Blanco-Edu fight - Has the real Blanco finally showed up

When Cuauhtemoc Blanco signed with the Chicago Fire last year many of us wondered how many red cards he would earn. In a huge surprise, he got none during his 14 games and only earned 3 yellows. So has Blanco let go of his John McEnroe type image? In a quick answer, no.

During last night's exhibition game with Toronto FC, Blanco and Maurice Edu nearly came to blows in the first 15-minutes. Then later in the match, Blanco got into a shoving match with Ronnie O'Brien. Finally, the real Blanco has landed on US shores.

The Mexican striker was so fed up with Toronto's Maurice Edu in the first 15 minutes that he slammed into him with his shoulder. Edu responded by taking a swing at Blanco, which failed to connect. The two players were restrained and then given yellow cards.

Things remained heated throughout the match, with Blanco later shoving Toronto's Ronnie O'Brien because he thought O'Brien was fouling him. Even players from the Fire's bench exchanged words with Toronto players in the match.

Blanco is a very talented player but his lack of flair ups last year seemed a bit strange. A big part of Blanco's game is the psychological tricks he plays on opponents, trying to get them overheated, hoping it leads to either a mistake or a card. It appears he will not be continuing this trend in season number two.

By the way, the game ended 1-1 with Calen Carr getting the Fire goal while the first overall pick from the 2007 MLS Supplemental Draft Jarrod Smith evened it up for Toronto.