Soccer Insider posted some quotes by DC United President, Kevin Payne. Mr. Payne was commenting on the lack of attractive soccer in MLS.  It kind of sounds like he is whining a little bit and making excuses as to why his team didn’t make the playoffs.  But if you can read between the catty-ness of his comments Payne makes “some” good points.

Here are some excerpts of particular interest:

“We don’t want to play like Colorado or New England, which most of the season sat with eight or nine guys behind the ball. How many people go to watch Colorado or New England play?”

“We can’t play like we’re a team desperately trying to remain in 14th place in the Premiership.”

“There are a lot of games in our league that I can’t watch. The problem in our league isn’t who is or isn’t in the playoffs; it’s that not enough people want to watch our league yet, and we have to convince them that our league is worth watching. I don’t think [playing conservatively] is the way to do it.”

I can tell Payne is a little frustrated that RSL, New England, and Colorado all finished better than DC United in the standings this year.  Are his criticisms warranted? I think so.

First, I think it is important for everyone to recognize that the soccer in MLS is ugly.  Teams like DC United and Seattle might play “more attractive” style of soccer but it still isn’t pretty to watch.  So Mr. Payne you can get off that high horse about how stylish your team is. I also want to mention that playing attractive soccer and losing all the time isn’t that great either . . . I should know I’m Colombian.

Second, I wish the only problem the Rapids have is the fact that they play ugly soccer.  Personally, I’m behind Smith and what he is doing with the  club.  Smith said from the beginning that he wanted to solidify the defensive structure of the team. Losing dynamic players like Colin Clark and Jaime Smith really hurts the offense.  Would things be different if the Rapids played more attractive?  Maybe a little, but the challenges for the Rapids are also geographic, economic, and cultural.

Third, New England struggled tremendously this season due to injuries, but Steve Nicol figured out a game plan to get his team into the playoffs.  It was ugly but were they really capable of anything more? I don’t think so.  In the face of such adversity Nicol was still able to get the best out of his team and that is something that the fans will appreciate.

Finally, I can appreciate the desire to play attractive soccer.  The question is how are we going to get to that level?  What needs to be done so every team can play an attractive brand of soccer?   It isn’t as easy as just dedicating yourself to an attractive style.  Style without substance (results) will only please the fans for so long.  What it takes to transform soccer in this country is huge and will likely require another series of posts.  So I just want to make a quick observation that might hint at the real problem with the style of soccer in the US.

Our U17 national team is currently playing in the U17 World Cup.  They lost 2-1 to Spain and squeaked out a 1-0 victory against Malawi.  This highly regarded bunch of young Americans isn’t exactly living up to expectations.  So what is the problem . . . the expectations.  The US isn’t winning or winning convincingly.  They are doing something fantastic though, they thoroughly out possessed, out shot, and out hustled Spain.  They made some mistakes and ended up losing . . . big deal . . . THEY OUT POSSESSED SPAIN!!!!!  Then the team goes on to neutralize the speed and talent of Malawi with . . . wait for it . . . good passing!!!  Our expectations are all backwards.

Anyways, long story short, the problem with playing attractive soccer in the US is you fuckers.  The fans. Not all of you but if you aren’t sure who I’m talking about it’s probably you.  The American fan doesn’t understand enough about soccer to know if it is attractive or not, what they do understand is results.

So Mr. Payne, I’m with you on the need for attractive soccer but I can’t blame these clubs for going after results first.

Share your thoughts.

Here are some great Articles in the world of soccer to keep you going through this Snowy October week.

- Is a Reserve team beneficial? The Tottenham Hotspurs have decided to drop their 2nd team. HERE’S WHY!

-The Colorado Rapids missed the playoffs on the last day of the season for the 2nd year in a row. Read about it HERE. What players should the Rapids keep and which should go? HERE is a thread about some Rapids fans opinions.

-The most expensive team in the history of soccer is beaten in a cup game by a lowly 3rd division side. HERE’S the details.

-The MLS Playoffs start Thursday Night! The season has been going for 6 months and will be decided over the next 13 games. HERE’S a guide to the MLS Playoffs.