A little over a week ago, Ben Rycroft of It’s Called Football tweeted that Toronto FC has a choice to make. They can focus on success in the CONCACAF Champions League or put their efforts at making the MLS playoffs for the first time in franchise history. We’ll save the crux of the issue, that MLS’ roster size rules limit the amount of depth clubs, for another day and focus on the point at hand. What should be a club’s priorit, Champions League or a league title?
There is no simple answer. Every club has different priorities. For Real Salt Lake, not winning a MLS title this season isn’t a big deal. They just won the last one. MLShas only ever had a repeat champion twice, both times before the current Champions League format. Repeating would be somewhat historic, but it is, at least logically, forgivable if RSL can’t pull it off. Advancing to the knockout stage of the CCL is still a major achievement. Despite their heartbreaking loss to Cruz Azul, that goal is still very realistic and should be their focus this season. Still, they are the one team that could realistically advance and still win the MLS Cup.
For Toronto FC, the story is flipped. They have never made the MLS playoffs. They find themselves on the cusp of doing so this season. In the CCL, the face a massive uphill battle not only against Cruz Azul, but also against fellow MLS side Real Salt Lake. Only two teams can advance out of the group. With Cruz Azul pretty much a given, one has to expect the better MLS side will win the day. That side is RSL, not TFC. The Reds should worry about their playoff hopes. They have enough trouble with that right now.
Columbus is in a similar situation to RSL. Columbus is vying to repeat as well, only as the Supporter’s Shield winner (a three-peat, actually). Still, Columbus has built up enough good will with their fans that they don’t really need a title this season. They are fortunate enough, however, to have a relatively easy group in the CCL. They’ve already had their toughest match, on the road in Mexico against Santos Laguna. While they had points stolen from them, they are in good shape. They may be able to back off some and focus on the domestic.
Seattle is practically dead in the water in the CCL. Their immediate focus should be on winning on the road at Saprissa. If they can pull it off, they still have a chance of advancing. Should the Sounders loss in Costa Rica, they might as well send academy sides to their remaining CCL games as they’ll stand next to no hope of going through. In that case, MLS Cup and the US Open Cup should be their focus.
This question isn’t solely for MLS sides. Although Aston Villa has already been knocked out of Europe, that is to their advantage. They are a club without a manager. They needed to get their affairs in order before bouncing around the Continent. Villa fans should be happy that their squad won’t be stretched thin this season.
Liverpool may have advanced in the Europa League, but they too have domestic issues weighing them down. Although the extra money from European fixtures may help the club climb out of debt, it won’t help improve their stance in the Premier League. Last year’s disaster was bad enough. Liverpool doesn’t need to go through it again all while chasing a European title that by its very nature says “not quite big time.”
International club competition is wonderful. It is what separates soccer from the rest of sports. Despite the fact that Europe usually features the same teams in international competition every year, it isn’t always for everybody. It depends on the club. More so, it depends on the year. Sometimes it just isn’t your year.
Adam Soucie is the author of Soccer, Not Football, a blog focused on the American game. If you’ve liked this piece, check out his other work. If you haven’t liked it, he promises there’s better stuff on his site.