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Soccer Recap - Zlatan Ibrahimović steals the show in MLS debut

Soccer Recap - Zlatan Ibrahimović steals the show in MLS debut
Caption: Ibrahimović came off the bench in the 71st minute and scored a brace in his MLS debut. LA Galaxy

No story may have garnered more eyeballs in the soccer world this weekend than the debut of Zlatan Ibrahimovic with the LA Galaxy. The Sweden international arrived in Los Angeles on Thursday night, trained for the first time with his new team on Friday and helped his club to win the first LA derby.

Elsewhere in the world, leagues resumed after the FIFA international break. Coming up this week is the return of international club competition, including the UEFA Champions League.

Here are the top stories in soccer from the weekend:

Premier League

Manchester City picked up a 3-1 win at Everton, setting them up for a chance to clinch their third Premier League title in the 176th Manchester Derby next weekend against Manchester United. To be crowned against their neighbors - and in front of their people at the City of Manchester Stadium - would be a sweet way for the “noisy neighbors” to cap off the season.

The other race worth following is the other three spots for Champions League. Tottenham solidified their way towards securing a return to Europe’s primary international competition by defeating Chelsea 3-1 at their place, also compromising their London rivals into possibly missing out from the same competition. Arsenal picked up a 3-0 win vs. Stoke City, who are heading towards relegation while other relegation bound clubs West Brom and Southampton also lost.

Liverpool and Leicester City picked up road wins, Manchester United won 2-nil over Swansea and Newcastle picked up a 1-0 win over Huddersfield Town. Manchester City and Liverpool - the two remaining teams in Champions League - face off Wednesday in the first leg of the UCL quarter finals.

Top 5: Manchester City (84), Manchester United (68), Liverpool (66), Tottenham (64), Chelsea (56)

La Liga

Sevilla was winning 2-nil against FC Barcelona, having the league leaders against the ropes. Then Leo Messi came off the bench to inspire to a 2-2 draw - scoring one of his own to save a point and keep Barcelona’s undefeated record intact. Atletico Madrid, who were without star forward Antoine Griezmann, picked up a 1-nil win over Deportivo to keep pace in second. Real Madrid is behind them in third with a 3-nil win this weekend over Las Palmas. Valencia got a 1-nil win at Leganes while Villarreal stumbled, losing 1-nil at Malaga.

Top 5: FC Barcelona (76), Atletico Madrid (67), Real Madrid (63), Valencia (62), Villarreal (47)

Bundesliga

FC Bayern Munich continue to dominate the Bundesliga by defeating their hated rivals Borussia Dortmund in a 6-nil beatdown. FCB continues to hold a stranglehold on the league with a 17 point lead, making it only a matter of time until they secure their 27th title. Schalke continues in second with a 2-nil win over Freiburg. Hoffenheim also picked up a 6-0 win, at home over Cologne. Leipzig got a 3-2 win at Hannover 96.

Top 5: FC Bayern Munich (69), Schalke 04 (52), Dortmund (48), RB Leipzig (46), Bayer Leverkusen (45)

Serie A

Juventus stayed at the top of the table with a 3-1 win over A.C. Milan, who fall to eight points from the top four. Napoli drew 1-1 at Sassuolo while Inter Milan won 3-0 vs. Hellas Verona. Lazio dominated Benevento in a 6-2 home win. The Serie A continues Tuesday with clubs playing midweek and on the weekend this week.

Top 5: Juventus (78), Napoli (74), Roma (60), Inter Milan (58), Lazio (57)

Ligue 1

There were only seven league matches this past weekend - excluding PSG and Marseille. Among notable results, Guingamp won 2-1 over Bordeaux, Nantes lost 0-3 vs. St. Etienne and Nice won 2-0 at Troyes with a double from Alassane Plea. Lyon won 2-0 at Toulouse. Monaco have their week 31 match coming up Wednesday.

Top 5: Paris Saint-Germain (83), Monaco (66), Marseille (62), Lyon (60), Montpellier (45)

Major League Soccer

Toronto FC picked up their first win of the season in a 3-1 bout over Real Salt Lake, days before their semifinal bout against Club America in the CONCACAF Champions League. Orlando picked up its first three points as well against the other MLS team still alive in CCL, New York Red Bulls. Vancouver - the best road team since 2015 - won 2-1 at Columbus, while Atlanta, NYCFC and Montreal picked up away wins at Minnesota, San Jose and Seattle respectively. Sporting KC defeated D.C. United at home while Colorado won 3-0 over Philadelphia.

The Houston Dynamo lost 2-0 at home to the New England Revolution, now the Dynamo’s second loss of the season after losing only once in league play in 2017. Down 1-0, the Men in Orange were down to ten men with the red card to team captain DaMarcus Beasley in the 35th minute. The Revs scored midway in the second half to secure the win - sending Houston into a three game winless streak.

The match of the weekend was the first ever LA Derby. Sold out before the announcement of Zlatan Ibrahimovic to the LA Galaxy, the first ever “El Trafico” (nicknamed after the city’s traffic reputation) started with dominance from expansion side LAFC. Carlos Vela put up the Black and Gold in the lead after five minutes, which eventually turned into a 3-nil lead. A goal by U.S. international Sebastian Lletget put the Galaxy back in it before Zlatan came in to inspire his team to the comeback victory, starting off the second goal and scoring the third and fourth. Sebastian Lletget will be a guest on Glenn Davis’ Soccer Matters this coming Wednesday (7-9 p.m. CT) on ESPN 97.5 FM.

East Top 6: NYCFC (13), Columbus Crew SC (10), Atlanta United (9), New England Revolution (7), NY Red Bulls (6), Montreal Impact (6)

West Top 6: Sporting KC (10), Vancouver Whitecaps FC (10), LA Galaxy (7), LAFC (6), Minnesota United (6), FC Dallas (5)

Liga MX

With a 2-1 win at Lobos, and a Atlas 3-2 win over Santos Laguna, Toluca are now top of the table in Mexico. Tigres won at home, 4-1 over Leon, in the battle of the felines. Chivas won 2-1 at Monarcas, days before their semifinal bout vs. NY Red Bulls, while the other Mexican Champions League team Club America won 2-1 over their Mexico City rivals Cruz Azul - eliminating them from the playoff race.

Top 5: Toluca (27), Santos Laguna (26), Tigres (25), Club America (24), Monterrey (21)

National Women’s Soccer League

Houston Dash opened week two in the NWSL with a scoreless draw against the Utah Royals - starting off new coach Vera Pauw’s era with two draws. North Carolina Courage welcomed Sky Blue FC to the 2018 season with a 1-0 win at home. Washington Spirit defeated Orlando Pride 2-0 while Portland Thorns won 3-2 at Chicago Red Stars. The league now breaks for FIFA friendlies.

The United States Women’s National Team will face off against Mexico at BBVA Compass Stadium on Sunday (12:30 p.m., TICKETS).

Top 4: North Carolina Courage (6), Seattle Reign (3), Washington Spirit (3), Portland Thorns (3)

Upcoming matches (All Times CT):

Tuesday, Apr. 3:

1:45 p.m. - [UEFA Champions League] Juventus vs. Real Madrid (FS1/FOX Deportes)

1:45 p.m. - [UEFA Champions League] Sevilla vs. FC Bayern Munich (Facebook/ESPN Deportes)

7 p.m. - [CONCACAF Champions League] Toronto FC vs. Club America (go90.com/Univision Deportes)

Wednesday, Apr. 4:

11:30 a.m. - [Serie A] A.C. Milan vs. Inter Milan (beIN Sports)

1:45 p.m. - [UEFA Champions League] FC Barcelona vs. Roma (FS1/ESPN Deportes)

1:45 p.m. - [UEFA Champions League] Liverpool vs. Manchester City (FS2)

9 p.m. - [CONCACAF Champions League] Chivas Guadalajara vs. New York Red Bulls (go90.com/Univision Deportes)

Thursday, Apr. 5:

2 p.m. - [UEFA Europa League] Arsenal vs. CSKA Moscow (FS1)

2 p.m. - [UEFA Europa League] Atletico Madrid vs. Sporting CP (FS2)

6 p.m. - [International Friendly] U.S. Women’s National Team vs. Mexico (FS1/Univision Deportes)

Friday, Apr. 6:

1:30 p.m. - [Bundesliga] Hannover vs. Werder Bremen (FS2)

1:45 p.m. - [Ligue 1] St. Etienne vs. Paris Saint-Germain (beIN Sports)

Saturday, Apr. 7:

8 a.m. - [Serie A] Benevento vs. Juventus (beIN Sports)

8:30 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Augsburg vs. FC Bayern Munich (FS2/UniMas)

11:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Manchester City vs. Manchester United (NBC)

1:45 p.m. - [La Liga] FC Barcelona vs. Leganes (beIN Sports)

4 p.m. - [MLS] Atlanta United vs. LAFC (ESPN)

Sunday, Apr. 8:

8:15 a.m. - [Premier League] Everton vs. Liverpool (NBC Sports)

8:30 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Dortmund vs. Stuttgart (FS1)

9:15 a.m. - [La Liga] Real Madrid vs. Atletico Madrid (beIN Sports)

10:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Chelsea vs. West Ham (NBC Sports)

12:30 p.m. - [International Friendly] U.S. Women’s National Team vs. Mexico (FOX)

3 p.m. - [MLS] Orlando City vs. Portland Timbers (ESPN)

8 p.m. - [MLS] LA Galaxy vs. Sporting KC (FS1)

Sunday, Apr. 9:

2 p.m. - [Premier League] Arsenal vs. Southampton (NBC Sports)

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Get your popcorn ready! Composite image by Brandon Strange.

Filed the column early this week with Astros’ baseball that counts arriving Thursday! Ideally that arrival occurs with Minute Maid Park’s roof open under sunny skies with temperature in the mid-70s and only moderate humidity (that’s the forecast).

As they ready for their season-opening four game series, the Astros and Yankees enter 2024 with streaks on the line. The Astros take aim at an eighth consecutive American League Championship Series appearance while obviously aiming ultimately higher than that. The Yankees are a good bet to fail to make the World Series for the 15th consecutive season, which would be a new Yankees’ record! At its origin in 1903 the franchise was known as the New York Highlanders. The name became the Yankees in 1913, with the first franchise World Series appearance coming in 1921. So that was 18 years of play without winning a pennant. Maybe that gives the Yanks something to shoot for in 2027.

On the more immediate horizon, the Astros and Yankees both start the season with question marks throughout their starting rotations. It’s just that the Astros do so coming off their seventh straight ALCS appearance while the Yankees are coming off having missed the postseason entirely for the first time in seven years. Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole can spend time Thursday chit-chatting about their days as Astro teammates because they won’t be pitching against one another. Cole’s absence hurts the Yankees more than Verlander’s should the Astros. Cole was the unanimously voted AL Cy Young Award winner last season, and at eight years younger than Verlander the workload he was expected to carry is greater. Cole is gone for at least the first two months of the season, the Astros would be pleased if Verlander misses less than one month.

Whoever does the pitching, the guy on the mound for the Astros has the benefit of a clearly better lineup supporting him. The Yankees could have the best two-man combo in the game with Aaron Judge batting second ahead of offseason acquisition Juan Soto. Two men do not a Murderers’ Row make. Gleyber Torres is the only other guy in the Yankees’ projected regular batting order who was better than mediocre last season, several guys were lousy. The Astros have six guys in their lineup (Jose Altuve, Yordan Alvarez, Kyle Tucker, Alex Bregman, Chas McCormick, and Yainer Diaz) who were better in the batter’s box than was Torres last season. The Yanks have hopes for a healthy and huge bounce back season from the brittle and 34-years-old Giancarlo Stanton. Good luck with that.

Man with a plan

We have to see how things play out over the season of course, but it is exciting to see new manager Joe Espada’s progressive outlook on a number of things. Acknowledging that Astros’ baserunning has too often been deficient, Espada made improving it a spring training priority. The same with Astros’ pitchers doing a better job of holding opposing base runners at first with base stealing having occurred with the highest success rate in MLB history last season. Tweaking the lineup to bat Alvarez second behind Altuve is a strong choice. Having your two best offensive forces come to the plate most frequently is inherently smart.

Opting to bat Tucker third ahead of Bregman rather than the other way around also seems wise business. Let’s offer one specific circumstance. An opposing pitcher manages to retire both Altuve and Alvarez. Tucker walking or singling is much more capable of stealing second base and then scoring on a Bregman single than the inverse. Or scoring from first on a ball hit to the corner or a shallow gap. I suggest in a similar vein that is why the much older and much slower Jose Abreu should bat lower in the lineup than Chas McCormick and Yainer Diaz. Though Espada giving Abreu veteran deference to get off to a better season than Abreu’s largely lousy 2023 is ok. To a point.

Eye on the prize

The ceiling for the 2024 Astros is clear. Winning a third World Series in eight years is viably in play. The floor is high. Barring an utter collapse of the starting rotation and/or a calamitous toll of injuries within the offensive core there is no way this is only a .500-ish ballclub. That does not mean the Astros are a surefire postseason team. The Rangers may again have a better offense. The Mariners definitely begin the season with a better starting rotation. In the end, other than when it impacts team decision-making, prognostication doesn’t matter. But these two words definitely matter: PLAY BALL!

To welcome the new season we’ll do a live YouTube Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast about 30 minutes after the final out is recorded in Thursday’s opener.

Our second season of Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast is underway. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and I discuss varied Astros topics weekly. On our regular schedule the first post goes up Monday afternoon. You can get the video version (first part released Monday, second part Tuesday, sometimes a third part Wednesday) via YouTube: stone cold stros - YouTube with the complete audio available at initial release Monday via Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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