MLS Major League Soccer

The Pitch: MLS Weekly Newsletter - April 28, 2008

Published on April 28, 2008 under Major League Soccer (MLS) News Release


The Pitch: MLS Weekly Newsletter

Volume 6: April 28, 2008

This Week's MLS Matches Landon Donovan Wins Second Consecutive Player of the Week Award Jozy Altidore and Amado Guevara to Preview ESPN2 Primetime Thursday Match tomorrow A Look at the First Month of the Season Toronto FC Midfielder Maurice Edu on ESPN.com Web Chat, Tuesday 3 p.m. ET IndyCar Driving Champion, Dan Wheldon to appear at FC Dallas Training on Wednesday

MLS Week 6: May 1-4, 2008

Thursday, May 1

New York Red Bulls at Toronto FC, 7 p.m. (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes)

First 2008 meeting between the clubs; New York holds the advantage 2-1-0 all-time versus Toronto. Toronto looks to extend its club-record winning streak to four games. Toronto FC midfielder Amado Guevara played in New York from 2003 to 2006, ranks third on the club's all-time list in goals scored with 32 and tied for first in assists 36.

Saturday, May 3

Chicago Fire at New England Revolution, 7:30 p.m. (My50, TV38, DK, MLSLIVE.tv)

New England has ended Chicago's season in the playoffs four of the past six seasons (2002 Eastern Conference Semifinals, 2005 Eastern Conference Final, 2006 Eastern Conference Semifinals and 2007 Eastern Conference Final), while Chicago stopped the Revs' 2003 postseason campaign (Eastern Conference Final). Chicago's defense has allowed only three goals; goalkeeper Jon Busch has a miniscule 0.60 goals against average. New England continue to be without Taylor Twellman and may be without Steve Ralston who have combined for 17 regular season goals against Chicago.

Kansas City at Wizards Columbus Crew, 7:30 p.m. (FSC, FSE)

- This marks the first MLS meeting of Argentine standouts in Columbus' Guillermo Barros Schelotto and Kansas City's Claudio Lopez.

- The Wizards meet Columbus on the third game of a six-game road stretch, having lost last week at Toronto and won the previous week at Chicago.

- Kansas City holds a slight advantage at 16-14-4 all-time versus Columbus.

Chivas USA at Houston Dynamo, 8:30 p.m. (FSN-W, HDNet)

Both teams are looking to right the ship as Chivas USA has lost three straight and Houston is winless in 2008. Houston leads the all-time Regular Season series 3-1-3 and eliminated Chivas USA in the 2006 playoffs before going on to win the first of their back-to-back MLS Cups. Brad Davis and Dwayne De Rosario have each tallied three career goals versus Chivas USA.

Los Angeles Galaxy at Real Salt Lake, 9 p.m. (FSN-W, DK, MLSLIVE.tv)

LA holds the series advantage over Real Salt Lake at 5-4-2, but the Galaxy have won only once at Rice Eccles Stadium, April 29, 2006. This marks David Beckham's first trip to Salt Lake City as he was injured during LA's late season trip to face Real Salt Lake in 2007.

FC Dallas at San Jose Earthquakes, 10 p.m. (KFWD-52, CSN-BA, DK, MLSLIVE.tv)

- The Earthquakes hold an all-time regular season edge of 19-13-4 over Dallas; although this will be the first meeting between the new expansion Earthquakes and FC Dallas in 2008.

- This is San Jose's second home game since the 2005 season and it will be the first at Buck Shaw Stadium on the campus of Santa Clara University.

Sunday, May 4

D.C. United at Colorado Rapids, 3 p.m. (TeleFutura, Altitude, CSN)

The game marks the first meeting for former D.C. United midfielder and former League MVP Christian Gomez versus his old club. The Rapids acquired Gomez in a trade with D.C. February 2008. United and the Rapids share identical records (2-3-0, 6 points), but United is coming off a big home victory with a 4-1 win over Real Salt Lake. Colorado has lost two straight and has scored just one goal in the last two games. D.C. United leads the all-time regular season series 13-9-6.

All times Eastern, live broadcasts in parentheses; schedule subject to change

Los Angeles Galaxy's Landon Donovan Wins Second Consecutive Player of the Week

Los Angeles Galaxy forward Landon Donovan was voted Major League Soccer's Player of the Week for Week 5 of the 2008 season. Donovan scored a hat trick and tallied an assist as the Galaxy defeated Chivas USA in the MLS SuperClasico at The Home Depot Center on Saturday night. The award marks the second consecutive Player of the Week honor for Donovan. He sits atop the goal scoring leader boards with eight goals, and has two assists. The Galaxy sit in second place in the Western Conference with a 2-2-1 record and 7 points. Donovan and the Galaxy are back in action on Saturday, May 3 when they travel to face Real Salt Lake at 9 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/.

Jozy Altidore and Amado Guevara to preview Thursday ESPN2 match on Media Teleconference, Tomorrow ESPN2

Dynamic New York Red Bulls and U.S. Men's National Team forward Jozy Altidore and former League MVP Amado Guevara of Toronto FC will preview Thursday night's match on a media teleconference call tomorrow at 2 p.m. ET. Guevara spent the 2003 through 2006 seasons in New York and part of last season with Chivas USA. He's returned to MLS and has led Toronto FC to three consecutive wins, while Altidore had a hand in both goals on Sunday when the Red Bulls defeated the San Jose Earthquakes. Altidore and Guevara played in six games together for the Red Bulls in 2006, Altidore's rookie season.

All media interested in participating may call (877) 391-5953 or (706) 634-9483. Media should reference the MLS ESPN2 Preview Call or Conference ID 45705617. The conference call will also be streamed live on www.MLSnet.com.

First Full Month of 2008 Season Complete; Teams Vying for Early Supremacy

The 2008 Regular Season kicked off on March 29 and 30 and has completed a full month of play. No team has played fewer than four games, while two teams have played six games. The Columbus Crew are leading the charge out of the gates with a 4-1-0 record and 12 points. They lead the Eastern Conference over Chicago, New England and Kansas City, each with 10 points.

Led by Alejandro Moreno (4 goals, 1 assist) and Guillermo Barros Schelotto (1 goal, 3 assists), the Crew appear to be the team to beat in the East. With a win on Saturday versus Houston, Crew head coach Sigi Schmid reached a historic milestone becoming only the second coach in MLS history with 100 victories. His all-time coaching record stands at 100-80-51, with a .543 winning percentage. Bob Bradley's 124 wins are the most in MLS history.

FC Dallas leads with the Western Conference (2-1-2, 8 points), followed by the Los Angeles Galaxy (2-2-1, 7 points) and the Colorado Rapids (2-3-0, 6 points). Two-time defending MLS Cup Champions Houston Dynamo are in unfamiliar territory, looking up from the bottom in the Western Conference. They are the only team yet to record a win (0-2-3, 3 points). For complete MLS stats and standings click here.

Toronto FC Midfielder Maurice Edu on ESPN.com Web Chat, Tuesday 3 p.m. ET

Toronto F.C. midfielder Maurice Edu will provide his views on Toronto's three-game winning streak and the 2008 season Tuesday, April 29, at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN.com. Edu, the reigning MLS Rookie of the Year, will discuss a range of topics including the Thursday Night Primetime game on ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes featuring Toronto FC and the New York Red Bulls. Thursday's match kicks off at 7 p.m. ET at BMO Field in Toronto.

Fans can submit questions and read Edu's responses via ESPN's SportsNation by clicking here.

IndyCar Driving Champion, Dan Wheldon to appear at FC Dallas Training on Wednesday

Dan Wheldon, fresh off a victory in yesterday's Turbo Indy 300, will be a guest of FC Dallas at training on Wednesday, April 30 on the adidas Field at Pizza Hut Park. The English-born driver will be available to the media beginning at 10:30 a.m. local time in the visiting team locker room at Pizza Hut Park, prior to joining FC Dallas in training at approximately 11:30 a.m. Wheldon, along with FC Dallas players and coaches will also be available after training.

The English-born driver, and soccer fan, will be in town to promote the upcoming Bombardier Learjet 550 at Texas Motor Speedway on Sat. June 7. Wheldon has captured an IndyCar Series title and Indy 500 crown in his career (both in 2005), but has yet to get the honor of wearing the cowboy hat and firing the Beretta pistols in Victory Lane at Texas Motor Speedway. His best finish at TMS is third, which has come on three occasions (2003-Fall, 2004-Fall and 2006). In eight career starts at TMS, he has four top-10 finishes and 246 laps led. He finished 15th in last season's Bombardier Learjet 550k.

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Major League Soccer Stories from April 28, 2008


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