Could Robert Lewandowski be the latest European star to make a move to MLS? According to his wife, Anna Lewandowski, the couple dreams of a move to Los Angeles and a chance to build their personal brands ahead of Robert's retirement.
"I think we will spend some time in the United States, too," Anna Lewandowski said in a recent interview with Business Insider Poland. "We dream of Los Angeles. There we want to develop our brands."
A capacity crowd of 21,211 at MAPFRE Stadium provided an electric atmosphere for Tuesday night’s MLS Cup Eastern Conference Final between the Columbus Crew and Toronto FC, but a deserved breakthrough for the Crew — who dominated the second half and landed three shots on target as opposed to zero for the visitors — never arrived.
AND THEN THERE WERE FOUR. Forgive me, but it’s been 15 days since the Conference Semifinals of the 2017 MLS Cup Playoffs wrapped up and I’m just trying to bring the edge back. Tuesday, Nov. 21, sees the first legs of both the Eastern and Western Conference finals kick off in Columbus and Houston, respectively, and we’re here to offer a quick take on what to lookout for in both matches.
Columbus Crew SC vs. Toronto FC
MAPFRE Stadium | Columbus, Ohio
November 21, 8 p.m. ET | ESPN
What a wild ride the 2017 MLS regular season was. The league, for all its various shortcomings and absurdities, is incredibly exciting and ever-growing in quality. However, for all of its maturation and development, there’s still a brilliant charm to MLS that’s long since left Europe’s biggest leagues and the likes of the NFL, NBA and MLB.
In a league where parity reigns unlike any other, the tenure of Caleb Porter as manager of the Portland Timbers will go down as one of the most wildly successful in Major League Soccer’s 22-year existence. According to reports, that tenure has reached a shocking conclusion — by mutual consent — after a season in which the Timbers finished at the top of the Western Conference.
Clint Dempsey, the all-time leading goal scorer in USMNT history was named Comeback Player of the Year by Major League Soccer on Wednesday, just edging out Columbus’ Federico Higuain. Dempsey missed much of the second half of the 2016 season with an irregular heartbeat but returned in 2017 to score 12 goals.
In the end, the snitches didn’t get any stitches. Jozy Altidore believed that video evidence would clear him of any wrongdoing during the tunnel bust up between Toronto FC and New York Red Bulls, resulting in red cards for both Altidore and Sacha Kljestan, but an independent panel has upheld Altidore’s one-game suspension after being unable to find enough evidence to overturn the ruling.
There’s a proverb or two that probably apply here, something about counting eggs before they hatch or putting the cart before the horse. But this is Major League Soccer, where allocation money and salary caps make fools of us all and expansion is the single greatest boon to owners’ pocketbooks since skyboxes. So really, this is business as usual.
Back before Anthony Precourt invested in the Columbus Crew in 2013, the Crew had a decidedly punk feel. Prior to going with a Bundesliga-inspired crest that’s actually quite nice, the Crew boasted the most ruffian logo in all of American sports with three dudes wearing construction hats beneath a giant stylization of the word “Crew”. It was hardcore, a tradition that’s been vociferously kept alive by the Nordecke supporters’ group and all who’ve given their voice to the #SavetheCrew movement.
Atlanta United set the MLS season attendance record in its first year in the league and fans did more than just show up — they bought plenty of jerseys. Paraguayan sensation Miguel Almiron had the top-selling MLS jersey for the 2017 season. The Atlanta United midfielder had five teammates with him in the list of the top-selling MLS jerseys released by Major League Soccer on Friday.
Below is the complete list of the 25 top-selling MLS jerseys: