Home teams went unbeaten on the first weekend of the MLS Playoffs, setting up a quartet of nail-biters for the second legs of all four series.
The New England Revolution and Real Salt Lake held serve at home, posting key victories, while the Houston Dynamo and Los Angeles Galaxy were able to take draws in their visits to Seattle and, well, Los Angeles.
So who has the advantage heading into game two? Real Salt Lake has to be feeling good heading to Columbus, but the Crew are great at home and RSL has been awful on the road and will likely be looking to bunker its way to a series victory. The Revs will head to Toyota Park with similar plans, to frustrate Chicago's attack and hope Shalrie Joseph can deliver some more magic.
The Houston-Seattle and LA-Chivas USA series are still too close to call, but if the first legs were any indication, we should be in for two unforgettable closeout games.
What did you think of the first weekend of MLS playoff games? Think RSL can knock off the champions? Who do you see winning the tightly-contested Dynamo-Sounders series? Who takes the Home Depot Clasico?
Share your thoughts below.
Its good that all the series still have something to play for. IMO that is the only problem with 2 legged match-ups is that the second game can become utterly meaningless.
WITH the value of away goals, each HOME team will bunker down and play for a 0-0 tie while going for a win/TIE ON THE ROAD.
Each way of playing has its flaws.
How awful would it be to see Houston vs New England III???
Galaxy hold the series against Houston.
Houston beats Seattle
Galaxy beats Chivas
Chicago beats New England
Columbus beats Real Salt Lake
Houston beats Galaxy
Chicago beats Columbus
Houston beats Chicago
Houston wins 2009 MLS Cup
*sell MORE tickets
ewwwww, a McDonnell advertisement?!?! Boooo.
Does anyone else think lalas is a moron for what he said regarding home/away series at the Home Depot Center? In that it’ll be much harder for LA the second game since it will be a “home” game for Chivas? Does it really matter THAT much? Do they sell for tickets to Chivas fans on their “home” leg?
I think Beckham needs to get some surgery on his legs from Dr.Andrews so he can play like he’s 25 again like Brett Farve.
I know its a stupid comment but theres no way someone plays better at 40 than they were at 32 without somesort of magical installment of bionic technology. hax
After watching an interesting EPL game, Man City- both teams going end-to-end and controlling the ball, nice passng and runs, it is oh-so-difficult to watch MLS. We could start by getting off our “physical play” horse and start making the refs call more fouls and passing out cards like they do in the EPL. We will see more offensive play, more goals, and less cheap shots and defenders clumsily tackling players. Towards the end of the LA game, Beckham passes the ball off and a sescond later a Chivas player runs full steam into him- no call no card. I bet world-class players love that, same goes for Lunberg. Why these guys would want to come play over here is beyond me…
Chicago will win 2-0 and move on…
I think the playoffs have been great. Good games, hard played.
Without the value of away goals, each visiting team will bunker down and pay for a tie while goign for a win at home.
Let’s see how many of the visiting teams now go for a tie on the return leg.
Hmm, the Champions League has it figured out. I wonder when MLS will figure it out?
So far, MLS Playoffs are snooze-tastic!!
Not a sellout for the SuperClassico Playoff Edition? Can only mean one thing, only the true supporters in LA are left, no more Beckham mania, no celebrity in the stadium, no screaming girls. Not all bad. But the LAG “home” leg better be a sellout or the attendance critics will be climbing out of the walls.
Hopefully the 2nd leg will have some quality goals and no WTF goals. WTF was Santos doing? WTF was Gonzalez thinking?
RSL won’t bunker down. They know that when they play defense only they have a losing record. I would look to see them go hard. Most people still don’t expect them to win the series,so there is nothing for them to lose by attacking. I believe Kreis when he says it’s 0-0. Let’s just hope the Crew don’t flop around to waste time like they did at Rio Tinto. I think Seattle is in trouble going to Houston without a lead. I see the Rev’s attacking also. And I’m sure Bruce will get LA to step up the defense. So I see- RSL, LA, N.E., and Seattle. Final- RSL,Galaxy Cup- RSL
As a removed Revs fan it was painful to watch that turnout. The revolution are killing any chance of ever getting a good fan base playing in Foxboro. This place is in the middle of nowhere. Bob Kraft either needs to man up and start caring about this franchise or it would sadden me but let them leave New England. I can’t believe I have never heard Framingham as an option for a stadium location- place has a large Brazilian population, surrounded by wealthy suburbs and is on the commuter rail connecting it to Boston and Worcester.
Thoughts on the game: Revs played some decent football, in spats had more attacking ability then I had seen all year but the fouls were continually too hard and unpunished by the ref. Probably saw three or four times where a player came in cleats up on 50:50 ball (50:50 is being gracious as well).
The Fire/Rev ref was just absolutely terrible. Not that he was unfair to the Fire and cost us points or anything, he was just God awful for everyone.
When you refuse to call anything or give yellows for stuff that are no-brainer yellows in every league in the world the result is you have a crappy game where people are grabbing and hacking each other at every chance.
MLS is stupid. We should be rewarding attractive offensive, not rewarding defenders who run over players with the ball. Retarded.
the Galaxy defense looked very suspect yesterday, and Chivas played a physical (borderline dirty) game. i still think the Galaxy goes through, as will New England, Columbus and Houston.
Kreis has said that he doesn’t plan on bunkering in for the game and is going into it with the mentality that the series is still 0-0. I really hope they go in with atleast some attacking in mind. If they bunker in I really don’t see us holding the Crew for 90 minutes… our defense always has games where it gives up ridiculous goals on the road…
I’m fascinated by the LA rivalry. An entire section of “away” fans is a rarity in the MLS. Living in DC, the closest thing we get to a rivalry is the Energy Drinks and Cheatcago.
I was surprised with the attendance at these games, especially New England. The TV shots of the stadium were depressing.
Everyone loves to hate Beckham, and he loves to retaliate. Unfortunately that was the highlight of the game yesterday afternoon.
I see Houston, LA, RSL, and New England getting through.
It looks like the refs have decided to swallow their whistles for the playoffs, which is a bad thing for Seattle and LAG.
Can we please stop calling Galaxy v. Chivas USA the “Super Classico”? They maybe filled the HDC to 2/3 capacity! Not to mention that the game was crap too.