- IT’S BEEN 84 YEARS: Okay, maybe not quite 84 years but when the whistle blows on Saturday, it will have been 552 days since Minnesota United played in front of fans at Allianz Field. Speaking with Roger Bennett of Men In Blazers on Tuesday, Head Coach Adrian Heath talked about how the team had to find new reserves of energy and commitment without the power of the fans behind them last year. And while Allianz Field is only expecting about 4,100 fans instead of the usual 20,000+, it will go a long way toward re-establishing the stadium as an absolute fortress. In 2020, the Loons went 5-3-1 at home. How much of a difference can a tiny but fierce Wonderwall make this season?
- HE PROTEC BUT HE SHOULD ALSO ATTAC: MNUFC came out of the gates hot against Seattle, at least on the defensive end. Whenever they lost possession, the Loons’ attackers brought the press with a vengeance in the first half. But in the second half, two unanswered goals had them overcommitting in an effort to get back in the game and the final result was a 4-0 loss that echoed some of the struggles the team went through at times last season to finish their opportunities. The good news is that in his debut off the bench, newcomer Ramón Ábila looked like he had a goal in him, once some of the rust comes off and his match fitness returns. Add in the ever-tantalizing possibility of the always-promised one or two more players and Minnesota United are hoping that opening game in Seattle will be only a dim memory by season’s end.
- WOODN’T IT BE NICE: With Real Salt Lake sharing Rio Tinto Stadium with Vancouver Whitecaps to start the season, the Claret-and-Cobalt were the only MLS team not to play on the season’s opening weekend. Over the last few years, RSL have lost a pair of franchise cornerstones with the retirements of goalkeeper Nick Rimando and midfielder Kyle Beckerman, so what actually is the identity of the team now? Real Salt Lake have looked dangerous at times over the last few years, but the sum of Designated Players Albert Rusnak, Damir Kreilach and the rest of the squad has not quite been able to push them to the next level. They missed the playoffs last year and will be hoping that the addition of U.S. Men’s National Team player and longtime Bundesliga forward Bobby Wood can juice their scoring.
- A FORMER REVOLUTION NO. 9: Down the stretch and in the playoffs last year, Heath seemed to hit on a simple but effective answer for Minnesota’s lack of scoring punch up front: Robin Lod as a false 9. Empowering the winger to lead the attack but also drop back to facilitate wreaked havoc on opposing teams as Emanuel Reynoso, Kevin Molino, Ethan Finlay and Lod combined to form a four-headed monster of dribbling, passing and finishing. The returns with Lod up top against Seattle were not so crisp, plus Hassani Dotson playing on the left wing was more workmanlike than wondrous, so does Heath go with a different look in the attacking four? If Ábila is not yet ready to go a full 90, it’s possible we see another offseason acquisition, Juan Agudelo, at forward. The former New England Revolution and Inter Miami player has a bit of everything in his kitbag so he could provide some welcome flexibility in and around the box.
