Even while I disagreed vehemently with the comments of Union head coach Peter Nowak in the wake of their inaugural loss at the hands of Seattle, I reveled in them. I loved Sigi Schmid hitting back, and found myself riveted by the defensive posture taken by the Sounders faithful in the wake of the criticism.
MLS too often lacks this kind of off-field intrigue, the kind that spawns a slew of blog posts, keeps fans interested during breaks between games, and adds new plot lines to what happens on the field. The Union's remaining match with Seattle, set for June 27th in Philly, is now a must watch game, and all thanks to a coach who shot off at the mouth in the heat of the post-match moment. Whether Nowak was right or wrong doesn't really matter; what does is that people are now talking up bad-blood between the Sounders and Union (who don't the Sounders have bad blood with?), a dynamic which makes them that much more interesting to the casual fan.
Meanwhile, Dave van den Bergh labelled FC Dallas as moral-less bastards (okay, I'm paraphrasing), criticizing the club for the treatment he received when they kicked him to the curb after last season. I don't know that FCD is particularly evil, or that Schellas Hyndman likes to sacrifice goats in his Dallas-area home, but now I wonder if it might in fact be true. Van den Bergh said what? Hmm...maybe FC Dallas are soulless creatures of the night!
Again, in the end it doesn't matter, and it's impossible to know right now if van den Bergh was screwed over by Hyndman or if the club simply chose to part ways with the Dutchman and he's taking it a little hard. Either way, I'm anxious to see van den Bergh sign elsewhere so he can play against his old club, hopefully put on a clinic, and stick it to them in spades. The dynamic just got a whole lot more interesting.
MLS needs the intrigue.
In that vein, it's really too bad that DC United head man Curt Onalfo chose not to speak ill of his former employers before the club's season opener in Kansas City. It's too bad Preki has behaved himself, it's too bad no coach has chosen to declare themselves favorites outright, or been cornered into something we can take out of context. It's too bad no one in Houston will go on record that the Western Conference final power outages were a conspiracy on the part of the league or the Galaxy.
Would that be completely off the wall, deserving of criticism and give the person that said it a tinfoil hat reputation? Of course, but it would make things much more interesting.
It's not that MLS is boring, or that there isn't enough to see on the field to make the league compelling; it's just that there's something missing from week to week, when the only way to fill the time is to review the previous weekend's matches, create power rankings that mean nothing, and look ahead to the next set of games.
Where are the crazy quotes, the withering criticisms, the bigger-than-life personalities stirring the pot with over-the-top statements that draw our interest and add a new depth to the competition on the field?
Without the standard arena of soccer scuttle, the rapidly moving transfer rumor mill, on the level of leagues abroad, MLS has a deficit of nonsense. Nonsense is an integral part of the game the world over, and as our little league grows, I hope we see more of it.
So come on! Who's next? Any player or manager want to call Preki a maniac or take a shot at the LA Galaxy for playing ugly soccer? Anyone?
