May 21, 2008 by f4denz.

DC United @ TFC

Well this matchup between the bottom two teams in the East should be entertaining, but I would not expect a high scoring match. DC United has one goal in their last three matches (all loses), and TFC has scored just one goal in their last two (both ties). So TFC has an edge in momentum, but when these two sides faced off earlier in the season, it was DC United who dominated and put a 4-1 whipping on the boys from Canada. The projected line ups are:

This is a very different TFC than what United faced earlier in the year, they have added a number of new international players and by the look of the line up two that have made a great impact already in their time in Toronto will be in the match Guevara and Ricketts bring offensive punch and creativity to the lineup and with Robert becoming the on the field leader of the team, TFC is a much improved side in week 9 vs. week 2.

I am going to pick TFC to win tonight 2-0 over DC United who really are trying to figure it out. Offical Game Guide

Same MLS town, Same MLS name, very different team

So for the first time the team formely known as the San Jose Earthquakes, now the Houston Dynamo will be facing off against the new version of the Quakes, it will be interesting to see how the fans react on Thursday evening as these two sides walk out for introductions. San Jose has really struggled to score, they only have 4 goals in 7 matches and they have a number of injuries that will impact their roster (Ayres, Glinton, and Philippe are all out and Garcia is probable), they have only scored in two of their matches a 2-0 win against the Rapids and a 3-2 defeat at the hands of the Columbus Crew. Houston seems to have found their scoring edge by putting 2-1 victories up the last two weeks against Colorado and Chicago. Here are the starting lineups:

While the emotions will be high on both sides as the match kicks off at Buck Shaw Stadium, Houston has too much talent and I think they will put two into the back of the net again. The only question is can San Jose do enough to get on the scoreboard? Having to play Ned Grabavoy at striker tells you how much trouble the Quakes are in, I think they simply do not have a chance. 2-0 Houston. Official Game Guide

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May 17, 2008 by f4denz.

Well I blew it by picking RSL to beat the CRapids, so let’s see how I do on the rest of the week 8 action.

King of the Mountain

So the Columbus Crew regained first place from Chicago by winning their matchup last weekend 3-2 over San Jose on the road, this week the Crew get the early match as they go to Canada to face TFC at hostile BMO Field. TFC has two wins and a draw in their last 3 matches all played north of the border, a stretch where they have only given up one goal on their home turf, while scoring 4. Columbus beat Toronto on opening day 2-0 in Crew Stadium, and the Crew have only one lost to go with their 6 wins, TFC started a little slow but a 3-2 win over the Galaxy at the Home Depot Center, and their current streak at home and they are one of the hottest teams in MLS. Toronto has added a lot of talent to their roster since the start of the season, most of it coming with a good dose of international flavor and experience; perhaps the two largest signings have been Lauren Robert (French International), and Amado Guevara (Honduran International) who have accounted for 3 of TFC’s 8 goals and 3 of their 4 assists on the season. I expect the rematch to be a tight contest, but picking against the Crew is just not smart at this point of the season, 3-1 Columbus.

On the road again

The Wizards started the season with four straight home matches (2-1-1) and looked to be a top team in the East, but they are in the middle of a six game road trip (1-2 so far) and have lost their last two matches, and have struggled to score goals of late, 2 goals in last 4 matches. They will be facing the Red Bulls, who have one of the best defenses in the league and have only given up five goals so far this season, only one of those was scored on them at home where they are 2-1-0. The Red Bulls have a number of injuries with Echeverry, Roth, and Stammler out, Leitch, Reyna, and Wolyniec listed as questionable, but with Angel getting his first goal of the season last week and the dangerous Altidore, they should be able to match up with the Wizards, leaving the boys from Kansas wishing their was someplace like home, Red Bulls 1- Wizards 0

Which Revolution team will show up?

New England has been one of the biggest mysteries of the 2008 season, they start with a 3-0 victory over reigning MLS champions Houston, and then get beat 4-0 by Chicago. They then go to KC and face off against the Wizards (who were 2-0) and beat them on a cold, wet, and windy night 3-1, followed by a 1-0 defeat to the Rapids, a tie at New York, a win at Dallas, another loss to Chicago, and last weeks victory over Chivas. Trying to figure out what team will show up for New England really is tough, but this week they are at home against a San Jose team that a few weeks ago looked much better than the average expansion team when they beat the Rapids 2-0 in Denver, and had a 0-0 draw against Dallas. The problem is that San Jose has only scored 4 goals so far this season, New England on the other hand have scored 10 goals, but the Rev’s will be without Taylor Twellman after his return to MLS action last week, but even without him New England should have little problem winning this one New England 2- San Jose 0.

Winless no longer

The defending champions finally picked up their first win of the season as the Dynamo beat Colorado 2-1 last weekend, with DeRo and Ching getting their first goals of the 2008 MLS season. The bad news is they are facing the second best team in MLS at home, the Chicago Fire have won 5 of their last 6 matches, to make matters even worse for the Dynamo who have struggled to score (their 7 goals come in 3 matches and they have 4 matches without a goal) will face by far the best defense in MLS. Chicago has only given up 3 goals, while scoring 13, so this one is really easy to pick Fire 2- Dynamo 0.

The mighty have fallen

Who in their right might would have picked the two top regular season teams from last year to be a combined 3-9-2 going into week eight of the MLS season? But then again who would have picked these teams to have some of the worst defenses in MLS (Chivas has given up 15 goals, and United has given up 14), and both teams have had their offensive struggles of late, in their last two matches Chivas have scored only one goal, but even worse is the goose egg that United have scored in their last two. Bad defenses, and bad offenses, this could be really boring but I am going to pick it to be a fairly exciting match as both team put two into the back of the net United 2- Chivas 2.

Which superstar will shine?

Landon has scored over half of LA’s goals (8 of 14), Beckham has been good (3 goals and 4 assists) for LA, but their 2-3-2 record is not what one would expect from a team with 3 players that qualify as DP’s. Kenny Cooper has scored over half of the goals that FC Dallas have this year (5 of 9), their keeper Dario Sala has been solid with a 1.00 GAA so far this season. So which team will see their stars shine, it is hard to say, both teams have faced RSL recently LA drew 2-2, while FCD lost 2-1, with all 3 goals coming from stars (2 for Beckham and 1 for Cooper), I have to say that it is likely that the stars will shine for both teams, but the Dallas defense will be the real star of this match, they have only given up 3 goals in their last five matches, Dallas 3- Galaxy 2.

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May 9, 2008 by f4denz.

Dynamo still winless

Listen the problem with the Dynamo is easy to see they are not scoring, the only team in MLS with fewer goals than Houston’s 5 is expansion side San Jose (2). You can get ties without scoring, but you can’t get wins, in fact all 5 of the Dynamo goals come in ties (3-3 with Dallas, and 2-2 with the Galaxy) and when Houston holds a team scoreless, they don’t get the win, both of those games are ties as well (0-0 against Chivas & KC).

The Rapids have other issues but have scored in all but one of their six matches this season, they were shut out at home by San Jose. Colorado ended their two game losing streak last weekend beating Eastern Conference DC United 2-0, but they still have a number of injuries that are impacting their performance. Petke, Hughes, DiRaimondo, Casey, and Colaluca all are either out or nursing injuries, but despite the injuries, and earlier in the season they had even more injuries than this, Colorado sit at the top of the Western Conference with 9 points and a 3-3 record.

Well this one is tough to pick, but I can’t believe that Houston will lose at home this weekend, and Colorado has been very solid, so I am going to take the easy way out on this one, 1-1 draw. Game Guide

The Crew Rules

Well so far this season no team has been better than the Columbus Crew (who would have thought it?), and now they get to come to the west coast to face off with expansion side San Jose. San Jose has had moments this year when they looked less like an expansion team and more like a contender, they looked good against FC Dallas last weekend in their 0-0 draw, and they beat the west leading Rapids in Denver. But then again last week they played their LHUSOC qualifying match and got drubbed 4-0 by RSL in Salt Lake City. The Crew are just too solid this season, so this one is easy to pick 3-1 Crew. Game Guide

Red Bulls vs. Golden Balls

So will this game live up to the hype of last seasons match in New York? It was last August that fans really got their first look at Golden Balls in the 5-4 that say both Jozy and Juan Pablo get two goals each, and Beck’s got two assists in a match played before 65,000 plus fans. Well this year Jozy has 2 goals in the four matches he has played in, Juan Pablo has yet to score and has only one assist in three matches, and New York is 2-1-2 with 8 points in five matches, their strength is simple, it is defense the Red Bulls have only given up 4 goals in their five matches this season.

The other side of this match up is the high scoring (13 goals) LA Galaxy with Golden Balls Beckham (3 goals, 4 assists) and Golden Boot leader Landon Donovan (8 goals, 3 assists), this high scoring offense has not however lead to a stellar season so far for LA, they are 2-2-2 with 8 points in their six matches. Last week they let in two early goals (their defense has given up as many goals 13, as their offense has scored), but Beckham was able to score twice to get a 2-2 draw in a controversial match in Salt Lake City against RSL. But no Kevin Scott to officiate their match this weekend, so I think the Red Bulls defense will play tough, but give up a couple goals. I also think that Juan Pablo Angel will get his first goal of the season, these two teams go into the match with the same number of points, and I think they will leave the same way, a 2-2 draw. Game Guide

Two teams looking for an identity

New England has a 3-3-1 record with a ton of injuries (Twellman, Parkhurst, Albright, Ralston, Larentowics, Nyassi) all have been out or injured for a majority of the season, the only consistent thing with the Revolution is nothing, they open their season beating the Dynamo 3-0, they then lose to the Fire 4-0, then they beat KC 3-1, then they lose to the Rapids 1-0, tie against NY, beat Dallas 1-0, and then lose again to Chicago 3-0. So one would expect them to either win or tie this weekend.

Chivas has been an interesting story as well, last years Western Conference winner has only five points in six matches this year, in part due to a defense that has given up 13 goals in 6 matches (tied for worst in the MLS with their Home Depot Center roommates LA Galaxy). Last weekend was the first time Guzan got a clean sheet, in a 0-0 draw against the cellar dwelling Dynamo. Can the goat’s find their form at home against the Revolution? I doubt it, Revolution 3 – Chivas 1. Game Guide (coming soon)

F*C* Dallas vs. Real Salt Lake

I am picking RSL 2-1 over the Hoop’s, my preview coming later today.

Fire take 1^st for now

In a match that was very one sided, DC United never really figured out how to slow down or stop the Chicago Fire. The first half saw United try but the Fire defense was up to the task, DC had a number of chances but failed to get many of them to pose a real threat only two of their 10 shots were on goal. The achilles heel of DC United this season has been their defense, and in the 38^th minute a crossed ball was headed down in the box to a wide open Justin Mapp, he had no problem putting it into the back of the net. The second half DC United played with little energy and after they went down 2-0 on a Blanco goal (yup another one of those super goals-watch the highlights), they seemed to simply stop caring and, because their bench is thin, bringing in players like Doe, Strafford, and Kirk had little impact on the overall play. The final score was 2-0.
Video Highlights

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May 3, 2008 by f4denz.

Revolution vs. Fire

New England’s roster is filled with walking wounded, and some not even walking (Twellman, Parkhurst, Albright, Ralston, Nyassi, and Larentowicz) and while some will play it really has been amazing that the Rev’s have won three of their six matches so far this season. The Fire are no joke, they have three wins in five matches and have only one loss on the season. If this match were on the road, I would pick the Fire without too much doubt, but in New England on a chilly, windy, and possibly rainy night I am going to be safe and call this one a 1-1 draw. Game Guide

Surprise vs. Surprise

I know that nobody would have thought that the Crew and KC would have been two of the top teams in MLS this season, but they are and the Crew have won four of their five matches, plus they have not lost in their 3 matches at home. The only injury on either side that might actually impact the match is the shoulder sprain that Will Hesmer is suffering. I can’t pick the Crew to lose this match at home (they were the first team I ever had season tickets for), and with Alejandro Moreno with four goals already, the Crew appear to be for real this season. 3-2 Crew to stay at the top of the East for another week. Game Guide

Champions Struggle

So just like the surprises in the East, the struggles of Chivas and Houston in the west is a huge surprise, the two teams have one win between them in ten matches. Houston is the only team in MLS without a win this season, but have 3 ties in their five matches and are only one point behind Chivas, and both teams have a -4 goal differential. Chivas looked good early in the year, but their defense has fallen apart and given up eleven goals in their last three matches, and the Dynamo have scored only five goals in their five matches (all the goals came in two of their draws). Something has to give and I have to believe that the Chivas defense will step up and Chivas will get a road win 2-1. Game Guide

Who will rebound?

Dallas lost their first match of the year last weekend (0-1 against the Revolution), and San Jose not only lost to NYRB last weekend, but lost a midweek LHUSOC match 4-0 against RSL. They lost more than the match on Wednesday, a horrible collision between Ryan Cochrane and Jay Ayres has both of them out of action. Dallas will rebound and pick up a win, they have too much offensive power to be stopped by the Earthquakes. FC Dallas 2- SJ 0. Game Guide

Sunday Showdown

Well DC United have struggled in recent years when they have to play in the mountains (either Wasatch or Rocky), and this weekend they make the trip to the “mile high” city. Both teams have six points in their first five matches, but both teams have shown they can score a lot of goals (9 for DC United, 8 for the Rapids), but both teams have also shown they tend to give up a lot of goals (7 for the Rapids, and 10 for DCU). The Rapids have lost two straight matches, and DC United is coming off their 4-1 thrashing of RSL, but this is a mountain match. I can’t pick the Rapids to win, they have looked two bad the last couple weeks, so I am going to pick a 2-2 draw on Sunday. Note: this match will be on Altitude as well as Telefutura, so you can watch it in English and hopefully with a better picture in some markets. Game Guide

From Santa to Beckham

So Wednesday night it looked like Santa had come to Salt Lake City, it was snowing and RSL got a 4-0 win against the San Jose Earthquakes in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup play-in match. Now comes team Beckham, with golden boot boy (still a princess to me) Landycakes with his 8 goals, but the other 10 players have only scored 3 goals in five matches. Then consider that LA has given up 11 goals in their five matches, and the only team not to score at least two goals on them was San Jose, who got shut out. RSL showed last week that they can give up goals in bunches as DC United put in 4, but they also have scored 4 in a match twice this year (4-0 against DC United, and 4-0 against San Jose in the Open Cup), so this one could be a goal fest. With Sturgis out, it looks like Talley will get the start in the midfield again, but I would expect that we might see Andy Williams early, since Talley is suffering from a minor knee injury. This will be a great battle of a team that loves to go up the sides (the Klein and Beckham side is fun to watch) and RSL got beat twice last week from such attacks, but when RSL attacks the ball in the midfield, they have shown that they can get goals from unlikely places Beckerman has two in league matches and scored two more on Wednesday. Will this be the match that Kenny Deuchar finally gets going offensively? Can Yura Movsisyan stay on his feet when he has the ball in the box? Which will be the dominant force the Galaxy offense or RSL’s defense? Come on I have to pick RSL to win at home in an exciting 3-2 match. Game Guide

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May 1, 2008 by f4denz.

So one of the early season surprises in MLS has to be the 3 game winning streak of TFC (wins over LA Galaxy, RSL, and KC Wizards), but discounting the Red Bulls who only have 7 points and are just one point ahead of the bottom team in the East would be a mistake. The Red Bulls have only played 4 matches so far this season and their only lose comes at FC Dallas, and they have wins over San Jose and a much improved Columbus team, a win tonight and the Bulls would have 10 points and only be behind Columbus by 2 points. New York has not yet seen their superstar Juan Pablo Angel get a ball into the back of the net, his 19 goals last year was second best in all of the MLS, while still hurt I believe he will see some action tonight. The Red Bull defense has been stingy as well only giving up 3 goals in their 4 matches so far this year, and have two clean sheet on the season.

TFC has a lineup stocked with international players and some have been very impressive, Robert, Ricketts, and Guevara all have shined in their start of the season, but I do not think it will be enough tonight and I am going to pick the boys from New York City to win 2-1 in what should be an exciting match.

OFFICAL GAME GUIDE

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