FC Dallas has three finalists for coaching job

Now that Luiz Felipe Scolari has taken his name out of the running, FC Dallas has narrowed their search for a new head coach to three. They are current SMU college coach Schellas Hyndman, former Dallas player Oscar Pareja and former Chicago Fire coach Dave Sarachan. If rumors are true, Hyndman is the favorite.

General manager Michael Hitchcock says the team is in the final stages of negotiations and expects to name a new boss early next week.

In what could just be bigger news, Hitchcock also said that the new hire would only serve as coach as they will also hire a technical director. Hitchcock's reason, "You need a different perspective, different set of eyes, different skill set or otherwise it would be no different that what we've done in the past."

It is a smart move to divide the duties, however I still wonder about their final coaching candidates as none of them really strike me as people who can turn the team into champions. Sarachan has the most experience and had some quality time with Chicago, but the Fire never looked like a force during his tenure. Pareja was a wonderful player for Dallas, but his coaching experience is very limited. As far as Hyndman, like I said last week, I don't know if he brings the respect needed to succeed at the top level.

Anyway, it looks like this Sunday's match against Chicago will be interim coach Marco Ferruzzi's last one.

Does Toronto really want McBride? How about the Chicago players?

Brian McBride is coming back to MLS, that much we know. The question now seems to be where will he land.

Early indications seem to be that he wants to play for Chicago, his hometown team, but first he would need to get Toronto to let go of his rights. So does Toronto really want McBride?

TFC general manager Mo Johnston is being coy about it saying the team 'needs another striker' but also pointing out that they are, 'sitting on a little pot of gold here.' So is Mo just trying to get the offers up or might TFC be serious?

Meanwhile in Chicago, at least one player is a little concerned about the addition of McBride to their roster.

"If [McBride] is asking for designated player money ($400,000 or more), players might get moved or traded or dropped," Fire forward Chad Barrett said. "There's a good chance he would take my spot, but I think I've gotten off to a good start and am contributing. The coaching staff knows that."

With the way the Fire have played this season, a change might not be the best idea. Then again, I think most people would pick a McBride over a Barrett any day (no offense).

But there is another factor in this move that needs to be resolved. If McBride is going for designated player money, Chicago will need to pickup another DP slot* as they are using their slot for Blanco. So not only would the Fire need to give something to Toronto for McBride's rights, they would also need to give up something else to get the second DP spot. That's a lot to surrender, but maybe we now know why coach Denis Hamlett packed his team with forwards during the off season.

As far as salary cap space, Toronto looks to be close to their limit, so they would probably need to clear about $300k to make space for the $400k portion of McBride's DP salary, while Chicago would only need to free up about $100k. (Allocation money might make these numbers a little different)

My guess is the MLS really wants McBride and McBride really wants Chicago, so the league will find a way to make this happen. Just think how much the MLS brass would love to promote the Blanco-McBride connection. Two legends from the US-Mexico national teams coming together in Chicago.

* Under MLS rules are teams received one designated player slot that they can use to sign a player for more then a $400k a year salary or trade to any other club. Only the first $400k of the player’s salary counts towards the team’s salary cap. No team can have more then two designated players.

Brian McBride coming home to MLS

Brian McBride has decided to leave England and return stateside. Fulham hoped McBride would stick around for another season, but he decided now was the best time. He made over 150 appearances for the Cottagers and netted 40 goals.

"After much consideration with my family, we have decided to leave Fulham after four and a half fantastic years," the 35-year-old forward said in a statement Wednesday on the club's Web site. "I have always stated my intention to return to America at some stage and this seems like the right moment in my career to move on."
...
"I take great pride in the fact that my last appearance for Fulham saw the club maintain its Premier League status," McBride said. "I leave with some wonderful memories from my time at Fulham, and the club will always be in my heart."

As I said a couple weeks ago, I would have preferred he stay in England because he was a constant bright spot for American's aboard, however that is a very selfish reason. McBride is an outstanding player and a wonderful person who has more then earned all the praise that comes his way. His desire to return home to give his final quality years to his nation's league speaks volumes.

As far as his future home in the MLS, who knows where he might end up. Toronto has his rights, but Chicago is often mentioned as his landing spot (he grew up in the area). I'm sure ever Fire fan would love McBride teaming up with Blanco, but as a commenter said, 'in the grand scheme of what is right and wrong, his place is in Columbus.' It would be very strange to see him in MLS and not in a Crew uniform. Still, if he wants to play for his hometown club, I think even the hardest Crew supporter would understand.

So welcome home McBride, I, like thousands of other US soccer fans, look forward to watching you play.

Houston's John Spencer doesn't regret passing Chicago Fire coaching job

Back in January, John Spencer was a few thousand dollars in salary away from accepting the top job in Chicago, but it was not to be. Instead he returned to Houston to spend another season with the MLS Champions.

This Saturday, Spencer returns to Chicago for the first time since he rejected the job however it is Chicago that is looking like the champions. So does Spencer have any hard feelings over his choice?

"I don't regret it," Spencer said this week as his team prepared for Saturday's visit to Toyota Park.

At the time, many people, myself included, thought the Fire's lack of interest in spending money on a coach was the sign of bad things to come, however, so far we have been wrong. The Fire currently sit two points behind Columbus for top spot in the league while Houston only achieved their first victory this past weekend. All in all, the front office in Fire land must be happy with their loss.

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.

Andy Herron back to Chicago

Last year the Chicago Fire were lacking in anything up top. This year, their cup seems to be running over as they have added Andy Herron to their lineup. This is his second round with the team.

The move means Chicago now has Calen Carr, Tomasz Frankowski, Chris Rolfe, Patrick Nyarko, Chad Barrett and Herron ready to play in the forward position. This is an embarrassment of riches.

So what is the team missing? One could argue that the answer is everywhere else on the pitch. Their midfield was a little short last season while they have thinned out a bit in defense. Also, with Pickens heading overseas, they now need a backup keeper.

With a number of MLS sides needing help up top, don't be surprised if the Fire get a more then a few calls over the next month.

One last thing about this move, it should make the Fire's second game of the season that much more entertaining as Herron might again be on the pitch with Jay Heaps of New England. Here's what happened the last time the two got together. Herron was fined $3000 and suspended four games after this incident.

Chicago Fire’s jerseys are a Best Buy

Not only do the Fire finally have a coach, but they also have a jersey sponsor for the front of their shirt. Minneapolis based electronics store Best Buy has reached a deal with the club. One of the main reasons given for this move is a Best Buy’s plan to open stores in Mexico this year.

The Fire are the eighth MLS club to land a jersey sponsor joining Chivas, Columbus, Houston, LA, NY, Salt Lake and Toronto. I'm not sure, but I believe Honda is no longer a back of the jersey sponsor.

Denis Hamlett finally gets the Chicago Fire job

At long last it has happened, Denis Hamlett is the new coach of the Chicago Fire. After getting passed over multiple times for the post, Hamlett has to prove that even a forced hirer can turn out to be a good thing. Any first time manager is going to have a difficult task in front of them, but under these circumstances, he's got a hard year ahead of him. I wish him nothing but the best of luck.

Low pay keeps Chicago without a coach

After a month without a coach, the Chicago Fire finally had their man, they just were not willing to offer him enough money to stay.

John Spencer (the MLS one, not the Blues Explosion one) sat down with team officials to negotiate a contract, but found their terms just not enough to move him and his family from Houston.

"(Tuesday) I got offered the job in Chicago, accepted it and sat down to try and negotiate a contract, but we couldn't come to terms,'' Spencer said. "It wasn't much more money than I (was making) here with the Dynamo, and I felt that to move my family to another state and all the upheaval and such, I just didn't think it was worth it, so I turned it down.''

I'm sure part of reason for this is Spencer's lack of head coach experience, but to make an offer that is only a bit more then what he is making as an assistant is powerfully weak.

So it looks like Chicago has landed in the sticking situation of doing a forced hire for their next coach. Denis Hamlett might end up doing something great, but the fact that management has twice passed him over for the position (first last summer before they hired Juan Carlos Osorio and now) doesn't really build the confidence level.

Your team not in the MLS Cup? Here's your guide to picking a side.

Let's face it, for most MLS fans, your team isn't going for glory on Sunday afternoon, but being the proud soccer fan that you are, you will still watch the game. Now you can do it impartially, judging the game not on an alliance but on the actual play on the field, but what fun is that.

Go ahead and pick a side so there can be an 'us vs. them' motif. It will give you more of a reason to cheer every shot, jeer every hard tackle and curse at every bad call the ref is bound to make. But have no worries about anything long term, this is just a one afternoon stand that will be gone faster then a New York Red Bull coach. With that in mind, here is a guide to help you pick your short-term personal cup team based on your own true MLS love.

Chicago - Can you really cheer for the team the beat you especially on a 'tainted' Taylor Twellman bicycle kick? Plus, do you want the MLS Cup to go to a team that plays on turf? One last thing, Dallas is your enemy and Houston is Dallas's enemy thus Houston is your friend. Where there is a Dynamo, there is bound to be a Fire.

Chivas - You've got much better over the last couple years but you still can't make anything happen against Houston. Plus, that 0-0 tie against the Dynamo on the last match of the regular season exposed the weaknesses that Kansas City used to beat you in the playoffs. The Goats are kicking for the Revolution.

Colorado - Much like the play on the pitch, this club has little excitement either way. Still, the Revs play a style of soccer that lends itself to a bit more of a snore nature then Houston, so maybe if the Revs pull one off, it proves that Colorado has a chance. New England for a new Rapids.

Columbus - Let's use some logic here, this season the Crew did not lose to the Revs once (1 win, 2 ties), therefore, if the Revs beat Houston, the Crew are actually MLS champions. Then again, if Joseph Ngwenya plays a big roll for Houston, it's like the Crew made it happen. So really, either way you go, Columbus comes out on top. Go halftime show!

DC - Okay, watching a team break one of your most cherished records (back-to-back titles) on your own pitch is bound to hurt, however can you really cheer for New England? I mean do you really want to see Matt Reis holding the cup high over his head at RFK? It has got to be Houston.

Dallas - Texas pride runs strong and it runs deep but hatred between Dallas and Houston runs deeper. Not only have they achieved more in two years then you have in twelve, but they have even done it on your own soil. Then again, New England did take the US Open Cup from you this year on your own soil, but I'm guessing that hurts less then the repetitive beatings Houston hands you. New England all the way.

Kansas City - Houston kicked you out of the playoffs, but it was such a one sided night that the only way to not look foolish is to have the same thing happen to another team. Hope for a Dyno-tastic Sunday.

Los Angeles - Until next season, Houston is still the Earthquakes and LA doesn't like Earthquakes. As an added bonus, a New England win in DC makes United look less like the Superclub the Galaxy aim to be. Also, with AEG Houston and LA's corporate parent, aren't you tired of your brother getting the better grades? La-La wants a Revolution.

New York - New England is the team New York was suppose to be and sure this might not be baseball, but a New Yorker going for a team from Boston just doesn't seem right. Besides, if the Revs win, that's one less team that you could point at as and example of a team without a MLS title. Houston to smack the Revs.

Salt Lake - Real is looking for a revolution in their play next season so they need to look at this game with strategy in mind. The winner will get a berth in the Concacaf Champions Cup and if tradition holds, those who play in it will have a bad start to the MLS season. Since Salt Lake has a better chance of playing Houston early, the Dynamo are the way to go.

Toronto - Like there is even an option here. Between Dwayne De Rosario and Pat Onstad, Houston is the proxy team Canada. A win for them is like a win for the maple leafs. Go, go Dynamo!

MLS Expansion: Milwaukee's dream looks to be dead

In a major blow to Milwaukee's hope of landing a MLS expansion squad, Peter Wilt has left his post as chief executive officer of Milwaukee Professional Soccer LLC.

Wilt, who was the former general manager for the Chicago Fire, had hoped to work with local financiers and politicians to bring top level soccer to Wisconsin, however, there just was not enough of a push to make it happen.

"Despite having a broad base of support, 8,000 season-ticket equivalents and what I feel is the best pro team/amateur youth sports association partnership in history, we haven't been able to secure the necessary governmental support or the development rights for appropriate land in the desired time frame," said Wilt in a statement.

"There is no doubt in my mind that Wisconsin would be a successful Major League Soccer market and that Milwaukee and its citizens would benefit from a team and stadium as part of a major mixed-use development."

Wilt had been working on the project since 2005, but his efforts to land a stadium location proved to be extremely elusive. Perhaps he is best known for his idea to use the Milwaukee Mile racetrack as a soccer pitch.

With Seattle landing a team this week and Philadelphia or St. Louis on the cusp of getting a club (not to mention the Portland, Las Vegas, Phoenix and New York City options), the idea of the league expanding to a city where the team would play at a race track must have finally seemed to far fetched for Wilt.

Thankfully he will still be involved in soccer, as he will work with the Chicago team in the new professional women's league.

New England Revolution wins the East, look for the double

Chicago Fire 0-1 New England Revolution

Chicago's lack of finishing finally did them in as the Revs return to MLS Cup for the fourth time in six years. Overall, the match was lacking in excitement as both sides suffered from poor passing in the final third, but the real story is the lack of quality shots on goal the Fire had. Of their 10 on target shots, only two forced Matt Reis to make any sort of effort to stop them.

Blanco was mostly invisible on the evening thanks in large part to referee Kevin Stott. Since a large part of Blanco's game is based on getting calls from the ref, if the ref ain't calling', it just ain't happening. But Blanco was not the only player lacking. Other then some quality saves by Matt Pickens the team was a wash.

The Twellman goal was excellent, but overall, the Revs were a bit caged, but that is sort of their style.

As far as the ESPN call, it did not add anything to the excitement level. Even though they talked a large amount about the game, overall, it was just filler and enough about Boston being the city of champions. We got it the first time.

Goal: Taylor Twellman (2) 38'
Attendance: 10,317 (not very good at all)

2007 Eastern Conference Championship - Chicago vs. New England

Chicago Fire vs. New England Revolution
7:30pm ET/4:30pm PT
TV: ESPN2

Tonight decides who will represent the Eastern Conference in MLS Cup 2007. Will it be the hard charging, Blanco fueled, giant killers Chicago Fire or the always dependable, Matt Reis backed New England Revolution?

Without a doubt, Chicago has had a good run of form over the last couple months, but it really has not been as impressive as it sounds. Yes, they have not lost in their last 10 league matches, however, six of those games ended in ties and they scored one goal or less in seven of them. It makes for a good record but when you are in a must win situation, it doesn't hold up as well.

The Revolution have had a bit of a bumpier ride in terms of results and they looked a little soft against New York in the first round, but overall, they hold a number of key advantages. First, they are playing on turf in their own house. Second, they have a goalkeeper who is getting close to top form. Third, they have multiple scoring options. Fourth, unlike DC, injuries are not hurting a number of key players.

All of these will make Chicago's job extremely difficult, but there biggest issue is the same one they have had all year, failure to score. The Fire have the fewest goals of any playoff team (31) and are second worse when compared to the league as a whole (TFC holds the bottom spot at 25). This lack of attack, especially up against a keeper like Matt Reis, is what will doom them.

On the other side of things, the Revs have one of the most productive offensives in the league and with seven of their regular starters having two or more goals, this productivity is not limited to one area. This will force Chicago to pull players back behind the ball, meaning they will again be counting on break aways and counter attacks to see them through this match.

A very telling thing to look at concerning the Fire is the way they played in the first leg of the DC series. When they went up a goal, they said that they were going to push it in order to get a second. But what happened? The team didn't know how to push forward and instead they wasted the clock and helm off a limping United. So even when they decided to push forward, they could not.

Without a doubt Blanco will play a major role in Chicago's night, but which Blanco will it be? Will it be the Blanco from the first leg who gave away the ball over 40 times or the Blanco of the second leg who was placing the balls were needed and catching the United defense cheating? But the center of attention might not be the most important person to watch as the Fire will need Chad Barrett and Chris Rolfe roaming into the final third regularly if they hope to beat Reis.

The Revs will call on one of the best midfields in the league to dictate this game. Steve Ralston and Andy Dorman have made trouble for their opposition all season with Jeff Larentowicz and Khano Smith adding a great fight to the center. On defense, Michael Parkhurst has been making a case for international duty with his 'defend hard, defend everywhere' style while Jay Heaps likes to get involved when numbers are needed. Combine all this will Pat Noonan and Taylor Twellman and you have all the makings of a whooping.

Chciago might be able to hold off that whooping due to their strong defensive work, however that normally is the result of keeping 10-players behind the ball, meaning that if they go down to the Revs, their style will open up as they push forward, resulting in more possible chances for New England.

Predictions:
Me: CF 0-2 NE
Wife : CF 2-1 NE
But the wife did not stop there, she predicts that NE will go up a goal in the first half hour, Chicago will tie it just a few minutes after halftime and get the winner sometime between the 82-86'. Specific enough for you?

2007 MLS Playoffs - Week 2 recap - First always loses to worst

Without a doubt, leg 2 of round 1 was a lot more fun then leg 1. However, after both number one seeds were knocked out by the bottom seeds, one has to wonder if the league needs to take some sort of action to give the teams that proved themselves during the whole season an advantage in the playoffs. But that is a discussion for another day.

Here is the playoff table after the first round:

	Playoffs	Week 2
Attendance	136,331	79,353
Att per game	17,041	19,838
Goals	13	10
Goals per game	1.625	2.5
Visitors	0-5-3	0-2-2
Ties	3 (37.5%)	2 (50%)

FC Dallas 1-4 Houston Dynamo
Houston wins series 4-2 on aggregate
It is a real shame this match was not on national television because it is exactly the sort of game that could convert casual fans. The atmosphere was amazing, the game was physical yet had great flow and the goals were all fantastic.

FCD just needed a tie to win the series and early on it looked like they were going to do that, but then one stupid reaction turned this game. Two minutes into the second half, Arturo Alvarez allowed the intensity of the match to get the better of him and got sent off for giving Brad Davis a knee to the groin. Alvarez, a Houston native, sank his team and should be deeply ashamed of his actions.

Up a man with 30,000 fans roaring them on, the Dynamo attack, which has been mighty cool for most of the reason, flared to live as Houston cut through Dallas's lines again and again. Passes that had early been a little off where now finding their marks as Dallas was overwhelmed by the push.

Sure enough, 20-minutes almost to the second after Alvarez was sent off, Houston go their first to tie the game and bring them within one on aggregate. Five minutes later, the series was tied after come great passing in the box setup a reborn Brain Ching who slotted the ball home.

Houston kept pushing to get the third and kill the game in regular time, but FCD had just enough in them to stop it from happening.

But then came overtime and Dallas fell to pieces. They were dragging all over the pitch and when Joseph Ngwenya again setup Brian Ching for the goal ahead goal, there was not a shocked fan in the house. The Dynamo were rolling and the fans were going crazy.

The death nail would come in the 100th minute when Brad Davis stepped up to take a free kick just outside of the box. He delivered a perfect shot into the upper corner of the goal and the series was over.

The teams played on for another 20-minutes but it was mainly time filled with the Dynamo killing off the game as FCD tried desperately to make anything happen (usually resulting in fouls).

This was exactly the sort of game we have come to expect from Houston as they controlled it without any doubt. Still, they were having a lot of trouble with a full 11, which should give Kansas City at least a little hope heading into the 'conference' final.

On a different note, how big of a bouquet of flowers do you think the Dynamo sent Alvarez to think him for going all Ricardo Clark on Davis?

Goals: FCD: Carlos Ruiz (1) 14',
HD: Stuart Holden (1) 67', Brain Ching (1) 72', (2) 97', Brad Davis (1) 100'
Attendance: 30,088 (way to go Houston!)


New York Red Bulls 0-1 New England Revolution
New England wins series 1-0 on aggregate
Much like the Houston match, it took a side going down a man to turn this one. However, unlike the showdown in Texas, the man advantage was due to an injury. The Revs found ways of breaking New York's line, but they never really applied constant pressure. But when Juan Pablo Angel went out after taking a hard knock to the chin that resulted in a concussion, the Revs saw their opening.

NY coach Bruce Arena took a gamble in allowing his doctors to check on Angel before replacing him and it did not pay off. With the extra man to push forward, the Revs finally had that little extra opening they needed to get the final pass perfectly in place for Taylor Twellman.

With NE up a goal and NY without Angel or Reyna (who was injured in the first 20-minutes), the Bulls needed something amazing to have a chance, and they almost got it as John Wolyniec had a perfect chance in front of goal, but he headed the ball just over the bar, thus ending the Red's run for MLS Cup.

The Revolution should be happy returning to the Eastern Conference championship match for the sixth straight time, but they have a lot of work ahead of them. New York was able to crack their defense and should have got at least one goal and their offense still is not full strength. To beat Chicago on Thursday night, they are going to need to find a way to open up a tougher backline.

And who is getting the big of a bouquet of flowers from the Revs, probably Bruce Arena. I can't really fault the Bruce for giving his staff as much time as possible to figure out the extent of Angel's injury, but it was still the thing that turned the match.

Goal: Taylor Twellman (1) 64'
Attendance: 10,116 (there were be no tropical storm on Thursday)


Kansas City Wizards 0-0 Chivas USA
Kansas City wins series 1-0 on aggregate
Chivas didn't have much attack, but they threw everything possible against KC on Saturday night and if it weren’t for the goal frame, Chivas would have won this series.

Chivas put pressure on the Wizards for a majority of the match, but they could not get the lucky bounce. KC give the goats a number of chances, thanks to some weak passes that resulted in breakaways by Chivas, but none could be converted. In the final 10-minutes of play, Chivas had three shots that either knocked off the frame or hit the side netting.

The Wizards applied some pressure of their own thanks in large part to Eddie Johnson who actually turned in a decent night. However, Eddie's shots are still more likely to go over the bar then between the posts, but he did apply enough of a push to force Chivas to hold their line back.

In the end, injury, much like every other series, was the key factor in this one. With Ante Razov, Chivas did not have enough options to exploit the holes KC presented. The bad news for the Wizards, Houston has Brian Ching, Dwayne De Rosario, Stuart Holden, Nate Jaqua and Joseph Ngwenya ready to make them pay. If they hope to escape Texas still breathing, they are going to need to sharpen their whole game.

Without question, the bouquet of flowers from Kansas City goes to the goalposts that made more meaningful saves then Kevin Hartman did on the night.

Attendance: 19,711 (much improved over the regular season)


Conference Finals
Chicago Fire vs. New England Revolution
Thursday (8 Nov) - 7:30pm ET/4:30pm PT
TV: ESPN2
Tickets

Kansas City Wizards vs. Houston Dynamo
Saturday (10 Nov) - 8:30pm ET/5:30pm PT
TV: Fox Soccer Channel, HDNet, FSE
Tickets

Chicago Fire stump DC, 'Curse of the Supporters' Shield' continues

Chicago Fire 2-2 DC United
Chicago wins series 3-2 on aggregate

What was DC doing during the first 60-minutes last night? I have not seen them look that pitiful since 2002. Nobody was playing a good game. The midfield couldn't pass a ball, people were not getting forward, Troy Perkins was running off his line every chance he got and Bobby Boswell, well the less said about him the better.

The Fire took full advantage of these flubs and using some fantastic passing to silence the crowd. Blanco, who last week gave away the ball over 40 times, was having a much better night. His back heal passes were not getting picked off and his long range ones were landing near target. But their best pass of the night came from Carlen Carr on the first goal. Perfect curve behind the defense, right to Chad Barrett's feet, who, after beating Boswell, hammered it home.

Chicago's second goal was not as pretty, but it too was the result of bad placement by Boswell, giving Chris Rolfe an easy shot for what turned out to be the series winner.

Up till the hour mark, it looked like Chicago was going to run away with this one. I could help but wonder what was going on with DC. Did Chicago get into their head, were late season injuries to blame or was it just a bad night?

But just as I was thinking up ways to write about a total bomb, United, thanks to their subs, staged a fantastic rally by making overlapping runs and flooding the attacking third, forcing the Fire out of their positions and opening up space.

When Clyde Simms hit that low screamer into the corner of the net, it was obvious that it would not be DC's only goal on the night. When Gomez just snuck one past Matt Pickens a few minutes later, it looked like the great comeback was upon us, but thanks to some smart subbing of their own, the Fire were able to re-cage United.

DC still had their chances, but they were no longer everywhere. Chicago were marking their players and holding on just enough to keep the net free. With the exception of the stoppage time non-goal by Gomez (which was the correct call), Chicago was not really hard pressed during the final 15-minutes.

So all congratulations go to Chicago. I didn't think they had one goal in them, much less two. If Barrett and Carr stay hot and if Rolfe and Blanco can continue their ways, the Eastern Conference might go to the fourth seed in the end.

As for DC United, they join a growing list of teams that won the Supporters' Shield but failed to reach the MLS Cup. Since Columbus won the shield in 2004, no winner has reached the final and in three of those four years the Shield winner has been knocked out in the first round. To put this in perspective, in the first eight years of MLS, the Shield winner reached the final five times and won the Cup four times. The three times the Shield winner did not reach the final, they still made it out of the first round only to loose in the semifinals.

So the question has got to be, what curse did the Crew place on the Shield in '04? I think a phone call to Greg Andrulis is in order.

Chicago now advances to the Eastern Conference final, which I'm going to guess will not be on ESPN2 as the host will be New England or New York, ie, there will be American Football lines all over the pitch.

Talking about ESPN, I have to hand it to them for their call of the last two matches. For a majority of the night, the call was focused on the game happening right in front of them. There were no long discussions about player’s hair or baseball or anything else. Now they did wonder more last night then they did last week, but it was still much better then what we got during the regular season (I think having 2 main commentators is much better then their usual 3). Heck, they even interrupted Allen Hopkins because an important play was happening. All around, very nice.

Also, having 30 extra minutes for a 15-minute post and pre game show really adds a lot to the presentation. It gives the game additional build up and allows the match commentators to focus more on the game instead of explaining other things happening around the league. Hopefully ESPN will give keep this going for the rest of the playoffs and into next season.

Finally, the camera work was also fun to watch. With the exception of the odd yellow filter that kept popping up, the angles were helpful for the viewer and replays were presented in an interesting way and at an appropriate time.
Attendance: 19,438
Goals: CF: Chad Barrett (1) 31', Chris Rolfe (2) 33'
DC: Clyde Simms (1) 69', Christian Gomez (1) 74'

Thursday Night Soccer – Chicago vs. DC - Can United finally beat the Fire?

Chicago Fire vs. DC United
7:30pm ET/4:30pm PT
TV: ESPN2
Chicago leads 1-0 on aggregate

So it comes down to this. Will it be a repeat of 2005 when the Fire came to DC the underdogs and walked out with four goals and some of Christian Gomez's spit or will United finally find a way to put out the fire (I promise, this is my only fire pun) in the playoffs?

There are some big differences between the clubs that meet today and those that meet in 2005 with the biggest being scoring ability of the Fire. Back in those lazy days of two years ago, Chicago were much more of an offensive team averaging 1.5 goals per match while this year, they pop in at just a hair over 1 goal per game. The only thing that kept Chicago from being a wash was the ability to defend, where they were second best in the East. The problem for them, the number one defending and scoring team in the East was DC.

United is going to come out expecting Chicago to play a bunker style match because the Fire really does not have any other option. They tried to push the offense in the first leg, but they feel flat thanks to horrible control in the midfield and there is nothing from their season that suggests this will change tonight.

This should give Fred lots of room to move and try to free up Emilio and Moreno, but to fully counter the Chicago wall, they will need to call on Ben Olsen, Bryan Namoff, Bobby Boswell and others to create messes in the final third that might open up the space needed to place one into the net. The problem for Chicago is if one goes in, it will not be the only one.

If United tie of the series score, especially if they do it early, they will not sit back and wait for penalties. They will find the errors and Chicago will go home. One last thing, don't be surprised if the Fire give up a goal after the 80th minute as they have done so on many occasions.

Predictions: Me DC 2-0 CF, Wife DC 2-1 CF (DC on pks)

Thursday Night Soccer - DC vs. Chicago - Let the playoffs begin

DC United vs. Chicago Fire
8:30pm ET/5:30pm PT
TV: ESPN2

As I said in my playoff preview, this should be a real fun series. United will be looking to break the Chicago curse while the Fire will be hoping Blanco can find a way to get them a couple goals in a match. The Fire are on a 8-game unbeaten streak while DC have not won a match in their last four, but the playoffs change everything.

Still, a lot of this match will be determined by the injuries United suffered last weekend versus Columbus. If Moreno and Emilio are doing all right, tonight will not be that bad. However if either is really hurting (especially Emilio), it might be a really bad first leg for United.

Predictions: Me DC 1-1 CF, Wife DC 1-0 CF

2007 MLS Playoff preview

The 2007 playoffs kickoff tonight in Chicago as the Fire play host to Supporters' Shield winning DC United. Now instead of just focusing on this one game, which should be a good one, I thought I would give my overall view of the playoffs including a prediction on how things will play out.

East
DC United vs. Chicago Fire
(25 Oct 8:30pm ET, ESPN2 & 1 Nov 7:30pm ET, ESPN2)
There is no other team that strikes as much playoff fear into United fans hearts as Chicago. The teams have meet three times in the post season and the Fire have won them all (including the MLS Cup in 1998). In fact, till New England beat DC in last year's conference championship, the Fire were the only club to ever knock United out of the playoffs. With that kind of voodoo going on, Chicago should feel good these days.

However, this year's version of the Fire is suffering from a big problem that could end their streak in that they can't score goals. Amazingly, Chicago has either failed to score only managed to find the net once in 22 of their 30 league matches this year. Traditionally the playoffs are a lower scoring affair then the regular season, but not so low that you do not need offensive strikes. Unless the Fire can find a contact guy up top (Calen Carr could be a surprise in this role), their 1.0333 goals per game average will not be enough to get past United and Emilio.

DC had a bad final run of the regular season and still can fail to use the wings to their fullest, but this is a team that is smart on defense and good in tight situations. Add to it the experience that the wonderful form of Troy Perkins in goal, and they have everything you need for a win.

In the end, this might just be the best series in the first round. Chicago will keep it close with Blanco adding something special to the mix (I am very much looking forward to Blanco in a high-pressure match), but in the end DC will get what they need to advance.

Predictions: Me - DC (combined score of two games) DC 4-2 CF, Wife DC 3-1 CF


New England Revolution vs. New York Red Bulls
(27 Oct 7:30pm ET, FSC, FSE & 3 Nov 7:30pm ET, FSC, FSE)
This one doesn't have the history of DC-Chicago but it is still bound to be interesting to watch. One of the undercurrents that I think should be fun to watch is the Altidore-Twellman match up. Okay, they will not be covering each other, but it would seem that these two are about to pass one another on the US national team roster (with Altidore going in the good direction). If Jozy can come up big this year like he did last year and if Twellman doesn't show so well (which is pretty normal in the playoffs), it could be the final bit of convincing Bob Bradley needs to call the younger into camp.

From the look of it, Jozy has a number of things going his way with the biggest being Angel. One of the things that makes Juan Pablo so great his is ability to open space for other players by pulling the defense towards him. The Revs have a good backline but they have slipped up a number of times of late and with Matt Reis off a step between the posts, Jozy should get some great chances.

However, the Red Bulls still suffer from an on/off midfield. With Reyna questionable, who knows what could happen especially with Shalrie Joseph and Steve Ralston working things for NE.

In the end, New England will win this as they win most non-MLS Cup post-season games.

Predictions: Me NE 5-3 NY, Wife NE 2-3 NY


West
Chivas USA vs. Kansas City Wizards
(27 Oct 8pm ET, HDNet, DK, MLStv & 3 Nov 10:30pm ET, HDNet, DK, MLStv)
KC, welcome to the Western Conference, here is one of the most creative and talented teams to play against, best of luck.

On paper, this one should not be close, but I have a funny feeling about this. Maybe it has something to do with the top team from the West getting knocked out in the first round for the past two years or maybe it has a lot to do with the injury to Ante Razov, but I think Kansas City might shock with this one.

The last few weeks, the goats have been less then their best with Sacha Kljestan having to lift a lot. I have little doubt that Sacha will continue to do well, but I don't think he has the team around him to hold off a hard charging team. I know, they managed to keep Houston under wrap for 50-minutes down a man, but I think the Wizards will find a way.

My reason for this has a bit to do with the play of Scott Sealy, but even more to do with their matches this year. KC took the one at home and almost tied on the road except that Razov got an injury-time goal. The Wizards actually out played Chivas in that match but luck went against them. If that luck happens to be on the bench for this series, I would not be shocked if KC made it through.

As odd as it seems, I think the Wizards will pull this one out.
Predictions: Me CV 3-3 KC (KC advances on pks), Wife CV 4-1 KC


Houston Dynamo vs. FC Dallas
(27 Oct, 8:30pm ET, DK, MLStv & 2 Nov 8:30pm ET, DK, MLStv)
So will this series be a grudge match or a blow out? If it goes the grudge match route, FC Dallas stands a much better chance of finally topping their intra-state rival.

Carlos Ruiz will be looking forward to this one, but less face it, other then his ability to get Ricardo Clark kicked out for the rest of the season, he has not done much of note. In fact, Dallas is painfully lacking in their attack, which will present a major problem against the best defense in the league. Kenny Cooper is looking better, but he still fails to get into the middle of things, thus limiting the influence his size could have on his game. Abe Thompson might be an alternative or maybe the always fun to watch Arturo Alvarez, but in the end, I just don't think they have the guns to take the series, especially when they face Pat Onstad in goal.

Houston has had their own issue with scoring but Ching is looking better, while Dwayne De Rosario seems to be coming out of his funk. Throw in Joseph Ngwenya and a sneaky Stuart Holden and there should be enough for Houston.

Predictions: Me HD 3-1 FCD, Wife HD 3-0 FCD


So why not predict a little further.
Conference finals:
Me: DC 2-1 NE, HD 1-0 KC
Wife: DC 3-2 NY, CV 2-0 HD

MLS Cup:
Me: DC 3-1 HD
Wife: DC 1-2 CV

MLS playoff race

The final weekend of the 2007 regular season is here and there are still a number of questions as to what which two teams will earn the final playoff spots. In all, four teams have a chance but only Chicago and Kansas City hold their destiny in their own hands.

Anyway, here is the way the playoff picture currently looks:

Current standings:
7 - Chicago - 37pts
8 - Kansas City - 37pts
9 - Colorado - 35pts
10 - Columbus* - 34pts
11 - LA - 33pts

Schedule:
Chicago hosts LA on Sunday
Kansas City travels to Dallas on Saturday
Colorado hosts Salt Lake on Saturday
LA hosts New York tonight and travels to Chicago on Sunday

Tie breakers**:
Chicago beats KC with 2 wins from their 3 matches
Colorado beats Chicago on goal difference (they tied both games)
LA beats Chicago with 1 win but they still have one game to play
KC beats Colorado on goal difference (they tied both games)
LA beats KC with 1 win and 1 tie from their 2 matches
Colorado beats LA with 2 wins from their 3 matches

So how do they get to the playoffs?
Chicago
If they win, they are in.
If they tie, they are in if Colorado or KC does no better then a tie.
If they lose, they can still advance if KC loses and Colorado does no better then a tie.

Kansas City
If they win, they are in.
If they tie, they are in if Colorado does not win their match by more then two goals and either Chicago loses or if LA fails to get at least 4 points from their remaining two matches; or if Colorado does no better then a tie and if Chicago loses.
If they lose, they can still advance if Colorado does no better then a tie and LA fails to get at least 4 points from their remaining two matches.

Colorado
If they win, they are in if both KC lose; or if LA and Chicago tie and KC loses or ties if Colorado wins by more then 2 goals and KC ties.
If the tie or lose, they are out.

Los Angeles
If they get 6 points from their two matches, they are in.
If they get 4 points from their two matches, they are in if KC loses and Colorado does no better then a tie.
If they get less the 4 points, they are out.

There is one scenario I'm not 100% sure about. If Chicago and KC tie while Colorado wins by no more then 2 goals, then all their teams will be tied on points and each team beats another in a tie-breaker (Chicago beats KC who beats Colorado who beats Chicago).

No matter what happens, at least one team will enter the playoffs with a losing record and unless Chicago win on Sunday, the number will stand at two.

* Columbus is out due to head-to-head results against both Chicago and KC.
** Tiebreakers go head-to-head, goal difference, goals scored for the season

Chicago Fire 1-1 FC Dallas - How not to kill off a match

Chicago Fire 1-1 FC Dallas

So what do you think the Fire coaching staff is talking to Calen Carr and Paulo Wanchope about today? If it is anything but how to keep the ball and waste time at the end of a match, then the Fire are doomed. This was not a pretty game as neither side had much ball control. Again and again, passes were intercepted and knocked out of bounce.

Dallas did start strong, but then they faded. Carlos Ruiz is getting a lot of cheer for the late goal, but he was absent for much of the rest of the game. It is great to see Toja back, but his skill is not yet at the level it was before the injury. Then there is Denilson who didn't really do anything for the full 90. He is still new to the club, so he is trying to find his flow, but I was surprised that he didn't pop to life at some point. But somehow it was all okay as Dario Sala had a really strong performance in front of the net while Clarence Goodson carried most of the heavy lifting. Sure Goodson is a bit of a hot head at times, but he does know how to do what needs to be done (a little like Michael Bradley).

Chicago has got to be kicking themselves over this one. On a night where Blanco finely looked his age (not a good thing), they still managed to hold a 1-0 lead deep into stoppage time, only to see two points disappear. Matt Pickens had a good night between the posts, CJ Brown made some big moves and Chris Rolfe's blast was heart stopping, but other then that, the side was flat. But the thing that confused me the most was the way they ended it. Calen Carr has tons of energy, but why didn't he go to a corner and force a foul? Did he not get any instructions from the coaching staff telling him to hold it? If not, what were the coaches thinking.

Dallas is not a dominant team like DC, but there is one thing they know how to do much better then just about anyone in the league and that is come back late. I can think of at least three games where they have got stoppage time goals and a couple others where they scored late in regular time, so if it was the coaching staff that failed to initiate the 'kill the game' strategy, one has to wonder what hope the Fire have.

So how bad is it that Chicago failed to get the full three points? They are only two points up on Colorado for the final playoff spot with five games remaining, but two of those games are against DC, one is at home to New England and one is on at Chivas. There is a good chance that they will get 3 points or less from those four matches. The only good news for them is they end the season with LA.

The Crew have a slightly easier time as they go to Toronto, face LA and Dallas at home and then end on the road to New England and DC. This schedule should allow them to get 6 points (and maybe a couple more) for the rest of the year.

But the Fire's real concern is Colorado who have two matches against Real Salt Lake and one at home against Toronto FC, plus road games at New England and Chivas. Real is improved and Toronto can always surprise, but of the three in the race, the Rapids have the best chance on paper. It is not hard to image the club getting 9 points from this schedule and beating Chicago for the final spot by just one point.

If the Fire misses the playoffs this year, the final five minutes in Dallas will be one of the major reasons why.

Goals: CF: Chris Rolfe (5) 56'
FCD: Carlos Ruiz (7) 93+'
Attendance: 15,059