By Jon Arnold
Leagues Cup is all about rivalry. There are the micro-moments of teams meeting near-neighbors or teams they’re bonded to by past contests. But, above all, there is the macro narrative of MLS vs. Liga MX, a debate that continues to rage in North American soccer fandom. Which league is best? What did we learn from Phase One of Leagues Cup?
Our latest data has been extremely visible on LeaguesCup.com, where fans have been able to watch the rivalry scorecard go back and forth, tallying up the victories from MLS teams and Liga MX teams - plus their goals and assists. The final tally reveals things are very close: MLS teams won 28 matchups, while Liga MX emerged triumphant 26 times.
The final verdict on which league is in better form may not be rendered until after the knockout round. After all, the previous two editions of Leagues Cup saw all three Concacaf Champions Cup places claimed by MLS teams. However, when those teams have gone up against Liga MX competition in the CCC in two-legged series, the Mexican teams often come out ahead.
The idea that the leagues are on somewhat level footing gained traction in this tournament, with the coincidence that certain days were dominated by certain leagues.
The opening night of matchday one painted an unpleasant picture for MLS as no team from the U.S. or Canada picked up all three points. The next night, however, the pendulum swung back in MLS’ favor as only one MLS team tasted defeat. It wasn’t always so tidy, but results generally followed that pattern, with a night ending either in MLS’ or Liga MX’s ‘favor’. In the new Leagues Cup format, both leagues will have the same number of teams in the quarterfinals, but even in previous formats representation in the knockout phases likely would’ve been relatively equivalent.
The enticing quarterfinal matchups later this month will go a long way toward framing the way we’re thinking about the present of the rivalry between the two leagues. Phase One’s biggest lesson? Neither league is dominant, with both having teams that are able to compete with their counterparts on the other side of the border.
MAKING THE DIFFERENCE
With just three games to secure a quarterfinal spot, many teams were looking not only for victories but convincing ones in order to boost their goal difference and goals scored tiebreakers.
Perhaps that’s why Phase One of the Leagues Cup ended with an average of 3.37 goals per game - more than any other major soccer competition, whether it be the Bundesliga (3.13), MLS (2.98), the Premier League (2.93) or Liga MX (2.75).
It looked like a motivating factor for Orlando City on the final day. After a convincing 3-1 win over Atlas, Orlando City was up 2-0 on Necaxa after 35 minutes. But Luis Muriel - buoyed by attacking play from Martin Owed and Cesar Araujo - saw his chance and pounced. The Colombian forward added two more goals, completing a first-half hat trick and sent the Lions into the break with a 4-0 edge. Despite a flurry of defensive chances, Necaxa conceded to Ojeda once again, finally pulling back a consolation goal as Orlando won, 5-1.
That pushed Orlando’s goal difference to +6 - pushing the defending Leagues Cup champions Columbus Crew down the table and also serving to keep the Portland Timbers from leaping Orlando as well.
The Timbers had the final quarterfinal place until the last match of the phase, when the LA Galaxy knew they’d need to beat Santos Laguna by two goals. They not only achieved that goal (Galaxy’s last-day dominance push MLS Cup champion into quarterfinals) but were able to secure the No. 3 seed after adding two more goals to jump Orlando City.
AN EXTRA MOTIVATION
Whether MLS teams who are beginning to realize their dreams of making the playoffs may not come true or Liga MX clubs who have habitually struggled, Phase One of the Leagues Cup gave teams on both sides of the border a boost.
Puebla has missed the postseason in the last three tournaments, and La Franja fell in two of their three Apertura contests before the start of Leagues Cup. But a comprehensive victory over NYCFC in the opener fostered belief for Pablo Guede’s side, which bounced back from a loss to the Columbus Crew with a 2-1 win over CF Montreal. That result put Puebla at two victories, which would prove to be enough to secure the final Liga MX place in the quarterfinals.
The LA Galaxy have enjoyed domestic success more recently, but with star attacker Riqui Puig injured in the MLS Cup run last season, plus a series of other injuries early in the year, a title defense is looking increasingly unlikely for Greg Vanney’s squad.
However, the Galaxy entered Leagues Cup in decent form and knew that a trio of good performances would give them a chance to get to the knockout stage and look for a top-three finish that would allow them a Concacaf Champions Cup return.
