MLS 2014 (USA/Canada)

[deadeye]

O.K so I guess no one else is going to start this thread so I will. So far this season this league has been good to me, having won both my bets last week on Vancouver and on Real Salt Lake( which was at odds of 5. believe it or not.) For this weekend I have taken Vancouver Whitecaps to win at 2.7 away at Chivas U.S.A. 4/10 Vancouver thrashed the New York Red Bulls (last season's regular season 1st place in league) 4-1 last week. New coach has 4 good new signings who were all great last week. Chivas was one of the worst clubs in the league last season, though they managed to edge past Chicago 3-2 last week. Vancouver is a very well rounded club this season, they only conceded last week in stoppage time when the game was basically over. It's hard to no what to expect at the start of the season but I expect Vancouver to win this game. I have other bets I have taken I will add later as I have things to do right now.

[Stressy]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) I agree with the pick above. Would maybe even consider Vancouver on a -1 asian handicap at a juicy 4.25 (all b365). As a Toronto FC fan, I'll try to continue to weigh in on their games when I can. TFC plays away to Seattle tomorrow which will no doubt be a tough match. All the MLS website journo's are picking Seattle and I understand why but the result is a no bet for me. It really depends how quickly the new look TFC has gelled and if they show up on the day. However, I'm enticed by some of the anytime goalscorer odds. Seattle appear to be heavy favourites and as a result the prices on TFC goal scorers look pretty good. The obvious choice is Jermain Defo at 3.75. He's a high quality striker for this league and his pace might trouble the Seattle back line. He also has to be a strong candidate for penalties. De-Ro (De Rosario) is my value pick at 7.00. With our new Brazilian striker Gilberto sidelined with an injury, it looks like De-Ro will get the start up top alongside Defoe. De-Ro is always a dangerous player and if Seattle concentrate too much on wrapping up Defoe, he might get some solid opportunities. He's also a strong candidate for penalties. Lastly, Michael Bradley might be worth a punt at 11.00. He curled in a wonderful free kick in preseason and that may have won him the right to take all the dangerous free kicks until he goes cold. I heard it's been raining and might rain tomorrow so the slick turf surface might lead to more sloppy fouls in and around the box. Other's I'm considering: - New York -1 AH (2.25): NY was embarrassed last week but if they have Henry and Olave back, I expect them to show strong at home as usual. Colorado had a surprising season last year but their coach left to Dallas and they just announced their new coach (ex player) after a drawn out saga. Could see them getting off the mark slowly. - Portland -1 AH (2.075) - Portland is always strong at home and they'll want to show better after a draw in week 1. Chicago lost and conceded 3 against Chivas (who I rate well below Portland) in week 1. A Parlay of NY, PORT, VAN -1 AH rolls up to 19.84. Might just have a cheeky low stakes punt at this because after all, it's only week 2 so anything can happen.

[Setup]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Do you guys have any thoughts about Over 2.5 in Portland - Fire? I read that Fire have a new defense this season and after conceding 3 goals against poor Chivas I think Portland can beat them quite good today.

[Stressy]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Their defence looked very poor in the first game and Portland has above average fire power up front (in MLS) so that's why I'm looking at Portland -1 Asian handicap. Not a fan of over/unders myself but it doesn't sound like a bad shout. MLS is a funny league though, especially early in the season, so I'd keep the stakes relatively low if you're managing your bankroll tight

[Setup]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Hey guys, why are the odds on New York today so high? @ 3.00 and they are the better team imo. Any thoughts?

[gashead9]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Looking at the stats, New York have never beaten the Fire in Chicago in 11 attempts since 2008, with Chicago having won 8 of them & drawn 3. Chicago will be playing they're 1st home game of the season so should be fired up, whilst the Red Bulls lost 4-1 away on the opening day to the Whitecaps & drew at home to Colorado. Chicago Asian 0 @ 1.725 is my pick

[malabgd]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) DC United v Chicago Fire DC United: Chris Pontius (0/0 m), Jalen Robinson (0/0 d), Chris Korb (0/0 d), Conor Shanosky (0/0 m) Chicago Fire: Lovel Palmer (2/0 m), Steven Kinney (0/0 d), Gonzalo Segares (2/0 d) (doubtful) Philadelphia Union v Montreal Impact Philadelphia Union: Austin Berry (2/0 d), Sheanon Williams (0/0 d) (both doubtful) Montreal Impact: Nelson Rivas (0/0 d), Adrian Lopez (0/0 d), Sanna Nyassi (1/1 m) Information from more then 50 football leagues and competitions at: www.injuriesandsuspensions.com

[Stressy]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Toronto has a bit of a crisis at the moment so I see a lot of value in their match up in Columbus tomorrow. First of all, Columbus is the last team in MLS that has a perfect record (9pts from 3 games). TFC will be without Jermain Defoe (has all 3 TFC goals this season), Jonathan osario (cm who had good chemistry alongside Bradley. He missed last game and they got pumped 3-0), and both starting cb's, Caldwell (cpt) and Henry. The back line was always a bit of a weak link to begin with and now with the missing cb's they are going to be really vulnerable. I'm all over the -1 Asian @ 2.75 (b365). I'm also considering higuain anytime goal scorer @ 2.62. He's going to be a handful for TFC and really is a cut above most MLS attackers. He's also likely going to take care of dead ball opportunities.

[meatman]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) I'm following MLS this season and agree with you Stressy. The Crew @ 2.0 looks a massive price to me considering TFCs injury and suspension problems. Even Bradley could be out of steam after the national team midweek match too IMO. Defoe has scored all of their goals this season and without him they could be pretty toothless. Got to say I've been impressed with the Crew this season so far and think they will easily win this match tomorrow. Get on ASAP to get the best price because they will probably kick off something like a 1.70 favourite. I expect them to be backed down big time during Saturday

[Stressy]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Meatman, great to have you on board. Been following your french tips for ages and consider you a well informed punter. Forgot to mention that Bradley went 90 minutes on Wednesday night. Even more of a reason to side with Columbus in some manner.

[deadeye]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) I agree with all you on betting on columbus, big time, I put a bet on them moneyline at pinnacle earlier in the week. Now -1 on the handicap section is 3.5 on bet 365 so i'm going high stakes there. I also think RSL +1 at 1.9 bet365 is good, it should be a low scoring game, both teams are good it seems unlikely Sporting KC wins by more than a goal, I'm thinking maybe a draw here, or a 1 goal win for either team. Also Vancouver might be worth a shot, they have won both their home games so far this season, with two draws on the road, they are much better at home, both last season and this one so far. Anyway Columbus is my main bet like the rest of you, the rest are just some ideas to consider.

[malabgd]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Vancouver Whitecaps v Colorado Rapids Vancouver Whitecaps: Mehdi Ballouchy (0/0 m), Nigel Reo-Coker (3/0 m) (doubtful) Colorado Rapids: Chris Klute (1/0 d), Dillon Serna (1/0 m), Marc Burch (3/0 d) (all doubtful), Marvell Wynne (3/0 d), Brian Mullan (0/0 m) DC United v New England Revolution DC United: Chris Pontius (0/0 m), Jalen Robinson (0/0 d), Conor Shanosky (0/0 m), Luis Silva (3/0 m) New England Revolution: Kelyn Rowe (2/0 m), Donnie Smith (1/0 m) Information from more then 50 football leagues and competitions at: www.injuriesandsuspensions.com

[Stressy]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Two more games interest me; Im considering Montreal at home to New York. New York has some key injuries (Cahill, eckersley) and it doesn't look like Henry or Olave will play on the terrible artificial turf. With these 4 out, NY is severely weakend. Montreal has had a slow start but now that Da Viao is back they should be much more of a threat. I like their chances given the weakened NY squad and their familiarity with the turf field. The other is Vancouver at home to Colorado. Not a whole lot here other than Vancouver looks real dangerous so far. They made some great signings and have a potent attack. Colorado is a hit or miss team in my eyes but they seem to only be scoring from penalties at the moment and they gave up 3 goals last week to SKC. This is another turf game and I think the home team will be more comfortable and come out on top. Considering a parlay of the two above with Columbus.

[Stressy]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Well as a TFC fan I'm delighted but as a punter I'm shocked. Hopefully after a few more weeks MLS will be more predictable.

[deadeye]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada)

Well as a TFC fan I'm delighted but as a punter I'm shocked. Hopefully after a few more weeks MLS will be more predictable.

Yeah, really, well there was a combination of factors that allowed this to happen. Bradley had an great game, they played well as a unit and the players they picked up more quietly in the off season proved very good, Nelsens tactics were good too. Well the RSL KC game went pretty much as expected, a 0-0 draw, definitely going to be playing it safe in the mls for a bit though, but I have noticed the totals to be much more predictable than 1x2, at least for certain games. That vancouver game was a unlucky loss though, they were up 1-0 then laba got a red card for grabbing the ball after a foul the ref didn't call, stupid...

[meatman]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Fair play to TFC here. Thought they produced a great away performance. Tactics were totally spot on and their first half performance was especially impressive. Bradley completely ran the show for an hour. I've no idea where he got the energy from but he was immense, WAY to good for MLS level clearly. This is just one of those examples where a team is depleted and yet somehow manages to play well. I really hate it when this happens but thats life. The Crew wouldn't have scored until christmas! Loads of possession, huff and puff but no end product. Toronto usually struggle after about an hour of most matches but they always seem to start games hot and this is a massive weapon. They have to be treated seriously this season. To win and perform like this with so many absences is really impressive. Still would bet the same again, the factors looked great for the Crew, just things didn't turn out as expected

[deadeye]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) I like Montreal Chicago to go over. Both teams have struggled defensively and both definitely have players that can score. Last weeks mtl/nyrb game was so open it was unbelievable, suprised there wasn't more goals in it. Only thing to worry is that they would put more emphasis defensively to make up for the other games. Their is some bets I like more in europe for saturday though, but I want to keep this thread going, and this is a good bet in my opinion, the line is a low though, I took O/2.75 for 2 at pinnacle.

[meatman]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada)

I like Montreal Chicago to go over. Both teams have struggled defensively and both definitely have players that can score. Last weeks mtl/nyrb game was so open it was unbelievable' date=' suprised there wasn't more goals in it. Only thing to worry is that they would put more emphasis defensively to make up for the other games. Their is some bets I like more in europe for saturday though, but I want to keep this thread going, and this is a good bet in my opinion, the line is a low though, I took O/2.75 for 2 at pinnacle.[/quote'] I fancy Montreal and the overs too, but the lines are just too poor IMO. Might wait 10 or 15 mins and try to get a better IR price.

[Stressy]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) I think Toronto will be in trouble if Bradley doesn't start. He's doubtful right now but if he doesn't start, TFC's midfield quality will drop significantly. Looks like Defoe, Bradley, Osorio and Rey are out for Toronto. That'll be a big blow so I'm not sure TFC should be favourites. I think a draw might be a fair result but I honestly don't know a lot about Colorado other than they've never won at BMO field against Toronto (they did win the MLS Cup at BMO field as a neutral venue).

[meatman]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada)

I think Toronto will be in trouble if Bradley doesn't start. He's doubtful right now but if he doesn't start' date=' TFC's midfield quality will drop significantly. Looks like Defoe, Bradley, Osorio and Rey are out for Toronto. That'll be a big blow so I'm not sure TFC should be favourites. I think a draw might be a fair result but I honestly don't know a lot about Colorado other than they've never won at BMO field against Toronto (they did win the MLS Cup at BMO field as a neutral venue).[/quote'] From what I've seen of them, they seem a very strange team. Both of their last 2 matches have contained dramatic late turnarounds and included red cards. They are also a team who obtain a lot of penalties. If TFC were at full strength I would fancy them to win, but as it stands I haven't got a clue. Draw?

[Stressy]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) I think it's a no bet right now. If Bradley is confirmed out when they release the squads then Colorado draw no bet might be worth some consideration. Personally I'm going to head to the game and try and get a feel for it in the first 15 minutes before considering an in play option. I'm not overly confident in Toronto's chances and I think the depth players that came up huge last week might struggle here and show why everyone was backing Columbus last week. Its a a beautiful day in Toronto but I'm sure the pitch is only a bit better than the DC game. So perhaps another gritty long ball game is on the cards.

[deadeye]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada)

I like Montreal Chicago to go over. Both teams have struggled defensively and both definitely have players that can score. Last weeks mtl/nyrb game was so open it was unbelievable' date=' suprised there wasn't more goals in it. Only thing to worry is that they would put more emphasis defensively to make up for the other games. Their is some bets I like more in europe for saturday though, but I want to keep this thread going, and this is a good bet in my opinion, the line is a low though, I took O/2.75 for 2 at pinnacle.[/quote'] 1-1 = loss. Mcinerney got his first goal in his first game for the impact. Both teams had prime chances and didn't finish, might have something to do with that awful turf in the old baseball stadium they play in temporarily, the ball looks like a ping pong ball bouncing on that turf. It should be interesting to see how Columbus respond to last weeks loss, tough to call but they do look value, I think San Jose is a bit better than their record this year shows though.

[impressivegol]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) I've gone for NYRB to get first win vs Philadelphia Union. I think 1.94 is a fair price and NYRB have been unlucky to not have more goals tallied through first six games. If they continue to play as they have played since halftime of Chivas draw, they should see off the Union and get the campaign off the ground

[Simeon Borisof]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Tim Cahill may miss this one,so NYRB could lack goals.I think this should be a low scoring affair and a draw could be on the map.

[impressivegol]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada)

I've gone for NYRB to get first win vs Philadelphia Union. I think 1.94 is a fair price and NYRB have been unlucky to not have more goals tallied through first six games. If they continue to play as they have played since halftime of Chivas draw' date=' they should see off the Union and get the campaign off the ground[/quote'] NYRB win 2-1. Conceded a PK and had a man sent off at 2-0 to make it a nervy finish but first win for red bulls.

[meatman]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Real Salt Lake -0.5 and SKC -1 catch my eye today. For me, RSL are one of the top 3 teams in this league. They have quality in all areas of the field and are usually very strong at home. Their altitude advantage can't be ignored here and teams will often struggle in the 2nd half, out of gas. The main reason I like backing them today though is because I think Portland are massively overrated. Their reputation was decent entering the season but they haven't shown anything to me that suggests they are a good team. Last week they could only draw at home to Chivas for christ sakes! You could even argue they were slightly outplayed in that fixture! I can't see beyond an RSL win in this game. Take your pick of the -0.5 or -0.25 lines, there's great value either way. As for SKC, well I just think they will have way too much for Montreal. It's widely acknowledged that they are the 2nd best team in the MLS behind LA Galaxy, some would even say that they are just as good tbh. Coming off a bye week, they'll be fully prepared and really should easily beat Montreal. I actually like the visitors from a watching point of view. They are nice and entertaining but their tactical set ups are atrocious. They constantly leave holes as the back and their gung ho attacking mentality will get badly exposed tonight. Montreal also miss way too many chances and have no clinicality in front of goal. They might score here but SK are capable of netting 3 or 4 against this terrible defence. The -1 line @ juicy odds or -0.75 look decent bets here.

[deadeye]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada)

Real Salt Lake -0.5 and SKC -1 catch my eye today. For me, RSL are one of the top 3 teams in this league. They have quality in all areas of the field and are usually very strong at home. Their altitude advantage can't be ignored here and teams will often struggle in the 2nd half, out of gas. The main reason I like backing them today though is because I think Portland are massively overrated. Their reputation was decent entering the season but they haven't shown anything to me that suggests they are a good team. Last week they could only draw at home to Chivas for christ sakes! You could even argue they were slightly outplayed in that fixture! I can't see beyond an RSL win in this game. Take your pick of the -0.5 or -0.25 lines, there's great value either way. As for SKC, well I just think they will have way too much for Montreal. It's widely acknowledged that they are the 2nd best team in the MLS behind LA Galaxy, some would even say that they are just as good tbh. Coming off a bye week, they'll be fully prepared and really should easily beat Montreal. I actually like the visitors from a watching point of view. They are nice and entertaining but their tactical set ups are atrocious. They constantly leave holes as the back and their gung ho attacking mentality will get badly exposed tonight. Montreal also miss way too many chances and have no clinicality in front of goal. They might score here but SK are capable of netting 3 or 4 against this terrible defence. The -1 line @ juicy odds or -0.75 look decent bets here.

Agreed I was going to give a tip for SKC as well but instead of handicap it was 1x2 at 1.69 at pinnacle, it's down a bit now I think but probably still worth it. The reason I didn't take the handicap is because SKC tends to squeeze out games by one goal pretty often. I think MTL's finishing will be different now though, Marco DiVaio was suspended for the first three games, and Jack McInerney is a way better finisher than andrew wenger, but that's not to say they will get by the SKC defense which is the best in the league. But they are still completely out of sync defensively and through the midfield, a good team like SKC will probably exploit that. It's surprising that Portland are still struggling that much, I like RSL alot, definetly worth a bet.

[Stressy]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Well done this week gents.

[meatman]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) Cheers Stressy, it was nice to bring a couple of winners home there

[deadeye]

Re: MLS 2014 (USA/Canada) nice picks meatman. Clearly, I should have taken the handicap aswell...aha