MLS Week 28: More and Fewer Answers
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by user The Manly Ferry
Count Major League Soccer’s (MLS) 28th week as confirmation, if any was needed, that picking a favorite to lift MLS Cup is a mug’s game. A look at my predictions for the weekend reveals either a total collapse of my predictive powers or tells the tale of a league that just will not sit up and behave properly. Put another way, a good number of the teams who needed to get it done this weekend failed to do so. We’re to a point - both in terms of the season and my limitations - where what’s done is done and I don’t seem to have much insight into it all.
In any case, here are the standings heading into the regular season’s final games, here’s a link to MLS’s Quick Kick highlights - where there’s some good stuff - and here are the scores that made the standings read how they’re reading:
- Chicago Fire 1 - 4 Columbus Crew
- FC Dallas 2 - 1 Los Angeles Galaxy
- Real Salt Lake 1 - 1 Houston Dynamo
- Kansas City Wizards 2 - 1 Chivas USA
- Colorado Rapids 1 - 1 Red Bull New York
- DC United 1 - 2 New England Revolution
Now, to put those results in context: we’ve got four teams still scrapping for the playoffs - where are their heads? Of the teams definitely playoff-bound, who is feeling their oats, and who is feeling today’s breakfast rising from their stomach? Finally, who is scheduling tee times...and feeling lucky they can golf year-round in Southern California?
Taking each team in turn - and forgoing the familiar up/down/hold format - here’s what I’m seeing.
Chicago Fire - BREAKFAST RISING: Forget the “Open Cup-hangover” loss to Red Bull in Week 27: after a start that augured a Chicago rout, the Fire instead unwound completely to the league’s worst team. They’ve got one game left to get their heads straight for the post-season - against DC United, in what should be the only interesting televised game of the final weekend - but how to rebound from a home loss that must have felt like a betrayal to the fans in attedance?
Columbus Crew - SHE LOVES ME!!: The Crew’s 2006 recalls the life of a man who dated the prettiest girl in high school only to lose her through several decades; he finds her again when they’re both older than the Dead Sea Scrolls and in about as fair of health. Sure, it’s a case of too little, too late, but you know they all smiled after ward in spite of themselves.
FC Dallas - HAPPY! AND ALL (or most) IS FORGIVEN: Dallas deserves some love both for finally removing the lingering bad taste from the 2005 season and seeing the offending agent isn’t swallowed again. That’s right: the LA Galaxy can’t make a mockery of the rules of competition for the second year running (though someone else may yet get to). More to the point, they managed a win against a talented, desperate team and their key men on offense - Ronnie O’Brien, Kenny Cooper, Carlos Ruiz, Richard Mulrooney - all chipped in for the win. With no one standing above the pack, Dallas’ biggest hurdle comes in the playoff’s first round, when they’ve got to minimize the damage on the road; after that, they probably ought to pray that Houston gets eliminated in the first round.
Los Angeles Galaxy - DOWN AND OUT, MOTHER$^@%&!!: I won’t deny that I enjoyed this immensely. But seeing LA ‘keeper Kevin Hartman’s broken-heart howl after Dallas’ second goal prompted an unexpected, though quick, lapse into pity. Oh, and can anyone point to a worse year for Landon Donovan than 2006? I sure as hell can’t. Anyway, they’re missing the post-season for the first time in club history, but because that really should have happened last year perhaps the Cosmos has returned to balance and we won’t be punished with such God-awful, sporadically competent soccer from the league as a whole in 2007.
Real Salt Lake - ACHIEVEMENTS IN FUTILITY: A better team would have taken advantage of Colorado’s home stumble to Red Bull. The only team riding their luck harder at this point is that same Colorado team. Either team points to a comfortable first-round playoff draw for FC Dallas.
Houston Dynamo - DARK HORSE HAPPY: It’s probably down to them taking home El Capitan, the mountain howitzer awarded to the winners of the Texas Derby, that makes Dynamo look like the chief threat to FC Dallas’ shot at hosting MLS Cup this season. This was the only game without a Quick Kick reel, but the match report spoke favorably of Houston. Paul Dalglish, whether he’s riding his father’s reputation or not, seems to have stood out - as he has done every time I’ve seen him play. These guys need only a little inspiration on offense to be dangerous. It’s coming together, if imperfectly, at the right moment.
Kansas City Wizards - HAPPY: What else can one say about a team that seized a share of the driver’s seat for the season’s final game? While it’s true they’ve got Red Bull away for their final game - the team who happens to be their immediate rival for the East’s sole remaining post-season slot - they’ve also arranged their affairs to need only a draw to make the post-season. And team and form trends look better for them than New York. Count KC as one of a couple teams who did what they needed to in Week 28.
Chivas USA - BREAKFAST RISING: Though they still clinched their place and as much as this was the only one of the weekend’s results that didn'tsurprise me, Chivas can’t feel overly optimistic heading into the post-season. What looked like a charge now feels more like a cramp-plagued amble. They need to get some offensive starters not only healthy, but in sync with the team. What better time and circumstances to do this than by knocking out their co-expansionists in the final game of the season?
Colorado Rapids - FLAIR FOR DRAMA?: Having squandered their last, best chance at going into the playoffs on their own terms, one has to think the Rapids like things dicey. Intentionally or not, they’ve raised the prospect of an anxious Saturday night and Sunday morning: if they lose away to Houston, they’ll leave the playoff gate open for Real Salt Lake, who play Chivas on Sunday; if Colorado loses and Real wins, the latter make the playoffs. Given how far this team has fallen from playoff comfort, this scenario is far from unlikely - and they’ll deserve the long off-season as richly as any team has.
Red Bull New York - A HOLE DIGGING: Along with a number of teams headed that direction, Red Bull doesn’t deserve to make the playoffs. But based on Week 28’s results, they deserve it even less than their immediate rivals for the East’s final place, Kansas City. This playoff showdown - which, along with the same games in the West, the league should be moving heaven and earth to get on screen (neither game is...huzzah!!) - should be one hell of a chess match. KC gained the advantage this past weekend; I can’t see Red Bull recovering it...which means all of you should run to the nearest sports book and bet heavily on them to make the post-season.
DC United - BREAKFAST UP AND OUT: Maybe there’s a reason these guys keep talking up the Supporters’ Shield as a great prize. What happened to this team? They should count themselves lucky that, in 2006, they owned both of the teams they’re going to face in the playoffs first round - and even then they ought to warm-up whatever good luck rituals they’ve got; they’re going to need them to stand up to mid-season expectations. The mighty have fallen.
New England Revolution - TANTRIC SEASON: Could it be the Revolution is again peaking at JUST the right time? This could be the fan in me talking, but, of all the Quick Kick highlights, I’d point anyone to New England’s two goals against DC; both were beauties. It can’t be denied they looked a little dicey on defense and Matt Reis (‘keeper) has had better games to be sure. At the same time, they took a big one on the road and it’s hard to top that. They join Houston as the leading dark horse from their conference.
And that’s all he wrote - or has time to write anyway.
