Friday, June 02, 2006

MLS Week 10 Predictions

This first weekend in June sees all 12 teams in action on Saturday, however none of them will air on ESPN2. But fear not as the whole lot of games can be seen on MLStv.

DC United vs. New England Revolution
7:30pm ET
TV: Direct Kick (DK), MLStv
Radio: WMET 1160am, WACA 1540am (Spanish); Boston - WEEI 850am

New England got some spark last weekend when they switched to the 4-4-2, but will coach Steve Nicol stay with it and even if he does, will it be enough to fend off a dominant United side? It seems every player wears the black and red is pitching in as seen by the results of Wednesday night. The team scored 4 goals plus Columbus put in an own goal. Four different players scored the four goals with 2 others getting assists. So with a club as put together as DC, how do you beat them? The only way I think the Revs could walk away with points is speed. This will be the third match in 8 days for United and come the second half, some of those legs are bound to be hurting. If New England can hold United in the first 45 and then play smart and fast in the second, they might just surprise. Still, it will be hard for DC to let one go at home.

Me: DC 2-1 NE
Wife: DC 1-2 NE
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FC Dallas vs. Columbus Crew
8:30pm ET
TV: DK, MLStv, Ohio News Network
Radio: Dallas - KXEB 910am, KFCD 990am (Spanish), San Antonio - KTXX 103.5fm, Austin - KOKE 1600am; Columbus 105.7fm

If you like watching train wrecks, this should be one for the ages. On one side you have a team that just got blown to pieces, playing a mere 72 hours after said defeat with a very under qualified goaltender. On the other side, you have a team that has added a sturdy defense to their outstanding offense who is rested and trying hard to add even more points to their conference lead. If Dallas walks away with anything less then an easy 3 points, then they got cocky. The big question is can Carlos Ruiz score in a sixth straight game.

Me: FCD 3-0 Crew
Wife: FCD 2-0 Crew
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Houston Dynamo vs. LA Galaxy
8:30pm ET
TV: DK, HDNet, MLStv
Radio: Houston - Concierto 850am (Spanish) & 101.7fm (Spanish); LA - KMPC 1540am, KTNQ 1020am (Spanish), Radio Korea 1230am (Korean)

LA heads off to the San Jose of Texas to meet the Dynamo for the first time in club history and a game that is a must win for the club. To say LA comes limping into this match is an offense to all those who limp. A better wording would be "LA comes flat lining to Houston" as this team has shown no signs of life for many matches. Still, this will be no easy day on the pitch for Houston as they are a side without Brian Ching (World Cup) or Adrian Serioux (injury) and Dwyane De Rosario is less then perfect. One thing that might break for the Galaxy is that many players are looking at this as a return to the Southern California rivalry. Since the last time LA looked decent was against their LA rivals Chivas, maybe the little extra push will do them well. Still the big question is can they score in the first 77 minutes. If they do not, they will have beat Real Salt Lake for the longest time between goals in MLS history.

Me: Houston 2-1 LA (LA will score before the 77th)
Wife: Houston 1-3 LA (LA will score in the first 15 minutes)
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KC Wizards vs. Red Bull New York
8:30pm ET
TV: DK, MLStv
Radio: New York - WADO 1280am (Spanish)

Kansas City is looking mighty bad these days as their offense has dried up and their backline is forgettable. The loss at home last week against United showed that this club cannot currently claim to be any sort of a real threat to the best in the East. However, Red Bull is not the best of the East. After looking okay for 3 games, they saw their defense collapse in the final 15-minutes of last Saturday’s game. It is actions like this that give KC a great shot at getting full points. The secrete to this game is two goals. With the exception of the Chivas game a few weeks back, New York has not scored more then 1 goal since their opening tie against DC. KC is not doing much better as their last multi-goal game was the second week of the season, but the Wizards have managed to find ways to win 1-0. If either team can get net twice, they will win.

Me: KC 2-1 NY
Wife: KC 2-1 NY
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Real Salt Lake vs. Chicago Fire
9:00pm ET
TV: DK, MLStv
Radio: Salt Lake - KALL 700am, KSGO 1600am (Spanish) Chicago - WRTO 1200am (Spanish)

At long last the Chicago Fire's road trip is coming to its final stop. For the Fire, they are starting to show problems up top while Real is finding itself. With Justin Mapp still out for Chicago, Chris Rolfe needs to adapt as his play and work more from the midfield. Over in Salt Lake, they have put together a strong backline ever since Pope went off to US duty. I'm not suggesting that Pope is the problem, I'm just saying that without him around, defenders had to make things happen by themselves. Combine this with the offensive explosion lead by Jeff Cunningham and you have a team that can compete with anyone. With Chicago more focused on next week, Real should be able to get 3 more points.

Me: RSL 2-1 Chicago
Wife: RSL 2-0 Chicago
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Chivas USA vs. Colorado Rapids
10:00pm ET
TV: DK, MLStv
Radio: LA - KTNQ 1020am (Spanish)

Chivas were able to get a lackluster win last week at home against a fading Chicago club, but the Rapids will not be so easy. Chivas has talent on both offense and defense, but they never bring both to the same match. The Rapids have made a habit of taking apart incomplete teams of late. The unsure place for both teams is between the nets as Chivas's Preston Burpo looks to play only his second MLS game while the Rapids' Bouna Coundoul has only manned the posts four times. If strikers don't take ever chance to test these unknowns, they are foolish. That said, Colorado looks a lot less foolish to me then Chivas.

Me: Chivas 0-2 Colorado
Wife: Chivas 1-2 Colorado

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