Mexico's Pachuca are Champions of Concacaf

For the second year in a row, Mexican side Pachuca are kings of Concacaf. They retained this honor last night by dropping Costa Rica's Deportivo Saprissa 2-1 in the second leg of the Concacaf Champions Cup final. Pachuca won the series 3-2 on aggregate.

With the victory, Pachuca earns a spot in the Fifa Club World Cup finals this December in Japan.

Congratulations to Pachuca for winner the last ever Concacaf Champions Cup.

2008 Concacaf Champions Cup - Costa Rica's Purple Monsters stampede to semifinal meeting with Houston

Deportivo Saprissa 3-0 Atlante
Saprissa wins series 4-2

In a game that was often times unruly, both on the pitch and in the stands, Costa Rica's Deportivo Saprissa managed to walk away with a 3-0 victory and earn a spot in the semifinals.

Atlante showed no offensive muscle, thanks in large part to the absence of Giancarlo Maldonado, which allowed Deportivo Saprissa time to create their chances and force Atlante to make mistakes. Sure enough, the Mexican side made a couple of major mistakes as two of the three goals were own goals.

Deportivo Saprissa showed themselves to be a technically smart team that can cause havoc in a backline, which might be a very bad thing for Houston. Although they are getting better, the Dynamo's final four still are not settled. If Boswell is still less then 100% when these two meet, it might be a long night in Houston.

But Deportivo Saprissa have some issues of their own on defense and with the return of Stuart Holden, the improved play out of Chris Wondolowski and Mr. Clutch himself Dwayne De Rosario, they should make it very entertaining.

Goals:
DS: Castillo 29'(og), Alonso 40', Cervantes 67'(og)

2008 Concacaf Champions Cup - De Rosario carries Houston past Municipal; Pachuca win date with DC United

Houston Dynamo 3-1 CSD Municipal

Houston was outplayed for most of the first half, but held their own enough to keep the score level. Then came the second 45, otherwise known as the Dwayne De Rosario show.

De Rosario was all over the pitch creating chances while slowing Municipal's attacks. His first goal was coated in luck as Municipal's Claudio Albizuris clearance attempt into De Ro's chest was a bit strange. However, luck alone does not explain the goal as it took talent to quickly settled the ball and get off a perfect shot.

The goal gave Houston a bit of a swagger and their passing game greatly improved from that point on. The improve passing gave Corey Ashe an ability to show off his speed and cause some moments for Municipal's backline, which leads to the controversy.

Ashe earned a pk from a light foul by Municipal defender Renato Blanco. Most days, I don't think that would have been a pk and Ashe likely would have got a yellow for a dive, however this one looks to be a makeup call for some series pushing and tripping Brian Ching suffered in the box during the first half.

The second goal lead to a fight after the kickoff, which should have resulted in a red card to Selvyn Ponciano for purposely smacking Chris Wondolowski with his cast (after re-watching the video, Ponciano pauses his arm movement for a moment, slightly looks at Wondolowski, then throws his arm, which is in a hard cast, right into Wondolowski's face). If Municipal went down to 10, as they should have, the game would have been over.

The ensuing restart caught Municipal off guard as Wondolowski finished a fantastic centering ball by Ashe.

Municipal then earned a pk of their own off a light handball call against Wade Barrett. Barrett's arms were protected his chest, which can go either way. There was no intent, but the ref wanted to make up for the light Houston pk, so he gave them the kick. Fair.

But it wasn't done yet as Municipal ran through a suddenly lackluster Houston side and earned, what looked like, a free and clear second goal. However, the ref called a handball, thus no goal. This was the worst call of the game as it was not even close to right, nor was it a correction of a previous mistake. The game should have been 3-2 with a couple more minutes to play.

So Houston was lucky but still deserved the win. However, there are some questions about the Dynamo defense heading into the season as Boswell is still not on the same page and their speed, or lack there of, is bound to cost them. On offense, Brian Ching still does not appear to be fully back from last season's injury and Franco Caraccio needs to learn when to kill off games (I know he is try to impress, but a late sub when your team is up needs to know when to hold off).

Overall, Municipal might not have won the series, but they did win respect. If this game was played again with Fredy García, the outcome could easily go the other way. Still, Houston matches on. Congrats and great show by the 14,348 fans who made it out last night.

Houston will face the winner of Deportivo Saprissa (CR) - Atlante (Mex) series in the semifinals. Atlante leads 2-1 going into tonights match in Mexico.

Goals:
Houston - Dwayne De Rosario 47', 69'(pk), Chris Wondolowski 75'
Municipal - Guillermo Ramírez 86'


Pachuca 1-0 Motagua

In the nightcap, Pachuca and Motagua played a very unexciting match that was decided by Luis Montes's goal in the 43'. Pachuca is still getting wins, but they are nowhere near as impressive as they were last year as their attack is very forgettable. Still, with goalkeeper Miguel Calero looking strong, DC will have a difficult time getting past them.

Goal:
Pachuca - Miguel Calero 43'

2008 Concacaf Champions Cup - Houston looks for first KO of the year; DC United dominates

Houston Dynamo - CSD Municipal
Team tied 0-0 in first leg
8:30pm ET/5:30pm PT
Robertson Stadium
TV: Fox Soccer Channel
Radio: KBME 790AM (Eng)
Tickets

Tonight, for the first time since winning the MLS Cup last November, the Houston Dynamo return to their home pitch and they need a win if they want to keep their chances of becoming the top club team in the world alive. However, to do so, they must get past a very tough side in CSD Municipal.

The two played a feisty game last week in Guatemala that saw a number of quality chances for both sides, but no goals.

If the Dynamo are to win this match, they will need another fantastic performance from, drum roll please, Dwayne De Rosario. With Stuart Holden and Brad Davis unavailable for the match, his team will again look to the Canadian to be their engine. He will need to push the offense by sending in good balls to Ching and Wondolowski as well as taking some long-range shots to force Municipal's defense out of their box. He will also need to work with Ricardo Clark to prevent Municipal from cracking their defense.

The Dynamo's backline looked good in Guatemala, but Mario Rodriguez and Freddy Garcia still managed to make trouble and it is only due to the great work of goalkeeper Pat Onstad that Houston did not lose the match late. They can expect more of the same tonight.

Even with their issues, Houston still has the edge in this one. Everyone will be looking to Ching to provide the goals as their score pool is limited, but Ching has this habit of finding the net when he needs to. Add to it the best defensive line in the league and it should be enough to get them into the semifinals.

Predictions:
Me HD 1-0 Municipal
Wife HD 1-0 Municipal


DC United 5-0 Harbour View
DC wins series 6-1

What a home opener for DC United. On a pitch that might be the best in America, United demolished Jamaica's Harbour View thanks in huge part to the efforts of Fred. He was all over the place on the night. Making the needed tackles to stop breaks while providing perfect passes to setup DC's attack.

Although the first 45 minutes were tight, at no time did the outcome ever seem in doubt. And once United figured out Harbour's offside trap in the second half, the real damage began. Luciano Emilio picked up where he left off last season while Devon McTavish managed a brace to run his campaign total up to three goals from two matches. Really, Devon McTavish.

Santino Quaranta came on in the 64' and had an immediate effect on his side. He cut through the tired Harbour backline and generally caused havoc in front of goal. His two assists are a testament to what he brought into the game and as long as he doesn't let stuff like this go to his head, he looks to be on his way to playing a significant role in United's season.

If there is a downside for DC from all this it is the lack of action their defense saw on the night. No matter who they face in the next round, they will face a tougher test in their final third. Nothing really stood out as a major issue last night but that might be due to the lack of force from Harbour them the strength of the back.

Goals:
DC United: Devon McTavish 26', Luciano Emilio 63', 66', Devon McTavish 68', Fred 88'

2008 Concacaf Champions Cup - Can DC ruin Harbour's View?

DC United - Harbour View
Teams tied 1-1 in first leg
7:30pm ET/4:30pm PT
TV: Fox Soccer Channel
Radio: WFED 1050AM (Eng), WACA 1540 AM (Spn)

DC United returns home for the first time since November with the hope that home pitch advantage will give them the extra boost needed to send them into the next round of the Concacaf Champions Cup.

After a rough showing in Jamaica for the first leg, DC hopes the improved playing surface at RFK will allow them to play a game based on their strengths, i.e. passing and speed. If so, we can probably expect a solid night from Marcelo Gallardo who, even in Jamaica, had some dangerous moments.

However, DC will miss Jaime Moreno due to a hamstring injury suffered in the first leg, which will probably result in 5 foot 4 Franco Niell getting his first start for the club. The question he will need to answer is if he has had enough time to work out his role with striker partner Luciano Emilio?

On the Harbour View side of things, they are missing two key players due to visa issues. Both midfielder Kemeel Wolfe and striker Rafiek Thomas were denied access to the US for unknown reasons. Since both of them were very important to their sides 1-1 draw in the first leg, this is a big blow for Harbour.

The good news for the Jamaicans, defender Christopher Harvey is back after serving a one game suspension. Harvey will help steady Harbour's back line and will probably be all over Niell. Combine their improved backline with the strength of midfielder Richard Edwards and forward Kemar Petrekin and United should have a busy night ahead of them.

That said, I've got to go with DC for this one due to the strength of their passing game. This will allow the team to slip in behind Harbour's defense and get some great shots on goal.

It will be a struggle, but United will win.

Predictions:
Me DC 3-1 HV
Wife DC 2-1 HV

One last thing, let’s hope Jamaica and the US can change their rules so future teams will not have to face such visa problems.

2008 Concacaf Champions Cup - We are all DC and Houston fans tonight

The pretending stops tonight as two MLS sides final take to the pitch in games the matter. Both DC United and the Houston Dynamo will represent MLS and American soccer over the next few weeks as they try to earn the Concacaf spot in the FIFA World Club Cup this December.

Last year, both teams looked strong in the Concacaf Champions Cup, but fell in the semifinals to their Mexican opponents.

For the opening round, DC United will play Jamaica's Harbour View while the Dynamo get Guatemalan side CSD Municipal. With both MLS teams still in preseason, these games will not be easy.

DC United at Harbour View
8pm ET/5pm PT
TV: Fox Soccer Channel

Harbour View is in the middle of a very bad run of play, winning just one of their last eight domestic games, plus they might be without striker and former Metrostar Fabian Taylor. I can't tell for sure, but I think he has signed with Norwegian side Notodden FK. The teams website has a news release about Taylor, but sadly my Norwegian fails me at the moment, so I'm not sure what exactly it says. However, I see that there is a poll on the right hand side asking who the team's top scorer will be this season and he is listed as an option.

If it is true that Taylor is gone, United will want to send a big thank you across the Atlantic. Without Taylor, Kavin Byran, who is just back from injury, will need to take over things on top. DC get another break as defender Christopher Harvey is suspended for the match due to a red card from Harbour's qualifier last December.

All of this should allow United time to organize and settle. Their main concern for this match will be stamina as none of them are truly match fit. To combat this, they will need their midfield, lead by designated player Marcelo Gallardo, to control the game. If DC's defense is chasing balls for most of the first half, Harbour will pull out a surprise.

In the end, I think it will be a little bit of a struggle, but DC should get out of Jamaica will no less then a tie.

Predictions: Me DC 1-1 HV, Wife DC 2-1 HV

One last thing, I'm not sure Harbour View coach Lenworth Hyde Sr. fully understands the CCC as he said, "Going out there today we can't give up any goals. The away goal rule is in effect so we have to be very disciplined defensively." The CCC does not use the away goal rule like they do in Europe. Never a good side when your coach doesn't know what type of game needs to be played.


Houston Dynamo vs. CSD Municipal
10pm ET/7pm PT
TV: Fox Soccer Channel

Municipal are also in the middle of a bad streak as they have lost their last two matches 1-0 and have dropped to third in the league, however they still have plenty of class, most of which has spent some time in MLS.

Fredy García spent some time with Columbus, but never really achieved much in their midfield. However, back home with Municipal, he has proven himself to be a threat at any moment. The combination of García with Fred Thompson (not the former presidential candidate) has proven very difficult for teams to break.

But Houston's biggest concern is probably on their own side of the ball. Right now the club is missing a number of midfielders due to injury and Olympic call-ups. Adding to these problems is the lack of cohesion in the back and a bunch of unknowns up top and it might be difficult for the Dynamo to come out of Latin America with anything good.

For this to work, Houston needs an outstanding performance by Dwayne De Rosario with Ricardo Clark picking up the problems before they get to the back line. When they do sneak through, Waibel, Robinson and Barrett will need to watch Bobby Boswell as he is the new man to their lineup.

This one will probably be a bit of a slog as Municipal is very happy to play the foul game. Don't forget Carlos Ruiz played here during his formative days and he still shows what he learned every time he steps out of the pitch (watch out Ricardo Clark).

Predictions: Me HD 1-2 Municipal, Wife HD 2-1 Municipal


So why are we all DC and Houston fans tonight? Simple, if soccer in America ever hopes to gain respect both internationally and locally, we need all teams to win on the international level. If MLS wins the region, they will have a chance to play a major team from Europe or South America in a meaningful competition, which will give the league a chance to catch additional eyeballs. The more people that pay attention to MLS, the better it, and the people that play in it, become.

Full Concacaf Champions Cup schedule here.

2008 Concacaf Champions Cup schedule - Can Houston or DC win the region?

In just two weeks both DC United and the Houston Dynamo will play their first meaningful matches of the year as the final installment of the Concacaf Champions' Cup (CCC) gets underway. The winner of this the CCC will represent the region at the FIFA Club World Cup in Japan this December.

The tournament is made up of three stages with each stage being a two leg (home-away) affair. Here is the full schedule (all times Eastern - FSC will air all matches in the US, though some are tape delayed):

Quarterfinals
Leg 1
QF 1 - CD Motagua (Hon) 0-0 Pachuca CF (Mex)
11 March Estadio Tiburcio Carias Andino - Att: 35,846
QF 2 - Harbour View (Jam) 1-1 DC United (USA)
12 March Harbour View Stadium, Kinston - Att: 6,985
QF 4 - CSD Municipal (Gua) 0-0 Houston Dynamo (USA)
12 March Estadio Mateo Flores - Att:
QF 3 - Atlante FC (Mex) 2-1 Deportivo Saprissa (CR)
13 March Estadio Andres Quintana Roo, Cancun - Att:

Leg 2
QF 2 - DC United (USA) 5-0 Harbour View (Jam)
18 March RFK Stadium - Att: 12,394
DC United win series 6-1
QF 4 - Houston Dynamo (USA) 3-1 CSD Municipal (Gua)
19 March Robertson Stadium - Att: 14,348
Houston Dynamo win series 3-1
QF 1 - Pachuca CF (Mex) 1-0 CD Motagua (Hon)
19 March Estadio Hidalgo, Pachuca - Att:
Pachuca win series 1-0
QF 3 - Deportivo Saprissa (CR) 3-0 Atlante FC (Mex)
20 March Estadio Ricardo Saprissa, San Jose - Att: 23,000
Deportivo Saprissa win series 4-2

Semifinals
Leg 1
SF 1 - Pachuca (Mex) vs. DC United (US)
01 April Estadio Hidalgo, Pachuca
SF 2 - Houston Dynamo (US) vs. Deportivo Saprissa (CR)
02 April Robertson Stadium

Leg 2
SF 1 - DC United (US) vs. Pachuca (Mex)
08 April RFK Stadium
SF 2 - Deportivo Saprissa (CR) vs. Houston Dynamo (US)
09 April

Finals
Leg 1 - Winner SF 2 vs. Winner SF 1
23 April
Leg 2 - Winner SF 1 vs. Winner SF 2
30 April

The schedule means that if DC United advances to the end, they will host the second leg in all three rounds. Houston, meanwhile, will get to host the second leg only in the first round.

Both MLS sides will face the challenge of meeting teams in the middle of their season, but in the first round, Houston looks to have the tougher opposition. Municipal is a historic club in Guatemalan soccer and their current roster contains a large number of players from their national team, including Juan Carlos Plata. Also, chances are good that their 30,000 seat home stadium will be near capacity for this match.

DC should have an easier time with Harbour View as they are a good club but not a dominant one. However, the Caribbean winner has often given their first round opponent trouble, so United should not look past them.

Last year both DC and Houston had good runs in the CCC, only to fall in the second round to teams from Mexico. This year they have a little easier time of it as the matches start two and a half weeks later then they did in 2007, giving them more time in pre-season training to prepare.