MLS Weekly
Published on May 12, 2008 under Major League Soccer (MLS) News Release
MLS Week 8: May 15-18, 2008
Thursday, May 15
Real Salt Lake at Colorado Rapids 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2, Deportes)
- Colorado comes in off an emotional loss to Houston. The Rapids have not won two games in a row this season.
- Real Salt Lake is undefeated in three games and secured a late winner versus FC Dallas last weekend.
- Colorado leads the all-time series 6-4-2, but is 0-2-1 in their last three matches versus their Rocky Mountain Cup rivals.
Saturday, May 17
Columbus Crew at Toronto FC, 4 p.m. (CLB-SN, CBC, DK, MLSLIVE.tv)
- Eastern Conference leaders, the Columbus Crew, face intra-conference foes Toronto FC in a budding rivalry. Toronto FC traveled with more than 2,000 fans to the opening game of the season in Columbus.
- Toronto FC did not play in Week 7, and comes in rested with a four-game undefeated streak, including three wins and a tie. They are undefeated at home in 2008.
- Columbus' Robbie Rogers and Alejandro Moreno have combined for nine goals and are the second highest scoring duo in the League behind LA's Landon Donovan and David Beckham who have combined for 11 goals.
Kansas City Wizards at New York Red Bulls, 7:30 p.m. (Metro Sports, MSG, DK, MLSLIVE.tv)
- The Wizards and Red Bulls meet for the first time in 2008. New York leads the all-time series 14-13-8.
- New York is undefeated in four games and comes in off an emotional win, as Juan Pablo Angel returned from injury and scored the game winner on the road versus LA.
- Kansas City is looking to reverse their fortunes of late, as they have lost two straight.
San Jose Earthquakes at New England Revolution, 7:30 p.m. (HDNet, TV-38)
- The Revolution's leader offensive leader, Taylor Twellman, returned from injury versus Chivas USA last week. He saw his first game action, and scored the game winner.
- The Earthquakes hold a big advantage in the all-time series at 15-8-4, although this will be the first meeting since October 1, 2005.
- New England has yet to win two straight games in 2008, while San Jose is looking to end a four-game winless streak.
Houston Dynamo at Chicago Fire, 8:30 p.m. (Ch-55, My50 Chicago, DK, MLSLIVE.tv)
- Both teams are coming off important victories - Houston its first of the season and Chicago on the road against D.C. United.
- Houston's big guns, Dwayne DeRosario and Brian Ching, both notched their first goal of the season last week.
- Chicago goalkeeper Jon Busch leads the League in several statistics including shutouts (4), goals-against average (0.43) and save percentage (94.7). He has not allowed a goal in the past 184 minutes.
D.C. United at Chivas USA, 10:30 p.m. (FSC, FSE)
- Chivas USA recently acquired veteran Carey Talley from Real Salt Lake to bolster its injury-depleted defense. Talley played his first four pro seasons (1998-2001) with D.C. United.
- Last year Chivas USA won in D.C., then rallied for the first time in their history to earn a 2-2 draw at home against United.
- Both desperate for a win, United and Chivas USA are currently tied for the worst goal differential in MLS (-5).
Sunday, May 18
Los Angeles Galaxy at FC Dallas, 3 p.m. (TeleFutura)
- Last year at Pizza Hut Park, these two teams combined for the wildest game of the inaugural SuperLiga tournament, a 6-5 victory for the Galaxy.
- FC Dallas forward Kenny Cooper is stepping up in the absence of Carlos Ruiz, who was traded to the Galaxy this past offseason. Cooper has five goals in seven games, tying him with Columbus' Robbie Rogers for second in the Budweiser Golden Boot race.
- LA's tandem of Landon Donovan and David Beckham are the highest scoring duo in MLS with 11 goals, although Donovan has not scored in two games and Beckham was shut out last week.
All times Eastern, live broadcasts in parentheses; schedule subject to change
Columbus Crew's Robbie Rogers wins Player of the Week for Week 7
Columbus Crew midfielder Robbie Rogers was voted Major League Soccer's Player of the Week for Week 7 of the 2008 season. Rogers scored two goals and led the Columbus Crew to a comeback victory - the first any team has achieved the feat in 2008 - over the San Jose Earthquakes. Down 1-0 in the 73rd minute, Rogers scored two goals in an eight minute span leading Columbus to a 3-2 win. The goals were Rogers fourth and fifth of the season. This is the first Player of the Week award for Rogers, who is in his second season with the Columbus Crew. He is tied for second in the Budweiser Golden Boot race with five goals, and has surpassed his scoring total from last year - 3 goals. Rogers and the Crew are back in action on Saturday, May 17 when they visit Toronto FC at 4 p.m. ET. For more information, click here.
The Major League Soccer Player of the Week is selected each week of the MLS regular season by a panel of journalists from The North American Soccer Reporters (NASR). The group consists of members of print, television, radio and online media. More information and membership information can be found at http://www.soccerreporters.com/.
Crew's Start Among Best Ever
The Columbus Crew sit in first place in a stacked Eastern Conference with a record of 6-1-0, 18 points, two points ahead of the Chicago Fire, 5-1-1, 16 points. It's the best seven-game start in club history and ranks among the best seven-game starts ever. In winning their fifth straight on Saturday, the Crew became the first team to record a comeback victory in 2008. Teams scoring the first goal are 37-1-7 in 2008.
Best seven-game starts by MLS teams:
Year Team W L T PTS
1996 Los Angeles 7 0 0 21
2000 Kansas City 6 0 1 19
1998 Los Angeles 7 0 0 19
2005 New England 6 0 1 19
2008 Columbus 6 1 0 18
Schmid Off to Best Start of His MLS Coaching Career
Columbus Crew Head Coach Sigi Schmid is off to the best start in his MLS coaching career. The stats below reflect Schmid's record after seven games in each season, including after he was hired in 1999 by LA. Schmid has not recorded more than nine wins in a season since 2002, when he won 16 with LA.
Year Team W L T PTS
1999 Los Angeles 4 3 0 10
2000 Los Angeles 5 0 2 17
2001 Los Angeles 3 3 1 10
2002 Los Angeles 4 1 2 14
2003 Los Angeles 0 3 4 4
2004 Los Angeles 3 1 3 12
2006 Columbus 3 3 1 10
2007 Columbus 1 2 4 7
2008 Columbus 6 1 0 18
MLS Ironman Chris Klein Nearing Milestone
Los Angeles Galaxy defender and 11-year MLS veteran Chris Klein will tie the all-time consecutive starts mark (93 games) with a start this Sunday in the Galaxy's road match versus FC Dallas. The record is held by Kansas City Wizards goalkeeper Kevin Hartman. Klein's streak dates back to the 2005 season when he was a member of the Wizards. He became a member of Real Salt Lake in 2006 and played in 43 games during the 2006 and 2007 seasons. He was traded to LA in 2007 and has started 28 consecutive games.
All-Time Consecutive Starts Record, start and end dates included:
93 - Kevin Hartman (08/21/2002-09/10/2005)
92 - Chris Klein (06/11/2005-present)
88 - Peter Vermes (05/09/1998-09/09/2000)
83 - Scott Garlick (07/31/1999-06/19/2002)
78 - Matt Reis (09/03/2005-present)
Real Salt Lake Midfielder Kyle Beckerman on ESPN.com Web Chat, Tuesday, 3 p.m. ET
Real Salt Lake midfielder Kyle Beckerman will participate in the ESPN.com web chat on Tuesday, May 13, at 3 p.m. ET. Beckerman, who has three goals in seven games, will discuss a range of topics including the Thursday Night Primetime game on ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes featuring Real Salt Lake and his former team the Colorado Rapids. It will be Beckerma's third match versus his old club. Real Salt Lake has won the past two versus Colorado. Thursday's match kicks off at 9:30 p.m. ET at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo.
Major League Soccer Stories from May 12, 2008
- Earthquakes Weekly Update - San Jose Earthquakes
- MLS Weekly - MLS
- RSL's Tony Beltran and Chris Seitz Named to U.S. U-23 Squad for Toulon International Tournament - Real Salt Lake
- Chicago Fire Weekly Notes - Chicago Fire FC
- Real Salt Lake In The Community - Real Salt Lake
- Revs' Valentino Named to U.S. Under-23 Roster - New England Revolution
- Ashe named to U.S. roster for Toulon tournament - Houston Dynamo FC
- Wagner and Shea Named to U.S. U-23 Team for Toulon Tournament - FC Dallas
- Revs to host expansion San Jose Earthquakes for first time since 2005 on Saturday night - New England Revolution
- Toronto FC Game Date Changed - Toronto FC
- D.C. United player appearances: May 12 - May 19 - D.C. United
- Dynamo Game against Toronto FC Rescheduled for Sunday, June 8 - Houston Dynamo FC
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
