Top Stories

Galaxy draw Toronto FC, Seattle gets Santos Laguna in CCL quarterfinal draw

MLSNT11041334

Photo by Nick Turchiaro/ISIphotos.com

There were solid odds that two MLS teams would have to go up against each other in the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals, and that scenario unfolded during Tuesday's quarterfinal draw in New York.

The Los Angeles Galaxy drew Toronto FC for the first round of the knockout stage, which commences in March.

The Seattle Sounders will go up against Mexican side Santos Laguna, while defending champion Monterrey clashes with Morelia, and Pumas UNAM meets Isidro Metapan in the final pairings.

The winners of the Galaxy-TFC and Seattle-Santos ties will meet in the semifinals, meaning an all-MLS final is not a possibility, but there's a solid chance of an MLS team reaching the final. The Monterrey/Morelia and Pumas/Metapan winners will meet in the other semifinal. 

Teams couldn't be drawn against other clubs from their group, but there were no restrictions on teams from the same league playing against each other in the quarterfinals. The Galaxy-TFC matchup marks the second straight tournament in which two MLS sides were paired together in the quarterfinals. Real Salt Lake defeated the Columbus Crew during its run to the 2010-2011 CCL final.

The first legs of the quarterfinals will be played March 6-8, and the second legs will take place March 13-15. The teams from the runner-up pool (Seattle, Toronto, Morelia, Isidro Metapan) will host the first-leg matches.

What do you think of the draw? How do you see the MLS sides faring?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. TFC is playing good football…It’s a shame they didnt have this roster to start the year. They need to buy Eckersley and hope Adrian Cann and Dicoy Williams return on Defense. If they can fix the D, this should be an exciting series.

    Reply
  2. Then, someone will point our the carpet they play on and Sounders fans will unite in a sea of tears….I mean excuses, I mean justification, I mean Open Cup trophies played & won on said carpet.

    Reply
  3. Whether LA wins the Cup next weekend or not, that’s gonna be an unrecognizeable squad on the pitch come March. Potential losses include Beckham (out of contract) Donovan (One last shot in Europe), Keane (would require contract extension), Juninho (end of loan from Bocas), Omar (Europe so maybe Klinsman will notice him), Franklin (end of contract), not to mention either Saunders or Ricketts will be gone. And if they all leave, well, why would Bruce Almighty stay?

    Reply
  4. Seattle will forget to show up and lose 3-0 in the first leg. Then return to dominate just enough to break their fans hearts losing 3-2 on aggregate. Then their fans will complain that the CCL format is to blame and they really are the best team in CONCACAF, in fact, Seattle invented CONCACAF. Then they will point to their US Open Cup trophies and claim eternal victory.

    Reply
  5. daily mail lol!

    Once again the dominant teams in the EPL play 22-28 yr olds.

    So yeah maybe everton will take a chance this year since they are near the bottom.

    Reply
  6. I see another mls Mexico final. I think Seattle could be there in the final. LA is going to lose beckham and that loss alone will make gals beatable.

    Reply
  7. Uh check out the record of LA vs TFC, pretty evenly matched. Not to mention that we arent teh team you prob think we are.

    Reply
  8. I’m telling you, you’re onto something.

    Retire soccer players at 30.

    Genius if you ask me. You should call up Sir Alex Ferguson with that one.

    Reply
  9. Name me the 30 year old midfielders playing in the EPL consistently right now.

    mmmm walcott, bale, lennon, nani, diame, henderson, kuyt, milner, hoilett, hoilett,drenthe,rodwell, fellaini, dempsey, sidwell(28), adam johnson, nasri, silva, matta, modric, yaya toure, n’zonzi, petrovic, charlie adam,stewart downing, ok i oculd go on for a long long time with all of the midfielders WHO PLAY REGULARLY that are 28 and under.

    30 or over. Gant pederson, fulhams midfield sans dempsey, parker…im running out of names…oh well.

    guess what pederson and parker have been in the epl the past 8 years.

    guess who hasnt been and should have come over this season.

    hes done.

    Reply
  10. Hes played just as well as Frei this year, he also got to spend the majority of last season playing in the CSL fulltime which has helped his development. Wouldnt be surprised to see Frei traded for a decent CB.

    Reply
  11. the only mexican teams that go to ccl are the teams that play in the clausura and aperture finals, America and chives have only been able to qualify for Copa libertadore due to that they get booted out playoffs early…..If Chivas makes it to the final this season, then they qualify for next years CCL, don’t expect America to make it any time soon because tat team is a big train wreck right now as the finished 17th place(second to last place)

    Reply
  12. hate to say it but i think you two are getting ahead of yourselves as far as how many people will come out for this. I think it depends entirely on how cheap MLSE makes the tickets, dont forget the most we got out for CCL games was around 12k at BMO, dont think LA will be that much more of a draw unless they make it cheap as all hell. Fingers crossed they do.

    Reply
  13. Soccer players are done at 30?

    My god! Better cut Dempsey from the Nats as well. Someone call up Bocanegra, Gooch, Beasley, Howard, Cherundolo, and J.Jones as well to break the bad news.

    Maybe the US should try to qualify for the WC with the U20 team.

    Matt’s onto something here! In fact, why not just go with teenagers only? That should guarantee positive results.

    Reply
  14. Interesting that Ives is tweeting TFC prefers Kocic to Frei. I saw more than enough of Milos when he was with DCU. HIs upside ain’t that high up.

    Reply
  15. santos is the best offense-minded team, morelia is on a roll, monterrey just needs to recover key players from injuries but the purposely let this season pass due to the upcoming Club World Cup, PUMAS is in a slump but I still very dangerous…..I guarantee each one of these teams will boost their rooster with new signings, they always do…..Santos is the team to beat, best offense, counter, midfield, goalkeeper, bench…I don’t think seattle has the depth or quality santos does

    Reply
  16. LOL! You guys are so delusional, LA will destroy you. Keane is shaping up to be one of the best strikers in MLS and Becks and Landon will be back. Perhaps LD leaves but LA will have a solid replacement for him.

    Reply
  17. For those who follow Mexican soccer, how much parity is there? I just took a glance at the Apateura standings and it seems like a very up and down field from last year-Monterrey and UNAM didn’t qualify, Club America was in second to last, etc. I have to give it to them, they seem to have a good mix of parity, financial clout, attractive soccer, power clubs to compete on the international stage, and great talent from Mexico and South America.

    Reply
  18. I can’t wait. Is there a better rivalry in sports right now than Mexico-US in soccer ?

    No. Club and national team, it doesn’t get any better.

    Seeeeaeaaaaaaatle Soooooounders

    Reply
  19. I doubt Golden Balls will still be a member of the Galaxy in March. And if LA wins the MLS Cup, I bet Landon Donovan tries for permanent move to the EPL, and not just another loan.

    And if that happens, Robbie Keane (and Robbie Keane’s ginormous ego) will be one lonely and grumpy Irishmen next season. Juninho will be about the midfield player capable of getting him the ball.

    Reply
  20. LA completely dominate Toronto, somehow take only a 1-0 lead and hold it til the 89th minute, where the game is rescheduled due to the weather. TFC wins the rematch 1-0.

    Reply
  21. 50,000 + at skydome playing on a nice carpeted turf while still in pre-season for Becks…gotta love TFC’s chances here!

    Going by this years results, TFC wins on away goals.
    Going by the 2010 results, it would have gone to extra time.

    Last result was 2-2 at LA, the 3 previous results were 0-0

    Something tells me though, there is too much fire power on these two teams for more 0-0 draws

    Reply

Leave a Comment