Major League Soccer Match Picks, Week 7

Horrible week last week. I was only 1 for 7. 33% on the year.

Here's my picks this week:

Winners:

Montreal Impact
Philadelphia Union
Vancouver Whitecaps
DC United
FC Dallas
Chivas USA
Houston Dynamo

Draws:

Seattle Sounders vs New England Revolution
Portland Timbers vs San Jose Earthquakes

Breathe...Toronto FC 4, Columbus Crew 2, 9/10/11

Final score, Toronto FC 4, the Columbus Crew 2. At COLUMBUS CREW STADIUM!

Breathe, deep breaths...

Tell yourself everything is going to be OK with the Columbus Crew.

Tell yourself that giving up 10 goals in their last two matches is nothing to be concerned about.

Tell yourself that seeing William Hesmer play his worst game...ever...is nothing to be concerned about.

Tell yourself that the starting back four of Sebastian Miranda, Chad Marshall, Julius James and Josh Gardner will communicate better in their next match.

Trillium Cup Goes to Toronto FC (Getty Images)

Tell yourself that the Crew midfield will not fail to connect on their passes like they did last night.

Tell yourself that losing to Toronto FC...FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER is only a blip, the Crew will recover.

Tell yourself we will see Eddie Gaven return to the line-up.

Tell yourself that the Crew will get things together in time for their Wednesday night home match against the Houston Dynamo.

Tell yourself the Crew will still be in playoff position after their next five matches, where they play four other teams in Major League Soccer's Eastern Conference who are in playoff position (the Houston Dynamo, Philadelphia Union, Sporting Kansas City and DC United) and the best team in all of Major League Soccer, the Los Angeles Galaxy.

Breath...

Must Have Been Crazy! The Philadelphia Union and New England Revolution Play to a 4-4 Draw! 9/7/11

I don't get Galavision, so I had to monitor tonight's Major League Soccer match between the Philadelphia Union and the New England Revolution on MLSsoccer.com.

It must have been a great match. The result was a 4-4 draw, making my prediction of a Philadelphia Union victory wrong. Worse yet, I had it as one of my mortal locks! Oh well...0 for 1 this week, 7 for 20, or 35% for the year.

I have updated my model to reflect tonight's results. I predict that both the Philadelphia Union/Portland Timbers and New England Revolution/FC Dallas matches will end in draws. That completes my September 10th match predictions.

My Predictions For This Week's Major League Soccer Matches, 9/6/11

Here are my predictions for this week. I use my current Major League Soccer Power Rankings (or more specifically the formula that drives the rankings) and look at the differential between the two teams, taking into account the significant home bias that exists in Major League Soccer. Here's the article on the home bias:

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/climbing-ladder-home-field-advantage

In order of confidence:

Mortal Locks:

9/7/11: The Philadelphia Union will get a home victory over the New England Revolution

9/10/11: The Columbus Crew will get a home victory over Toronto FC.

9/10/11: The San Jose Earthquakes and Chicago Fire will draw in San Jose.

I Can Sleep At Night With These Picks:

9/9/11: The Los Angeles Galaxy will win at home versus the Colorado Rapids

9/10/11: The Seattle Sounders will get a home victory over Real Salt Lake.

9/10/11: Chivas USA and DC United will draw at the Home Depot Center.

Do I Really Have to Pick These?:

9/10/11: Sporting KC and the Houston Dynamo will draw in Kansas City

9/10/11: The New York Red Bulls will get a home win over the Vancouver Whitecaps

I'm going to wait for the September 7th result between Philadelphia and New England before I pick the September 10th matches between Philadelphia/Portland and New England/FC Dallas.

Mortal Lock For a Win!

Mortal Lock For a Win!

Predicted The Sporting KC/LA Galaxy Draw Correctly...Major League Soccer Power Rankings, Week 25, 9/5/11

I was a perfect 2 for 2 on my predictions for this weekend's Major League Soccer Matches, getting both the Real Salt Lake victory and the Sporting KC/LA Galaxy draw correct. I am now 7 for 19 on the year, a 37% accuracy rating.

The LA Galaxy Are #1 Again!

There were just a couple of changes to my Major League Soccer Power Rankings this week with only two matches played.

Real Salt Lake's victory over Philadelphia pushed them up two spots in this week's ranking to #4 overall, while Sporting Kansas City's home draw this evening against the LA Galaxy dropped them two spots to #11 in this week's rankings.

My week 25 Major League Soccer Power Rankings:

1) LA Galaxy (West)

2) Seattle Sounders FC (West)

3) Colorado Rapids (West)

4) Real Salt Lake (West)

5) Columbus Crew (East)

6) FC Dallas (West)

7) D.C. United (East)

8) Houston Dynamo (East)

9) Portland Timbers (West)

10) Chicago Fire (East)

11) Sporting Kansas City (East)

12) Chivas USA (West)

13) Philadelphia Union (East)

14) Toronto FC (East)

15) New York Red Bulls (East)

16) Vancouver Whitecaps (West)

17) New England Revolution (East)

18) San Jose Earthquakes (West)

I Got This One Right! Real Salt Lake Beat The Philadelphia Union 2-1! 9/3/11

Thanks For Making Me Look Good!

Only two Major League Soccer matches this weekend, and I got my first prediction right!

I picked Real Salt Lake to beat the Philadelphia Union, and they did last night, 2-1!

I am now 6 for 18 with my Major League Soccer predictions, a 33% success rate.

My Predictions For This Weekend's Major League Soccer Matches, 9/2/11

I had a horrible week last week with my predictions. Out of eight matches played I only got one prediction correct, the Seattle Sounders win over the Columbus Crew.

I am now 5 for 17 for the year, a 29% accuracy rating.

Undaunted, I will forge ahead...

There are only two Major League Soccer matches this weekend. What will the results be?

In the Saturday, September 3rd match, I predict a Real Salt Lake Victory over the Philadelphia Union.

And on Labor Day, Monday, September 5th, I predict a draw between Sporting Kansas City and the LA Galaxy!

Real Salt Lake! A Big Winner This Weekend!

Robbie Rogers-Man of the Match! Columbus Crew 2, Philadelphia Union 1, 8/20/11

I have had a love/hate fan relationship with the Columbus Crew's Robbie Rogers. At times I have been completely frustrated with his play, expecting more of an effort, better finishing, better final passes.

But after Robbie's performance in the Crew's 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Union last night, I can now declare myself a Robbie Rogers fan.

Robbie assisted on the Crew's first goal with a nice cross into Emilio Renteria. Later in the match Rogers forced a handball in the box by Philly defender Sheanon Williams that was converted for a goal by Andres Mendoza.

It was obvious in the first half that the Union were not going to let the ball get to Rogers playing left midfield for the Crew. They overloaded their midfield on his side of the field, which allowed the Crew to work the ball up the right side. Early in the match, The Crew did have one very good opportunity in the from the right, a Justin Meram cross that Rogers almost converted for a goal.

Once the Crew figured out how to get Rogers the ball with space on the left, they became very dangerous. He had one shot he fired high, and then later in the first half made the cross that resulted in the Crew's first goal of the night.

Robbie Rogers is showing that he is one of the best midfielders in MLS and is playing up to the potential we all new he had. He's also pretty interesting on twitter. @robbierogers

The Crew now have a 5 point lead over the Houston Dynamo for first place in the MLS Eastern Conference.

This team gets better and better as the season continues. Michael Arace posted a great commentary this morning on the Columbus Dispatch's website regarding the Crew and their success this year. I love the last line, "Open your window and sniff. Is that a trace of Massive in the air?"

Check it out:
http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/sports/2011/08/21/big-names-in-new-york-la-but-crews-in-first.html

A Set-Piece Goal! Sweet! Columbus Crew Beat the New England Revolutions 3-1, 8/13/11

I love this picture!

Julius James Heads-In The Crew's 2nd Goal (Getty Images)

In a thoroughly dominating performance, The Columbus Crew beat the New England Revolution 3-1 last night, adding an additional two points to their Major League Soccer Eastern Conference lead. (Both the Philadelphia Union and New York Red Bulls had draws in their matches yesterday.)

The win sets-up a big-time match this coming Saturday, as the current Eastern Conference second place team, the Philadelphia Union and newly signed Freddy Adu come to town.

What was the best part of last night's match?

So many choices:

It was Buck-a-Brat night. I had two.

Magic Hat #9 on tap in the Upper 90 Club.

One of the biggest crowds of the year showed up.

I saw great support for the Hudson Street Hooligans at their tailgate before the match.With the City of Columbus shutting their club down, they need financial support to keep their club open.  I donated and bought a backpack. Click on the picture to the right if you want to learn how you can help them out too.

The Crew fighting back after going down 1-0 at the end of the first half.

Julius James scoring the Crew's second goal off of a Josh Gardner corner kick. The first corner kick goal of the year for the Crew.

I'll pick the corner kick!

The Crew continue to play very well. It's very impressive to see the new players step-up, with the Crew suffering some key injuries as of late (Eddie Gaven most recently). When you can dominate an MLS opponent with the likes of Tommy Heinemann, Josh Gardner, Justin Meram, Bernardo Anor and Dilly Duka it shows that the Crew coaching and scouting staffs really did their homework when they acquired these players.

Robbie Rogers, coming off scoring the goal that earned the US Men's National Team a draw against Mexico on Wednesday night continues to play very well. Chad Marshall should now be considered the favorite for the MLS defender of the year. And Emmanuel Ekpo had an outstanding game, distributing the ball with vision while making the New England Revolution midfield look silly as they attempted to tackle him.

I can't remember having the same feeling of anticipation and excitement that I have for this Saturday's (8/20/11 at 7:30pm) match against the Philadelphia Union. Come out and join me at Crew Stadium to cheer the Crew on to victory!

3 Weeks in a Row! The Seattle Sounders Maintain the #1 Spot! Major League Soccer Power Rankings Week 19, 7/25/11

Seattle Still #1!

Being idle this week in MLS play didn't hurt the Seattle Sounders, who maintain the #1 spot in this week's rankings, although the LA Galaxy crept a little closer on the heels of their midweek home victory versus the Columbus Crew.

The top 3 teams didn't change from last week. Seattle and the LA Galaxy seem to be the class of the league this week, with FC Dallas and Real Salt Lake continuing to keep pace.

Spots 6-9 are separated by the closest of margins in this week's rankings. The Columbus Crew, Colorado Rapids, Sporting KC and Chivas USA seem to be neck in neck as the continue their MLS campaigns.

Biggest moves up the rankings this week? The New England Revolution moved up 4 spots, Colorado moved up 3. 

Biggest drop? D.C. United dropped 4 spots, the Columbus Crew dropped 2.

Who has the best current form? The Seattle Sounders, LA Galaxy and Real Salt Lake.

The worst? Vancouver, Toronto and Chicago.

My Week 19 Major League Soccer Power Rankings:

1) Seattle Sounders FC (West)

2) LA Galaxy (West)

3) FC Dallas (West)

4) Real Salt Lake (West)

5) Philadelphia Union (East)

6) Columbus Crew (East)

7) Colorado Rapids (West)

8) Sporting Kansas City (East)

9) Chivas USA (West)

10) New York Red Bulls (East)

11) Houston Dynamo (East)

12) D.C. United (East)

13) New England Revolution (East)

14) San Jose Earthquakes (West)

15) Portland Timbers (West)

16) Toronto FC (East)

17) Chicago Fire (East)

18) Vancouver Whitecaps (West)

My Man Crush for Emilio Renteria! Crew win 1-0! 7/23/11

It's the 24th of July and we find the Columbus Crew tied with the Philadelphia Union on points for first place in the Major League Soccer Eastern Conference. How about that!

Crew Goal Scorer Eddie Gaven and Emilio Renteria!

Another Budweiser $1 draft night at Columbus Crew Stadium last night drew 11,246 people to the match, which was pretty boring and uneventful until the 66th minute when Emilio Renteria entered the match as a sub for an ineffective Jeff Cunningham.

Maybe it was the $1 drafts, but immediately after Renteria entered the match, the energy in the stadium increased 10-fold, and the Crew, feeling the love, began to play with a sense of urgency that ultimately lead to a goal by Eddie Gaven and a 1-0 victory over the Portland Timbers.

It's very obvious that with Emilio Renteria on the field, the Crew are a different team. He is a handful for defenses to deal with, and when he is on the field, good things just seem to happen! I have to admit I have a man crush for Emilio!

The Crew's defense have only allowed one goal in their last four matches. And quite frankly the goal that the LA Galaxy scored last week would have been saved by William Hesmer last week if the shot hadn't been deflected by Eric Gehrig.

Andy Gruenebaum got the starting nod at keeper last night after it was determined that William Hesmer's quad was too hurt to make a go of it. Between him and the Crew's back-line of Sebastian Miranda, Chad Marshall (who in my opinion is the biggest MLS All-Star game snub this year), Julius James and Josh Gardner the Timbers could not reach the back of the net.

I feel very optimistic about the Crew right now. With two legitimate starters missing from last night's line-up due to injury (Andres Mendoza and Rich Balchan) the Crew still found a way to win. And this Crew team knows how to play defense, which should serve them well going into the final third of the MLS season.

The Crew hit a pretty rough part of their schedule over the next two weeks. First, a Tuesday night friendly versus Newcastle United of the English Premier League, and then two tough road matches at Real Salt Lake and at the Colorado Rapids. Getting 2 points minimum out of the matches at Rio Tinto and Dick's Sporting Goods Park would be a great result.

Two Weeks in a Row! The Seattle Sounders are #1! Major League Soccer Power Rankings Week 18, 7/18/11

Seattle is #1 For The Second Week in a Row!

My top three teams from last week's Power Rankings didn't change this week, with the Seattle Sounders maintaining the top spot for a second week in a row.

The bottom five teams also didn't change, although there was a slight reordering, mostly due to the Portland Timbers winning at Chicago.

The biggest change happened in positions 4 through 13, as Major League Soccer continues to show it is a league defined by parity.

Biggest moves up the rankings this week? The Portland Timbers moved up 4 spots, DC United moved up 3. 

Biggest drop? The Houston Dynamo dropped 4 spots.

Who has the best current form? The Seattle Sounders, Columbus Crew and FC Dallas.

The worst? Toronto, Chicago, New England and Vancouver.

My Week 18 Major League Soccer Power Rankings:

1) Seattle Sounders FC (West)

2) LA Galaxy (West)

3) FC Dallas (West)

4) Columbus Crew (East)

5) Philadelphia Union (East)

6) Real Salt Lake (West)

7) Sporting Kansas City (East)

8) D.C. United (East)

9) New York Red Bulls (East)

10) Colorado Rapids (West)

11) Chivas USA (West)

12) Houston Dynamo (East)

13) San Jose Earthquakes (West)

14) Portland Timbers (West)

15) Toronto FC (East)

16) Chicago Fire (East)

17) New England Revolution (East)

18) Vancouver Whitecaps (West)

The LA Galaxy are #1 for the 5th Week in a Row! Major League Soccer Power Rankings, Week 14, 6/22/11

The Galaxy are #1 Again!

The Los Angeles Galaxy keeps the top spot this week giving them five #1's in a row.

This will be a brief post, been busy, but still wanted to get my rankings out there.

Biggest moves up the rankings this week? The Columbus Crew moved up 6 spots, Sporting KC moved up 5.

Biggest drops? The Houston Dynamo dropped 4 spots, Colorado and Real Salt Lake both dropped 3.

Who has the best current form? The Galaxy, FC Dallas and San Jose.

The worst? Portland, New England and Toronto.

My Week 14 Major League Soccer Power Rankings:

1) LA Galaxy (West)

2) FC Dallas (West)

3) Seattle Sounders FC (West)

4) San Jose Earthquakes (West)

5) Philadelphia Union (East)

6) Columbus Crew (East)

7) New York Red Bulls (East)

8) Colorado Rapids (West)

9) Sporting Kansas City (East)

10) Chicago Fire (East)

11) Real Salt Lake (West)

12) D.C. United (East)

13) Vancouver Whitecaps (West)

14) Chivas USA (West)

15) Houston Dynamo (East)

16) Portland Timbers (West)

17) New England Revolution (East)

18) Toronto FC (East)

The LA Galaxy are #1 Again! Major League Soccer Power Rankings, Week 13, 6/13/11

The LA Galaxy are on Top for the 4th Week in a Row!

The Los Angeles Galaxy keeps the top spot this week giving them four #1's in a row, matching Real Salt Lake's run in my rankings earlier in the year.

Interesting week this week. I weight current form, road wins and home losses as part of my formula. With four teams getting road wins this week (San Jose, Colorado, Chicago and Sporting KC) along with San Jose's current run of  good form there are some significant changes in this week's rankings.

Biggest moves up the rankings this week? Chicago moved up 6 spots, Colorado moved up 5.

Biggest drops? Portland dropped 6 spots, Chivas dropped 5.

Who has the best current form? San Jose, The Galaxy and Philadelphia.

The worst? Portland and New England.

My Week 13 Major League Soccer Power Rankings (wins-losses-draws) UP or DOWN from last week:

1) LA Galaxy, Western Conference (8-2-7) 31 points

2) San Jose Earthquakes, Western Conference (5-4-4) 19 points UP

3) FC Dallas, Western Conference (7-4-4) 25 points DOWN

4) Philadelphia Union, Eastern Conference (6-3-4) 22 points DOWN

5) Colorado Rapids, Western Conference (5-3-7) 22 points UP

6) Seattle Sounders FC, Western Conference (5-4-7) 22 points DOWN

7) New York Red Bulls, Eastern Conference (5-2-7) 22 points UP

8) Real Salt Lake, Western Conference (6-3-3) 21 points DOWN

9) Chicago Fire, Eastern Conference (2-4-8) 14 points UP

10) D.C. United, Eastern Conference (4-5-4) 16 points DOWN

11) Houston Dynamo, Eastern Conference (4-5-6) 18 points UP

12) Columbus Crew, Eastern Conference (4-4-6) 18 points

13) Chivas USA, Western Conference (4-5-5) 17 points DOWN

14) Sporting Kansas City, Eastern Conference (2-6-4) 10 points UP

15) Portland Timbers, Western Conference (5-6-2) 17 points DOWN

16) Toronto FC, Eastern Conference (2-5-8) 14 points

17) Vancouver Whitecaps, Western Conference (1-6-8) 11 points

18) New England Revolution, Eastern Conference (3-7-4) 13 points DOWN

The LA Galaxy Still On Top! Major League Soccer Power Rankings, Week 12, 6/7/11

The LA Galaxy Maintain the Top Spot for the 3rd Week in a ROW!

I write this as I'm watching the US Men's National Team play their CONCACAF Gold Cup opener versus Canada. (2-0 USMNT in the 74th minute).

The top three in my rankings (LA Galaxy, FC Dallas and Philadelphia Union) stay the same as last week, while the Galaxy maintain the top spot for the third week in a row. The CONCACAF Gold Cup started to have an impact this week on many Major League Soccer teams. It will be interesting to see what the impact will be over duration of the tournament.

Biggest jumps up this week? San Jose and Real Salt Lake each moved up three spots.

Biggest drop? The Portland Timbers dropped four spots.

My Week 12 Major League Soccer Power Rankings (wins-losses-draws) UP or DOWN from last week:

1)   LA Galaxy, Western Conference (8-2-6) 30 points

2)   FC Dallas, Western Conference (7-3-4) 25 points

3)   Philadelphia Union, Eastern Conference (6-3-3) 21 points

4)   San Jose Earthquakes, Western Conference (4-4-4) 16 points UP

5)   Seattle Sounders FC, Western Conference (5-4-6) 21 points DOWN

6)   D.C. United, Eastern Conference (4-4-4) 16 points

7)   Real Salt Lake, Western Conference (6-2-2) 20 points UP

8)   Chivas USA, Western Conference (4-4-5) 17 points UP

9)   Portland Timbers, Western Conference (5-5-2) 17 points DOWN

10)  Colorado Rapids, Western Conference (4-3-7) 19 points DOWN

11)   New York Red Bulls, Eastern Conference (4-2-7) 19 points UP

12)  Columbus Crew, Eastern Conference (3-3-6) 15 points DOWN

13)  Houston Dynamo, Eastern Conference (3-5-6) 15 points

14)  New England Revolution, Eastern Conference (3-6-4) 13 points UP

15)  Chicago Fire, Eastern Conference (1-4-7) 10 points UP

16)  Toronto FC, Eastern Conference (2-5-7) 13 points DOWN

17)  Vancouver Whitecaps, Western Conference (1-6-7) 10 points

18)  Sporting Kansas City, Eastern Conference (1-6-3) 6 points

Major League Soccer Power Rankings, Week 11, 5/31/11

A day late due to the Memorial Day Holiday.

The Los Angeles Galaxy Retain the Top Spot For the 2nd Week In a Row!

The Los Angeles Galaxy and FC Dallas continue on their great runs of form, while big away wins help the Philadelphia Union and D.C. United make big jumps in this weeks rankings.

I heavily weight away wins in my rankings, and correspondingly home losses. With the exception of the top two teams (Galaxy and FC Dallas) and the bottom three (Chicago, Vancouver, Sporting KC) five teams getting away wins shook the rankings up this week.

My Week 11 Major League Soccer Power Rankings (wins-losses-draws) UP or DOWN from last week:

1)   LA Galaxy, Western Conference (8-2-5) 29 points

Two wins this week including one at New England solidifies the Galaxy as the top team in the MLS.

2)   FC Dallas, Western Conference (6-3-4) 22 points

A midweek victory at Seattle and a draw at rival Houston make FC Dallas the second hottest team in the MLS behind the Galaxy.

3)   Philadelphia Union, Eastern Conference (6-3-2) 20 points UP

The Union jumps six spots after trouncing Toronto FC in Toronto.

4)   Seattle Sounders FC, Western Conference (5-4-5) 20 points

Seattle makes up for a midweek home loss to Dallas by beating Real Salt Lake at Rio Tinto, ending Real Salt Lake's 29 game home unbeaten streak.

5)   Portland Timbers, Western Conference (5-4-2) 17 points DOWN

D.C. United gets a win at Jeld-Wen, first visitor to beat the Timbers there this year.

6)   D.C. United, Eastern Conference (4-4-3) 15 points UP
A win at Jeld-Wen gives D.C. United a four game unbeaten streak.

7)   San Jose Earthquakes, Western Conference (3-4-4) 13 points UP

Also on a four game unbeaten streak.

8)   Colorado Rapids, Western Conference (4-3-6) 18 points DOWN

On a seven game unbeaten streak, the last five being draws.

9)   Chivas USA, Western Conference (3-4-4) 13 points DOWN

10)  Real Salt Lake, Western Conference (5-2-2) 17 points DOWN
A home loss?!?! That aside, Real Salt Lake has looked very pedestrian in their last five matches.

11)  Columbus Crew, Eastern Conference (3-3-5) 14 points UP

12)   New York Red Bulls, Eastern Conference (4-2-6) 18 points DOWN

On a current run of poor form. When was the last time the Red Bulls won a match? (Hint: it wasn't in May.)

13)  Houston Dynamo, Eastern Conference (3-4-6) 15 points UP

14)  Toronto FC, Eastern Conference (2-5-6) 12 points DOWN

6-2? At home?

15)  New England Revolution, Eastern Conference (3-5-4) 13 points DOWN

With the Chicago Fire, Vancouver Whitecaps and Sporting KC all getting draws this week, my bottom three don't change. Chicago and Vancouver both fire their coaches, but Sporting must feel OK, as they were on a five game losing streak.

16)  Chicago Fire, Eastern Conference (1-4-6) 9 points

17)  Vancouver Whitecaps, Western Conference (1-5-6) 9 points

18)  Sporting Kansas City, Eastern Conference (1-6-2) 5 points

65 Minutes of Domination! Columbus Crew 2, Vancouver Whitecaps 1, 4/30/2011

If the Columbus Crew match last night had ended in the 65th minute, I would have been writing about the Crew's best performance of the season. The Crew dominated possession, scored two goals (both by man of the match Emilio Renteria) and didn't allow Vancouver their first corner until the 71st minute.

Getty Images

The game seemed to be in hand for the Crew until Emmanuel Ekpo turned the ball over in the Crew's defensive third in the 69th minute. This resulted in a Vancouver counter that ended with Vancouver's Omar Salgado heading a cross into the Crew's net. For the last 31 minutes the Crew had to work hard to hang on to the win, as the pressure that Vancouver put on to get the equalizer was relentless.

But the Crew persevered and took 3 points from the match. This was the Crew's sixth straight match without a defeat, and allowed them to keep pace with the the New York Red Bulls, Philadelphia Union and the Houston Dynamo, who all won home matches this week.

Emmanuel Ekpo had just been substituted in for Kevin Burns at a defensive midfield position when he turned the ball over that resulted in the Whitecaps goal. Strange decision by Coach Robert Warzycha, as Ekpo, who can be very dangerous offensively, is known to make poor decisions when the ball is at his feet. Kevin Burns had worked very hard during the match, and probably needed a substitute, but the choice of Ekpo turned out to be very poor. Coach Warzycha may have been boxed into a corner, as his only other midfield choice on the bench was the little used Leandre Griffit who ended up entering match in the 88th. But it's hard to be too critical of Coach Warzycha's decisions with the Crew getting 12 out of a possible 18 points out of their last 6 matches.

One other note. Last night was Omar Salgado's first start for the Whitecaps. He was the first pick in the 2011 MLS Soccer SuperDraft and is only 17 years old. He was a beast last night, and gave the Crew's defense fits, especially in the last 35 minutes. He's going to be a very good player for the Whitecaps!

The Crew's next match is against one of the hottest team's in the MLS right now, the Seattle Sounders. The game is at Crew Stadium this Saturday, May 7th at 7:30pm EST. I'd certainly like to see a full house for this match, as it's going to be a good one!

Major League Soccer Power Rankings, Week 6, 4/24/11

My Major League Soccer Week 6 Power Rankings:

Real Salt Lake #1, Week 6 (2nd Straight Week)

Week 6 Power Rankings (wins-losses-draws) UP or DOWN from last week:

1)   Real Salt Lake, Western Conference (4-0-0) 12 points
Didn't play an MLS match this week, but form looked very good in 1st leg of CONCACAF Finals.

2)   LA Galaxy, Western Conference (4-1-3) 15 points UP
Have the best form in last 5 matches of any team in MLS.

3)   Philadelphia Union, Eastern Conference (3-1-1) 10 points DOWN

Didn't play this past week, but decided to move the Galaxy ahead of them due to Galaxy's head to head win against them on April 2nd.

4)   Seattle Sounders FC, Western Conference (2-2-3) 9 points UP
Took the 2nd largest jump in the rankings of any team this week. Big away win against Colorado, but can they recover from the loss of Steve Zakuani?

5)   New York Red Bulls, Eastern Conference (3-1-2) 11 points UP
The Red Bull offense is coming together.

6)   Houston Dynamo, Eastern Conference (2-1-3) 9 points DOWN


7)   Columbus Crew, Eastern Conference (2-1-3) 9 points DOWN
Good news? 5 game unbeaten streak. Bad news? Not scoring goals.

8)   Portland Timbers, Western Conference (2-3-1) 7 points

9)   Colorado Rapids, Western Conference (3-3-0) 9 points DOWN

3 teams dropped five spots in this weeks rankings. Colorado dropped due to home loss versus the Sounders.

10) FC Dallas, Western Conference (2-3-1) 7 points UP

Big win at Vancouver. But the loss of David Ferreira will impact future results.

11) Chivas USA, Western Conference (1-2-3) 6 points UP

Away win at San Jose earns Chivas the biggest jump in the rankings this week.

12) New England Revolution, Eastern Conference (2-2-3) 9 points

13) San Jose Earthquakes, Western Conference (1-3-2) 5 points

14) D.C. United, Eastern Conference (2-3-1) 7 points DOWN

A critical home loss against rivals New York Red Bulls drops DC this week.

15) Sporting Kansas City, Eastern Conference (1-3-1) 4 points

16) Toronto FC, Eastern Conference (1-2-4) 7 points DOWN

Currently on a very poor run of form.

17) Chicago Fire, Eastern Conference (1-3-2) 5 points DOWN

18) Vancouver Whitecaps, Western Conference (1-3-3) 6 points DOWN

Expansion Whitecaps won their first match of the season, 0 wins, 3 losses and 3 draws since.

Major League Soccer Power Rankings, Week 5, 4/18/11

Major League Soccer has just finished Matchweek 5, with all but two of the teams having played at least five matches. Real Salt Lake and Sporting KC have played 4 matches.

Time for me to introduce my MLS Power Rankings. At this point in the season, I think I have a pretty good idea of how the league is sorting out, so I'm going to share my thoughts on a weekly basis. My rankings combine overall season performance along with current form, so it's my attempt to show the 18 teams as I currently see them.

Real Salt Lake #1, Week 5

Week 5 Power Rankings (wins-losses-draws):

1)   Real Salt Lake, Western Conference (4-0-0) 12 points
2)   Philadelphia Union, Eastern Conference (3-1-1) 10 points
3)   LA Galaxy, Western Conference (3-1-3) 12 points
4)   Colorado Rapids, Western Conference (3-2-0) 9 points
5)   Houston Dynamo, Eastern Conference (2-1-2) 8 points
6)   Columbus Crew, Eastern Conference (2-1-2) 8 points
7)   New York Red Bulls, Eastern Conference (2-1-2) 8 points
8)   Portland Timbers, Western Conference (2-2-1) 7 points
9)   D.C. United, Eastern Conference (2-2-1) 7 points
10) Seattle Sounders FC, Western Conference (1-2-3) 6 points
11) Toronto FC, Eastern Conference (1-2-3) 6 points
12) New England Revolution, Eastern Conference (1-2-3) 6 points
13) San Jose Earthquakes, Western Conference (1-2-2) 5 points
14) FC Dallas, Western Conference (1-3-1) 4 points
15) Sporting Kansas City, Eastern Conference (1-2-1) 4 points
16) Chicago Fire, Eastern Conference (1-3-1) 4 points
17) Vancouver Whitecaps, Western Conference (1-2-3) 6 points
18) Chivas USA, Western Conference (0-2-3) 3 points

A few comments:

- Real Salt Lake continues to dominate.
- The Portland Timbers are the biggest early season surprise. Two big victories this week earned them the 8th spot in my rankings.
-Sporting KC is the biggest early season disappointment. Their first home game can't come soon enough.
-The Chicago Fire started the season well, but have since gone into a 3 game tailspin.

Remember, the CONCACAF Champions League Finals begin this Wednesday, April 20th. The game is on Fox Soccer Channel, 8pm MST, 10pm EST. On Twitter, use the #MLS4RSL hashtag and support Real Salt Lake!

Mountain Time

My 2011 Major League Soccer Predictions

Can't get enough of the prediction game. I realize Major League Soccer had their First Kick last weekend, so I'm cheating a bit by making my predictions now.

2011 Eastern Conference Champions:

New York Red Bull

2011 Western Conference Champions:

Real Salt Lake

2011 MLS Cup Playoff Teams:



2011 Supporters Shield Winner!

New York Red Bull

DC United

Columbus Crew

Real Salt Lake

LA Galaxy

Colorado Rapids

Sporting KC

San Jose Earthquakes

Philadelphia Union

Houston Dynamo

2011 Supporters Shield Winner:

Real Salt Lake

2011 MLS Cup Champion:

New York Red Bull



2011 MLS Cup Champion!