MLS Crashes and Burns in CCL. Again.

Cruz Azul's Mario Pavone scored a hat trick as Azul demolished Sporting KC.

Remember last week when there was a little more than cautious optimism about MLS sides in CONCACAF Champions League play?  Reigning MLS Cup champs Sporting Kansas City took down Cruz Azul at home, and the LA Galaxy managed to hold off the Xolos of Tijuana.  Even San Jose managed to fight back late to earn a home draw against Toluca.  Things looked fairly bright.  If all three MLS clubs could pull a sweep in Mexico, it would guarantee that an MLS club would make the CCL final and have a chance to play for the trophy and a spot in the FIFA Club World Cup.

Then reality set in starting on Tuesday night, really harsh reality.

That night the LA Galaxy took on the Xolos at Estadio Caliente in Tijuana, and things went rotten quite quickly.  The 1-0 lead they had from winning at home evaporated in less than a minute.  The Galaxy couldn't clear their own box and the ball finally managed to fall to Xolo Jaime Ayovi, who easily knocked in the first goal of the match on 57 seconds, equalizing the aggregate.  By halftime, the Galaxy found themselves down 3-1.  Oops.  Still, the Xolos didn't have a road goal, and the Galaxy scored one through Robbie Keane out of halftime to make it 3-2.  One more goal and the Galaxy could take the series on road goals.  However, things fell apart in the last ten minutes Richard Ruiz scored for Tijuana in the 82nd, which put the Galaxy into full kitchen sink mode.  Keane managed his brace in the 85th, but they Galaxy were never able to tally the last needed goal and fell to the Xolos by a 4-3 aggregate.  The Galaxy fought hard, but just could not overcome the dreadful first half.

The first of two ties on Wednesday night involved Toluca hosting the San Jose Earthquakes, who came into the match tied 1-1 after yet another Goonie style comeback at Buck Shaw last week.  As an MLS fan, you have to hand it to the Quakes who were playing at 9,000 ft, much higher than Rio Tinto Stadium or even Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado.   The Quakes actually took the lead in the tie in the 56h minute through Ty Harden, but Toluca equalized 13 minutes later, sending the tie into extra time.  In the 96th minute Alan Gordon appeared to tally his second of the tie, but the goal was ruled out for offside.  It was really close call, but if you freeze fame the replay, he certainly looked even.  At any rate, the match ended up going into penalties, where Toluca picked up the victory 5-4.  The Quakes might feel a bit hard done by, but they certainly represented the league well.

That was certainly not the case for defending MLS Cup Champs Sporting Kansas City.  Now, in the interest of full disclosure, I'm still a little bitter over the MLS Cup final, and Cruz Azul is my favorite Liga MX side, so this probably isn't unbiased, but SKC laid a total egg at Estadio Azul.  Backup 'keeper Erick Kronberg got hammered and Azul blew up the the KC defense who suffered while Aurelien Collin sat on the bench.  They did their best keystone cop impression and Mario Pavone scored a hat trick on the way to a 5-1 victory in the match and 5-2 on aggregate.  It was a clueless performance from the champs, who from what I managed to see, didn't really look all that interested.  That's nice, because the supposed "best team in MLS" got obliterated on Mexican soil.  It was a result that I think sets the league back 2 or 3 years in CCL play.  Thanks Peter Vermes.  Why don't you let somebody who wants to play in next time, say, Seattle or RSL?

At any rate, MLS bows out yet again without even getting a team into the semis, let alone into the finals.  Both Houston and Canadian Champions Montreal were eliminated in the group stage.  For us RSL fans, we can continue to hold on to "we're the only ones to make the final," which stings a little as Portland was handed our spot when the qualification rules were changed AFTER the MLS season and playoffs last year, which doesn't seem fair, but whatever.  Next year we'll have the Timbers. the Red Bulls, and Sporting KC in as well as DC United (thanks to RSL's own massive egg laid in the US Open Cup final, and probably Vancouver, TFC, or Montreal provided they win the Canadian Championship.  I don't expect anything from DC United barring a massive improvement, Portland still has issues on the road and has only managed draws in it's first two home matches this season, Thierry Henry will probably come up with a reason not to play, and I really can't see Sporting KC doing any better.  So uh, maybe we hope TFC wins and goes in?  That's the ticket.

Another year, another disappointment for MLS fans.

Quakes Bounce Back to Draw Top Seed Toluca

Alan Gordon scored a stoppage time equalizer to draw Mexican side Toluca (sjearthquakes.com)

Stop me if you've heard this one: A team favored to beat the Earthquakes makes the trip to Buck Shaw Stadium, takes the lead, then seemingly has it all wrapped up going into stoppage time.  Of course, then this guy named Alan Gordon shows up, puts the ball in the back of the net, and the rest of us have to hear about "Goonie Magic" until the Quakes play again.

Well that's exactly what happened to Mexican side Toluca in CONCACAF Champions League play last night.  Toluca came in as the top seeded team in the knockout phase of the tournament and figured to have somewhat of an easy ride against the Quakes.  Toluca has had a pretty good 2014 Clausura campaign in Liga Mx as well, sitting second only to Cruz Azul.  I'll even admit that I didn't give the Quakes a chance at all in this tie.

I don't want to give the impression that the Quakes just showed up in stoppage time though.  They actually acquitted themselves fairly well for much of the match, but it was a mistake that cost them the lead in the first place.  In the 67th minute Jason Hernandez attempted to clear the ball from the Quakes' end, but saw his kick go only as far as Raul Nava, who is NOT the guy you want to gift the ball to at the edge of the box.  Nava deftly volleyed the ball past Jon Busch to give Toluca the 0-1 lead.

Fortunately for the Quakes fans, their club continued to press,  If you've watched MLS and the Quakes over the last couple of years, you know they don't give up, it just doesn't seem to be in their DNA, even after they changed coaches midway through the 2013 MLS season.  In the 79th minute Steven Lenhart headed a cross from Shea Salinas off of the crossbar.  Both JJ Koval and Alan Gordon had chances to tie the match on the rebound from this opportunity, but neither could get the ball through all the traffic in front of the Toluca goal.

So it seemed like that might be all she wrote as the match entered second half stoppage time.  Of course as it turns out, the Quakes had Toluca right where they wanted them.  In the fourth minute of added time, Salinas again provided a dangerous cross into the box.  This time it was Gordon who got his head to it first, and he didn't miss, bouncing his header in off the post to knot the match at 1-1, which was also the score at full time.

All in all the Quakes did a pretty good job last night, but Toluca are still going to be in the driver seat in this tie.  Next week the two sides will head down to Mexico and Toluca's Estadio Nemesio Diez to settle the score.  I don't think the Quakes will be able to rely on "Goonie Magic" in Mexico.  They'll have to finish their chances and more importantly keep the high flying Toluca side out of the goal as well.  It's just really hard to see San Jose coming away with a win in Mexico, but then again, you can never count this team out until the final whistle has sounded.

Mixed Results for MLS at the End of CCL Group Stage.

The group stage of the 2013-2014 CONCACAF Champions League wrapped up last night, and it was a mixed summer for MLS squads.  This year the LA Galaxy, Houston Dynamo, San Jose Earthquakes, and Sporting Kansas City filled the four US slots in the tournament while fellow MLS side Montreal Impact took the one Canadian slot available.  Three of the five MLS clubs will be moving on, but each one will face a tough Liga Mx side in the quarterfinals.

As RSL found out last year, the new tourney format with 8 groups and only the winner advancing is quite unforgiving.  The Dynamo learned this lesson last night as well as they fell to Arabe Unido 1-0 in Panama, which knocked them out of the tournament.  Of course, they continued to participate in what to me is a disturbing trend, MLS clubs fielding weaker sides in these matches.  Now, it's hard to blame the Dynamo for doing this when they have their regular season finale this weekend with the playoffs on the line, but it still goes to show where most MLS clubs rank this tournament.

Also in action last night were the LA Galaxy who traveled to El Salvador to take on to take on Isidro Metapan.  The Galaxy also fielded a weakened side, but their passage to the next round was already assured.  However, Metapan forward Nicholas Munoz dropped an insane 4 goals on the defending MLS Champs to crush them 4-0.  The Galaxy dropped from the 1 to the 6 seed in the next round with the loss, which as we'll see in a minute, created an interesting matchup.

Wednesday night Sporting Kansas City and the San Jose Earthquakes secured their passage to the knockout rounds as well.  Sporting held Honduran side Olimpia to a 0-0 draw at Sporting Park and the Quakes managed a 1-0 win over Heredia at Buck Shaw, thanks to a goal from Chris Wondolowski.

With all that said, here are the CCL Quarterfinal pairings, with the higher seed listed first:

Toluca vs San Jose Earthquakes
Cruz Azul vs Sporting Kansas City
Club Tijuana vs LA Galaxy
Arabe Unido vs Alajuelense

Honestly, I don't see much hope for MLS sides in this draw.  The Liga MX sides will be into their second half and the MLS sides will be looking at preseason type form.  Toluca should smash the the Quakes.  Sporting could have a shot at Cruz Azul if they can win at home.  The most interesting matchup is Tijuana and Herculez Gomez vs the Galaxy.  The Xolos haven't exactly been setting Liga Mx on fire, currently placed 12th out of 18.  However I still think this is going to be a tough ask for the Galaxy.  Should be a great tie to watch though.  Maybe Fox Sports 1 will actually show it, if not I can watch it on the Mexican broadcast I guess.  I'm sure Fox will have better things to show, like 20 consecutive replays of it's highlights show.

MLS out of CCL again. Is it bad luck, or something more?

Aldo De Nigris celebrates a goal against the LA Galaxy (AP Photo)

So, another year, another collapse.  Major League Soccer is facing another year without a representative in the CCL final.  Lord knows the Seattle Sounders gave it the old college try, and the Galaxy looked fully capable of beating Monterrey for the first 45 minutes in their series, but in the final analysis, the results just didn't come.

Let's look at a couple of facts here.  Number 1, despite the exits of the Sounders and the Galaxy at the hands of Santos Laguna and Monterrey, MLS clubs are doing better in this competition year after year, as MLS Analyst Matthew Doyle points out here.  The record keeps improving.  Now, some of this is against the Caribbean and Central American clubs, whom MLS have generally shown themselves to be superior, most of the time.  However, the league is starting to notch results against Mexican opposition every year as well.  RSL drew Monterrey in the first leg of the finals in Monterrey in 2011.  In 2012 both Seattle and FC Dallas notched wins against Mexican opponents.  This year, the Houston Dynamo beat Santos at home and the Sounders became the first club to eliminate a Mexican team in the knockout stages, beating Tigres.   Tigres is no slouch of a club.  So the evidence is there, it's getting better, just maybe not at the pace that MLS fans want it to.

Number 2: Mexico is still the better league, at least in this competition.  There are probably many factors at work here.  Many have pointed out the salary cap issue over the last couple of days.  While it is true that Mexican sides don't have the spending constraints  that MLS sides do, when you look at what went down in the semis, would a spending spree have helped, especially in light of the fact that MLS tends to spend it's DP money on attackers?

What am I getting at here?  Certainly both the Sounders and the Galaxy had their chances, and failed to finish them.  However, one can imagine that had the Sounders had a fully healthy compliment of Eddie Johnson and Obafemi Martins, and had the Galaxy had a fully fit Landon Donovan playing with Robbie Keane, those chances would have stood a better chance of being finished.  I'm not sure MLS is going to acquire better attackers than these guys in the near future, no matter how much cash you throw around.

What concerns me more is Major League Soccer's inability to put up a clean sheet in these games.  I grew up on the saying "Defense wins championships," and generally it's as true in soccer as it is in American football, unless you're Barcelona and you're just going hold the ball for 90 minutes, but even Barca have had their lack of defense exposed of late.  The fact is, had the Sounders and the Galaxy been able to take care of business and pitch clean sheets in the home legs of their series, they would not have been in that position.  Ditto RSL in the 2011 final.  Giving up road goals in these finals and semifinals are killer.  Defense looks like it might be a concern for Seattle all year, and outside of Omar Gonzalez, the Galaxy might have some issues too.

So in the end, I would like to see MLS sides focus more on the defensive side of things.  That's just me.  After all, I'm a Serie A fan, and I love defensive football, I love making the other side earn it.  The fact is, if you put up a clean sheet, especially in your home leg, you're gonna give yourself a chance to win.

I also tend to agree that the salary cap needs to be raised a little as well, though I'm not one that would advocate for the elimination of the cap or a huge increase, I don't think you want to price the smaller clubs out of MLS competition to try and buy a CCL trophy.  While winning the CCL would bring international recognition to the league, clubs have to remain competitive at home to keep MLS growing and sustainable,

I would like to see a 4th DP added though.  However, it's fair to point out that many teams, if not most, aren't using all three slots available at the moment.  Still that might give a club like Seattle, LA, RSL, or Sporting a chance to go out and spend a little more on another player that might get them over the hump in CCL, though of course RSL and Seattle fans won't have a stake in champion's league this year, sadly.

So there's my take.  We're getting closer.  After all, this league is less than 20 years old, and I generally think MLS and club management are doing a great job.  I don't think it's time to panic, and I don't think it's time to open the flood gates for cash, let's just keep building block by block.  What do you folks think?

CCL: MLS Hopes Take Hit as Seattle, L.A. Drop Home Legs

Humberto Suazo once again helped down an MLS side (Getty Images)

Major League Soccer seems to be falling into a pattern in CONCACAF Champions League since RSL lost to Monterrey in the finals a couple of years ago.  We're seeing greater success in the group stage, despite the reworked format, and we even succeeded in knocking a Mexican team out (Seattle over Tigres) in the later stages this year.  However, our clubs seem to run into problems in the semis against Mexican clubs that are tried and tested in the CCL, namely Santos Laguna and the aforementioned Monterrey.  Both of the remaining MLS clubs (Seattle and defending MLS Cup champs L.A.) hosted their home legs this week, and both dropped tough decisions, giving up away goals to these strong Mexican sides in advance of the road legs south of the border next week.

First up, Seattle hosted Santos Tuesday night at Century Link Field.  The odds were somewhat stacked against the Sounders going in, as both of their top line strikers (USA International Eddie Johnson and Nigerian International Obafemi Martins) were set to miss the match with injuries either picked up or aggravated during Saturday's league loss at Real Salt Lake.  On top of that, coach Sigi Schmidt was so seemingly unimpressed with his side that both Mauro Rosales and Steve Zakuani started the match on the subs bench.

The Sounders would largely be counting on Sammy Ochoa and Honduran Mario Martinez to provide the offense in a side that seemed to be set up to just try and stop Santos Laguna.  This strategy seemed questionable because even if the Sounders obtained a favorable result, they still faced a tough match in Torreon for the second leg, where last year Santos thrashed them 6-1.  In the end it was all moot though, because the offense never came.  Martinez struggled with hitting the target all night long, often settling for shots near the top of or outside the penalty area.  Ochoa was a joke.  His "highlight" came in the second half when his shot, on his best look of the night, went out for a throw in, a total embarrassment.

Still, Seattle's defense looked like it might not break, though it was certainly bending.  Despite increased pressure from the Mexican side, Seattle held the nil-nil draw through the end of the first half, with much thanks going to 'keeper Marcus Hahnemann, who had been in beast mode for the Sounders.  It all came crashing down in the second half though.  In the 53rd minute Santos struck out on a counter attack after a succession of three consecutive Seattle corners failed to produce much of anything.  They totally caught Seattle too far forward, and Carlos Darwin Quintero and Herculez Gomez streaked toward the Seattle goal.  Quintero unleashed a venomous shot, but Hanhnemann made a great stop to his side.  Unfortunately, the rebound went right to Gomez, who bashed the shot into the top of the net to make it 0-1 to Santos and give Seattle yet another reason to retire the "Sounders reject" chant for him.

In the end, it would be all Santos needed.  Seattle brought in Rosales and Zakuani late on, but it was far too little too late.  They didn't really affect the match, and Santos held on for a 0-1 victory on US soil.

With that, the league looked to it's defending champions, the Los Angeles Galaxy.  There was reason for MLS to be hopeful about this.  Unlike Seattle, the Galaxy have been in fine form in the league and Landon Donovan had returned to the team and was ready to go, though he didn't start.  The downside was that they were playing CCL juggernaut Monterrey.  A good result seemed to be required for the Galaxy with the second leg being away to the two time defending CCL Champs.

It didn't turn out to be scintillating affair.  The match featured 21 fouls and four yellow cards, while only producing seven shots on goal.  The Galaxy had the better of it for large parts of the game, though I do disagree with the official MLS recap's assertion that they "were unfortunate not to score several more goals."  The Galaxy got three shots in target, 1 of them went in.  They still looked the better side early on though, and in the 28th minute AJ DeLaGarza gave the Galaxy the 1-0 lead.   He flicked a nice header from Mike Magee (the MLS player of the month for March) into the back of the net, putting Monterrey on their heals.

However, Los Rayados gradually started to control proceedings in the second half.  In the 61st minute Juninho went off injured after rolling his ankle and it was the moment Monterrey needed.  Old RSL foes Humberto Suazo and Aldo De Nigris surfaced once again to draw blood on an MLS side.  Suazo tallied in the 82nd minute after LA 'keeper Cudicini gave up a rebound from a De Nigris shot,  De Nigris himself slipped in the dagger in the first minute of stoppage time, when Guillermo Madrigal set him up with a nice ball inside Omar Gonzalez.  De Nigris easily finished past Cudicini to make it 1-2 and seal the win for Los Rayados.  Monterrey's manager commented after the match that you have to play the full 90 minutes.  This could serve as both a praise for his team's comeback and an indictment of the Galaxy's fading down the stretch.

Both MLS sides now face an uphill battle in Mexico next week.  Both must overcome an away goal advantage.  It might be less of a task for Seattle.  They hope to have Johnson and Martins back in the lineup, plus they only conceded once, so if they could manage a 0-1 win and tie the aggregate they could force extra time.  However, do I see Seattle's defense putting up a clean sheet on Santos in Torreon?  No, of course not.  Seattle will have to push, and it will leave them dangerously exposed to same kind of counter that took them down on Tuesday.

The Galaxy look to be in even bigger trouble.  True, they scored, but they also conceded the two road goals which means even if they could level the aggregate at 2-2, Monterrey still has the advantage.  The Galaxy pretty much have to score twice.  They have the players to do it, but I just can't bring myself to bet against Monterrey and Suazo at this stage.  We'll have to see what happens.

Late Davis Strike Propels Dynamo to CCL Win

The Dynamo celebrate Davis's 89th minute winner (houstondynamo.com)

The Houston Dynamo deserve a lot of credit for what they were able to accomplish last night at BBVA Compass Stadium.  Overall, they played a pretty smart brand of football (though not always pretty or perfect) and managed to ride a late goal by Brad Davis to a win and a 1-0 aggregate lead over Santos Laguna in the CONCACAF Champions League.

They certainly weren't dominating by any stretch of the imagination, and Santos came out firing with Darwin Quintero hitting the first shot in the very first minute, only to see his effort go off target.  Marc Crosas also missed the frame in the third minute, and after that Houston started to settle down. 

The first quality chance of the match fell to the Dynamo on 18 minutes.  Houston had been applying some pressure to Santos goal, and it paid off with a corner kick chance.  Bobby Boswell directed a bullet header on frame from said corner, and looked to have Santos 'keeper Oswaldo Sanchez beaten, but the Santos defender stationed at the post did his job, clearing it just off the line to keep the MLS side from taking the lead.

However the Dynamo nearly surrendered a goal of their own just two minutes later.  In a preview of what was to be a theme of the night, Houston 'keeper Tally Hall played a kick out of goal, trying to build from the back.  Unfortunately he kicked it right to Herculez Gomez.  The American international played it over to Quintero, but once again Houston was fortunate to see his shot drift harmlessly away from the target.  The Dynamo had a few bad flubs playing out of the back, but luckily Santos were not able to capitalize.

Fast forward to the second half where Santos had their best spell of the match on 57 minutes.  An outstanding move up the pitch resulted in a great look for Oribe Peralta, which he managed to put on frame.  Tally Hall was equal to the effort though, making a great save to preserve the the clean sheet.

In the 89th minute Jermaine Taylor couldn't find the target from a header off a corner kick and Santos took the ball back up the pitch and looked as though they were all set to settle in for a scoreless draw.  However, they turned the ball over just inside the Dynamo half and Houston streaked up the field on a counter attack.  Corey Ashe hit Brad Davis just inside the left of the penalty area, and the Dynamo marksman calmly slid the ball inside the far post to give the Dynamo the 1-0 win.  It was a great finish by a great player.

Now, will it be enough to hold up for Houston down in Torreon?  I kind of doubt it.  Still the 1 goal win without allowing the away goal was the minimum that Houston needed to achieve and they did just that.  As long as they can go punch to punch with Santos down in Mexico, they'll have a shot as the Mexicans weren't able to secure a road goal advantage.  It will still be tough, though this Santos team is obviously not as lethal as previous editions.  In the end, no matter what happens, this was still a nice win for them which should help to continue to build the confidence of MLS sides in this tournament.

The Day After: An RSL Supporter's Perspective and Recovery

This pic sums up the night at Rio Tinto Stadium (realsaltlake.com)

So as someone who is both an RSL fan and someone who at least tries to be a fairly unbiased blogger about the beautiful game, I've been doing a lot of thinking in the last 24 hours about what I was going to say in this space.  Last night when I left Rio Tinto Stadium, cold and absolutely soaked to the bone, I was struggling with another feeling that I'm not all that used to when departing an RSL match: disappointment, bitter disappointment.

I've felt it before of course.  This campaign has had it's share of ups and downs.  The farce of a match that was the US Open Cup loss to Minnesota was absolutely horrid.  Of course many of us, including myself, think back to the Ultimate Disappointment: dropping the CONCACAF Champions League final second leg to Monterrey at home in April 2011.  That memory, that bad taste in my mouth, will never quite go away.  I'm sure it's even worse for the players that participated.

Now obviously last night was not a disappointment of that magnitude, for me anyway.  A lot of MLS pundits were throwing that around last night and this morning, but trust me, it's different.  Certainly reaching the CCL knock out round was one of the team's goals this year, but failing that is a whole different world from being that close to a major trophy and not touching it, to be that close to going to the FIFA Club World Cup and maybe a match against a club like Barcelona or Chelsea.

So what happened?  What were the fatal flaws for the Claret and Cobalt this time around?  I have a couple of ideas.  It's really tempting for me to overly critical, still just 24 hours after the final whistle.  However, for the most part I'm going to try and take a bit of a high road, highlighting some general trends instead of picking apart individual performances.  Heaven knows there were a couple of performances that need to be picked apart, but anyone with more than a remote interest in and knowledge of RSL can easily pick them out.

First off, this team is absolutely toothless without Alvaro Saborio.  I highlighted this several weeks ago, and then Fabian Espindola and Javier Morales picked up a couple of goals and the thought faded a bit.  Well guess what?  RSL scored zero goals at Seattle up a man, and zero goals against Herediano on their home turf.  Let's face it, the Herediano 'keeper made some really nice saves, but it really wasn't that close.

This has to be addressed.  The book on stopping RSL in the playoffs is now wide open and obvious.  Stop Saborio and you stop RSL.  As close to Superman as Sabo sometimes seems, he'll have a tough time cutting through MLS's better defenses if we have no other viable scoring threat.  This brings up a question.  Why are we bothering to pay Justin Braun?  I get it.  He doesn't have the system down.  Coach Kreis says he needs to be more consistent in training.  Couldn't these things have been known earlier in the season when we acquired him, theoretically adding depth to our forward corps?  Braun is not Sabo, not anywhere close, but as our guys sent desperate cross after desperate cross into the box late last night, it was obvious that we were missing the target man.  One would think after a few years in MLS a player like Braun would at least be able to fill that roll in a rudimentary fashion.

Secondly, the team lacks the depth it had in the 2010-2011 CCL run.  That was obvious last night when Kreis's hand was forced on two of the three subs.  While I think Sebastian Velasquez might indeed have a promising future with RSL, the spot was too big last night, and at any rate, he wasn't the type of player we needed.  As for the forwards, Espindola and Paulo Jr are too similar, especially considering the park the bus strategy that Herediano wisely employed during the second half.  Neither of those speedsters were going to get in the box and mix it up with the white shirts.  Espindola did try, and got clocked when going in for the attempt.  He took an NFL sized hit going for a header late in the match.  Can't fault him for trying, but it's not his game.  I'm sorry, Emiliano Bonfigli isn't the answer either.

This lack of depth first reared it's ugly head during the aforementioned US Open Cup match, when RSL was missing a number of guys to international duty.  The thrashing they took was ugly, and sparked some changes.  Braun was added.  Kwame Watson-Siriboe was added.  Kenny Mansally was added.  I've discussed Braun, and obviously Watson-Siriboe was a great catch and helped save this team's bacon as Olave and Schuler were both injured.  Mansally took a nasty injury against Tauro FC, but has looked pretty impressive when he's had the minutes.

The midfield depth is there, but is young, albeit capable, I think.  The concern is forward.  RSL needs another target man to back up Sabo.  The problem they now have is, how do you go out and get him without the extra allocation money?

Finally, I think one of the biggest things working against RSL this time were the high expectations.  High expectations are great, and they deserved to be high.  RSL has remained focused on this tournament since losing the 2011 final.    Since they had success before and had the veteran class to get it done, it was natural that the team, the fans, and the league expected RSL to excel this time around as well.  It just wasn't to be, but those high expectations, perhaps too high for a team a bit long in the tooth, leave bitter disappointment in their wake, as opposed to the "we were just happy to be here" feeling that so many sports teams delude themselves with.

In the end, you can't fault the effort of the players on the pitch.  There was not once in 90 minutes last night that I questioned whether our guys were giving 100%.  They knew what they had to do, and just couldn't do it.  Some credit has to go to Herediano as well.  That team was not messing around.  They were a very capable club both on offense and defense.  Unfortuantely they did result to the typical CONCACAF tactics of diving and delaying late on, but by that point RSL was doing nothing but scrambling.

As my friend and I turned onto the street where I live, about an hour north of Rio Tinto Stadium, I remarked that it was still possible to smile, that after all, it wasn't 2011.  That seems like it might be a weird spot for a supporter's recovery to begin, but I realized something: to really grasp the excitement of the highs, they have to be contrasted with the horrible disappointment of the lows. The peak RSL climbed in 2011 was huge, and they so nearly stood on the summit and took all of us with them.  They fell a few steps short, but we were still proud.  This year, they didn't get as far up the mountain, but it wasn't for lack of effort.  This time they took us along as well, and in the end we are still proud.  You'll never make the summit without taking the climb, and there will be more summits ahead for RSL and her proud fans.

Puddle's Goal of the Midweek: Kyle Beckerman vs. Tauro FC

Yes, I'm gonna put on my homer hat for this one, partially because seeing it live was AMAZING.  My favorite goal from midweek action comes courtesy of Real Salt Lake Captain Kyle Beckerman in the second half of RSL's 2-0 win over Tauro FC in CONCACAF Champions League play.

I couldn't find a video grab of just the goal, so this is the 2 minute highlight package.  Well worth watching anyway, but if you like, FF to about 1:17 to see Captain Kyle's goal.  If you stick with it, you can see the boot to the nether-regions of the Tauro player that got him sent off as well.

RSL Serves CCL Notice With Dominant Win

Alvaro Saborio scores RSL's first goal vs. Tauro FC.  (Reuters)

Real Salt Lake had their backs against the wall last night, there can be no question about that.  After a disappointing loss to Herediano to open CCL play, RSL had to come out of this one with 3 points to have any hope of advancing past the group stage.  It's safe to say they responded rather well.

The first half against Tauro FC was dominated by the Claret and Cobalt, unfortunately it was also punctuated by the type of histrionics that we've come to expect from the Central American sides.  The Tauro players looked for any contact then went down as if shot by a sniper, earning delay after delay.  A nice new wrinkle appeared as well, with the Tauro 'keeper going down every chance he got, forcing even longer delays and making the Rio Tinto fans chant their own suggestion of "get some Midol."

As it turns out, he was ok, and he needed to be as he faced several outstanding efforts from RSL in the first half.  Unfortunately for the 20,000+ at Rio Tinto, he was up to the task.  RSL's play was extremely encouraging though.  They kept the tempo high through much of the first half and really could have gone to the locker room up 2-0 already.

The Panamanian side was forced to abandon their diving ways early in the second half though.  In the 48th minute Paulo Jr. unleashed a brilliant 40 yard run, slipping the Tauro defense.  He slapped a shot on goal, only to have it saved once more.  However, the rebound fell kindly to Alvaro Saborio who blasted the ball into the net to make it 1-0 to RSL.

Captain Kyle Beckerman got the all important insurance goal in the 58th minute as well.  Paulo Jr was again the spark, as he slid a pass to Beckerman near the top of the area.  Kyle hit a low laser into the bottom of the net to make it 2-0.

Unfortunately that would be all the goals that RSL could muster, as Beckerman got himself sent off.  In the 72nd minute he went into a flying tackle studs up and caught a Tauro player in a rather delicate region.  RSL's captain earned a red card and the Tauro man will probably be singing soprano for awhile.  Beckerman was retaliating for a deliberate knee to the face a couple of minutes earlier that went unnoticed by the referee.

The other bad news for RSL is that FB Kenny Mansally suffered a sprained MCL from a dirty studs up tackle by a Tauro player.    The Tauro man was given a yellow on the play, and Mansally will face some time on the sideline.

RSL will face Tauro again on Sept 18 in Panama for their next CCL match.

MLS CONCACAF Round-Up: Week 1

All things considered, it was pretty good opening week for Major League Soccer clubs in CONCACAF Champions League play.  I'm sure Real Salt Lake fans would have liked to see a different result in Costa Rica, but both Toronto FC and Seattle Sounders put forth convincing wins on their home grounds.

The league kicked off action Tuesday night with 2010-2011 finalist Real Salt Lake in Costa Rica to take on Herediano, the most recent Costa Rican champions.  Folks were excited because RSL was playing their first choice XI for the first time in awhile.  These guys had only played 59 minutes together all season.  However, RSL lacked an attacking impetus for much of the match and gave up an early goal as Elias Aguilar scored for the home side in minute 14.  Things would get worse for RSL as Nat Borchers was dismissed with a straight red card in the 58th minute, then Jamison Olave went down with a hamstring injury just five minutes later. The Claret and Cobalt gamely hung on though, keeping Herediano out of the net for the last 30 minutes.  That could be huge as goal difference should be major in this tournament.

Canadian Championship side Toronto FC started off their new run Wednesday night at home against CD Aquila.  Last season TFC went to the semi finals, and they started off this campaign by putting the El Salvador side to the sword by a 5-1 score.  TFC recorded the first two strikes of the match, but in the 37th minute Aguila capitalized on a howler by Milos Kocic to make it 2-1.  TFC scored again just three minutes later and the route was back on.  Reggie Lambe scored a brace for the Reds and Luis Silva, Terry Dunfield, and Ryan Johnson all found their way onto the score sheet as well.

Seattle Sounders rounded out the week by hosting Trinidad and Tobago side Caledonia.  They took care of business, slapping a 3-1 win on the visitors.  Seattle got first half goals from Sammy Ochoa, Fredy Montero, and Andy Rose to take a 3-0 lead into the interval.  Caledonia tried to claw their way back into the match in the second half.   Seattle defender Jhon-Kennedy Hurtado conceded a PK in the 50th minute, which the visitors converted.  Caledonia would go on to threaten some more, but in the end Seattle rather easily held serve to claim the win.

CCL Preview: Herediano vs. Real Salt Lake

MLS and RSL fans, welcome to another season of CONCACAF Champions League action.  This year MLS will once again begin the quest to claim it's first ever CCL crown and a spot in the FIFA Club World Cup.  Five MLS clubs will try for that honor:  MLS Cup Champion LA Galaxy, US Open Cup Champion Seattle Sounders, Eastern Conference Champion Houston Dynamo, Canadian Champion Toronto FC, and Western Conference Runner-Up Real Salt Lake.

It's been a long wait for RSL and their fans to get back into the competition they so nearly won in 2010-2011.  Tonight's match in Costa Rica could be one of the most anticipated kick-offs of the season.  The Claret and Cobalt were drawn into a group with Herediano from Costa Rica and Tauro FC from Panama.  Tonight they begin their run in the group stage vs. Herediano.

Herediano is one of Costa Rica's historic clubs.  They are the defending champs from Costa Rica, winning that league for the first time in 20 years in spring, 2012.  All in all this is their third appearance in the CCL, and they've won 22 Costa Rican titles.  It's also worth noting that they qualified for the old CONCACAF Champions Cup format 6 times, where they reached the semifinals in 1989.

Last year Herediano went out in the group stage.  They were drawn in a very tough group with Seattle and eventual champions Monterrey.  This year, only one team gets out of every group, and your record will determine your seed in the knockout round, so every match and every goal is important!

Obviously CCL is a big deal for RSL.  Coach Kreis said as much earlier this, week, putting his focus square on this match after the league win against Vancouver Friday night.  Kreis held three starters out of the XI that night, Jamison Olave, Chris Wingert, and Ned Grabavoy.  Wingert and Grabavoy did see the pitch, but not until the second half.  Captain Kyle Beckerman was also subbed out, a rarity in itself, showing just how much emphasis RSL is putting on this match.  The Claret and Cobalt is expected to have their first choice XI on the field to start the match tonight.  These guys have only played 59 minutes together this season.  Hopefully for RSL fans, they're getting healthy at the right time.

RSL has played in Costa Rica before, when they took on Saprissa in the 2010-2011 tourney, but this will be a bit of a different animal.  Herediano manager Odir Jacques has managed the Costa Rican national side and is considered to be a quality head man.  Herediano lost a key cog in their offense over the summer with the departure of Brazilian striker Jorge Barbosa.  He was the third leading scorer in last season's CCL.  Herediano kicked off their new league campaign last Thursday with a 2-0 win at home over Santos de Guapiles.

The match kicks off at 8PM Mountain time and can be seen on Fox Soccer.  You can also register to stream this and other CCL matches for free on  http://www.concacafchampions.com/page/CL/Home

CCL Semis: Toronto FC vs Santos Laguna

TFC's Ashtone Morgan in Wednesday's match (Mexsport/MLSSoccer.com)

I think a lot of us thought that Wednesday night's CONCACAF Champions League match between Toronto FC and Santos was going to get ugly.  However, I for one expected it to be ugly on the scoreboard, not in the red card/fighting kind of ugly.  Toronto was playing without their captain and key defensive player Torsten Frings, and the smart money was on the Mexican power house side to put a real whipping on TFC, but to the Reds' credit, it didn't work out that way.

It really could have though.  Despite a little early possession by the Canadian champs, Santos looked to be the much more dangerous side.  TFC's trap wasn't working well and was resulting in good runs and chances for the Mexican side.  In the 12th minute, TFC turned the ball over in their own end and Darwin Quintero nearly made them pay, but his shot was well saved by Milos Kocic.  In the 19th minute, it was American international Herculez Gomez's turn to test Kocic. but the TFC 'keeper saved his shot as well.  Finally in the 30th minute, Gomez broke free off of a pass from Quintero and slotted the ball past Kocic to give Santos the 0-1 lead.

I really thought Toronto would just fold here.  I even commented to that effect on my twitter stream live during the match.  To their credit, they didn't.  In fact, they responded really well.  In the 34th minute Danny Koevermans had a shot barely cleared off the line.  Then in the 37th minute, TFC equalized off of a set piece, as Miguel Aceval knocked the ball through the Santos wall and into the goal to make it 1-1 at halftime.

There would be no goals in the second half, but there was plenty to talk about.  Both sides created multiple chances, but both 'keepers played well and were up to the task.  The story of the match started to become it's physical nature.  I had trouble believing what I was seeing, but TFC actually looked like they got into Santos's heads.  Marc Crosas earned Santos's first yellow in the 76th for a hard tackle on TFC's Ryan Johnson.  Then just over a minute later Osmar Mares earned a straight red for a studs up follow through into the chest of Richard Eckersley.    However, in the end, TFC couldn't take advantage of the Santos shortage and the match finished at 1-1.

Then the extra drama really started.  Right at the whistle, Quintero head butted TFC's Ashtone Morgan, who had been physically tangling with the Santos player all match long.  The linesman saw it, called the referee's attention to it, and Quintero was issued a red card.  Then an all out brawl started, with players and staff from both teams.  Santos claims there were TFC players sucker punching Santos players during the melee.  I didn't see it, so I don't know.  Gomez claims to have seen Morgan punch Quintero in the face before the head butt, so who knows?

All I know is, TFC managed a good result that will give them a shot in the next leg.  However, they still gave up an away goal, and my advice is that they should probably think twice before starting a fight down in Mexico.

Still, it was somewhat ironic to see a Mexican side complaining about an American referee for a change!

2012 CCL Quarters: Morelia vs. Monterrey

Monterrey's Jesus De Nigris strikes. (Rayados.com)

So this matchup is the only quarterfinal to pit two Mexican Primera sides against each other. Monterrey is the defending CCL champs, meanwhile Morelia has been flying high in the league. I looked for Morelia to do better honestly.

The match started out a little tentative on both sides. The clubs traded possession a bit, but there were no chances carved out until Edison Toloza put Morelia's first shot high in the 17th minute. After that, Morelia seemed to begin to warm to the task.

Their possession became much more steady and they started to hem Monterrey in close to their own penalty area. In the 20th minute Rafael Marquez Lugo rolled a shot on goal, but their best chance came in the 22nd minute. Edgar Lugo took a cross in the area and put a bullet header on target. Jonathan Orozco stuck out his left leg, and the ball barely deflected wide off of his shin. It really should have been 1-0.

Then just a few minutes later, Monterrey struck first against the run of play. In the 28th, Mauricio Romero took down Angel Reyna Martinez just inside the 18, resulting in a penalty kick for Monterrey. Humberto Suazo stepped up and nailed the spot kick to make it 0-1 to Monterrey.

Morelia responded right away to giving up the all important away goal, engineering a couple more quality chances before halftime. Marquez Lugo nearly struck again in the 37th, but Orozco denied him. Unfortunately for Morelia, Suazo added a second for Los Rayados in the 41st, taking a centering pass and slapping it inside the far post to make it 0-2 to Monterrey at the half.

Morelia did their best to climb back into the tie in the second half. Monterrey had surrendered a number of quality set piece chances, but just couldn't convert one. They did get their goal from the run of play in the 60th minute. Joel Huiqui took a gorgeous cross from Edgar Lugo and headed it into the back post to make it 1-2.

Had it stayed like that, Morelia might have felt better about their chances in the return leg. However, disaster struck in stoppage time. Monterrey sent in a shot in the 92nd minute, it was blocked but the ball ended up bouncing around in front of the goal mouth. Finally Abraham Carreno got a foot to it and tapped it in to give Monterrey the 1-3 win.

That will mean Morelia will have to score 3 goals at Monterrey and keep Suazo and company out of the net. I'm not real confident in their chances of accomplishing that.

Puddle's 2012 CCL Quarterfinal Preview

I want to point all of the Puddle's readers that are interested in MLS, Mexico Primera Division, and CONCACAF Champions League to an excellent article on FoxSoccer.com about the Mexican sides that will be participating in the last 8 of CCL. Eben Lehman does a great job hashing out the chances of each side. Check out the article HERE.


Also here's my take on the Quarter-Final matchups:


Morelia vs. Monterrey
The defending CCL Champs will probably be the underdog in this one. However, Humberto Suazo's in form return to the club should help bolster Monterrey and give them a better chance to defend their title. However, Morelia has been in great form and I'll give them the edge in this one. Might be tricky with the 2nd leg being at Monterrey though.

Seattle Sounders FC vs. Santos Laguna
The advantage that Santos is going to have here is that they're in midseason form, and are playing pretty well. Seattle is just coming off the end of preseason. Plus the second leg is in Mexico. I look for Seattle to put a up a great fight, but come up short. They must NOT let Santos secure an away goal, that will be a key. If they can come out of the Clink with a clean sheet, they'll have a much better chance. I'll take Santos though.

Toronto FC vs. LA Galaxy
I look for Toronto to be much improved this year, and to sew up their first MLS playoff spot. However, I just don't see them overcoming the Galaxy here. Tough draw for them, especially with the second leg being in LA. I think TFC is leaps and bounds better than before, but the Galaxy are just too good for this matchup.

UNAM Pumas vs. Isidro Metapan
Remember when the Rapids said Metapan were the weakest team in that group? Oops. Metapan could be a sleeper here. Pumas have not been all that great in league play, and were less than stellar at times in the CCL group stage. The winner of this series gets either Morelia or Monterrey, so while I think Metapan will takes this, I think it will ultimately be the winner of Morelia/Monterrey in the final.

CONCACAF Champions League: Comunicaciones vs. Seattle Sounders

First off, congrats to Seattle. Their draw tonight makes them the first team to punch their ticket through to the knockout stage of CONCACAF Champions League. They've represented the league well.

This was a tough match for them tonight in conditions that were far from ideal in Guatemala City. They faced a crappy plastic pitch and an absolute downpour through most of the match. Comunicaciones got on the board first in the 7th minute off of a counter attack. Transito Montepeque slipped behind the Seattle defense and chipped the ball into goal over Keller to give Las Cremas the 1-0 lead.

Seattle responded well though. They didn't panic. Their patience finally paid off in the 44th minute. After a set piece, the ball went loose and Osvaldo Alonso pounded it past the Cremas keeper to tie the match at 1-1 going into half time.

I know Seattle wanted to take all three points. Their starting lineup reflected that. However, it looked through much of the second half like they were willing to settle for the draw and the ticket to the next round. This came back to haunt them in the 64th minute when Keller failed to punch a ball away from goal and Rafael Morales punched in the rebound to give Las Cremas the 2-1 lead.

After that it looked like the group was going to be thrown into disarray, but Alonso came to the rescue of the Sounders once again. This time he blasted home the equalizer in the 89th minute to stun the crowd in Guatemala, particularly since the home side had gone to such great lengths to run time off the clock. The match finished at 2-2.

The draw moves Seattle to 10 points and a slot in the next round. They enjoy the tie breaker over Comunicaciones by virtue of a win and a draw. In two weeks they will meet Monterrey in Seattle to decide who wins the group. Comunicaciones will need a Seattle win to have any hope of advancing.

CONCACAF Champions League: Alajuelense vs LA Galaxy

Nothing happened in this match. Period. La Liga Captain Pablo Gabas lasered in a Golazo free kick in the 29th minute to give the Costa Rican side the only goal they would need to beat the Galaxy, who seemed more interested in yelling at the ref and screaming at the Costa Rican players than trying to equalize.

First off, MLS fans, get over it. Central American teams play like this, period. They dive, they spit, they delay, they knock you around. They're not going to stop because the Americans in their perfectly manicured kits come to town. David Beckham and Robbie Keane? Fuck that, they got beat. They couldn't even score. Landon Donovan? Invisible, except when he was getting the crap beat out of him.

The fans for Alajulense were loud, vulgar, and proud. The article on MLS's website mentions the bad language. You know what? It happens. MLS fans get chided for doing the YSA chant while Mexican fans sitting a few rows over chant PUTO all day long. It's not going to change.

LA got manhandled and the Costa Ricans really got in their heads. I thought Mike Magee was gonna have a stroke when a Liga player flopped down late. De la Garza jumped all over another Costa Rican that he perceived to be taking too long on a throw. It just plays right into their hands. The Galaxy whined, and lost. Let your soccer do the talking.

For the most part, that's what RSL did last year. They stayed disciplined and played soccer. If American clubs want to continue to have success in this tourney, they need to do the same thing. It has been an ugly couple of weeks.

CONCACAF Champions League: FC Dallas vs. Pumas

So this is my first blog about a bad night for MLS in CONCACAF Champions League play. A few weeks back FC Dallas gave the league a lift by beating Pumas in Mexico to become the first MLS team to win on Mexican soil. That all seems so long ago.

Obviously Pumas really didn't take Dallas seriously in that one. Tonight was a whole different story. They came into Dallas looking to paste the Hoops, with the local Mexican population behind them, and that's exactly what happened.

Dallas spurted and sputtered right out of the gate. They did get some possession, but they just never really got off the ground. They looked like an exhausted team that was just giving up. Even Brek Shea was nowhere to be found tonight.

Things really got interesting in minute 42. The match had been pretty physical, but it went up a level. Pumas player Luis Fuentes head butted Jackson, who replied with an elbow to the Mexican's head. Both players received red cards and were ejected. That was about all that was exciting in the first half though. It ended scoreless.


The match didn't end scoreless though. Through moat of it, Dallas had done a pretty good job absorbing the Pumas pressure. They couldn't do it for 90 minutes though. Pumas tallied two goals late. One by Aguirre in the 84th, and another by Izazola in stoppage time to give Pumas the 0-2 win. Not a good effort at all from Dallas.

Throughout the entire match, FC Dallas failed to register a shot on goal. Pumas takes over the group lead and TFC is right there with Dallas.

CONCACAF Champions League: Seattle Sounders vs. Herediano (CRC)

I just realized I got my teams switched up on my previous blog about the match between these two down in Costa Rica. Oops. Oh well.

Anyway, Seattle had a little something to think about coming into this one tonight. They had max points after three games in the group, and they already had arguably their toughest match, at Monterrey, behind them. While a win tonight would have punched their ticket to the next stage, they also have the Open Cup final to contend with as well as an MLS stretch run to make.

Knowing all this, they decided to rest some guys.

It almost worked out too. Seattle was the better side most of the night, but the 15 or so minutes that they let off the gas in the first half cost them. Arrias drilled home a free kick for a GOLAZO in the 35th minute to give the Costa Ricans a 0-1 lead. Oops. That was also our score at half time.

Seattle turned up the heat in the second half, bringing in Montero and Alonso. However, as much as Montero tried to create, the final ball from Seattle was just not there all night long. Both Jaqua and Noonan were pretty much horrid in front of goal. Both of them failed to get shots on target that should have been routine. In the end, despite the pressure from the home side, Herediano held on for the 0-1 win.

CONCACAF Champions League: Toronto FC vs. Tauro FC

So tonight in Toronto it was Canada vs. Panama. Both of these sides needed 3 points to have any chance of staying relevant in a group topped by FC Dallas and Pumas. So, knowing that, you'd think this might be a pretty fun match to watch, right?

Wrong.

Toronto took control of proceedings right from the outset. They had a lot of good development play and a nice, attacking look about them. However, they seemed to be having a hard time getting quality chances. It looked like Tauro was largely trying to soak up the pressure and maybe catch a goal on the counter. We've never seen that from a Central American side before, right?

Danny Koevermans was by far the most active and effective offensive player all night for TFC. He continued to look impressive after dropping a brace on Colorado over the weekend. He had a couple of nice strikes and headers on target. He finally broke through for TFC in the 40th minute with an ugly back header that managed to elude the keeper and trickle over the line. It wasn't pretty, but it counted all the same. The Reds led 1-0 at half time.

Tauro tried to push things in the second half, but honestly never seemed to trouble Kocic in goal for TFC. They got a couple balls in on target, but not much that was very threatening. However, both sides got physical late as frustration set in for Tauro, and several yellows were issued. In the end TFC held on to the 1-0 win and three points to keep them at least in the picture for the next round should Dallas or PUMAS slip up. Stuck on 2 points through 4 games, you have to figure Tauro is pretty much toast.

CONCACAF Champions League: Seattle Sounders vs. Herediano

I could probably cut and paste my FC Dallas entry into this one for the most part. Here again, we had an MLS side in the driver seat and a Central American side trying desperately to claw their way into the picture in the group.

Seattle got on the board early as Fredy Montero took a through ball in the 3rd minute and torched the 'keeper to make it 0-1. However, like FC Dallas, Seattle let their opponent back in it late in the half with a PK. The difference was that in the case the call against the Sounders was crap as the Herediano player took a blatant dive. Still, former MLS man Jose Cancela knocked the spot kick past Kasey Keller to equalize at 1-1 going to half time.

That's where the path diverged for Dallas and Seattle tonight though. Seattle took the lead back again for good in the 54th minute, again off the foot of Fredy Montero. This time Roger Levesque sent a ball across the 6 that might have gone in anyway, but Fredy wasn't taking any chances and poked it home to make it 1-2 to the Sounders. Herediano tried to get back into it late but really couldn't test Keller and Seattle took all 3 points on the road.

The win, coupled with a Monterrey loss (smirk) puts Seattle firmly in control of the group with max points from their first three games. Very nice.