Match Thoughts: Montreal Impact vs. Toronto FC

Montreal Impact's Tyson Wahl in their win over TFC (AP Images)

I'm sure the Montreal Impact would have loved to have picked up their first MLS win before now, but I doubt they'll argue with getting it over their Canadian rivals Toronto FC.  Both of these clubs played, and lost, midweek but under different circumstances.  The Impact put out a gutsy performance and lost 1-0 at Real Salt Lake.  Toronto got put to the sword by Santos in the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions League, 6-2.

Despite their drubbing in Mexico, Toronto FC looked pretty decent coming out in the opening minutes, creating a couple of chances.  In the 10th minute Logan Emory put a header wide of goal off of an attacking set piece.  Then in the 16th minute Nick Soolsma had a good look but tapped his shot just wide as well.  Soolsma was probably on TFC's best performers on the day.

Unfortunately it was bad defense and possession play that proved to be the Reds undoing in this one as well.  In the 18th minute Montreal's Sinisa Ubiparpovic got the ball from Lamar Neagle, who took it off of a lazy Terry Dunfield.  Ubiparipovic side footed the ball past Milos Kocic to make it 1-0 to Montreal.  Later, in the 28th minute, Sanna Nyassi had his chance on a break well saved by Kocic, and the teams went to the break with the Impact leading 1-0.

Montreal continued the attack in the second half as Toronto just looked war weary.  Both Felipe and Neagle had decent looks in the opening 20 minutes, but Kocic came up big and denied them.  That poor guy has just faced a firing squad this last couple of weeks.  Things didn't get any better for TFC when Emory was hit with a straight red card in the 66th minute for denying Nyassi a clear goal scoring opportunity.

There were more goals to be had in this one though.  Montreal looked to seal the match in the 81st minute when Andrew Wenger slotted the ball past Kocic on the break to make it 2-0.  It was Wenger's first MLS and professional goal.  Danny Koevermans pulled one back for Toronto in the 88th minute, heading in a cross to make it 2-1 and end the Impact's clean sheet, but it was too little, too late as the Impact held on for the 2-1 win.

The win is the first for Montreal, the former NASL side, in MLS play.  It puts them on four points.  The loss keeps Toronto in the cellar with 0 points.  They're the only MLS side to still not have a point this season.  The LA Galaxy are last in the west with three.

Match Thoughts: Real Salt Lake vs. Colorado Rapids

RSL's Alvaro Saborio scores against Colorado.  (Getty Images)

Alright, I'm going to try and take my RSL homer hat off for this one, at least a little bit.  We'll see how I do.  Both RSL and the Colorado Rapids have enjoyed good starts to the new season, picking up the majority of the available points.  Colorado won at home last weekend against the Chicago Fire.  RSL overcame a somewhat mediocre performance to beat the Montreal Impact at home midweek.

Once the opening whistle blew though, it looked like it was the Rapids who had played midweek.  RSL possessed the ball for most of the opening half, and if I'm honest with you, the Rapids seemed to be a little surprised at RSL's work rate.  Of course all the possession in the world doesn't matter much unless you can create a goal, and that's exactly what RSL did.  In the 20th minute Tony Beltran found Alvaro Saborio as the Costa Rican made a perfectly timed run behind the Rapids defense.  Sabo deftly controlled the ball and batted it past Matt Pickens to make it 1-0 to RSL, which was the score at halftime.

You do have give the Rapids credit for trying to come out and open it up a bit in the second half.  They looked much better overall, and actually won the second half possession battle.  However it was RSL that put the ball in the back of the net, albeit controversially.  In the 57th minute Luis Gil found Fabian Espindola on a break, but Fabi pretty clearly controlled the ball with his arm.  The referee and linesman were both out of position on the RSL counter and didn't see it.  Fabi poked the ball past Pickens to make it 2-0 to RSL.  Here's my take on this: Yes it was a handball by Fabian and a missed call.  However, after watching the replay and seeing it live, Matt Pickens has to play to the whistle.  Our season tickets are right next to that goal, only 4 rows up, and it was obvious that Pickens seemed to be more concerned with calling a handball than the stopping the shot.  Still, yes, I'll give it to you that it was a handball.

In the end though RSL really didn't need it as Colorado failed to create any real chances.  They were credited with only 1 shot on goal for the entire match, and the save the of game ended up being Nick Rimando picking off a cross.  In the end. the final score read 2-0 to RSL.

While I think Rapids fans definitely have reason to be unhappy with the officiating, I think they should be unhappy with their new coach as well.  They came out with a very defensive oriented lineup, including putting Drew Moor, a beast of a defender, up into the defensive midfield.  It didn't really work as Moor lost possession for the Rapids on multiple occasions, and it didn't really help when Sabo got in behind the line.  By the time the Rapids went back to their new, more attacking style in the 2nd half, it was too late. 

A final note for RSL: with his controversial strike in the 57th minute, Fabian Espindola tied the RSL all time scoring mark.  He ties former RSL striker now Nottingham Forest man Robbie Findley with 29 goals in the Claret and Cobalt.  Both clubs will face stern tests next weekend as Colorado travel to Seattle and RSL heads to KC to take on undefeated Sporting Kansas City.

Congratulations to Celtic, 2012 Scottish Premier League Champions!

Celtic celebrate winning the Scottish Premier League title. (Reuters)

We have our first champion in European soccer to celebrate in 2012!  The Puddle would like to congratulate Celtic for winning the 2012 Clydesdale Bank Scottisch Premier League title.  The Glasgow side sealed the deal this weekend with a 0-6 thrashing of Kilmarnock.

Celtic will have a chance to do a double as they face Hearts in a Scottish Cup semi final next weekend.

Puddle's Goal of the Weekend: Mikel Arteta Knocks Out Man City

For my goal of the weekend this week we go back to the Premier League, and to Emirates Stadium. In the 87th minute of the Arsenal vs. Man City match, Mikel Arteta smacked home this great goal to give Arsenal a win and most likey hand the league title to Manchester United.

Match Thoughts: FC Dallas vs. New England Revolution

Ugo Ihemelu of FC Dallas scored the winner in stoppage time. (Getty Images)

Well this wasn't the most scintillating soccer game you could ask for, but watching MLS is never a bad way to spend a quiet Thursday evening and viewers were treated to a surprise finish.  Coming into the match, the two squads seemed to be heading in different directions.  Dallas got drilled 4-1 at DC last week and the New England Revolution were coming off of back to back wins for the first time since 2009.  Their last game was a 3-1 thumping of the Galaxy in LA.

One could tell right off the bat that there wasn't going to be 4 or 5 goals score in this one.  You'd like to think it was going to come down to a defensive battle, but the word of the day wasn't defense, it was "sloppy."  Neither team seemed to be willing to take any risks, and the simple possession passing wasn't really precise for either side either.  There wasn't even a quality chance until the 20th minute, when FC Dallas nearly took the lead.  Blas Perez worked himself into space in the New England area and shot toward the far post.  Revs 'keeper Matt Reis made himself just big enough to ruin the angle and force Perez to send it just wide.  Brek Shea would force a save out of Reis on 34 minutes, but that was about all of the offensive action for either side in the first half.

The second half was a little different story as New England came out with a lot more energy, and tried to hem the Hoops in against their own goal.  However, despite some good possession, the best they could really manage was a shot by Saer Sene in the 57th minute that was fairly easily tracked down by Kevin Hartman.  Lee Nguyen sent a rocket toward the goal in the 67th minute, and it caught Dallas defender George John square in the face.  He was down for a couple of minutes, but eventually walked off and looked ok.  He did not return to the match though.  Ricardo Villar also left this one early with an injury for the Hoops after a rough tackle from Shalrie Joseph in the 63rd.  Joseph received a yellow card for the play.

The game went into stoppage time and it looked like both teams were going to settle for a 0-0 draw, but then the Revs messed up.  On what was surely the last attack of the match, A.J. Soares fouled Blas Perez right outside the Revs' 18.  Zach Lloyd sent the ensuing free kick into the six, where it found the head of Dallas's Ugo Ihemelu.  The center back calmly headed the ball past Reis into the back of the net for the game winning goal, handing Dallas 3 points by virtue of the 1-0 victory.

It might be tempting to speculate that the Revs were a little hard done by.  Certainly they were better than Dallas for long stretches in the second half, but their demise was of their own making.  Prior to the last foul on Perez, the Revs could have played the ball into touch, but didn't, allowing the Dallas attack.  The foul by Soares was just foolish, especially since he had a pretty good match up until that point.  Plus, allowing Ihemelu into the six virtually unmarked on a play like that is just asking for trouble.  I'd also say the Revs need to do some work up top.  Sene seemed to be surprised by the physicality of Dallas from time to time, and even the Revs commentators mentioned that his work rate was fairly poor, just wanting the ball played into him where he stood.  For the most part Dallas handled him very easily.

For the Hoops it's a big three points that might help them get on track.  They were riddled with injuries and suspensions coming into this one, and Brek Shea isn't on form yet, but they have to feel better after this.  We'll see how they hold up over the course of the season.

Match Thoughts: Real Salt Lake vs. Montreal Impact

RSL's Alvaro Saborio and Montreal's Matteo Ferrari (Getty Images)

I was really hoping the Montreal Impact would get their first win against the New York Red Bulls, so RSL wouldn't have to risk being the answer to that little bit of trivia.  Luckily for us, the RSL boys took care of business last night, in a hard fought, ugly win over the Impact at Rio Tinto Stadium.

RSL controlled much of the first half, not allowing a Montreal shot on net in the first 45.  The offense did have some punch, but not as much possession as RSL fans are used to seeing.  In the 12th minute, Montreal's Justin Braun was hit with a handball in the box and conceded a PK to RSL.  Paulo Jr. calmly slotted the spot kick inside the right post to give the Claret and Cobalt the 1-0 lead.

It would prove to be the only goal of the match.

However Montreal picked it up a little bit in the second half.  Justin Mapp was certainly their danger man.  Every time I watch this guy play I wonder why the Union let him go.  Javier Morales went off late in the match with a hamstring pull, and with RSL out of subs, they were down to ten men.  Nick Rimando and the defense came home heroes, withstanding a late Montreal surge to secure the 1-0 win and a precious three points for RSL.

Now for a couple of thoughts: first about the Impact.  This is a better team than the record indicates.  The MLS schedule makers did them no favors by having them play at New York and then at Salt Lake a few days later.  Their attack caused the RSL defense some heartburn at various times during the match, and if they just had a striker that could finish, they'd be another step ahead.  Why aren't they playing Fucito?  I've never been thrilled with Justin Braun, sorry.  Plus, they can defend.  Matteo Ferrari in particular is excellent and has experience in Serie A with Inter Milan, Genoa, Parma, and Roma.   He also has some international experience as well, earning 11 caps for Italy.  Also, Donovan Ricketts is a hell of 'keeper, and made at least two world class saves in this one.

So about RSL.  I'm a Chelsea supporter.  I know what it's like to be part of a fickle fan base.  That being said, I was shocked at the amount of complaining that went on during the post game last night.  Yes, RSL played sloppy.  Yes, if they play like that against better teams, they'll get beat.  Coach Kreis and the players admitted this much after the match.  I like the fact that our fan base is becoming more soccer educated and that the team has set a high standard, but let's get back to reality.  They have 3 games in 8 days.  There's travel involved.  In a 50 some odd game season across all competitions, you're not gonna be on form every game.  Manchester United have 19 League titles in England, probably on their way to 20, and they grind out results like this every year.  Teams like Manchester City, and sadly to say, Chelsea, lose these games.  Champions are forged in games like this where you're not at your best, but you find a way to win.  Period.  Besides, if Donovan Ricketts doesn't make a couple of world class saves, the final is 3-0 and everyone calls up the post game show talking about how we destroyed Montreal.

Yes, there are flaws, but even the best, hardest diamonds have flaws.

UCL Quarters: Barcelona vs. AC Milan

Lionel Messi converts his first PK of the match. (Getty Images)

Coming into today's UCL quarterfinal match between Barcelona and AC Milan, the Italians seemed to be a trendy to pick to upset the defending European Champs.  It is true that Milan could have gone through had they duplicated their 2-2 effort at Barca in the group stage, but I for one wasn't buying it.

Part of Milan's success last week at the San Siro was because they could pretty much defend most of the space on that pitch.  That wasn't going to happen on the wide expanses of Camp Nou, and it was obvious from the early moments.  In the 3rd minute Andres Iniesta had Barca's first chance, but put it wide.  In the 7th minute Lionel Messi looked to have a golden chance right in front of net but inexplicably put his shot wide as well. 

Maybe the Italians could live a charmed life in this one, but probably not.

Milan's day turned to shambles early on in the 10th minute when Philippe Mexes mishandled the ball just inside his own half.  Messi grabbed it and dashed in on goal.  He centered back to a trailing Xavi, but he wasn't quite ready for it, and bobbled it around the six.  It looked like Milan were going to escape, but the ball fell back to Messi and Luca Antonini made a dumb slide tackle on the little genius to concede a PK.    On the actual spot kick, Milan 'keeper Christian Abbiati guessed right, but couldn't get down on Messi's shot quick enough and Barca took the 1-0 lead.

After the goal, you could just feel the stadium relax.  Barca kept the possession for the most part, and it really didn't seem like Milan had much for them.  However, all that changed in the 33rd minute.  The Spaniards' defense went to sleep and Ibrahimovic found Antonio Nocerino running into the area.  He slid him the ball and Nocerino let loose a shot that Victor Valdes took an unconvincing swipe at before it went into the back of the net to make it 1-1.  That result would see Milan through on away goals.

Of course that would entail making sure Barca didn't score again, and that fable didn't last long.  Barca earned another PK in the 40th minute.  This one was a bit more controversial.  While setting up for a Barcelona corner, Alessandro Nesta got a couple of fistfuls of Sergio Busquets jersey.  Puyol set a pick on him and as they fought around it, Busquets went to the floor rather theatrically, drawing the penalty.  Now, it probably was a foul, but you could probably call this type of foul on 85% of corner kick in routines in pro soccer.  I'm sure Italian defenders defend corners like this every week.  Busquets flailed his arms before going down like the proverbial ton of bricks, making sure the referee saw it, and called it.  I'm sorry, it probably was a foul, but it was almost surely a premeditated dive by Busquets, and it's exactly that kind of play that makes people turn off soccer matches.  At any rate, Messi scored his second PK of the day and sent Barca to the half leading 2-1.

Milan never really got it going in the second half, and Barca put it away rather early.  In the 53rd minute, Messi let loose a shot that was blocked but the ball fell to Iniesta, who slapped it just inside the far post to make it 3-1 to Barca and kill the game off.  It also made neutrals like myself feel a little bit better about the impending result after the stench of the soft PK.

Milan never really threatened the Barca net for the rest of the match, and the Spaniards held on for the 3-1 win.  Now, I don't mean to imply that the second penalty was the reason Barca won.  I'm sure they would have won anyway.  I also don't want to imply that Barcelona didn't deserve to go through.  Of course they did, they were obviously the better team over two legs.  It's just unfortunate that a team as good as they are has to have something like a Busquets dive mar a pretty good performance.  You don't see Lionel Messi pulling that stuff.

As for Barcelona, they await the winner of Chelsea vs. Benfica in the Champions League semifinals.