MLS: Best XI of the decade

07 December 2014: Los Angeles Galaxy forward Robbie Keane (7) salutes the crowd after his game-clinching goal to win the MLS Cup during the MLS Cup between the Los Angeles Galaxy and the New England Revolution at the StubHub Center in Carson, CA. (Photo by Wally Caddow/Icon Sportswire/Corbis via Getty Images) /

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LOS ANGELES, CA – AUGUST 25 : Steven Beitashour #3 of the Los Angeles Football Club dribbles down the field at Banc of California Stadium on August 25, 2019 in Los Angeles, California.(Photo by Ray Carranza/Getty Images) /

Full-Backs

Justin Morrow has been a premier left-back throughout the decade. Forging a role for himself in San Jose at the start of the decade, playing 33 games in their Supporters’ Shield-winning campaign in 2012, the first of his career in which he was a regular starter. He then moved to Toronto to close out the decade and was a crucial part of one of the most dominant teams in MLS history, named to the MLS Best XI in 2017 — only three left-backs have been named to the Best XI in the decade, an indication of how devalued the position by the award.

Opposite Morrow in this Team of the Decade is his old mate, Steven Beitashour. Beitashour was a part of both the 2012 San Jose Supporters’ Shield winners, the brilliant 2017 Toronto FC team that won the first treble in MLS history, and also the 2019 Los Angeles FC, the greatest team in MLS history.

It is not a coincidence that two Supporters’ Shield winners of this decade featured the two best full-backs of the decade. Both Morrow and Beitashour were consistently elite throughout the decade, and for that, they deserve a place in this team.

Honourable Mentions: Todd Dunivant, Seth Sinovic

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