With familiarity also comes mutual respect.
If you want to play at a high professional level, looking at MLS would be a first start." "We look at it as a steppingstone to get yourself outside of Jamaica because the league is not great there. "It's nice for a Jamaican to be able to get a chance to come over to Major League Soccer to experience rubbing shoulders with guys who have played in big-time leagues all across the world," said Jamaica defender Jermaine Taylor, who joined Minnesota this past offseason after stints with Houston and Portland. As mechanisms such as designated players and targeted allocation money bolster the talent at the top of MLS rosters, the quality of play continues to evolve. Although Urena gave the European game a tactical advantage, he said MLS facilities were on par with his experiences across the Atlantic. Lifestyle-wise in MLS, CONCACAF players often find the culture shock of venturing abroad softened by the common languages and weather. So MLS represents a comfortable middle ground. While national team-caliber players tend to outgrow domestic circuits across Central America and the Caribbean, the top European leagues can prove to be a bridge too far. MLS has helped the whole CONCACAF, all of the teams, a lot." You look at some of the games and Mexico is struggling to beat any team now in CONCACAF, and years ago Mexico would roll over any team. These teams are very close, and it's good to see a lot of players in CONCACAF playing in the league and growing. "You don't know what to expect in CONCACAF," said Trinidad & Tobago midfielder Kevin Molino, who plays for Minnesota United. Costa Rica was CONCACAF's top finisher at the 2014 World Cup, making a run to the quarterfinals. There hasn't been a USA-Mexico matchup in the Gold Cup final since 2011, with underdogs crashing the party three tournaments in a row.
This isn't a new development: Four years ago, Mexico needed a playoff win over New Zealand to book its ticket to Brazil. And Seattle Sounders defender Roman Torres fired home the late winner in Panama's 2-1 victory against Costa Rica that officially ousted the Americans.
Houston Dynamo stars Alberth Elis and Romell Quioto scored in Honduras' 3-2 win over Mexico that pushed the Catrachos past the U.S. failed to reach the World Cup for the first time since 1986 with a 2-1 loss Tuesday in Trinidad. Having breezed through recent qualification cycles, the U.S. In helping build CONCACAF's depth, MLS has perhaps made life trickier for the region's traditional heavyweights. The likes of Panama, Honduras and Trinidad & Tobago also draw heavily from MLS squads. There were nine MLS players in Jamaica's lineup as the Reggae Boyz shocked a Mexico B-team with a 1-0 win in the Gold Cup semifinals this past summer. As Costa Rica dealt a blow to the Americans' doomed World Cup hopes on that night in New Jersey, coach Oscar Ramirez fielded a lineup featuring five MLS players: Kendall Waston, Francisco Calvo, David Guzman, Christian Bolanos and Urena.Īnd the Ticos are just one budding CONCACAF power leaning on MLS talent.