seems he will be used as a central midfielder alongside Warren Creavalle (and, eventually, Maurice Edu) and behind Tranquillo Barnetta in a 4-2-3-1 formation.
Of course, nothing is firmly fixed in place down the stretch.
Video replay actually works
The idea of video replay in soccer seems straightforward, in theory, but as with any sweeping change in FIFA, the theory is a lot simpler than the execution. This weekend, the International Football Association Board took a step forward in realizing the use of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology in a USL match between New York Red Bulls II and Orlando City B at Red Bull Arena.
The result? It works.
One of the main concerns surrounding video replay is interruption to the flow of the game, but a sideline tablet screen immediately allowed match official Ismail Elfath to review the play in a timely manner and change his initially incorrect call to brandish a red card.
How this tech is implemented in the future remains to be seen, but successful use of video replay in this test is a huge step toward modernizing the sport. It could have ramifications beyond refereeing decisions, even extending to team styles of play.
Lodeiro brings change to Seattle
The Seattle Sounders need a new look in their attack and seem to have found it in Nicolas Lodeiro, who scored and assisted in a 2-1 win over Real Salt Lake. What Sounders fans saw wasn't just a quality player, though; they saw a fix to the club's glaring hole in 2016.
Lodeiro provides the kind of trickery, movement, and skill that Seattle was missing after selling Obafemi Martins. While Jordan Morris could potentially replicate Martins' goal output - the rookie striker heading the winner off a Lodeiro assist - he can't replicate the kind of interplay and passing skill that Martins provided.
In its absence, Clint Dempsey's own output suffered, and failing to address this missing X-factor earlier might very well have spelled the end of Sigi Schmid's time at the club.
Lodeiro's job isn't just to score goals, because Martins' job wasn't just to score goals, either. However, it helps that Lodeiro's first MLS goal was a thing of beauty.
Altidore's still got it
Say what you want about Toronto FC striker Jozy Altidore, but for all his recent injury struggles, the U.S. men's national team sure could use a healthy Altidore up top.