Tonight starts the conference finals in the 2009 MLS Cup Playoffs. We all know the pairings going into the conference finals and for the most part we know who the league and ESPN are hoping to see in the MLS Cup.

We have our favorites and we certainly have our underdog. These next two games will put either a really high profile match in MLS Cup 2009 or one that sees a couple of western conference clubs battling it out like last year’s two eastern conference teams did in LA.

I’ll start with tonight’s western conference showdown out in LA, followed by tomorrow’s clash at Toyota Park in the Windy City. As always feel free to pipe in your score predictions below. Continue Reading…

Stuart Holden and Greg Vanney set to battle things out this weekend. (Getty Images)

It seems like every year we get a big upset in the playoffs, and 2009 was no different. Thursday night in Columbus we saw Real Salt Lake go into Crew Stadium and shock the league with their 3-2 upset of the Crew, sending them through to the conference finals. The weekend slate of games however saw no more upsets, the home teams held strong and won their series.

So now it is all set, Chicago will host RSL and LA will host Houston. All quality series and all in soccer-only stadiums. With all due respect to New England I think the league really didn’t need them to hold on to beat Chicago and host RSL in the conference finals in front of a 90% empty stadium with NFL lines on the field. Instead we get a game in a modest MLS-sized part that should be mostly full.

Did we end up with the best matchups going into the conference finals? Some would say we did but I still think the way the playoffs are set up the higher seeds are still at a disadvantage even though three of the four went through this year. But that is just the way things are set up and kudos to RSL for sneaking through and pulling the upset this year. No doubt in my mind that upset bought Jason Kreis another season in Salt Lake with the club.

So back to the matchups for a minute. I’m pretty sure the league knows what MLS Cup pairing they want out of these four (Chicago-LA) but will it happen?

Chicago won the season series in the two meetings between the clubs. Their 1-0 win at Toyota Park should hold some value for the Fire as they will lean heavy on RSL’s lack of winning on the road (up until last week of course) to get them through this game. Chicago also has the outside speed that will probably be used a bit more against RSL. It was something that lacked for Columbus in their game but when things went wide it worked for the Crew against RSL. I’d imagine we’ll see plenty of Chris Rolfe going into the box for Brian McBride.

Out west things are going to be fun. Friday the Dynamo travel to LA in what should be a packed house for the final home game of the year at the HDC. It was just three weeks ago we saw these two teams battle to a scoreless draw at Robertson Stadium. I have to wonder how much of an advantage the home field will be for the Galaxy.

Are you happy with the conference finals? Do you think RSL can pull another upset in Chicago?

Landon Donovan leads the Galaxy against rivals Chivas. (Getty Images)

One more weekend of action and we will be in the conference finals here. One club is already in and three others will move on this weekend. After last weekend’s play the pressure is on a couple home teams to rebound while one just has to keep on doing what they do best in front of their fans.

The eastern conference will finish tomorrow night as Sunday sees the two western conference games. As always feel free to pipe in your score predictions below.

Saturday:

New England – at – Chicago Fire:

Going down 2-1 on the road is never a good way to start a series and against a tough defensive squad like New England it really puts the pressure on the Fire. Chicago hasn’t been the best squad at home this season which may worry home fans even more, now throw in the news that defender Gonzalo Segares is out for this game and you really need to worry. New England just has to keep the defense strong enough for one more game here and they are through to the conference finals. I think the Revs getting over the hump again against Chicago really speaks to how well coached they are by Steve Nicol. Not having a big time offense and getting two goals on the Fire is never easy.

But will it last? The amount of injuries are still a major concern for Nicol’s team but the strong play from Shalrie Joseph last week should carry over on the road. The Revs will also have to rely on two rookies in the back (Kevin Alston and Darrius Barnes) and the sometimes suspect Emmanuel Osei. If Chicago can use their wing play and the toughness of Brian McBride to frustrate Osei early they could get back into this series.

I think Chicago will find a way to tie things up in the series and win on penalty kicks at the end. Its a close call but I just see this going to kicks.

WVH Prediction: Chicago 1, New England 0 (Fire advance after PKs)

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Sunday:

Seattle Sounders FC – at – Houston Dynamo:

I think had Seattle got a goal at home against Houston last week they’d win this series but now on the road and it is still a nil-nil draw I really don’t know if the expansion club can get it done in one of the hardest venues in all of Major League Soccer. There is no love between these two sides as well as the fans, expect a sea of Orange on Sunday at Robertson Stadium. Just too bad this one isn’t on ESPN2 again for the national spotlight.

This one comes down to tough defenses and offenses that need to find their way around the net again. Stuart Holden has to control things in the middle of the park and find a way to slow down the likes of Freddie Ljungberg and Fredy Montero. On the flip side a lot of pressure will be on Jhon Kennedy Hurtado and James Riley to slow down the Dynamo attack from Brad Davis and Brian Ching.

No doubt this one will remain as physical as the first game was. Expect more cards and more fouls in this one. I think Houston will find a way to grab a goal early in this one and sit on it for the rest of the game. Pressure is mostly on Seattle to score in this one but I just think Houston will be the stronger team at home here.

WVH Prediction: Houston 1, Seattle 0 (Houston advances)

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Chivas USA – at – LA Galaxy:

So both scored two goals in the first game, just throw that out because it doesn’t mean a thing now since the series is still tied. Expect even more for this one as both know what is on the line here.

Chivas has to find a way to slow down Landon Donovan and the Galaxy attack. For once they were able to match the Galaxy goal for goal but you can’t count on that for two games in a row. I’d imagine Chivas will go a little more defensive in this game while the Galaxy offense will be in all out attack mode to get a goal, especially early on in this one.

If LA gets up early then look out, I’d imagine Bruce Arena will get his side to camp on any lead they get. Preki will do the same if the tables turn his way but they have their work cut out for them if they have to trail in this game. I like the Galaxy to advance mainly because of Donovan. I think when you have the best player on the field you are more likely to advance here.This one will remain close but the Galaxy will come out on top in the end.

WVH Prediction: LA 2, Chivas 1

Eric Brunner and Columbus try to slow down Yura Movsisyan and RSL tonight. (Getty Images)

Tonight the second leg of the first round playoff matches kickoff in Columbus as the Crew host Real Salt Lake. RSL holds a slight 1-0 lead in the goals department in this two-legged series thanks to the late goal from Robbie Findley last weekend.

Now is really where the fun begins for each side. Columbus went defensive in the first game by sitting Guillermo Barros Schelotto and Alejandro Moreno. Each should see plenty of time in this game as the Crew will be gunning for goals to take the advantage back. Most figure RSL will go defensive in this game and bunker down as much as possible.

To come away with a victory on the road won’t be easy as the Crew were one of the best home teams in the league this year while on the flip side RSL was one of the worst road teams. RSL’s lone game at Crew Stadium this year was a 3-1 loss back in July. Going defensive means they will have to rely more on the play of guys like Jamison Olave and Chris Wingert. I’d also imagine we’ll see a little more Clint Mathis in this game as well from Jason Kreis.

RSL has to continue to hope that the Crew stays cold. Its been a few games since the Crew have scored a goal and one has to figure that streak will end at home. The pressure is on the Crew to score but it is also on a very much on the RSL defense to do well in this one. During the regular season RSL gave up 24 goals on the road while the Crew scored a mean 25 goals at home.

I think having a rested Schelotto goes far for the Crew in this one. It was a big gamble sitting him in game one but he sees the field like no one else out there. RSL will rely a lot on the speed of Robbie Findley and Yura Movsisyan up top but with Chad Marshall a little more fit going into this game I just like the Crew at home. Its still very hard to pick RSL on the road anyways. Columbus escapes this series but only by a slim margin.

WVH Prediction: Columbus 2, RSL 0

The playoff version of the SuperClasico got off to a bang with a 2-2 draw. (Getty Images)

Some could say the results we saw in the first week of the playoffs were fairly expected. The SuperClasico ended in a draw that I think most folks expected to get; Real Salt Lake found a way to get a win over the Crew at home; Seattle and Houston battled it out to a scoreless draw; and maybe the only real shocker of the weekend was the Revs beating Chicago 2-1.

Indeed the first leg of the conference semi-finals saw some expected results. Now the higher seeds get the homefield advantage (except for LA who technically were already home for their first game). Just how big of a deal will games at Robertson Stadium, Crew Stadium and Toyota Park be for the other three clubs? Well for Chicago and Columbus they will need to be everything as those two have to find a way to win at home by a couple goals. For the Dynamo it should be a welcome thing as I kind of believe they have the biggest upper hand of any clubs going into the next leg of the series.

One thing we can bank on is no one is dead in the water yet. Away goals mean nothing in the MLS playoffs as it is all about total goals scored. The two western conference series are still way to close to call right now. In the east I would imagine we’ll see both RSL and New England head on the road with a very defensive look to them. I fully expect RSL to just bunker the hell out of the game this weekend in Columbus. Even as awful as they’ve been on the road that’s about all they can hope for against a very strong Crew team at home.

Does anyone believe RSL can knock off the champions? I know a few folks in Salt Lake that certainly think so. I’d imagine we’ll see more of Guillermo Barros Schelotto in the next game for Columbus, weird to think that he wasn’t even used for the game in Salt Lake. Same goes to Alejandro Moreno.

What did you think of the first weekend of the playoffs?

Columbus needs a big game from Robbie Rogers at Rio Tinto Stadium. (Getty Images)

While last night’s game in Seattle got the playoffs started with a 0-0 bang, the rest of the playoff clubs get ready to join the Dynamo and Sounders in the fun. One series kicks off tomorrow night while the other two wait it out for Sunday.

For a brief thought about last night’s game here I thought it was one of the most entertaining nil-nil draws I’ve seen in a long time. I know some folks hate a scoreless draw in our sport but last night’s game showed a lot of excitement and I only hope the Dynamo’s fans return the favor to Seattle and cover Robertson Stadium orange in a big time sellout. Boy those two clubs are building one hell of a rivalry too, one that could definitely be good for years to come here.

But speaking of rivalries we have a couple good ones in the playoffs this year both on Sunday believe it or not but tomorrow night’s game will certainly be good too. Continue Reading…

Fredy Montero leads the charge for the expansion Sounders. (Getty Images)

The playoffs are finally here and tonight they kickoff with a bang up in the Pacific Northwest as the Houston Dynamo travel to Qwest Field to face the Seattle Sounders FC in a big first leg western conference semi-final series.

Seattle comes into the playoffs as one of the league’s hottest teams and with the opening game at Qwest you have to believe Sigi Schmid and company will pull out all the stops to make sure the expected large crowd stays happy. Schmid will have to rely heavily on Jhon Kennedy Hurtado and Leo Gonzalez in the back to slow down the attack from Brian Ching and Stuart Holden.

The Dynamo need to find a way to get a goal early and then rely on their strong defense to carry them in this game and in the series. Catching Seattle off guard on corner kicks or free kicks could go a long way for the Dynamo. However the most important thing for Dominic Kinnear’s bunch is staying out of card trouble. These last couple months have been nothing but yellow and red cards for Kinnear’s team. Make no mistake if they get into card trouble it will be another early exit for the Dynamo this year in the playoffs. You can’t beat a club like Seattle with ten men, you just can’t do it.

I think tonight’s game will be physical as Houston will want to use guys like Geoff Cameron and Bobby Boswell to keep Fredy Montero and Freddie Ljungberg off the boards. Look for Seattle to play the wings a lot in this game and also look for Ljungberg to try to live up to his DP status with the Sounders.

I like the homeside by a slim margin in this one. These two played two exciting games in the regular season and I don’t see anything different here tonight. Goals by Ching for the Dynamo and goals by Montero and Nate Jaqua for the Sounders.

WVH Prediction: Seattle 2, Houston 1