Houston Dynamo

In last year's final meeting between the Houston Dynamo and Los Angeles Galaxy, the lights went out for what seemed to be forever—30 minutes, to be exact.

While Gregg Berhalter and Landon Donovan paced the Galaxy late in extra time to a 2-0 win over the Houston Dynamo, one can only hope that the lighting problem will not be an issue on Saturday at the Home Depot Center.

“It’s a huge win for us to get it on the road against an undefeated team,” Galaxy midfielder Michael Stephens told MLSsoccer.com after their 2-0 victory over the Columbus Crew. “They’re not in our conference but it’s still a very important win for us and it keeps us unbeaten... so it’s a good thing to get the win.”

Los Angeles are the only team unbeaten in Major League Soccer, with a 9-0-2 record. The Galaxy are nine points clear of the Crew for the overall lead (in spite of the Crew having two games in hand) and 10 clear of Real Salt Lake for the top spot in the MLS Western Conference standings.

As always, the defense has been critical to LA's torrid run in their 2010 Major League Soccer campaign.

“We didn’t necessarily talk about that,” Stephens said. “We’re a good defensive team and in games where we do get early goals we’ve shown we can hold onto those leads. It was great to get an early goal and top it off with another one late in the game.”

The Houston Dynamo are reeling from a 3-2 defeat to the Philadelphia Independence at Robertson Stadium last Saturday. And swing-man Brian Ching is looking for answers.

“This year, being 5-5, a lot of teams would probably take that, but with the history we’ve had, we are all embarrassed here,” Ching said after their loss to the Union. “I’m just frustrated. I shake my head at it. The energy level is not good enough.”

Whereas for the Galaxy, the energy has been more consistent, and it looks to intensify on Saturday.

“We’re a tough team to play against. The goals will come and we’ll be able to win games,” Stephens said. ”It’s more of a team thing than just losing (Landon Donovan and Edson Buddle to national team duty).

"Obviously they are two of our best players and produce a lot of goals but other guys are stepping up.”

“It’s all about wins here and the trophy at the end of the year,” Ching said on his team's prospects. “At this point in the season, [Houston] are looking like a team that won’t be competing for that trophy. It is up to us to turn things around.”

Brad Davis continues to lead the Dynamo with three goals and six assists. Dominic Oduro has contributed with two goals and three assists, and Brian Mullan is another deadly finisher. Look for the likes of Luis Landin, Eddie Robinson, and Mike Chabala to get involved in the action with some touches on Saturday.

Goalkeeper Pat Onstad has made 25 saves in 10 appearances for a 1.3 goals against average. His counterpart, Donovan Ricketts, has made 30 saves in 10 appearances for a 0.2 GAA.

Of all the Galaxy forwards that have played so far this season, Bryan Jordan is the only one that has yet to open his account. Nearly half of LA's players, save for the goalkeepers, have at least one to their record.

Tristan Bowen and Michael Stephens have proved to be a deadly combination. You could mistake them for a younger Buddlevan Connection. We'll call this the SteBo Special.

However, I like seeing another of the Galaxy players finish here, too. Look for the defense to do the work, and the midfielders to improve on their pass patterns. The electricity will be on tonight in the HDC, and so will the players.

The match will be televised at 5 p.m. (PT) on Galavision in Spanish and can be seen on tape delay at 10 p.m. on Fox Sports West in English.

Mr. Beckham meets the troops

David Beckham was on assignment over the Memorial Day weekend to visit a number of American troops stationed in Afghanistan. The First Marines Logistics Group gave Beckham a rousing welcome as he signed autographs, posed for photos, and met with the Wounded Warriors who were recovering from their scars in combat.

“I am a huge soccer fan," said Sgt. Tim Blodgett of North Carolina, "and meeting Beckham is a once in a lifetime experience for me.”

Chief Warrant Officer Vincent Endresen added, “This visit has been a tremendous morale boost for us and it shows Mr. Beckham genuinely cares about what is going on here and understands what we are trying to achieve.”

Memo, Mr. President: Give Mr. Beckham dual citizenship ASAP.


Youth Academy update

The Los Angeles Galaxy Youth Academy were on hand to showcase their talent in front of the masses at the Sarasota Polo Club over the weekend. They came away with four victories and two draws. Not bad.

On Friday, May 28, the Galaxy tied CASL Chelsea FC Academy 2-2. They followed that up with a 1-0 victory over NJSA 04's U-16 side on Sunday before wrapping their showcase with a 2-0 victory against Scott Gallagher Metro of St. Louis.

As for the U-18s, they also tied CASL Chelsea FC Academy 2-2 and followed the draw up with a 2-0 shutout of NJSA 04 and a 4-0 hammering of Scott Gallagher Metro.

The Galaxy Youth Academy wrap up their 2009-10 campaign with a June 5 contest against Arsenal FC. Kickoff for the U-16 contests is scheduled for 10:00 a.m., while the U-18 contest is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. Both matches will be held at the John Blanche Memorial Soccer Complex in Murrieta.

Directions:

From Los Angeles
I-15 South. Exit Winchester Road. Turn right (West). Turn Right (North) on Diaz Road. John Blanche Memorial Soccer Complex is located at the end of Diaz Road.

From San Diego
I-15 North. Exit Winchester Road. Turn left (West). Turn Right (North) on Diaz Road. John Blanche Memorial Soccer Complex is located at the end of Diaz Road.

The U-18s are currently fourth on the U-17/18 West Conference SoCal Division table with a 8-4-2 record. As for the U-16s, they sit sixth on the U-15/16 West Conference SoCal Division table with a 5-5-4 record.

Robertson Stadium was sporting a sea of “Forever Orange” on Houston Dynamo Day. Supporter groups, season ticket holders, and newcomers were all part of 18,000+ strong fans in attendance for the 2010 home opener versus the 2009 MLS Cup Champion Real Salt Lake.

Fans were anxiously waiting this date for months; the Dynamo could not wait to start at home, a field where they lose rarely. Although the night started festive, there was little time to celebrate. The Dynamo began the season the previous week at FC Dallas and left Frisco with a 1-1 tie in the Texan Derby.

After game day opening celebrations concluded, the 22 men on John O’ Quinn field starting things off to a fast tempo. Fans were chanting “Let’s Go Dynamo!” as the Orange Crush was in a battle of possession for most part of the first half.

That is, until the 17th minute when RSL’s Argentinean striker Javier Morales took advantage of a defensive mishap by the home team and shot one with ease past Pat Onstad into the right corner of the net to put the defending Champions in the lead 1-0.

Looking carefully at the play: Alvaro Saborio receives the pass from the wing, leans against Ryan Cochrane (who immediately falls to indicate a foul), turns and passes the ball to Beckerman, who sends it to a Javier Morales running toward goal and only the keeper to beat.

It’s hard to tell whether Cochrane tried to use the elbow by Saborio and act out the foul to see if the referee would follow or if he truly fell due to the hit. Nonetheless the foul is not called and this mishap leads to Mulrooney, who is playing defensive midfielder, to run back to cover Cochrane’s spot and in doing so looses focus of Morales.

Now Boswell is left chasing Morales and Onstad who looked like a deer in headlights is forced to act one-on-one and all Morales has to do is shoot around the Canadian goalkeeper. It’s not surprising with RSL’s explosive offense that a shutout might have been a bit too much to ask for. The reason why Robertson Stadium fell under an immediate spell of silence was due more to the ease of the goal rather than the act of scoring.

The concern of losing Stuart Holden (6 goals, 4 assists) and Ricardo Clark (1 goal, 1 assist) was due to their vital roles and continuity in midfield. Now that both left overseas during the offseason, fans understand the team is not going to function as effectively right away and it will take time for the players to adapt.

The coaching staff knows this is a weakness successful teams like RSL would be eager to exploit. It didn’t take too long for Jason Kreis’ side to take advantage. The important detail in this game is how the team would react. The Dynamo held their composure, took care of the ball, and didn’t allow a goal for the rest of the game. However, Dynamo fans would not be relieved before the end of the night.

In the 27th minute, Brian Ching pulled a hamstring on a play where he was fighting for a ball that ended up going out of bounds. The feeling of uneasiness was felt throughout the stadium with the image of Ching immediately calling for the medical staff; simultaneously Luis Landin quickly warms up and prepares to be subbed in.

Ching is the Dynamo’s all-time top goal scorer and proven striker, and one of Bob Bradley’s options up top for the USA’s men’s World Cup squad that will play in South Africa this summer. On top of that, he is the team captain; former captain Wade Barrett recently retired and is now an assistant coach to Dominic Kinnear. A comeback may seem bleak at this point as Brian Ching is helped off the field and carried into the locker room area.

The Houston Dynamo although a young franchise are an experienced one; they have roster depth and are a team that in any situation demonstrates resiliency. The team fights on and eventually into the second half causes RSL to lose its head. RSL defender Jamison Olave crosses feet with Geoff Cameron inside the box; the referee calls the foul and awards the penalty to the relief of Dynamo fans.

Brad Davis steps up to the penalty marker against a goalkeeper that won the MLS Cup in a penalty shootout in Nick Rimando. Davis shoots it with force down the middle as Rimando dives to the left and scores the first goal in the 52nd minute for the Orange Crush.

Olave does not get carded and a few plays later fouls Luis Landin inside the box to hand over a second penalty kick, this time receiving a yellow card. Brad Davis steps up once again, this time shoots to the right and converts to put Houston in the lead 2-1 in the 55th minute.

RSL would later miss the tying goal when Espindola shoots a ball that rebounds off the pole. Espindola also got himself a yellow card, which should’ve been a red card, late in the game when he lost a footrace with Boswell and manhandled him to the ground into the southwest corner of the field.

One can argue this is a game the defending MLS Champions lost because of their mistakes in the second half rather than one the Dynamo won. Of course it takes someone who takes advantage of the given opportunities to win the game as Brad Davis did. I

t’s neither the prettiest win nor the most encouraging but three points are extremely important especially in a competitive Western Conference. Nonetheless, the Dynamo has quite a bit of questions to answer throughout the 2010 season.

Landin has improved from the previous season but still needs to produce results on the field for his loan to Dynamo to be considered a success. The Ching injury, although heartbreaking to Dynamo fans, gives Landin the opportunity to increase his playing time and ultimately prove his effectiveness as a forward.

A young Landin shows promise which instills hope into Dynamo fans but Houston won’t be so patient if the team begins to lose. Cam Weaver remains an active option as well and while he is not the best replacement for Ching, Weaver has proven he can score.

Dominic Oduro, a questionable selection to be part of the team, continues to fail miserably in his accuracy to put the ball into the net despite numerous opportunities. Kinnear favors Oduro because of his speed but if Oduro doesn’t improve fast the only thing his speed will be good for will be for running out of town. Let’s not forget Kinnear has an open roster spot and is known for making trades and roster moves as the season progresses.

For many, this matchup was the MLS Cup Final that should’ve happened in Seattle last November. The Houston Dynamo were eliminated by the Los Angeles Galaxy in overtime of a Western Conference Championship game that saw two power failures at The Home Depot Center. Coincidentally, the next game for the Dynamo will be versus the LA Galaxy in what is being advertised as “Lights Out L.A. Rematch.”

Los Angeles is expected to be a contender once again for the MLS Cup this season. Last season both teams were tied in points but LA won the tie-breaker to decide home field advantage due to head-to-head results despite the Dynamo having a higher goal differential.

Landon Donovan and Co. will prove to be a difficult task, especially without a proven goal scorer; However, La Naranja has to take advantage of home field and use the crowd to their advantage. The Houston Dynamo have outscored LA Galaxy 6-4 at Robertson Stadium in six all-time meetings.

The two-time MLS Champion Houston Dynamo have lost an incredible amount of talent going into the 2010 season and will be put to the test this season if they wish to continue to be an elite team in MLS.

Stu Holden, a star midfielder in the making for both the Dynamo and the United States National Team, transferred to English Premier League side Bolton.

US International teammate Ricardo Clark transferred to Eintracht Frankfurt of the German Bundesliga.

Also, captain and veteran defender Wade Barrett retired. Throw in forward and leading goal scorer Brian Ching, who could very well miss time playing with the US team in the World Cup, and the Dynamo look to be in trouble.

But Head Coach Dominic Kinnear has put a system in place over the years and gets players that fit that system, so he will make sure that his guys are prepared for the start of the season and anything else that may come along the way.

Obviously, a lot of the pressure will go on the shoulders of the veteran Ching. Even though he missed 11 games because of injury last season he still led the team with eight goals. Ching is a very good target forward. He does a good job of getting open, collecting the ball, and holding onto it. He is also a very good passer and a talented aerial player.

A lot of buzz this preseason has centered around Geoff Cameron. The defender will move up into a central midfielder role. The 24-year-old has displayed his versatility and scored two goals and notched six assists out of the defense position in 2009.

While Cameron gets the publicity, he will rely on outside midfielder Brad Davis. Davis is an underrated workhorse who continually plays good team ball and contributes at a high rate. Last season Davis was among the league leaders in assists, with eight.

The Dynamo brought in Jamaican international Lovel Palmer to fill in for Clark as the defensive midfielder in the starting lineup. The 25-year-old has played the last 10 years with Harbour View FC of Jamaica’s premier league.

Where the Dynamo really need much more production out of is Designated Player Luis Angel Landin.

With such high expectations, the start to Landin’s time with Houston can only be described as horrendous.

Signed on August 20, Landin played in seven games for the Dynamo, but scored only once. He was also criticized a number of times for being out of shape. Especially with the loss of so much talent and possibly going without Ching for a month, the Dynamo need to get much more return of their investment from Landin.

What carries Houston is their strong defense.

In 2009 they tied for the league lead in fewest goals allowed. Heading that group is 42-year-old goalkeeper Pat Onstad, who returns for his seventh MLS season and is still one of the elite goalies in the league. Last year he posted his third season with a goals against average lower than 1.00 and his sixth with double digits in wins.

At first, the losses of Holden, Clark, and Barrett would seem alarming. But at second glance the team looks to have some quality players that could keep this franchise in competition for the league’s biggest prize.

There will be some bumps in the road as the midfield works itself out, but expect Kinnear to keep this team moving in the right direction as well as keeping them in contention.

Two-time MLS Cup Champion Houston Dynamo has called a Tuesday, March 9 press conference to announce a player signing.

One can only speculate at this point, but there has been quite a buzz the past few weeks surrounding Jamaican National team midfielder Lovel Palmer.

Palmer, now in his second one week trail with Houston, has been somewhat impressive so far, his biggest moment to date coming in a friendly back on Feb. 27, when he scored a spectacular long range 35 yard goal in the 16th minute of a 2-1 win over FC Dallas.

"He obviously scored a great goal that stood out, but it was also the way he worked on and off the ball," Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear said. "He tried to get on the ball, he broke up plays, and he tackled—sometimes very hard—which we like in that position. He was clean with the ball and made good decisions."

In addition to his role with the Reggae Boyz (Jamaican National Team), the 25-year-old Palmer is also captain of the Jamaican Premier club Harbour View.

Granted, Palmer is currently under contract with Harbour View, but the Premier League Clubs Association in Jamaica has been in the market to sell some of its players to Major League Soccer to raise money.

Last February, Palmer had a trial stint with Norwegian club IK Start, so he is no stranger to the audition process, but maybe this time he has finally found a home. We will know for sure Tuesday afternoon.

Palmer, by the way, is also scheduled to see more action Thursday, March 11 in a 7 p.m. scrimmage against the Chicago Fire.

Houston will then play friendlies on March 17 and March 20 in California against MLS opposition before opening the season March 27.

The Dynamo's home opener is scheduled for Thursday, April 1 against defending MLS Cup champion Real Salt Lake.

Note: Coach Kinnear’s quote courtesy of Houston Dynamo.

The final round of World Cup qualifiers are on the horizon, and Bob Bradley has named his squad. Bradley has recalled Kenny Cooper, and the awkward, lumpen, bald Conor Casey. You can find the rest of the roster here, though you can just go ahead and ignore the fact that Bradley has selected some promising attackers—he'll doubtless try and score just one goal and then retreat into an 8-1-1 shell.

Remember when MLS was seen as a destination for exiting, young American and Latin talent? Neither do I, and it looks like the league is well on its way to getting even grayer next season. Brazilian striker Dodo—who has been suspended since 2008 for doping—is rumored to be moving to MLS for the 2010 season.

Yes, MLS is getting a Brazilian injection, but not a very good one. Dodo doesn't have the most prolific scoring record, though he did have some moderate success with Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i ( former home of Cha Bum-keun!), scoring 31 goals in 56 appearances.

But, at 35, this Brazilian seems like a sure bet to make Darren Huckerby look like a spritely youth.

Houston Dynamo star and US Men's National Team scapegoat Brian Ching has just signed a contract extension that will keep him in Houston until 2013. Ching, who is popular in Houston because he doesn't completely disappear during big games for his club, said he was grateful for the opportunity to remain with the Dynamo.

“I wouldn't want to play for any other team,” Ching said. “I love the organization, the coaching staff, and the fans."

Speaking of Houston, one of their discarded players is making his way across the pond. Ade Akinbiyi has become the latest addition to Sven Goran-Eriksson's Notts County squad. After underwhelming observers during his time in MLS, Akinbiyi will no doubt fit right it with Notts County—specifically Sven's ancient tradition of also underwhelming observers.

In a bit of sad news, New England Revolution star and fan-favorite Steve Ralston has had his season come to a premature end thanks to a torn ACL. Ralston suffered the injury last Saturday against Seattle, and will be forced to miss the remainder of the season. The 35-year old midfielder is the MLS career leader in games played, minutes and assists.

MLS Name of the Week

It's no secret that football players over the years have had some pretty incredible name. Have-a-look Dube, Ice Cream, Bongo Christ, etc. In that same great tradition, Total 90 is proud to present...

(drumroll, please)

Boyzzz Khumalo, of DC United. Yes, that's three 'Zs' in there, when one would have been sufficient.

Boyzzz was a key cog in DC United's 5-1 victory over San Juan Jabloteh—no slouch in the name department itself—in the CONCACAF Champions League. He contributed two of the five goals, and gave untold amounts of glee to supporters.

MLS Stat of the Week

This week's stat comes to us from RFK Stadium.

DC United 1-2 San Jose Earthquakes

The scoreline in itself is unremarkable, a pretty average affair on the surface. To understand its impact, you've got to look at the table.

This loss leaves DC sitting a single point adrift of the playoffs. DC desperately needed to win this match, but blew a chance to really help their playoff chances, and at home no less.

Prior to this match, United was 6-5-1 at home, accounting for 23 of their 36 points on the season. They'd also played excellent defense, surrendering 10 goals in those 11 matches.

San Jose, on the other hand, has been an atrocious road team this season. Prior to this match, they were 0-3-8 on the road with only nine goals scored. In fact, only New York has been a worse overall club than San Jose this season.

Yet somehow the Earthquakes, absolutely one of the two worst teams in the league, found a way to seriously damage the playoff hopes of a team that is strong every season, and plays well at home to boot.

There were several candidates who stuck their head above the parapet to try and scoop the award for schmuck of the week in the past seven days.

You’d think the being a professional football, scoring from the spot would be a doddle. Yet in the past week several spot-kicks failed to be converted. Rather than blaming the Central Coast Mariners’ Adam Kwasnik for his last minute penalty miss against Sydney FC, we should really be focusing on Clint Bolton’s brilliant one-handed save to earn his team a point. Unfortunately, no such sympathy can be afforded to Michael Carrick and Louis Saha who both blew it big-time from 12 yards out.

Crap goalkeepers have also been out and about. Zenit St. Petersburg keeper Kamil Contofalsky helped tee-up Lokomotiv forward Wagner’s path by paddling a cross into the forward’s path on Sunday. While over in Japan, Gamba Osaka’s number one, Naoki Matsuyo (2.50 minutes in), made a horrific injury-time error of judgment to gift-wrap Nagoya a win as the keeper came, flapped and horribly missed a last-gasp free-kick.

Yet the ultimate plonker award goes to Seattle Sounders forward Steve Zakuani, for his harder-to-miss-than-score effort against Houston Dynamo at the weekend.

(Cheers to The Offside for flagging this up.)

Onto the list, where we have a brilliant selection of goals from the last week of worldwide football.

The unstoppable howtizers are represented by goals 3, 4, 5 and 7, while slightly more cultured efforts from distance can be found at positions 2, 8 and 11.

Goal 10 shows how a textbook header is converted, while an unlikley shoatboat is stationed at number 6.

That leaves two superb solo efforts in the form of goals 1 and 9.

As always, all we ask is that you sit back and enjoy!

1. Alexander Hleb (FC Timisoara v Stuttgart, Aug. 18, 2009)

2. Miguel Veloso (Sporting Lisbon v Fiorentina, Aug. 19, 2009)

3. Roman Bodnar (Levski Sofia v Debrecen, Aug. 19, 2009)

4. Michel Bastos (Lyon v Anderlecht, Aug. 19, 2009)

5. Jack Rodwell (Everton v Sigma Olomouc, Aug. 20, 2009)

6. Jean Alain Boumsong (Auxerre v Lyon, Aug. 22, 2009)

7. Elano (Galatasaray v Kayserispor, Aug. 23, 2009)

8. Jonathan de Guzman (Feyenoord v Roda, Aug. 23, 2009) (his first goal was almost a carbon copy)

9. Eduardo (Grenoble v Lens, Aug. 23, 2009) (pictured)

10. Vincenzo Iaquinta (Juventus v Chievo, Aug. 23, 2009)

11. Carlton Cole (West Ham v Tottenham, Aug. 23, 2009)

After an inspiring run to an embarrassing final, Team USA’s Gold Cup boys at least have one thing to look forward to: being the big fish in the small pond again.

Two of the biggest fish, Gold Cup Standouts Stuart Holden and Brian Ching, will suit up for the Houston Dynamo (32 pts/19 GP) as they host DC United (28 pts/19 GP) in the game of the week in Week 20. 

Fantastic rookie and Crew columnist Chris LaMacchia will be my guest prognosticator. He’ll try to break the current tie in points from last week. He believes the top of the table will separate themselves from the pack this week.  My heart agrees, but my head says otherwise.

Despite a valiant Gold Cup effort, Holden and Ching will be relieved to carve up questionable MLS defenses instead of the Mexican brick wall of a back four.  In turn, the Dynamo will be relieved to have them back, with team form slumping despite some positive results on the road the past few weeks.

The pairing has been key to Houston’s offensive success and will certainly give the league’s best defense (of 14 GA, only 4 GA at home) some much needed respite.   Dynamo midfield enforcer Ricardo Clark will also be looking to show the league why he will be the third American player playing in Series A (with Livorno) in a few weeks.

On the other hand, DC United gets a great winger back in Santino Quaranta, but his absence should have been more or less replaceable with the likes of Danny Szetela, Chris Pontius, and Fred on the United bench.  

That said, however, decidedly poor showings in draws at San Jose and at home to the preseasoned Salvadorians L.A. Firpo in the CONCACAF Champions’ League state otherwise. 

United will be hungry for three points after giving away crucial draws to weaker opponents, but a win at Dynamo fortress, Robertson Stadium, may prove elusive with a tired squad from a busy two weeks in MLS, CONCACAF, and US Open Cup.

But we should not count them out. 

United, when on form, can be one of the most dangerous teams in the league, but they lack consistency on the road.  Of their 28 points, only nine have come on the road.  This may be the only reason this team stays out of first in the East.

Result: Dynamo 2-0 United (Chris says Dynamo, 3-1). With two potent offenses clashing, this game will be ultimately decided by defense and form.  With its dominant defense and the return of its offensive attack, the Dynamo should come through with a victory.

As for the rest of Week 20’s fixtures:

Toronto FC (26 pts/19 GP) at New England Revolution (23 pts/16 GP)—The Revs and Reds meet at a crossroads.  New England, hot off of a convincing road win against league-leader Houston, will want to show that their fifth-place position in the East is only because they have at least two games in hand on their competition.

The Reds, on the other hand, will be looking to turn their season around after collapsing against Columbus in the Trillium Cup final and Puerto Rico in the Champions’ League. More poor showings could put them back into dreaded fifth place with a tough schedule in their last ten games.  They definitely have the talent to turn around their recent run of bad luck around, but this game is a must-win.

Result: Revs 1-2 TFC (Chris says draw, 2-2). TFC will show United it is possible for the first XI to maintain their form despite three matches in a week.

Columbus Crew (30 pts/19 GP) at Colorado Rapids (27 pts/18 GP)—The Rapids have righted the ship with a much needed 4-0 rout of the Red Bulls.  And they showed that they could win without great performances from Colin Clark or Conor Casey.  Columbus is surging after the “Bash Brothers’” late, late show against Toronto.  While they may get all-star Guillermo Barros Schelotto back, the Crew have shown they can win without him.

Result: Rapids 2-1 Crew (Chris says Crew, 3-2). Away from home, stuck in altitude, and with big bulls-eyes on their back, Bash Brothers Stephen Lenhart and Jason Garey won’t be allowed chances, much less the ball.  The Rapids have been great at home this season, and with third place in their sights, they should not falter against the Crew.

Seattle Sounders FC (29 pts/18 GP) at San Jose Earthquakes (14 pts/18 GP)—In the last two meetings this season, Seattle has dominated possession and the score, winning handily at Qwest Field.  They can catch pace with Houston (finally) with a win, but they will have to do so without their angry Swede Freddie Ljungberg and the glorious fans of Qwest Field.  Not to mention the Quakes have played better than their 14 points this season, especially at home. 

Result: Quakes 1-2 Sounders (Chris says Sounders, 3-1). The Sounders will win if Nate Jaqua has his finishing boots on. If not, expect another disappointing draw.

Real Salt Lake (23 pts/18 GP) at Chicago Fire (29 pts/18 GP)—I don’t care how great Laker forwards Yura Movsisyan and Jeff Cunningham are.  And I don’t care that Captain Beckerman’s return gives Javier Morales more freedom to attack.  Real is on the road, where they are allergic to points.  The Fire have been great at home and shown they can keep their form without injured captain Brian McBride. Need I say more?

Result: Fire 2-1 RSL (Chris says Fire, 2-0) Real gets no love from me until they show they can win on the road…and stop stealing Barça’s colors. No team named Real should ever don red, blue, and gold in a home or away strip.  Ever.

Kansas City Wizards (21 pts/17 GP) at FC Dallas (17 pts/18 GP)—Chris calls this the “Fail Cup.”  While the title is true for Dallas, whose lack of defense has kept the Hoops from contending this season, the Wizards have been flying under the radar in the East, with only inconsistency keeping them from breaking out into a contender status.

Result: FCD 1-2 Wizards (Chris says draw, 2-2).  Chris also says all goals will be own goals.  I won’t disagree.

Correct predictions receive two points, correct scores one point.  If you would like to be a guest commentator, please let Matt Barger know through comment, PM, or Bulletin Board post.

Matt 6-7, 13 pts (Last week: 3-4, 7 pts)

Guest Prognosticators 6-7, 13 pts (Last week: 3-4, 6 pts)

Rubin Kazan 1 - CSKA Moscow 2 (Russian Super League, July 18, 2009) After a goalless first half Alejandro Dominguez fired the reigning champions into a 54th minute lead from the spot. Fifteen minutes from time Sergey Ignashevich rose high to head home a free-kick, and CSKA’s snatched victory minutes later when Vagner Love met a back-post corner to head in the winner.

Dynamo Moscow 2 - Spartak Nalchik 1 (Russian Super League, July 18, 2009) Leandro fired visiting Nalchik into the lead with a penalty on the stroke of the interval but Dynamo refused to lie down and were rewarded as Dmitri Khokhlov (80) and Alexander Kerzhakov (89) struck to snatch all the points.

Saturn 4 - Rostov 0 (Russian Super League, July 18, 2009) Rostov took a beating conceding goals to Dmitri Loskov (16), Petr Nemov (43) and a Dmitri Kirichenko brace (65 and 72).

***

Shakhtar Donetsk 3 - Kryvbas Krivyi Rig 0 (Ukrainian Premier League, July 18, 2009) A fine Jadson free-kick and a tap in from Julius Aghahowa put the UEFA Cup holders 2-up at the break, Jadson completing the win with a cheeky dink over the keeper in the second half.

Dynamo Kiev 5 - Chernomorets Odessa 0 (Ukrainian Premier League, July 18, 2009)

Vorskla Poltava 1 - Karpaty Lviv 2 (Ukrainian Premier League, July 18, 2009)

***

Wiener Neustadt 3 - Austria Karnten 1 (T-Mobile Bundesliga, July 17, 2009) Thomas Hinum fired the visitors into a 16th minute lead which Karnten held until the break. (First half highlights here.) After the interval newly promoted Wiener Neustadt - a club who only came into existence several years ago - managed to record their first win in Austria’s top flight as Sanel Kuljic levelled before two injury time goals from Petr Johana and Patrick Wolf turned the match in the hosts’ favour. (Second half highlights here.)

***

Hacken 2 - Hammarby 0 (Allsvenskan, July 16, 2009) The match looked set to be heading for a goaless draw before Erik Friberg broke the deadlock in the final minute and Jose Paulinho secured the points for the hosts seconds later.

The top of the table clash was a stunner.  Not only did we see good attacking play on both sides, but we also saw a lobby for the fifth official with Montero’s first “goal.” I still think Chabala cleared it off the line.   

As part of this series, I will be giving player ratings after each Game of the Week in the preceding MLS Week Preview. Player ratings are something desperately needed in MLS coverage these days. 

For your reference, I will rate a player with a 5 for an average performance, a 3 for a below-average performance, and a 7 for an above-average performance.  It will take an earth-shaking performance for a player to receive a 1 or 10 (or 2 or 9 for that matter).

EDIT: Brandon Rust has also published player ratings for the Sounders. Please check out his article here. 

Houston Dynamo

GK Pat Onstad – 7: Usually the losing goalkeeper should get the lower scores, but the Canadian was bailing his team out with saves of the year in the second half. Nothing he could do about the second goal, and very unlucky on the first.

 

RB Brian Mulrooney – 4.5: Looked capable but out of place at right back. Especially with Zakuani running at him.

 

CB Julius James – 4: Anonymous during Seattle’s many chances during the second half.

 

CB Mike Chabala – 7: Very unlucky on his goal-line block of Montero’s first goal.  Constantly frustrated the Sounder attack, and saved the Dynamo many times in the first half.

LB Craig Waibel – 3: Deserved the yellow card; deserved the boos. He looked slow and frustrated against both Montero and Ljungberg, delivering cheap shots to both.

 

CDM Ricardo Clark – 6: Strong return from Confederations Cup play for Clark.

 

RM Brian Mullan – 6: Instrumental in Brad Davis’ first goal, a bright point for the Dynamo offense, beating his Tyson Wahl on the ball more times than Wahl would care to remember.

LM Corey Ashe – 5: The diminutive winger made his speed count in the last third of the game, but couldn’t deliver the ball well at all.

CAM Brad Davis – 7.5: Brilliant playmaking to set up his goal in the 13^th. Looked dangerous throughout, and should have seen more support from his strikers.

ST Kei Kamara – 5: Despite some threatening moves, Kamara was known more for his tackles from behind than his finishing this game.

ST Dominic Oduro – 4.5: Mostly anonymous, uninspiring runs on the ball.

Substitutes:

CAM Danny Cruz (54’ for Mullan) – 5: Developed a few chances late, but struggled to make a substantial impact.

CB Eric Ustruck (60’ for Chabala) – 5: Replaced the injured Chabala well and had a goal-saving tackle against Montero.

 

ST Ade Akinbiyi (62’ for Oduro) – 4: The former Stoke City striker decided to play as a target man. Too bad Kei Kamara wasn’t playing as his support striker, and his midfield wasn’t serving the ball in the box.

Seattle Sounders FC

GK Kasey Keller – 4: Some decent saves from Keller today, but the first goal was a defensive breakdown Keller needed to organize better, and his distribution from the back was less-than-ordinary.

RB James Riley – 6: Instrumental in both attack and defense, shutting down Kei Kamara with one of his crosses counting as a shot on goal.

CB Jhon Kennedy Hurtado – 5: Marshalled the back line well after the first goal, but received an unlucky yellow card for Brad Davis’s mediocre dive. 

CB Patrick Ianni – 5.5: Tale of two halves for Tyrone Marshall’s replacement. His opportunistic bicycle kick goal in the second half was ultimately negated by his collection of half-clearance howlers that led to Houston’s scoring chances and goal in the first half. I think this is the only time a bicycle kick goal-scoring defender will get a 5.5 and snubbed from MOTM from me.

LB Tyson Wahl – 4: Unfortunate side effect of left backs in the modern game: instrumental overlapping in attack, but ultimately absent-minded on defense.

RM Freddie Ljungberg – 8 (Man of the Match): Ljungberg has finally hit his stride.  The former Arsenal star showed why he is the outfield captain with his scintillating passing and leadership on the Sounders’ fastbreak. Showed grit and determination despite being marked and fouled heavily, and his fine delivery into the box were repaid with Ianni riding the bike into the net.

CM Peter Vagenas – 4: Ianni looked more of a defensive midfielder than Vagenas today. 

CM Stephen King – 6: Strong on both attack and defense, showed the box-to-box grit that his team should take note of.

LM Steve Zakuani – 7: Average brilliance from Zakuani today, who made the most of his runs at an out-of-place Brian Mulrooney. 

CF Fredy Montero – 7.5: Brilliant run by Montero into the box for his first “goal.”  Fredy is finally clicking with his teammates when he dribbles the ball as well.

ST Nate Jaqua – 6: Incredible ball to Montero for the first goal.  Needs to play more like a target man than the support striker, but did look very menacing in attack.

Substitutes:

LW Sebastien Le Toux (for Zakuani 56’) – 7: The wing isn’t even his natural position.

CF Roger Levesque (for Ljungberg 90’) – NR: Can’t rate Roger for garbage time curtain call minutes.

Patrick Ianni was at fault for the Houston Dynamo's opening goal, but redeemed himself less than two minutes into the second half by scoring the eventual game winner as the Sounders are now unbeaten in their last five games.

Seattle (7-3-7, 28 points) leapfrogged Chivas USA (8-4-3, 27 points) into second place in the MLS Western Conference. Houston (9-4-4, 31 points) maintained their status as league and conference leaders. Chivas, who have two games in hand, play the Los Angeles Galaxy in the SuperClasico later tonight.

The match started out all wrong for the Seattle Sounders as defender Patrick Ianni, starting for Tyrone Marshall who is on international duty with Jamaica, was unable to clear a loose ball inside the Seattle 18-yard box. The ball ended up on the left foot of Brad Davis who made no mistake, slotting his shot just inside Kasey Keller's left post giving the Dynamo the lead after only 12 minutes.

After the goal, Seattle started to settle down and started to settle into a rhythm.  However, Brad Davis came within a whisker of doubling Houston's lead with a free kick in the 26th minute.  His left footed effort from 28 yards missed Keller's far post by a matter of inches.

In the 32nd minute the Sounders would equalize, albeit controversially, through their talisman Fredy Montero. His partner up front, Nate Jaqua, played a long ball into the box from the right side. Montero did well to control the ball of his chest before deftly looping the ball over an oncoming Pat Onstad. 

Dynamo left back Mike Chabala did well to recover and volleyed the ball away from the goal, but not before the assistant referee waved his flag, indicating the ball has crossed the goal line. Replays, however, appeared to show that in fact the ball did not cross the line.  Houston's protest were to no avail, however, and the goal was allowed to stand. 

The goal was Montero's ninth on the season, and fifth in as many games.

Full of confidence from the goal, and encouraged by the raucous Qwest Field crowd of 32,404, the Sounders set out in search of an equalizer. In the 43rd minute, Stephen King broke down the right side of the box and played the ball across the goal mouth. Steve Zakuani was there but only a one-handed save from Pat Onstad kept the scores level.

After the break, the Sounders wasted no time in searching for the go ahead goal. A Freddie Ljungberg corner kick was headed down by Zakuani, and Patrick Ianni hit a clever overhead kick from the corner of the goal box right inside the far post. 

The goal was Ianni's first on the season, and redeemed himself for his egregious mistake earlier in the game.

Houston, who were without main scoring threat Brian Ching and influential midfielder Stuart Holden, struggled to create opportunities in the second half. Ade Akinbiyi came on for Dominic Oduro in the 63rd minute, but was unable to register even a shot on goal.

Substitute Danny Cruz, who came on for Brian Mullan, registered Houston's only shot on goal in the second half, a drive from the top of the box which was handled easily by Keller.

In the end, the shorthanded Dynamo were outmatched by the Sounders. Assistant Coach Brian Schmetzer was able to keep the Sounders organized defensively in the absence of Sigi Schmid, who was attending his son's wedding in California.