Key events
17 min: A rarity in the modern game – a flag going up for offside on a relatively close call. Not waiting for VAR. Miami are displeased.
More shenanigans, as a hard foul draws a hard shove from Vancouver offensive talisman Brian White on Falcon. Yellow to White. How very colorful.
14 min: Having conceded the own goal, Ocampo tries to contribute at the other end, but his pass deflects off a teammate for a goal kick.
13 min: The Vancouver press forces Rios Novo to clear awkwardly, and then the midfield battle does indeed turn into a battle, with bodies flying everywhere in a series of collisions. Referee Fischer sorts it out and shows yellow to Miami’s Rodriguez.
12 min: Vancouver resumes with a bit of direct play that forces Miami into an uncomfortable moment. You never really want to see a headed backpass straight at your own goal, but Rios Novo collects cleanly.
10 min: De Paul is down for Miami after tangling legs with Cubas.
We get a quick peek at “ref cam,” but someone’s hand is in the way.
Goooooaaal! Miami 1-0 Vancouver (Ocampo OG 8)
Miami pop the ball forward to Allende, who was in behind the left back but kept onside by the rest of the line. He crosses, and it caroms straight off the luckless Ocampo past a wrong-footed Takaoka.
7 min: Free kick to Vancouver, but it’s played too deep in the penalty area, and Rios Nova collects easily despite having the sun straight in his face.
6 min: Vancouver are trying to string together some passes in the Miami half, but it’s tough going. But they find a bit of space, and Allen cuts out a cross to Müller.
Peter Losty has an excellent team name suggestion: “In a tribute to Mr Dylan, I’d rename the Tennnessee club to ‘Nashvillle Skyliners’.”
3 min: Miami pinned Vancouver deep in their own half for quite a while, and after a short break the other way, they get it back. Allende gets the first shot of the game, putting it over from near the corner of the penalty area.
1 min: The atmosphere is lively as we have a frantic midfield battle, with neither team sustaining possession.
Kickoff
Huh. One of those rare US sports events in which the national anthem is not broadcast.
Our referee is Drew Fischer.
While we’re waiting, let’s talk about MLS team names …
MLS has gone through a couple of different waves in terms of selecting names.
Upon launch, the league went with the trendy non-plural nouns – San Jose Clash, Los Angeles Galaxy, Tampa Bay Mutiny, Dallas Burn, etc. The major exception was DC United.
San Jose eventually reclaimed the name of its old NASL team, the Earthquakes. Three teams from the Pacific Northwest – Portland Timbers, Seattle Sounders and today’s participants from the Vancouver Whitecaps – also bear the names of their old NASL forerunners.
Aside from that? Here’s the last decade and change:
New York City FC
Orlando City SC
Atlanta United FC
Minnesota United FC
Los Angeles FC
FC Cincinnati
Inter Miami
Nashville SC
Austin FC
Charlotte FC
St. Louis City SC
San Diego FC
Borrrrrring.
So if you’re inclined to email me while we wait for this thing to start, tell me how you’d rebrand these teams.
It’s not as if there are no names that fit both a US and a European tradition. No one has claimed “Rovers” in MLS. And I will swiftly declare my loyalty to any MLS club that claims the name “Wanderers.”
The broadcast is underway, and the intro says the Whitecaps are chasing the biggest prize in American soccer. Um … maybe check the map?
Kickoff will be sometime this afternoon Eastern time.
And a big welcome to those of you who just watched the breathtaking Leeds-Liverpool matchup. US midfielder Brendan Aaronson played a big role in that one.
Starting lineups
Inter Messi, er, Miami: Rocco Rios Novo, Sergio Busquets, Noah Allen, Maximiliano Falcon, Jordi Alba, Ian Fray, Rodrigo De Paul, Baltasar Rodriguez, Mateo Silvetti, Tadeo Allende, Lionel Messi.
A change from Miami’s semifinal win: Fray replaces Marcelo Weigandt.
Luis Suarez is available off the bench.
The only US player among the starters is homegrown player Noah Allen, though he has switched his allegiance to Greece.
Vancouver Whitecaps: Yohei Takaoka, Ralph Priso-Mbongue, Tristan Blackmon, Edier Ocampo, Thomas Müller, Andres Cubas, Sebastian Berhalter, Brian White, Ali Ahmed, Emmanuel Sabbi.
Laborda replaces Tate Johnson.
This squad is more domestic in nature, with a couple of Canadians and a smattering of players from across the long border with the US.
In a big country, dreams stay with you …
Or, in this case, two big countries, with the Vancouver Whitecaps representing Canada. These two clubs are in opposite corners of the continent. Unless MLS expands to Alaska or Hawaii, the distance between Miami and Vancouver is about as big as you can get.
How far?
A little more than 2,800 miles or 4,500 kilometers.
For perspective … Wilfried Nancy has just left the Columbus Crew to take over at Celtic. His new club would fly less than 2,000 miles if they were to go to Istanbul to take on Galatasaray. A comparable flight to Vancouver-Miami would be Glasgow-Baghdad. Or they could go the other direction and fly to Halifax, at the other end of Canada from Vancouver.
Also check out this stunning map comparing MLS distances with European distances.
The international roll call
Messi is certainly the biggest star MLS has had in its 30 seasons. But he’s hardly the first.
Jorge Campos, who went beyond the “keeper/sweeper” role into “keeper/striker,” was a massive attendance driver in the first couple of years of the league, dazzled in his colorful goalkeeping jerseys.
Bolivians Marco Etcheverry and Jaime Moreno were the driving forces in DC United’s early year.
Lothar Matthäus was a bit less successful in his tenure with the league.
Hristo Stoichkov was the 1994 Ballon d’Or winner after lifting Bulgaria to the World Cup semifinals, and no one could doubt the fiery forward’s commitment to winning wherever he played.
The rules changed, literally, with the “Beckham rule,” which allowed teams a giant exception to the league’s cumbersome salary cap rules. The beneficiaries included … well, David Beckham, of course. Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored at an absurd clip during his time with the LA Galaxy. Thierry Henry gave the New York Red Bulls some star power.
Preamble
Messi. Müller. It’s a World Cup rematch in which someone will be the first World Cup champion to add an MLS Cup to that virtual-yet-very-real trophy case.
But look past the big names. These are two exceptional teams. As MLS has expanded, the talent pool has been stretched thin, but these two teams would easily hang with the old-school DC United dynasty or the strong LA Galaxy teams.
Save that for your video games, though, and enjoy this matchup.
Beau will be here shortly. In the meantime here’s Luis Miguel Echegaray’s look back at Inter Miami’s road to the final.
