This article is part of our MLS Barometer series.
Three Up
Pedro Ribeiro
In the preseason, the big question in Orlando was whether young Designated Player Bryan Rochez or veteran Martin Paterson would grab hold of the striker role for the Lions. After Carlos Rivas stepped in to begin the season, a fourth option has emerged in Ribeiro. An early season contender for best expansion draft selection from this past winter, Ribeiro teamed up with Kaka for both Orlando City goals against Montreal this past weekend.
At 6-foot-4, the Brazilian sophomore brings a presence that none of the other speedy forward options can and has a softer touch than most his size. Ribeiro looks determined to keep himself in the conversation for manager Adrian Heath, after he had to endure a stint at centerback for the Philadelphia Union's USL affiliate, the Harrisburg City Islanders, last season. While it's unlikely he remains a starter for the expansion squad all season long, Ribeiro's versatility helps his cause, and his midfield designation in Fantasy MLS is a bonus should he continue to get appearances atop the formation. At worst, Ribeiro will see plenty of action off the bench and when numerous Lions leave for international duty. At best, he could squeeze his way into major minutes in a potent attack.
Ike Opara
On a weekend where Dom Dwyer continued his scoring drought and Graham Zusi needed to come off with an injury, Sporting Kansas City relied on the defense to produce a goal. Playing on the narrow field at Yankee Stadium, Matt Besler took a long throw in and watched Opara soar well above everyone else in the box to head in the game's only goal.
If this feels familiar, it's because Opara did it once already this year.
Looking dangerous on nearly every set piece, Opara could have a couple more goals had everything gone right. Defensively, Opara has led Kansas City to two clean sheets in four matches, and is near the top of the league in both interceptions and clearances. To cap off a great March, he has been nominated for the MLS Player of the Month.
Besler's steady presence in the back should continue to give the active Opara license to roam, while the rest of the defense also appears to be coming together quicker than anticipated. At this point, it would be difficult to argue that any defender other than Omar Gonzalez is as great a goal threat as Opara, and Peter Vermes' team is always a good bet for plenty of clean sheets. SKC fans are cautiously optimistic that this is the year Opara really makes his mark, after two years full of injuries.
Fanendo Adi
While Portland's start to the season hasn't gone as well as they hoped, their key forward has gotten off to a great start. With three goals in four matches, Adi is out to prove the skeptics that he can be a consistent goal scoring threat. Thus far, what has been most impressive in 2015 is his improved awareness to find space in the attacking third. At times last year, his size almost became a crutch that he relied too heavily on to create offense. This year, his game appears much more nuanced which should benefit both his goal totals and the rest of the Timbers.
Although Portland's attack is still finding its way without the irreplaceable Diego Valeri, they create enough chances to give a talent like Adi plenty of opportunities to change a game. In fact, Portland is second in the league with 30 crosses per match. This obviously bodes well for somebody with as large a frame as Adi. He may not bring much in the way of peripheral statistics, as his strength isn't having the ball at his feet or setting up his teammates, but Adi is one of the better threats for a multi-goal game. The defending champions, Los Angeles Galaxy, found that out already this month. Overall, it is impressive that Adi has shown improvement in his second season despite Portland missing their most valuable player. Once Valeri gets back on the field, it will be fun to see what they can do.
Three Down
Sebastien Le Toux
The Union were the first team to make Chicago look capable this season, and Le Toux was one of their weakest links. Once the face of the franchise, Le Toux has looked like an average, at best, midfielder through four matches. His passing accuracy is under 70 percent, and he has just two shots on target and two crosses. It's difficult to discern what he is doing out there, if you even notice him at all.
The rest of the Philadelphia midfield didn't help this weekend either, as Vincent Nogueira attempted to play in an ill-suited No. 10 role and Andrew Wenger once again refused to capitalize on his fleeting potential. Without Christian Maidana, who is mending an injury, the Union make a case for the most boring attack in MLS. Inevitably, Le Toux is sure to score a few very significant goals this year, but it's looking less and less likely that they will come in bunches. All of the roles he so admirably filled on past Union teams have been improved upon by other players like Maidana, Fernando Aristeguieta, and perhaps even Steven Vitoria at the penalty spot. At this point in his career, the frenchman is best suited to complement a diverse and competent attack, but Philadelphia is raising doubts that they can become anything close to that without adding some new players.
Dom Dwyer
In each of SKC's four games this season, Dwyer seemed poised to get himself in the goal scoring column. Alas, through the first month, he is still sitting on a goose egg. While the pressure he's putting on himself would surely be enough, Dwyer may have lost a valuable teammate to injury this past weekend in Graham Zusi (length: unknown). Though the playmaker still looked to be finding his way this season, he is tough to replace for any period of time. Benny Feilhaber continues to excel, somewhat surprisingly, in a more defensive midfield role that limits his ability to feed Dwyer as much as in the past. While Dwyer's effort and agility haven't seemed to deteriorate, his finishing has left a bit to be desired after a season in which he scored an impressive 22 goals.
Krisztian Nemeth and to some extent Bernardo Anor aren't integrating into the attack as quickly as hoped, and Jimmy Medranda hasn't done much to impress during his two cameos thus far. Ultimately, this offense is searching for an identity early on. That they want Dwyer to be the focal point is encouraging, but the lack of results so far can't be ignored. It's too early to call it a slump, but there's enough of a sample this season to be disappointed in the youngster's follow up to a breakout 2014 campaign.
Juan Agudelo
After a year without much competitive soccer, Agudelo was given the first chance to seize the main forward role in the Revs' offense. After the team went scoreless in three straight, manager Jay Heaps decided to insert Charlie Davies back up top, and shift Agudelo to the wing. Although he looked more comfortable out wide, Agudelo has all the tools to be a top striker in Major League Soccer. It was unrealistic to expect him to begin the season in good form after his struggles in Europe, but a return to MLS hasn't woken him up as quickly as hoped, like it did Jozy Altidore. To complicate matters, Kelyn Rowe scored both Revolution goals and along with Teal Bunbury, the two wide players could take time away from Agudelo eventually. While his speed and footwork will be useful out wide, it's unclear what a long-term winger role could mean for Agudelo, with Lee Nguyen and Chris Tierney shouldering most of the creative workload and Davies looking to be the new finisher up top. Watch how the situation develops before banking on the bright young attacker to be much more than a complementary piece in New England.
