THE SIXTH WEEKEND of the 2018 MLS season is in the books and with that is another update to ASN’s MLS Minutes Matrix that tracks how minutes are being allocated across the league.

Readers who have been keeping up with this will note that there are four weekly charts. One of the more interesting trends so far is how steady the average age and youth minutes are being spent. There has not been a lot of fluctuation so far.

When the summer rolls around and the USL is in full swing, it will be interesting to see if more young players make a case for more minutes.

One note to make from the first six weeks of doing this project relates to the “play your kids” movement that is pushing for younger domestic players to earn more minutes in the league. The number of teenage minutes so far is actually decent in MLS. What is needed more is a significant increase in high-impact American and Canadian players in their early 20’s.

Here are the charts and be sure to note all of the charts are scrollable. 

OVERALL LEAGUE

 

TEAM COMPARISON - Year to date

TEAM COMPARISON - WEEK 6

YOUNG PLAYER BREAKDOWN