MLS Major League Soccer

Seattle and Columbus Square off in Impact Game of the Week

Published on September 28, 2009 under Major League Soccer (MLS) News Release


Impact Game of the Week:

Seattle Sounders FC at Columbus Crew, Saturday, Oct. 3, 7:30 p.m. ET

The defending MLS Cup champion Columbus Crew became the first team to earn a spot in the 2009 MLS Cup Playoffs after their 2-0 victory over the LA Galaxy and unfavorable results for teams near the lower half of the standings. This Saturday night at Crew Stadium, they will try and maintain their MLS-record home unbeaten streak when Seattle Sounders FC make their first appearance in Columbus.

Sigi Schmid has guided the expansion Sounders FC into playoff contention; of course, a season ago, Schmid led the Crew to the first MLS Cup championship in club history and their second Supporters' Shield. It's the second time Schmid has faced his former club this season: the teams played to a 1-1 draw May 30 at Seattle's Qwest Field, a Nate Jaqua goal for the home side canceled out an early Alejandro Moreno strike.

Sounders FC are trying to emulate the 1998 Chicago Fire and become the second team in MLS history to qualify for the playoffs in their expansion season. After their 2-1 loss to New England over the weekend, where Shalrie Joseph led the Revolution back with two second-half goals, Seattle finds itself still holding on to one of the wild card spots, but just one point ahead of eighth-place New England and two ahead of ninth-place D.C. United entering the week.

The Crew are still unbeaten at home in 22 consecutive regular season games. Looking ahead to Tuesday's crucial CONCACAF Champions League match against Costa Rica's Deportivo Saprissa -- where the Crew can clinch a place in the knockout stage with a win -- Columbus head coach Robert Warzycha chose to rest reigning MLS MVP Guillermo Barros Schelotto (12 goals, 3 assists) against LA.

Saturday's contest will also match one of the league's top attacks against one of its outstanding defenses. The Crew have scored 40 goals this season, second (along with Colorado and D.C. United) only to FC Dallas, which has 44. But the Sounders and the Houston Dynamo are the only two teams to have allowed less than a goal per game, each with 26 goals conceded in 27 contests.

The Sounders' season has been keyed by candidates for MLS Newcomer of the Year at both ends of the park. Colombian Fredy Montero scored his 12th goal on the season last weekend, a Goal of the Week candidate that hammered off the underside of the crossbar from 35 yards. At the other end, Kasey Keller is second in the league with nine shutouts and an 0.91 goals against average.

MLS Cup Playoffs Race: Crew Becomes First to Clinch Playoff Berth

A new Playoff Standings page now appears on MLSnet.com to allow fans an at-a-glance way of tracking the chase for wild card spots and automatic berths.

For the second straight year, the Columbus Crew became the first club to nab a spot in the MLS Cup Playoffs, which this year begin Oct. 29. Last year, the Crew clinched a week earlier, and three playoff spots were still up for grabs entering the final week of the season.

This year, 13 teams are still mathematically in contention for the remaining seven spots with four weeks to go.

Coming up in Week 29, the following scenarios could occur:

Houston Dynamo will clinch a playoff berth IF:

Houston defeats Kansas City Sunday OR IF

Houston ties Kansas City Sunday AND D.C. United fails to win against Chivas USA Saturday

Chicago Fire OR LA Galaxy will clinch a playoff berth IF:

They win (against the other) Friday AND

D.C. United fails to win against Chivas USA Saturday.

Note: Neither Chicago nor LA can clinch this week if they tie each other

San Jose will be eliminated from playoff contention IF:

Chivas USA, Seattle AND New England all win OR IF

San Jose loses Saturday against New York AND

New England earns more than one point from two games OR

D.C. United wins against Chivas USA

FC Dallas will be eliminated from playoff contention IF:

FC Dallas loses to New England Wednesday AND any two of the following occur:

Seattle wins

D.C. United wins

Chivas USA wins or ties

If the season were to end today, five teams out of the Western Conference would qualify for the playoffs,. But the season does not end today, and the current rankings cannot account for the uneven amount of games played. Each club has between three and five games left to secure one of eight spots before the MLS Cup Playoffs begin Oct. 29.

Eight teams qualify for the playoffs. Playoff berths will be determined by points in the standings upon the completion of the regular season. All 15 teams will have played 30 games. The top two teams in each conference qualify and are seeded 1 & 2 in their respective four-team playoff conference brackets. The four MLS teams with the next most points, regardless of conference, receive "wildcard" berths:

The four wildcard teams will be seeded according to conference first.

If more than four teams qualify from one conference, the team(s) finishing lower than fourth in its conference will shift over to the other conference bracket.

A team switching conference brackets will be seeded below all other teams in its new conference playoff bracket.

As of today, the top two teams in each conference and four wild card teams that would qualify for the playoffs (bold print), the order in which they would be seeded, and their total Points (in parentheses), and Games Remaining [in brackets] is as follows:

Eastern Conference: Western Conference:

Rk Team Pts GR Rk Team Pts GR

1. Columbus (46) [4] 1. Houston (43) [3]

2. Chicago (41) [3] 2. Los Angeles (41) [3]

3. New England (37) [5] 3. Colorado (39) [3]

4. D.C. United (36) [3] 4. Chivas USA (38) [5]

5. Toronto FC (35) [3] 5. Seattle (38) [3]*

6. Kansas City (31) [4] 6. Salt Lake (34) [3]

7. New York (18) [3] 7. Dallas (30) [4]

8. San Jose (25) [5]

* As the fifth qualifier from the West, Seattle would move over to the Eastern Conference bracket for the playoffs.

New England Revolution Midfielder Shalrie Joseph Wins MLS Player of the Week for Week 28

New England Revolution midfielder Shalrie Joseph was voted Major League Soccer's Player of the Week for Week 28 of the 2009 season. Joseph scored both goals in the Revolutions' 2-1 come-from-behind victory over Seattle Sounders FC on Saturday, Sept. 26. For more on Joseph's award 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.

McBride & Donovan set to square off for first time since 2003

Two U.S. greats, Brian McBride and Landon Donovan, go head to head Friday when the Chicago Fire visits the LA Galaxy at The Home Depot Center (11 p.m., ESPN2).

The last time the two met as opponents was June 7, 2003, when McBride scored the game's only goal in the 85th minute as Columbus defeated San Jose. All-time, they have taken the field as rivals just five times, with McBride holding a 2-1-2 advantage. In those five games, McBride has notched two goals and one assist, while Donovan scored one goal and assisted on two.

Here's a breakdown of their MLS production:

McBride GP G A PPG*

Regular Season 190 74 49 0.64

MLS Cup Playoffs 25 10 3 0.52

Donovan GP G A PPG*

Regular Season 205 94 75 0.82

MLS Cup Playoffs 18 14 7 1.17

*One point for a goal, one point for an assist.

LA Galaxy Midfielder Chris Birchall to chat live on ESPN

On Tuesday, LA Galaxy midfielder Chris Birchall will chat live with fans via ESPN Soccernet at 3:30 p.m. ET. Birchall and the Galaxy will match up against the Chicago Fire on Friday for ESPN's Game of the Week.

Previewing Week 28: Sept. 30 - Oct. 4, 2009

(All Times Eastern)

Wednesday, September 30

New England Revolution at FC Dallas, 7:00 p.m. (DK, Match Center)

- The first of two games this week for the Revolution, who grabbed a huge victory over Seattle on Saturday night. A perennial All-Star, Shalrie Joseph, already has notched career bests with eight goals and eight assists. He will look to lead the Revolution to another victory over an inspired FC Dallas club led by Jeff Cunningham, whose six-goal binge in four games has him tied with Conor Casey atop the Budweiser Golden Boot race. A loss for FC Dallas could dash their playoff hopes.

Friday, October 2

Chicago Fire at Los Angeles Galaxy, 11:00 p.m. (ESPN2, Deportes)

- Both teams sit second in their respective conferences with identical records of 10-6-11 and 41 points. The teams come into the match with an even all-time regular season record of 14-14-3. LA won their only meeting this season, 2-0, on August 19 in Chicago. The Galaxy are looking to bounce back from a 2-0 loss versus Columbus in order to keep their playoff position, while the Fire are leaning on Brian McBride, whose recent return from injury has sparked their offense.

Saturday, October 3

Chivas USA at D.C. United, 7:30 p.m. (DK, Match Center)

- Looking to rectify subpar performances last week, both teams see this as one of the most important matches of the season. United let a lead slip at home to the Earthquakes and lost 2-1 keeping them on the outside looking in with three games left in their regular season. Chivas currently sit inside the playoff bubble, and control their destiny as they are only one of two teams with five games remaining. They let a win slip away versus New York last week, as they lost a 1-0 lead late and then missed a penalty kick in stoppage time. D.C. United lead the all-time series 5-2-2, but Chivas has the momentum with a 2-0-2 record in their last four meetings.

Seattle Sounders FC at Columbus Crew, 7:30 p.m. (DK, Match Center)

- The Sounders travel to Columbus for the second of three straight road games in their last four regular season matches. They face the League's best team in the Crew, who dispatched of the Galaxy 2-0 last weekend and look like the favorite to capture the Supporters' Shield for a second consecutive season. The Crew have secured a playoff berth, but are looking to keep a 24-match home unbeaten streak (including playoffs) alive. Sounders FC forward Fredy Montero scored his 12th goal of the season last week, and is tied with Crew forward Guillermo Barros Schelotto for third most in the League this season.

New England Revolution at Colorado Rapids, 9:00 p.m. (DK, Match Center)

- This will be the Revs second road match of the week. The Rapids are currently in the playoffs, but are hanging on the edge with 38 points. They are winless in four games, and have tied three straight. This is the Rapids last home game before facing FC Dallas and Real Salt Lake on the road. Conor Casey is tied with Jeff Cunningham for the League lead in the Budweiser Golden Boot race with 15 goals.

New York Red Bulls at San Jose Earthquakes, 11:00 p.m. (FSC, FSE)

- While the Red Bulls have been eliminated from the playoffs this season, they are playing for pride and have gone 2-1-2 in their last five games. They face the Earthquakes, who are in last place in the Western Conference, but who defeated D.C. United 2-1 on the road last week. The Earthquakes Ryan Johnson has emerged as one of the brightest young players in the League with a career high nine goals this season. His previous best was five in 2008.

Sunday, October 4

Kansas City Wizards at Houston Dynamo, 3:00 p.m. (Telefutura)

- The Dynamo can clinch a playoff berth with a victory over the Wizards on Sunday, and they have the top seed in the Western Conference and the Supporters' Shield in sight. The Wizards have a slim playoff chance, and will likely need help from other results. This will be the first match for Kei Kamara in a Wizards uniform versus his former team. The Dynamo hold a 4-1-2 record over the Wizards all-time. The Wizards only victory came in their first meeting - a 2-1 win on April 8, 2006.

Check out the Major League Soccer Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Major League Soccer Stories from September 28, 2009


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.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central