Good Friday morning Caps fans, hope you all are having a lovely week and that you will have plenty of chances to get outside this weekend.

It might not be a five alarm fire for the Caps just yet but after dropping their second straight match, there are definitely some concerns for the club.

A big part of the 1-0 loss to the Colorado Rapids in the midweek can be chalked up to a very harsh red card issued to Bjorn Utvik for a handball in the penalty area that the referee deemed to have denied an obvious goal scoring opportunity.

It appears the laws of the game were properly enforced here but there is no doubt that Utvik didn’t deserve to get sent packing for an unintentional handball. I think is is also pretty debatable as to whether Utvik denied an obvious goal scoring opportunity (Yohei Takaoka was right behind him and could have gotten there) and I also question why video review really felt the need to intervene.

Nonetheless, the Caps have not scored in five halves of soccer in the league and there has been some regression after a blistering start. Some of this is pretty normal and expected — they weren’t going to play that well for the whole year. Winning their game in hand also takes them up into the home playoff match spots given; the recent dip in form looks worse given the congested nature of the Western Conference. A response, however, will be necessary against a Seattle team that continues to be desperate for as many points as it can muster in order to get back into the playoff race.

Thursday also was an MLS holiday: the day salary figures drop for the entire league.

I don’t think there will be anything earth shattering in the Caps’ data but a few interesting tidbits emerged. Ryan Gauld cracks the top 25 players in the league in terms of salary and in terms of his on the field performance, it is totally justified. A further raise is expected as his new contract kicks in more fully.

A few high earners who might not be worth the dough (at least not at the moment) include Sam Adekugbe on $917,000, who has been unlucky to have had several serious injuries and who will be a better bet to live up to the price tag once healthy. Mathias Laborda on $943,000 surprised me a bit and Alessandro Schopf on a shade under $1 million is a bit high, despite an improved season.

A few bargains jump out, including Ali Ahmed, whose $109,000 salary has to make him one of the better bargains in MLS, much less the Caps roster. Ryan Raposo and Javain Brown have not had the best 2024 but both guys are quality cover for well under $250,000, which isn’t anything to sneeze at in modern MLS.

Brian White makes more than he used to but his $754,000 wage is impressive in a league where most elite strikers are designated players and are on far higher salaries.
The Caps are in the bottom half of MLS salaries but are ahead of top MLS teams like the Columbus Crew and Real Salt Lake. This isn’t a team operating on quite the shoestring budget it once was and the expectations should be raised accordingly. If some of the guys getting paid in the $750,000 to $950,000 range raise their performances to match the wage, meeting those expectations won’t be a problem at all.

Shameless Self Promotion

Everything you need to know on the red card and Wednesday’s performance is in the match recap, while the podcast breaks down the dip in form.

Best of the Rest

Lionel Messi might have a knock, my condolences to any of you who spent money on tickets next week

The Caps are helping to underwrite Jesse Marsch’s appointment as Canadian National Team coach, underscoring the state of Canada Soccer’s finances

What might Marsch’s vision look like for the national team at a crucial juncture, with the Copa America just months away

The latest MLS star? The raccoon who invaded the pitch at the Philadelphia-NYCFC match on Wednesday

Gary Smith is the first sacking of the young MLS season, with Nashville SC canning their manager after a disappointing start