New England Revolution v. Chicago Fire S.C. (Saturday)
As has been the case for the last few weeks, I just don’t see this match going well for the Revs. Were they healthy I’d be looking forward to seeing how they were going to exploit Chicago’s shaky defense, but they are not, and what they lack the most right now is a potent offense. Thus, I can only conclude that Chicago, which has scored only one goal less than league leaders Real Salt Lake, is going to have a good day. They may not put six past New England as happened a few weeks ago, but I don’t think a 4-1 score line would be out of the question. Things are bad enough for New England that even the local newspapers have begun to take notice. I feel for Steve Nicol at the moment- he’s done nothing wrong and his team is in a free fall through the table anyway.
Toronto F.C. v. D.C. United (Saturday)
If you thought, at any point during the season, that these two teams would be at the top of the Eastern Conference, please contact me- you should probably have this job. To find D.C. in first place is not too shocking. Many people felt that once they got their act together they would return to something like the form that made them MLS Cup winners on four occasions. Where Toronto is concerned, I think most people thought they would be better, but not that much better than they were last year. Factor in only one goal from prodigal son Dwayne de Rosario and losing their coach in the early weeks of the season and their improvement seems even less probable. If I could see one thing from this match it would be for Toronto’s supporters to emulate the behavior of D.C. supporters.
Real Salt Lake v. Chivas U.S.A. (Saturday)
Who’d have thunk it? This is one of the weekend’s marquis match-ups in MLS! Chivas USA are six points clear of any other team in the league and show no signs of slowing down, and Real Salt Lake are the highest scoring team in the league…of course, six of their fourteen goals came against my punchless Revs- but I digress. For those of you wishing to watch this match, it will be shown on KAZA Azteca 54- I believe that’s channel 870399173 on your dial. Do TVs have dials anymore? Fun Fact: Only three numbers have appeared in Chivas score lines this season- 0, 1, and 2. That must mean something, right? Math people, where are you?
Columbus Crew v. Kansas City Wizards (Saturday)
I know it’s early, but at what point do we wonder if the Crew are the Detroit Lions of MLS? No, not yet. Columbus have yet to play the Galaxy or the Red Bulls. If they fail to beat either of those teams, we can start to wonder- and worry. Kansas City…is it my hate for The Wizard of Oz that just makes it impossible for me to get behind this team? Or is it because I like Preki so much and he hasn’t been there since hanging up his boots after the 2005 season? Maybe it is because only the Crew’s atrocious crest (I may have mentioned this once or twice in the past…) keeps Kansas City’s from being the worst in MLS? Whatever the case, my new soccer-crush, Frankie Hejduk, is back on the field this week- go Crew!?
L.A. Galaxy v. Seattle Sounders F.C. (Sunday)
I believe that this match will be won by the team that employs a player who once played for a top English team, won the EPL title, has a shaved head, and is an underwear model. That’s right, I’m picking the Sounders. In other news, I’ve had an epiphany about why I have grown to dislike the L.A. Galaxy- because they remind me of all of the reasons that the NASL* failed. Buying useless old players, spending exorbitant amounts of money on them, and coasting on their initial- and increasingly distant- successes. It tickles me to no end that the “other” team in Los Angeles- Chivas USA- is clearly the better one. *Yes, I am THAT old.
Other MLS matches:
San Jose Earthquakes v. New York Red Bulls (Friday)
F.C. Dallas v. Houston Dynamo (Saturday)
F.C. Energie Cottbus v. F.C. Bayern München (Saturday)
I love matches like this. A Bayern win (and a Wolfsburg loss) would have Bayern out of first only on goal differential with enough matches left to win the Bundesliga. Cottbus, at the other end of the table, are one point above the drop zone and a win (combined with a loss by Arminia Bielefeld) will probably be enough to save them this season. So, both teams have a great deal riding on the outcome of this match. Unfortunately for Energie Cottbus, there’s a reason why they’re at the other end of the table from Bayern. If only they had a rugged American defender anchoring their back line…let’s take a look at their roster…nope, he left for 1860 Munich…and now plays for the L.A. Galaxy. I wonder if he regrets either move?
Manchester United F.C. v. Manchester City F.C. (Sunday)
So, I was all pissy about previewing the Madrid Derby last week and it turned out to be an epic match, so, while there are other matches worthy of your attention in the EPL this weekend, I’m going to go with this one, the 151st Manchester Derby. “The team that everybody hates” will be looking to open its lead on Liverpool as they take on their crosstown rivals “the team that spends a lot of money and is only as good as Fulham.” Based on what I’ve seen in the last few matches, Citeh are in for a long afternoon, in addition to that, the Blues have only won twice away from the City of Manchester Stadium this year. Not good.
Torino F.C. 1906 SpA v. Bologna F.C. 1909 (Sunday)
Only one point separate the two clubs, but it’s the most important point- the one that has Torino above the relegation zone and Bologna in it. Neither club will be out of danger with a win, but if either club loses, they will have a hard time avoiding the drop with only three matches left in Serie A after this weekend. Recent form gives a nominal edge to Torino, but the two clubs are only separated by one goal in the differential column and both will be playing for their Serie A lives- particularly Bologna who were in Serie B only last year. Both clubs have excellent crests, so I’m forced to find a winner based on the team nickname- oh, wait, both are based on the their kit colors, that’s no help! What? Torino have a second nickname? Il Toro? WINNER!
Getafe C.F. v. C.A. Osasuna (Sunday)
This match features the two teams sitting just above the La Liga relegation zone. Getafe are above Sporting Gijon only on goal differential (though a sizable one), and Osasuna are two points up on Getafe. A win for Osasuna probably saves the season, while the impact of a win for Getafe will be much more dependent on what happens to the teams below them. Normally I tend to support the underdog, but Osasuna are from the former Kingdom of Navarre, home of one of my favorite European kings, Henry III of Navarre, who later became Henry IV of France. He was one of France’s most popular kings despite being a Huguenot, enacted the Edict of Nantes, and was assassinated by a Catholic fanatic named François Ravaillac. All very fascinating stuff…well, to me at least. Hey, speaking of France…
Stade Rennais F.C. v En Avant de Guingamp (Saturday)
Here’s something new- a preview of a major European cup final! In this case, it’s the Coupe de France. So, do we put our support behind Les Rouges et Noirs and American Carlos Bocanegra, or do we side with the underdog team from Brittany even though the petulant Didier Drogba once played there? It would be great for Bocanegra to be the first American to win this cup, but Rennes have won the cup twice before, so I’m hoping for a win for Guingamp- a team whose stadium holds more than twice the local population. Fun fact 1: this year’s Coupe de France tournament began with almost 7000 teams. Fun fact 2: Guingamp manager Victor Zvunka is managing his 12th team in the last 25 years.
Ross County F.C. v. Greenock Morton F.C. (Saturday)
It’s been a monumental task to stay in denial for as long as I have this season and I congratulate myself for that. So, here we are, last game of the season, and relegation still a possibility- can I even pretend to be surprised? If County win or draw, they stay up. If Airdrie United do anything but win, County stay up. Airdrie are playing first place- and promoted- St. Johnstone, so that’s good. However, Airdrie have picked up as many points in their last five matches as St. Johnstone, so that’s not good. Needless to say, I will be shackled to my laptop and furiously…updating the BBC live feed all morning. C’mon County, just a point, A POINT!!
Western Mass Pioneers v. Real Maryland Monarchs (Saturday)
I was on-hand for last weekend’s match against the Richmond Kickers that brought the Pioneers to 0-2 for the season. It was not an impressive display. The team was at sixes and sevens at the back and never really threatened to score against the Kickers defense. I’m not expecting a whole lot better for this match- if only because the Pioneers will be playing Crystal Palace Baltimore on Friday night. I know this is a cost-cutting measure but it can’t help to play two matches in two days. Anything more than two points out of these two matches would be a triumph.
