A late Chuba Akpom goal gave Arsenal a 2-1 victory in the MLS All-Star Game Thursday night in San Jose, California.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with the MLS All-Star Game, here’s some things to know:
- MLS fans vote for 11 of the roster from a list of seven or eight players from each team in the league.
- The head coach of the team, one of the coaches of one of the teams in the league, picks the rest. Except two, which are chosen by the MLS commissioner, the head of the league.
- Players on this year’s MLS All-Star team represented 19 of the league’s 20 teams. The most any one team had represented was three.
- The MLS All-Star Game, unlike other all-star games in the USA, pits the best of the MLS against a foreign opponent. Past visitors include Tottenham, Fulham, Bayern Munich and Chelsea. It’s a big attraction that generates lots of attention.
- MLS players are in the middle of their season, but the All-Stars only had one practice together before the game.
The MLS All-Stars, being in the middle of their season, wanted to stay healthy and represent their league well, and Arsenal wanted to be healthy but also get good game-time. It’s safe to say both of those things were accomplished.
Here are four takeaways and Arsenal’s three stars of the match.
