Chivas USA's first season in MLS was a tough one. Of all the players they had that year, only two, Francisco "Panchito" Mendoza and Brad Guzan, see regular playing time now.
What I remember most about the team that year is the deadened look that crept into the player's eyes after the losses piled on. They went from frustration, anger, bravado, misery and anguish to a kind of numbed stoicism. It was depressing to watch.
Yet for all of Chivas USA's struggles, I think Toronto FC is in a bit of a worse patch now. Not only is the team still waiting for its first points (they've not even managed a draw), let alone a first win, but the team has yet to score a goal.
In fact, their current run of around 360 minutes played without a goal puts them near the MLS record books. If they don't score in their next game, they could land in sixth place on the all-time list for consecutive minutes without a team goal. Their victors today, the Kansas City Wizards, hold that spot currently with 427 minutes, set in a stretch of games between 6/24/2000 and 7/22/2000.
It might be some consolation to Toronto FC fans to know that the Wizards actually won the MLS championship that same year.
#1 on that list of most consecutive minutes by a team without a goal belongs to Real Salt Lake, at 557 minutes, set during a bad stretch of their inaugural year.
Real Salt Lake fans, bless 'em, marked the moment their team set the record by throwing black streamers onto the field.
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