The Nosedive Trend

Recently, several of the better MLS teams have taken a bit ofa nosedive. The most notable being FC Dallas, the Columbus Crew, and most recently Real Salt Lake. Up until the last month or so, FC Dallas was in a constant battle with the Sounders for second place. Now, they find themselves firmly in fourth place with only one three points out of their last five matches. Likewise, Real Salt Lake was on the rise and in a fight for second place, but now have lost a concerning four out of their last five matches. Then there is the case of the Crew, who were having a fine season (much better than anyone had expected, actually) until they completely lost their form in their 6-2 loss to the Sounders. They then went on to experience a five match winless run that saw them accumulate only a single point.

Now, one has to wonder what exactly is the cause of sudden nosedives like these. In each case the team was performing well and pushing and shoving for the top spot in their conference, and then all of a sudden they can't seem to find the back of the net (FC Dallas has been shut out four consecutive times and RSL has only managed two goals in their last four) or simply just can't muster what it takes to win. One factor may be exhaustion that is beginning to take it's toll as the season begins to come to a close (especially in FC Dallas' case as they've had to compete in three separate competitions). Another factor may be the absence of key players due to injury or suspension (very true for RSL and the Crew). Whatever the cause, it's kinda disturbing to watch one of the league's top teams go down in flames.