Inside MLS is Back – Food photos go viral, how teams are adjusting to 95 degree heat

With reports by Stefano Fusaro in Orlando, Florida.

There have been tweets about incomplete food in room service, wildlife at the hotel, and yes, some of the more comfortable surroundings at Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort. And yet, the paleness of the coronavirus remains impossible to ignore as the league progresses to the start of the MLS Tournament Back on Wednesday. (Broadcast all matches LIVE on ESPN and ESPN Networks – US only)

MLS announced Wednesday that six FC Dallas players tested positive for COVID-19 since the team’s arrival over the weekend. Later that day, sources confirmed to ESPN a report by The Athletic that three more Dallas players, plus one of their coaches, had tested positive. This update was in addition to three other positive tests before the team left its base of operations in Texas. (On Thursday, sources told ESPN that a Columbus Crew player also tested positive in Florida, although it is unclear where he contracted the virus.)

– Stream MLS Is Back LIVE on ESPN networks, ESPN app (US only)
– The established group schedule for MLS is the Tournament Back

The players had already been privately concerned about the setup before one of them had set foot in Orlando. Just 10 days ago, players received MLS documents detailing the arrangements at Walt Disney World and the protocols to follow. The developments of the past 72 hours have done little to allay the concerns of the players and staff already here.

“We were already worried about getting into this bubble environment,” an Orlando player told ESPN on Wednesday. “Now six positive tests in the first few days here? This only adds anxiety to an already difficult situation.”

For Minnesota United manager Adrian Heath, the positive tests have only increased the sense of discipline he has tried to convey to his players. The team has come this far, and now is not the time to relax.

“Before training every day, we have a little chat with the guys,” he told ESPN by phone. “We know that we are at different times, that this is not normal. We have told them: ‘As much as you do not want to do it, you must keep the mask on. You have to isolate yourself; you have to be in your own apartment. Do not walk. So we literally have not moved from the floor we are on, other than getting on the team bus to train and return.

“I haven’t spoken to another coach from another team. I greeted them out loud and said, ‘How are you?’ But you don’t have to stop and talk. Everyone is doing what they can to try to protect not only you, but also your team and your players. “

However, around the league there is determination, and, in some cases, resignation, that the show must go on. As one team executive put it: “I don’t see how the league can turn things around.”

A steady stream of positive evidence could compel them to do so, although the hope is that it will not come to that.

Food for thought

The tweets began showing up Tuesday morning, with Toronto FC defenders Omar González and Eriq Zavaleta among them posting images of a fairly common sandwich that looked straight from the set of “The Worst Cooks in America,” all with a List price of $ 65. What followed was almost a mini war of words between the players and the league that acted as a continuation of the CBA talks, which included a league threat to block the players, which concluded last month.

As it turned out, González and Zavaleta were involved in a bit of misdirection. Toronto is not scheduled to fly until Friday, but they were apparently willing to go hitting for some of their playmates. The meals shown were just what the players had to accept during the first 12-24 hours while isolated, after the COVID-19 tests, but the point was taken home anyway: the players would not hesitate to call the league. in what he considered to be poor accommodation or preparation. The league then responded with an email informing the media about all the different food options available. As the players began to explore the different eating options, the temperature cooled.

“It is a mixed bag,” said one player. “Room service lunch is really bad, but overall the food has been fine.”

“Every banquet-style meal has been solid,” said another. “It is no different than the meals we would get on the road.”

The San José earthquakes have already benefited from a gift since arriving in Florida: a meal at Shula’s Steak House paid for by manager Matias Almeyda.

No attitude adjustment required

Heath noted that there is still a strange feeling about the place, and he would know better than most. He lived in the Orlando area for more than six years when he managed Orlando City, both before and after they moved to the MLS.

“I know how busy this place has become,” he said of the Orlando area and the team’s lodging. “But there is literally no one there. I would say it’s quite surreal, really, because we are here and you don’t see anyone.”

Much better to make sure your team is focused. The Loons were among the teams for whom the closure of the entire league came at an inopportune moment as they recorded two impressive road wins over San Jose and the Portland Timbers to open the 2020 season in March. But any conversation about the momentum has been overshadowed by the fact that when Minnesota faces Sporting Kansas City on July 12, it will have been just over four months since the Loons’ last game. And it wasn’t until recently that Heath knew when his team would resume play.

“When you don’t know when you start, I think it’s a real challenge for a coach and the sports science department and the fitness guys, because you normally say, ‘OK, we started on this date and worked backwards from that . ‘We really didn’t know when we were going to start again. “

to play

Montreal coach Thierry Henry explains the difficulties in preparing for the MLS comeback.

Now that your team is here, it’s about adapting and accepting what the environment offers.

“We can make excuses if you want, but that doesn’t help us,” Heath said. “We just have to go up and train as hard as we can. As if we were training [Wednesday] Tomorrow, it must have been 95 degrees. You don’t get used to training in those kinds of conditions and that climate. You just don’t. It is ideal? Sometimes you don’t know, but this is where we are, guys. “

In an attempt to get closer to physical fitness, Minnesota has scheduled a friendly against the Columbus Crew on Sunday. Heath will know more about where his team is after that game.

“You think you’re good, you think you’re in a good place,” he said. “And then all of a sudden you say, ‘Oh my gosh, we’re a million miles away when you play 90 minutes.’ So that will be the test.”

The tournament will start on Wednesday. It will not be known until then how many miles away some teams are.