Avoiding the Drop

Are you paying attention, Bob Bradley?

Columbus Crew v. Colorado Rapids (Thursday)

Will it be the home field advantage (altitude) of the Rapids or the calm and collected passing game of Crew that will take game one of this tie? I think it will be the Crew that comes out on top, unless the Rapids are able to play a high-tempo and physical game that can neutralize the Crew’s normally patient game. Of course, by the time you read this you’ll already know if I’m right or wrong about that! I’m not going to say that these are two “under the radar” clubs, but it’s interesting that neither of these sides has had any member of the playing or coaching staff nominated for and MLS end-of-the-season award. Fun Fact: Columbus’ Scottish midfielder Adam Moffat was once a member of…you guessed it…Ross County! Sadly for Moffat, he never cracked the first team at then Second Division County.

Ross County F.C. v. Queen of the South (Saturday)

Three losses in a row have dropped the Staggies into the relegation playoff spot in the First Division. The problem with the club is very simple- they are not scoring goals. In fact, their 7 goals from 10 matches is the worst in the division. Of County’s five listed forwards only one (Gary Wood) has more than a single goal and he scored both of his in the same match! Even if there were a reliable striker available come January there no guarantee that County will be able to sign the player. Conversely, the defense is just fine- they’ve conceded 11 goals from 10 matches- the same amount as second place Dunfermline. It might be time to give Andrew Barrowman some more playing time, or to bring a player or two up from the U-19 squad- they clearly can’t do any worse!

F.C. Dallas v. Real Salt Lake (Saturday)

As you will have heard me say on our most recent Dropcast (that was a “plug,” folks!), I think this match-up comes down to the two goalkeepers. Dallas will start either Kevin Hartman who is coming off an MCL sprain suffered about six weeks ago or Dario Sala who, in my opinion, is a “howler bomb” just waiting to go off. At the other end of the field will be Nick Rimando. The eternally-underrated Rimando may have only four USMNT caps, but he’s won MLS Cups with two different teams and was last year’s MLS Cup MVP for his heroics in the penalty kick shoot-out. Only one other keeper has earned this honor in MLS’s history. I see RSL winning this match and winning the tie outright. Fun Fact: Dallas’ Ugo Ihemelu has two USMNT caps- that was news to me!

San Jose Earthquakes v. New York Red Bulls (Saturday)

As you may have read on the site recently or heard on the Dropcast (hint…hint…), I’ve not only picked San Jose to win this tie, but to make MLS Cup as well. In the case of the immediate future against New York, my reasons have as much to do with San Jose- a club that has improved over the course of the season and has the hottest player in the league at present (Chris Wondolowski) as it does with the Red Bulls- a club that has all of the parts in place to be very successful, but that is probably one season away from putting all of those parts together in the right way. I’d also take the predictability and stability of Busch/Cannon over the sometimes spectacular, sometimes erratic Bouna Coundoul. Fun Fact: San Jose’s Cornell Glenn has played for six MLS clubs.

Stade Rennais F.C. v. Olympique de Marseille (Saturday)

This weekend in Ligue 1 first place Rennes- who are seeking their first ever top flight championship and their first major piece of silverware since the 1971 Coupe de France- play second place Marseille, who are looking to win their first back-to-back titles in almost a decade. Both clubs will also be looking over their shoulders at the teams behind them as there are four other clubs who could conceivably end the weekend in first place. Rennes will be lead by their Colombian striker Victor Montaño while Marseille’s offense will likely come from the three pronged attack of midfielder Luis González and forwards Loïc Rémy and André Ayew. Fun Fact: Long time Arsenal winger Sylvain Wiltord had three different spells as a player at Rennes.

Stade Brestois 29 v. A.S. Saint-Étienne Loire (Saturday)

Just behind first place Rennes and second place Marseille are third place Saint-Etienne and fourth place Brest, both of whom are actually tied on points with Marseille. The top of the Ligue 1 table is so congested at the moment that not only could either of these teams be in first place by Monday morning, they could also have been overtaken in the standings by up to three teams! The key to Brest’s success this season has been defense. The club has only scored nine goals in their first ten matches, but they have only given up four. Brest goalkeeper Steeve Elana has not given up a league goal since late August and two of the four he’s conceded came in a single match against Toulouse on the opening day of the season. Fun Fact: This is Brest’s first time in the French top flight since the 1990-1991 season.

Manchester United F.C. v. Tottenham Hotspur F.C. (Sunday)

The script should read: “Manchester United look to lengthen its lead at the top of the table while Spurs look to nail down a European place.” The Spurs part is still accurate- they currently hold the Europa League spot and with a win and some help could move into a Champions League spot. The picture is not quite so rosy for United. A win keeps them “in the picture,” but a loss could be devastating. Should they lose and other results go against them, the Red Devils could end the weekend in 7^th place and looking up at- of all clubs!- West Bromwich Albion. It is probably a nightmare scenario like this that caused Lil’ Wayne to freak out and say he wanted to leave. Either that or he’s an idiot. Still, for a team that has never finished worse than 3^rd in the Premier League, the hand-wringing has surely begun.

Seattle Sounders F.C. v. L.A. Galaxy (Sunday)

By all accounts this is the big match-up on the opening weekend of the MLS playoffs. Given that this tie kicks off in Seattle, I think the Galaxy will be happy to get out of town with a draw while the Sounders will surely be disappointed if their massive home field advantage yields anything less than a win. I have no great love for the Galaxy, but I’m just not sure this is the year for the Sounders- their a little too inconsistent for my taste. L.A. started the season as the hottest team in the league, cooled off a bit, and then began to warm up again. They’ve “warmed up” enough that I think they are going to win the Cup this year. Fun Fact: If the Galaxy do win the championship it will be the eighth of David Beckham’s career in three different leagues. So good for him.

1. M.S.V. Mainz 05 v. Borussia Dortmund (Sunday)

The drama around this match should be palpable. Not only does it feature first place Mainz (who’ve never won a Bundesliga championship) against second place Dortmund (last crowned champions in 2001-2002), but both clubs were also unceremoniously bounced out of the DFB Pokal on Wednesday- Mainz lost to second division side Alemannia Aachen and Dortmund lost on penalties to third division Kickers Offenbach! After those embarrassments both sides should be looking to make a good impression. A win for Mainz would be especially important because not only would it keep them at the top of the table, it would drop Dortmund five points behind them and give them a little breathing room. Fun Fact: Mainz’s on trophy at the national level in 105 seasons is the 2009 U-19 championship.

Hannover S.V. 96 v. T.S.G. 1899 Hoffenheim (Sunday)

In addition to being a match that features the Bundesliga’s third place team (Hannover 96) against its fourth place team (Hoffenheim), it is also a match to see who can- barely- remain within striking distance of the league title and who can hold off the pack of eight teams who are all within 3 or 4 points of catching these two clubs. Of the two clubs, Hannover are playing slightly better at the moment and we have to pull for them anyway, don’t we? They are captained by Steve Cherundolo and we’d all like to see DMB make his second appearance for the club, wouldn’t we? Hannover also haven’t been German champions since 1954, so they’ve got something to shoot for, don’t they!? Fun Fact: Hoffenheim are no longer located in Hoffenheim- a village with a population of just 3,300.

K.R.C. Genk v. R.S.C. Anderlecht (Sunday)

Believe it or not, this is another match this weekend that pits the first and second place teams against each other. In this case it is first place Genk against second place Anderlecht. I’ve actually been keeping an eye on Anderlecht in order to mark the progress of Sacha Kljestan in the hopes that he can resurrect his game and get back into the USMNT picture. So far, the results are…mixed. Sacha has played in four of Anderlecht’s twelve matches- starting in four of them- and he has appeared in about half of the club’s Europea and Champions League matches. However, given how well he has payed when given the chance, there are some supporters and journalists who are wondering why manager Ariël Jacobs isn’t playing him more and suggesting that the reasons may not be good ones.