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The Mane Land 2016 Major League Soccer Power Rankings: Week 16

Published

10 years ago

July 5, 2016

Well, Zlatan spurned MLS for some team called Manchester United. Really, Zlatan? If I wanted to play for an over-hyped, overpaid, and underwhelming team with crummy Adidas uniforms, I'd rather go play for LA; it's much warmer there.

1. Colorado Rapids (Last Week: 1)

Tim Howard made his Colorado debut this week in a 0-0 draw at home against Portland in front of the biggest crowd the Rapids have had in awhile. Colorado remains in first in this week’s power rankings, but you have to wonder if the overachieving attack can score enough goals through the second half of the season to keep Colorado in the Supporters’ Shield hunt. The Rapids defense is the best in the league having only given up 11 goals, and you’d expect Howard to keep plenty of balls from reaching the back of the net, but that Jermaine Jones-led attack might begin to falter as the season grows long.

2. FC Dallas (Last Week: 2)

Orlando City fans got a taste of just how good Dallas can be, and the boys from Frisco reclaimed first place in the league after their 4-0 victory. In the last two years, it’s been said many times over by people much smarter than me: Dallas is downright dangerous and scary when the switch is flipped to the on position.

3. Real Salt Lake (Last Week: 3)

RSL drew at home to D.C. 1-1 this weekend. Jeff Cassar's rebuilt attack is tied for third in the league in goals scored.

4. New York City FC (Last Week: 12)

Well, as the kids say, game recognize game. Since getting waxed by the Red Bulls 7-0 a few weeks ago, NYCFC has now won three straight to jump to the top of the Eastern Conference, including avenging that loss this week at Yankee Stadium. Will they win the East? Can Frank Lampard actually play half of a season? Will Jack Harrison continue to emerge as one of the best young players in the league? Your guess is as good as mine.

5. LA Galaxy (Last Week: 8)

By my count that’s two crazy tackles that led to red cards for Nigel De Jong so far this season. LA has 17 games left this season, and I’m setting the over/under on more crazed De Jong tackles at 4.5.

6. Portland Timbers (Last Week: 5)

Portland drew 0-0 on the road against Tim Howard and Colorado. Despite the stank that last statement has all over it, Portland has not lost in six games in a row and now has six wins, six losses, and six ties.

GUYS CALEB PORTER IS THE DEVIL I MEAN DO YOU NEED MORE EVIDENCE

7. Montreal Impact (Last Week: 11)

Montreal won at home this week over New England. That's one loss in nine games for the Impact, which is a streak that includes a remarkable six draws. Third in the East, Montreal needs to start turning some of those draws into wins if they plan to jump up the ladder.

8. Sporting Kansas City (Last Week: 14)

Graham Zusi and Matt Besler both scored on their returns to the SKC lineup. Remember when I said Kansas City might be better off without them? That was a joke. This team is way better with the two of them wearing sky blue and kicking the ball.

9. New York Red Bulls (Last Week: 3)

Since claiming the league's longest winning streak of the season, the Red Bulls are winless in three games. In the Eastern Conference though, you can go awhile without winning without losing much ground, and Harrison, N.J.'s favorite team sits fourth.

10. Vancouver Whitecaps (Last Week: 7)

Vancouver got a taste of what LA can do when the Galaxy are at their best. Even despite going up a man, the Caps couldn't do much against a just about full-strength LA.

11. Philadelphia Union (Last Week: 6)

Philly was the pacesetter for much of the season in the East, but lost this week against a hapless Houston Dynamo. Not a good look. Philly has now lost two straight, both to Western Conference foes, and are looking up at NYCFC in the Eastern Conference standings.

12. San Jose Earthquakes (Las Week: 9)

San Jose lost at Chicago this week, which is like losing to your little sister in arm wrestling. The Quakes have now dropped to eighth place in the West, but would be fifth in the East.

13. Orlando City (Last Week: 10)

Sometimes you just gotta move on to the next one. That's exactly what Orlando should do this week. Dallas is really good, and really good teams have really good nights. It just so happened Orlando was in Frisco on a night when Dallas was in top gear. Not a good result, but in the big picture not a damning on either. The Lions are still in the thick of the playoff fight.

14. Toronto FC (Last Week: 14)

Michael Bradley should be returning to the TFC lineup soon, but there’s no sign of Giovinco’s form returning. The diminutive Italian who so often is the engine that makes Toronto go is in a pretty serious drought of late and his team has felt it. The Reds have won just once since May 14.

15. D.C. United (Last Week: 15)

Bizarro RSL drew on the road at RSL this week. What's the old cliché? The whole is greater than the sum of its parts? I think D.C. is hoping and praying that that saying has credence. An up-and-down season has Ben Olsen's fellows fifth in the East.

16. New England Revolution (Last Week: 16)

Kei Kamara’s goal this week gave you a taste of what that guy can do when he’s not bickering with teammates over penalties. However, New England’s problems run deeper than just the attack. New England now has the worst goal differential in the league, and Jay Heaps is on the hot seat.

17. Houston Dynamo (Last Week: 19)

This week's win was either a referendum on Western Conference dominance, a referendum on Owen Coyle, or simply an Independence Day weekend anomaly. Houston's win was its first since May 15.

18. Seattle Sounders (Last Week: 18)

Jordan Morris gave us another glimpse of the talent that has everybody giddy. Still don’t really understand why Wondo was picked for the Copa América over Morris. Morris’ goal this week was 10 times better than any Wondo has scored in his entire career.

19. Chicago Fire (Last Week: 20)

Chicago's win over San Jose was a three-way combination of some of my least favorite things in MLS: the San Jose Earthquakes (yuck), the Chicago Fire (yawn), and Ramses Sandoval on the play-by-play (yikes).

20. Columbus Crew (Last Week: 17)

Columbus drops to the cellar by virtue of Chicago and Houston's wins this week, but they've done enough to deserve this rank themselves. Last season's runnners-up have won just once since April. This has got to be one of the worst seasons for an MLS Cup finalist ever, right?

Podcasts

SkoPurp Soccer Episode 144: Gotham Rewind, Seattle Preview, and More

The Pride finished their home schedule with a loss to Gotham and hope to finish their road schedule with a win in Seattle.

Published

1 week ago

October 28, 2026

Michael Citro

Image of Solai Washington running onto a ball behind the Gotham defense.

Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

The Orlando Pride tried to send their fans home happy in their regular-season home finale, but despite an impressive overall performance against the league leaders, the Pride wasted numerous chances in front of goal and paid for two big mistakes at the back in what ultimately ended as a 2-1 loss in a season filled with far too many defeats. Solai Washington did so many things well, but despite a month’s worth of chances, she could only muster one goal. Still, it was a promising outing albeit in a developing story that won’t continue much longer this year.

We discuss the key plays, players, and moments, look back at our score predictions from last week, and select our Player of the Match.

This week’s mailbagbox asked us about Marta, the reasons for the Pride’s struggles in 2026, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We’d also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we’ll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we look ahead to Sunday’s season finale at the Seattle Reign. The Pride opened their 2026 season with a home loss to the Reign but would like to close it with a road win over Seattle to enter the off-season on a positive note. It won’t be easy, as the Reign are clinging to the last playoff spot and trying to catch rival Portland as multiple teams are trying to catch them. We look at Orlando’s attempt to play spoiler, check back on the series history, compare the teams’ positions in the table, provide our key matchups, and more.

Here’s how Episode 144 went down:

0:15 – The Pride finished their home schedule with a good performance but another poor result against the league’s top team.

20:07 – Our mailbagbox has questions about the GOAT.

38:26 – Seattle was the first 2026 opponent and will be the last 2026 opponent. We preview for the last time this season.

Podcasts

SkoPurp Soccer Episode 140: Bay FC Rewind, San Diego Preview, and More

The Pride keep their playoff hopes alive by eliminating Bay FC but things get tougher with San Diego visiting Friday.

Published

1 month ago

September 30, 2026

Michael Citro

Image of Jacquie Ovalle dribbling toward the Bay FC defense.

Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Justin Glatt

The Orlando Pride remained perfect on the road against Bay FC with a 3-1 win on Sunday. Deuces were wild, as Haley McCutcheon, who wears jersey No. 2, scored in the second minute of both halves, and her two goals in California gave the midfielder her second brace of both the 2026 NWSL season and her career. Barbra Banda figured heavily in pulling defenders out of position on two of the three Orlando goals and assisted on Jacquie Ovalle’s right-footed thunderbolt in stoppage time to put the game away. But make no mistake, it’s not as if the Pride played well, turning the ball over often and conceding 28 shot attempts to the hosts.

We break down a road win that may have been more exhausting to watch than to play in (although I wouldn’t bet on it), check back on our score predictions, and make our selections for Player of the Match.

This week’s mailbagbox asked us about Haley McCutcheon, where to most strongly place the blame for the Pride’s disappointing season, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We’d also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we’ll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we looked ahead to Friday, when Orlando will host San Diego Wave FC, looking to both complete a season sweep and to keep its faint playoff hopes alive. We look at the series history, provide our key matchups for the contest, and make our predictions for the final score.

Here’s how Episode 140 went down:

0:15 – The Pride improved to 2-1-1 under Yolanda Thomas, but a lot of good Cosette Morche saves were required to get that second win.

20:00- The mailbagbox asks us to play the blame game.

33:36 – The Pride continue to face California-based competition, but Friday’s opponent is much higher in the table than Sunday’s was.

Orlando City

Orlando City vs. San Jose Earthquakes: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

Orlando City restarts its 2026 MLS campaign late tonight out west at San Jose.

Published

4 months ago

July 22, 2026

Michael Citro

Image of Braian Ojeda taking a shot in a friendly against FC Dallas.

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Justin Glatt

Welcome to your match thread for a late night midweek matchup tonight between Orlando City (4-9-2, 14 points) and the San Jose Earthquakes (10-3-2, 32 points) at PayPal Park (10:30 p.m., Apple TV). This is the only scheduled meeting between the teams in 2026 and the first time the teams have met since 2024.

Here’s what you need to know ahead of tonight’s match.

History

Orlando City is 3-1-3 in the previous seven MLS meetings with the Quakes since the club joined Major League Soccer in 2015. The Lions got their only away win in the series in the last meeting and enter tonight 1-1-2 on the road against San Jose.

The teams last met on May 18, 2024, with Jack Lynn coming off the bench to score the game’s only goal. Lynn’s strike in the 89th minute broke the scoreless deadlock and lifted the Lions to a 1-0 victory.

The teams met in Orlando most recently way back on June 22, 2021, with the Lions beating the Quakes down, 5-0. Orlando got things started with an early penalty kick goal by Nani, followed by braces from Benji Michel and Daryl Dike to easily put the game away. The lasting memory from the game is Michel’s celebratory dance wearing a cowboy hat that came out of the stands.

Prior to that Orlando City romp, the last time the teams met was on Aug. 31, 2019 when the Lions got freight trained 3-0 at Avaya Stadium, giving the Quakes their first win in the series. San Jose’s offense came via a Chris Wondolowski brace and an early opening goal by Magnus Eriksson. Orlando looked flat and weary out of the gate.

The Lions were victorious in Exploria Stadium in the 2018 meeting on April 21, a 3-2 Orlando win. It was the first win in the series for either side after three straight draws. Chris Mueller, Sacha Kljestan, and Dom Dwyer gave the Lions a 3-0 lead before Florian Jungwirth pulled two back in the game’s late stages.

The Lions led all of the first three matches in the second half only to see San Jose pull level, with two of those tying goals coming late. In the 2017 meeting, Carlos Rivas finally broke the scoreless tie and gave Orlando City the lead in the 81st minute, but Wondolowski spoiled the Lions’ night with an equalizer two minutes later as the teams drew at Avaya Stadium, 1-1.

In 2016, the Lions were gut-punched in the 94th minute in an emotional match that ended in a 2-2 draw. It was the first home match following the Pulse nightclub tragedy and what appeared to be a storybook ending to a cathartic win turned sour on a last-gasp equalizer by Shea Salinas. Seb Hines — now the Orlando Pride’s head coach — opened the scoring for Orlando, only to see Chad Barrett tie it up. Julio Baptista restored the lead in stoppage time, but Salinas ruined everything.

The two teams also drew in the first meeting, a 1-1 affair at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, with the Lions down to 10 men after Brek Shea was sent off in the first half. Kaká and Wondolowski each scored from the penalty spot four minutes apart in that initial meeting.

Overview

The teams meet tonight to get their post-World Cup portion of the season started. Orlando City has been terrible on the road all season long, keeping only one MLS opponent under two goals all year away from home and allowing five goals twice (at New York City FC and Nashville) and six goals twice (at LAFC and in the team’s most recent match away at FC Cincinnati just before the break).

Orlando City is a putrid 1-6-1 on the road this season, and now the Lions must face the Western Conference co-leaders tonight before coming home to face Supporters’ Shield-leading Nashville SC at home on Saturday. They’ll have to play at least tonight’s game without Martin Ojeda, who is out with a thigh injury sustained some time between his first-half goal a week ago in a friendly against FC Dallas and the time the availability report dropped on Tuesday.

But it isn’t all bad news for the Lions, who should have both Antoine Griezmann and Dike in the lineup. Griezmann was the club’s highly prized and widely publicized summer Designated Player signing, while Dike’s return to Orlando came together more recently, following his departure from West Bromwich Albion. They’ll help the club’s offense, but the attack hasn’t been the issue in 2026 — it’s been the historically porous defense, which is on pace to shatter the MLS record for goals conceded.

Meanwhile, San Jose is one of the first half of the season’s biggest surprises, as the Quakes have been outstanding in 2026. Scoring 34 goals while conceding just 15, San Jose is among the league leaders in goals scored (tied for third), goals conceded (third), and goal differential (+19, third).

The Earthquakes are 4-2-1 at home and are coming off a 3-1 road win at Portland in their last game prior to the World Cup break. San Jose boasts Golden Boot challenger Preston Judd, who leads the Quakes with 11 goals, adding two assists in his 15 appearances. Ousseni Bouda has chipped in five goals and three assists. Niko Tsakiris leads the team with seven assists to go along with his two goals, but he’s still recovering from a lower body injury and is not available tonight. However, the arrival of Timo Werner (four goals and five assists in just seven games) has truly elevated Bruce Arena’s Quakes, and he’ll need to be one of the main focal points for the Orlando defense.

To have any shot at taking something from this game, the Lions will need to play better road defense than they have all season. Orlando can score goals, but with Ojeda out, Griezmann will need to adapt quickly, and someone other than the team’s leading scorer will need to find the net.

The Lions will play without Ojeda (thigh), Joran Gerbet (knee), Nolan Miller (knee), Colin Guske (international duty), and Clovis Archage (international duty). In addition, Marco Pasalic may or may not have returned to the team after the World Cup. He was not in training Monday, although interim head coach Martin Perelman said he expected the Croatian back soon. The Earthquakes will be without Nonso Adimabua (lower body), former Lion Earl Edwards Jr. (lower body), DeJuan Jones (lower body), and Tsakiris (you guessed it, lower body…come on, San Jose).

Match Content

Our most recent PawedCast includes our key matchups and score predictions for tonight’s match.

Official Lineups:

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Maxime Crepeau.

Defenders: Adrian Marin, David Brekalo, Robin Jansson, Griffin Dorsey.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Braian Ojeda, Eduard Atuesta, Tiago.

Forwards: Justin Ellis, Antoine Griezmann.

Bench: Javier Otero, Bernardo Rhein, Tahir Reid-Brown, Zakaria Taifi, Iago, Wilder Cartagena, Luis Otavio, Harvey Sarajian, Tyrese Spicer

San Jose Earthquakes (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Angus Gunn.

Defenders: Jamar Ricketts, Reid Roberts, Daniel Munie, Benjamin Kikanovic.

Defensive Midfielders: Beau Lerouox, Ronaldo Vieira.

Attacking Midfielders: Timo Werner, Nick Fernandez, Ousseni Bouda.

Forwards: Preston Judd.

Bench: Jonathan Gonzalez, Dave Romney, Paul Marie, Jack Skahan, Jack Jasinski, Ian Harkes, Francesco Montali, Max Floriani, Darius Johnson.

Referees

REF: Elijio Arreguin.
AR1: Adam Wienckowski.
AR2: Mike Nickerson.
4TH: Timothy Ford.
VAR: Jose Carlos Rivero.
AVAR: TJ Zablocki.

How to Watch

Match Time: 10:30 p.m.

Venue: PayPal Park — San Jose, CA.

TV/Live Stream: Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish), Nossa Rádio 1160 AM-WRLZ (Portuguese).

Social Media: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow us on Bluesky Social at @themaneland.bsky.social or follow Orlando City’s official Twitter (@OrlandoCitySC) or Bluesky (@OrlandoCitySC) feed.

Enjoy the match. Go City!