The three most interesting MLS teams as preseason gets underway

They're certainly on the mature side — Alba is the youngest of the four at 34 — and may struggle to maintain fitness throughout the notoriously long MLS season. These first few weeks will be crucial for Inter Miami. If the team can get the best out of its Fab Four before the midseason doldrums kick in, it may find itself in a position to qualify for the playoffs even if its form dips when players tire in the fall.

Minnesota United

Poor Minnesota United probably wishes it wasn't on this list, but how could we not include it when its preseason drama looks set to overshadow its entire season? For the second year in a row, its star player — Argentine attacker Emanuel Reynoso — has failed to show for its preseason training camp. 

Last season, Reynoso didn't just miss the preseason; he missed the first few months of the MLS season before arriving in June. It's shocking behavior from one of the team's highest-paid players, and it's hard to see him getting away with it again, even if he does score goals like this one when he's present.

Or is it? Punishment does require authority, and Minnesota's currently lacking on that front, too. The club fired Adrian Heath as head coach in October and his replacement has yet to be named. Interim coach Sean McAuley led the Loons through the end of last season, but he is gone, too, and it's hard to see the team finding a reputable replacement before MLS opening weekend on Feb. 24.

Los Angeles FC

If there's one team we've consistently not worried about, it's LAFC. The team is on a wild winning streak, making two consecutive MLS Cup Finals and winning one. But all that success ended in some uncomfortable disappointment last season. Despite going to the trophy game in MLS, the Champions League and the U.S. Open Cup, LAFC failed to win a single one.

Cracks are beginning to show in Los Angeles, and coach Steve Cherundolo has questions to answer before the new season begins. Star forward Dénis Bouanga, arguably the most important MLS player not named Lionel Messi, may depart. Can Cherundolo find a suitable replacement in this short window? And if Bouanga stays, can Cherundolo persuade him to perform like he did in 2023?

All these questions feed into a genuine sense of uncertainty around LAFC. Without the Black and Gold delivering like a machine, MLS' Western Conference could be blown wide open.