Chris Seitz was a part of a crazy day in MLS yesterday. (Getty Images)

Yesterday was a crazy day in the very least. Not only did we have the fast paced second stage of the MLS Re-Entry Draft but we also had plenty of trades to go along with it. I never got around to talking about these at any sort of length last night.

First of all I think the Re-Entry Draft was a success for the league. Yes the name is totally lame and needs some work but this new system works. It’s created a much needed buzz for this time of the year that sometimes isn’t there for MLS clubs.

As we all know the LA Galaxy made headlines yesterday by grabbing Juan Pablo Angel in the Re-Entry draft but they also took an average defender that I thought would be a good pickup for depth reasons in Luka Sassano. Instead they traded Sassano’s right away to Kansas City for their Re-Entry selection in Frankie Hejduk.

If there is any club that knows their way around the MLS salary cap it is LA. They’ll find a way to get all of these big names in under the cap with room to breathe.

On first glance I thought the trade made little sense as the Galaxy got increasingly older in their backline. But this move for Hejduk is about their depth and depth alone. As long as the Galaxy find ways to get younger through the SuperDraft or through their academy system this winter they’ll be fine.

For Kansas City I’m not sure what the logic is but if they are indeed going after another Designated Player then going for a cheaper player like Sassano makes loads of sense.

The next move I was fairly against all day yesterday. Keeper Chris Seitz was traded to FC Dallas for a 4th round selection in the 2012 SuperDraft. First of all what is with trading these 4th round picks these days? Second, the more I think about it the more I’m coming around to this deal for Dallas.

Yes Seitz was wildly inconsistent in Philadelphia as a starter but with added games to the FCD schedule this year getting a fairly experienced keeper like Seitz is necessary. Seitz came under fire after the start of the season in Philadelphia when he was behind a defense that was still coming together. In Dallas he’ll get a defense that was one of the best in the league in 2010. That should be a nice change of pace for the young keeper and a good thing for him to learn from.

Plus he’ll train under Kevin Hartman and push him which is something Schellas Hyndman has stressed. It shows the club was really ready to move away from Dario Sala too. Sala made it through both stages of the Re-Entry draft and is now a free agent. I get the sense he may retire if no one picks him up here. Just a hunch from me.

Also it shows Hyndman isn’t ready for Josh Lambo to take a serious leap forward. I’d imagine we’ll see Lambo be on his way out of Dallas before long if he doesn’t see any more playing time this year. Being a third stringer for another season has to not sit well with the kid.

The team that I feel bad for in all of this is Philadelphia. They basically lose Seitz for nothing here, not even a low round draft pick. They made a lot of commitment to him this year which makes this all the more confusing.

Juan Pablo Angel is heading west to be with the LA Galaxy. (Getty Images)

Much like last week’s stage one, if you blinked you missed something. Stage 2 of the MLS Re-Entry Draft went by in a flurry over Twitter earlier today. With every club and nearly every other fan following along to the draft the tweets made it nearly impossible to keep up. But the dust has settled and the draft is over.

There were only a couple real shockers in this draft. A total of 11 picks in two rounds (I had no idea there would be two round) saw some big names move across the MLS landscape.

Round 1

• D.C. United: Josh Wolff
• Chivas USA: Jimmy Conrad
• New England Revolution: Ryan Cochrane
• LA Galaxy: Juan Pablo Angel
• Chicago Fire: Cory Gibbs
• Sporting KC: Frankie Hejduk
• Seattle Sounders: Chris Seitz
• Columbus Crew: Jeff Cunningham
• LA Galaxy: Luke Sassano
• Colorado Rapids: Tyrone Marshall

Round 2

• New England Revolution: Fred

Philadelphia, Portland, Vancouver, Dallas, Houston, New York, RSL, San Jose and Toronto all passed on picks.

Pick-by-pick Thoughts:

DC takes Wolff - First thought was why Wolff? Getting two decent strikers in the Re-Entry draft (they took Joseph Ngwenya in Stage 1) shows they got a lot of work still to do here. Wolff has a connection to manager Ben Olsen which is fine but its funny that DC continues to take former Curt Onalfo guys from KC.

Chivas takes Conrad – As long as Conrad signs this deal is great for Chivas. He’s a proven leader and someone that can instantly improve their chances in 2011.

New England takes Cochrane and Fred – A defensive pick, not bad but at the same time not great. He’s what they are looking for in cheap, experienced defenders though.

As for the Fred pick, I had no idea there was a second round to this as the Revs were the only club to pick in that round. I guess this is a decent pickup for them as they do need some upgrades in the midfield. I’m just not so sure this is the right fit.

LA takes Angel and Sassano – LA trades away a 4th rounder in 2014 (haha 2014!) to Houston and takes JPA. Their search for a second striker is over with that pick. If he does sign it will easily put LA in the discussion for MLS Cup contenders again in 2011. Getting him signed under the cap won’t be easy though as I’d imagine he’ll have to be a third DP.

As for the Sassano pick, don’t sleep on it. Its a very solid pick by Bruce Arena. He gets some fairly cheap, experienced defensive cover to help build up their depth in the back.

Chicago takes Gibbs – With Wilman Conde out of the way now this pick made perfect sense for the Fire. Gibbs is signed and ready to go to the Fire according to the club. Now if he can only stay healthy it will be a very solid steal for the club.

Sporting KC take Hejduk – A pick I love as long as they are able to agree on terms. Hejduk adds some veteran leadership to their backline now that Conrad is gone and you know the fans there will love him.

Seattle takes Seitz – There was some pre-draft speculation that he’d be going to Dallas today. That made little sense to me as does him going to Seattle. I feel this is more trade bait than anything else though if he signs he will be a decent backup in waiting behind Kasey Keller.

Columbus takes Cunningham – I told a couple people around here today that if Cunningham didn’t get picked in the draft he’d stay in Dallas however if he did get picked it would be by the Crew. Cunningham heads back to the place where it all began for him. Got a feeling the locals there will be fairly happy with this pick too.

Colorado take Marshall – Could be one of the most underrated picks of the draft. Marshall adds to their defensive depth and adds even more veteran leadership to the club.

The 2010 Crew look a lot like the 2009 Crew, does that mean another Supporter's Shield is on the way? (Getty Images)

I had hoped to get this post out of the way earlier in the day but some issues on the back end of my site kept me busy all day (some PHP bug!). But I felt like it was still alright to move on with out look at each Major League Soccer club and how they are doing this offseason.

Today we go back east and look at the two time defending Supporter’s Shield champion Columbus Crew.

The offseason hasn’t been too busy for the Crew but they were able to make some big noise at the SuperDraft with a couple of their selections.

Keepers:

Who they have: William Hesmer, Andy Gruenebaum, and Kenny Schoeni

Notes: This area is still fine for the Crew. I had heard whispers that Gruenebaum was not on the roster for the training camp but I haven’t seen anything out there about it yet (Crew fans can help me out on that one). If he is in camp then he is a fine backup to Hesmer, if not then they may be in trouble.

For the most part I’d say if they are looking to add anything here it will be with one of the league’s pool keepers that travel around. Hesmer is one of the more underrated keepers in the league in my opinion. The Crew should be fine here as long as Hesmer stays healthy this season.

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Defense:

Who they have: Frankie Hejduk, Gino Padula, Andy Iro, Chad Marshall, Eric Brunner, Jed Zayner, Shaun Francis, and Kwaku Nyamekye.

Notes: When healthy this group is as good as it gets. But like we saw late in the year when they aren’t 100% things get a little dicy. Hejduk has shown his age and sometimes Padula isn’t all there. Let’s not forget that Marshall will probably be missed some point this summer if he ends up going to South Africa. I do however like the youth with this group in Iro, Zayner and Brunner.

Too bad they probably won’t get anything out of Nyamekye, one of their forth round picks. Apparently he is headed to play in Europe.

I think if Robert Warzycha can get a couple more quality center backs and maybe one more wing back in here this group will be set for the long run. With the amount of extra games again this year on the menu you gotta think depth will come into question with the Crew yet again.

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Midfield:

Who they have: Alex Grendi, Danny O’Rourke, Dilly Duka, Duncan Oughton, Eddie Gavin, Kevin Burns, Brian Carroll, Emmanuel Ekpo, Robbie Rogers, Adam Moffat, and Cory Elenio.

Notes:  Just like the defensive group if they are healthy they are one of the best in the league but if they aren’t it gets interesting. They have a good solid core of players here and I’m very curious to see Duka plays into their system here as well.

I would like to see them go after another attacking midfielder though for depth. Should Schelotto go down they will need some sort of back up in place. Adding more depth in the defensive side of the midfield wouldn’t be a bad thing as well.

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Forwards:

Who they have: Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Jason Garey, Bright Dike, Emilio Rentería, and Steven Lenhart

Notes: Schelotto makes this a very solid group but I kind of still see him as an attacking midfielder more than a forward at this point. Some folks list him as a forward others list him as a midfielder.

I like Renteria and Lenhart – and Garey isn’t too bad either. Biggest question will be around Dike and whether or not the Crew really did gamble on picking him so early. Most like me agree they could have gotten him in the forth round with one of their three picks then.

I’d still like to see them go after another striker before the season starts if they can, or definitely one during the summer transfer window. Right now they’ll have to rely too much on Schelotto to score for them and I can see that doing well early on but leading to some trouble late if no one else steps up.

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Overall:

One still has to figure the Crew will be in the discussion for the Supporter’s Shield yet again this season. They’ve barely lost anything from a year ago and I have to think that playoff loss to RSL really stung this group. I think as long as Rogers and Ekpo step up in the midfield, Schelotto and Renteria do their part up top and the defense stays healthy they’ll be another tough team to beat in 2010.

Still saying that they do have some work left to do to get the depth issues taken care of.

GBS helped lead the Crew to a second straight Supporter's Shield trophy. (Getty Images)

We all expected big things in 2009 for the Columbus Crew. Anytime you win a MLS Cup and retain the bulk of a lineup that got you that title you expect to repeat or come extremely close to do so. As we saw last week the Crew fell short of that this year as they lost to Real Salt Lake at home in the semi-finals of the eastern conference.

Still what can you say about this year’s Crew other than it was pretty much a carry-over of some sorts of the 2008 team. Robert Warzycha stepped in as Sigi Schmid headed west to be with the new Seattle Sounders club and things on the roster pretty much remained the same way with Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Robbie Rogers, Chad Marshall and Frankie Hejduk all there.

The Crew stumbled a bit out of the gate though with questions of if this bunch was really good enough to repeat. Columbus didn’t earn their first win until May, eight games into the season. But even with the lack of winning early on there was only a couple losses on the fixture table.

In the summer the Crew really turned things on. Schelotto looked like the MVP that we all knew he was and instead of assisting on goals like he did in his MVP season of 2008, he was scoring goals to help the Crew win games. Between June and August the Crew only lost a couple matches in league play while their CONCACAF Champions League play started off well.

Late in the year the Crew wrapped up their second straight Supporter’s Shield title, ensuring another birth in the CCL next year. While they did fall short in the playoffs they proved once again how a stable club can do so well in the league.

What Went Right In 2009:
When all key parts were playing things looked unstoppable for this group. Schelotto was a beast when he was fully healthy, Marshall repeated as Defender of the Year even though he wasn’t totally fit and other guys like Steven Lenhart and Jason Garey filled in nicely. Its hard to complain too much about a Supporter’s Shield type season like the Crew had but I know the way things ended left a lot of folks unsatisfied.

What Went Wrong In 2009:
Injuries played a big part in things that did go wrong. Some might also point a finger at Warzycha for playing it too safe in Salt Lake for the first leg of the playoffs. Either way this club was pretty gassed by the end of the season. Their schedule in the fall months between the league slate and the CCL group stage really left them on empty. They went from being one of the most dominate home clubs in league history to a team that lost three straight home games to finish the year (including the playoffs).

What’s Next:
Next up is figuring out who is staying and who is going. We know Philly will certainly pick someone from this club in the expansion draft and then there is the likelihood that Robbie Rogers will leave. What is bigger though is whether or not Schelotto will hang it up or not. If he returns along with other veterans like Hejduk and Alejandro Moreno then this club should have no problem returning to the top of the food chain. But at the same time they definitely need to go out and find some offense this winter. It was something that lacked all year and a reason why Schelotto had to pick up the scoring slack.

There are plenty of goals this week, especially since we had a 6-3 game and a 3-2 game.

Order of video: Frankie Hejduk, Maicon Santos, Dave van den Burgh, Jeff Cunningham, A.J. DeLaGarza, Dax McCarty, David Ferriera, Jeff Cunningham, Edson Buddle, Chris Rolfe, Jamison Olave, Josh Wolff,  Steve Zakuani, Fredy Montero, Dwayne De Rosario, Conor Casey, and Nana Attakora

Here are the notes I jotted down from this weekend’s action. If you have any comments from the games this weekend feel free to post below.

- Chivas continues to roll here. The AmeriGoats get another win at home, improving to 7-1-1 on the year. An eight point advantage in the standings right now. Wow. At this rate they will clinch a playoff spot by mid-July. I’m just wondering when the flame will go out and this club will cool off for real here. They have a tough stretch coming up with hosting DC, at KC and then home again against Chicago. I wouldn’t be shocked to see them either roll through those at their current pace right now. I mentioned their fast start in comparison to other fast starts in league history. Right now they are tied for the second best start behind the 2000 KC club and the 1999 Miami club. Interesting fact that Steve Goff mentions is the common fact is Preki. He played for those two clubs and is coaching this Chivas club.

Just how are they doing this though? The cast of no-names and what nots are just getting the job done no matter what. They clean up on sloopy defending and are very tight in the back. They are showing that they don’t need to be flashy to win or be well anything great to win.

- And speaking of the club Chivas beat on Saturday, Real Salt Lake continues to be unimpressive on the road. Let’s hit reality for a second. This club has always been terrible on the road. The fact that they don’t score on the road this season only makes it worse.

Jason Kreis has a lot of work to do with this club still. Right now they aren’t a contender. Kreis will probably make a change up top soon by placing Fabian Espindola up top instead of Yura Movsisyan who has been rather poor so far this season (one goal and one assist in eight games).

- Columbus FINALLY won a game. Good thing too because they couldn’t afford to stay out of the win column for much longer. Getting Robbie Rogers and Frankie Hejduk back and healthy really made a difference with this club. A big reason that few are talking about here is the play of Emmanuel Ekpo in the midfield for the Crew. His play has been really impressive lately.

I know they let in the late goal to KC on Saturday but they really dominated the better part of that game and finally proved to not only the rest of the league but to themselves that they CAN close out games again. This side still has the talent to do some damage and with as tight as the eastern conference is right now they are by no means out of it here.

- Kansas City looked okay in the loss to the Crew. Let’s face it this club has some heart but lacks the talent to really be dangerous in the eastern conference. They’ll come close to a playoff birth but in the end they just lack the talent to get the job done.

- New York finally looked good. Then again I don’t know if it was San Jose playing so poorly for 45 minutes or what. In all seriousness though we finally saw the offense out of New York that we all really expected to see this season. Albert Cedades was a big factor in this game just like many had hoped for. With three straight home games coming up they could reel off more points if they play like they did on Friday. It won’t be easy with a hot Houston club coming to town this week followed by rivals Chicago and a Colorado club that always plays tough in New York. In three weeks the Red Bulls could either be where they are now or near the top of the eastern standings. In all reality though I see this club only getting five points out of the next three at best. They still have a lot to prove to me here.

- Seattle proves yet again they can play down a man. I thought they should have easily won the game with LA yesterday but sometimes games just don’t go your way. For the most part though Seattle controlled the pace of the game like I thought they would and really took it to LA. The red card to James Riley did become a factor in this one. It was a stupid card for Riley, who will probably get another game tacted on to his suspension by the league.

- Speaking of LA for a moment. Anyone even realize they haven’t lost in six games here? Seriously, six games but the thing is they don’t look great in doing so. And maybe Landon Donovan has finally cooled off here too. He hasn’t been apart of the last two LA goals. What’s up with that?

- How about that Toronto-DC game? Six goals, loads of action, and a wild finish. Dwayne De Rosario may have had one of the best goals of the season so far (more on that later). Lovely to see the TFC fans on Saturday in support of DC’s stadium march.

- Most surprising result of the weekend for me had to be the New England-Chicago game. I really and truly expected the Fire to roll in this one. Maybe the Fire just aren’t that good. Maybe Dennis Hamlett needs to start Chris Rolfe instead of bringing him off the bench. I do know one thing, I like I have found a new favorite defender in Revs’ Emmanuel Osei. That kid is a beast. One other thing it was fun to see Shalrie Joesph run all over the place on Saturday.

- Houston once again handled their in-state rivals with ease. Dallas is just pathetic, they really are. There is no other way to put it. Houston on the other hand is really starting to turn the heat up here. Four straight clean sheets for Pat Onstad. Dominic Kinnear isn’t going to wow anyone with this club but he will still more than likely find ways to beat everyone with this club.

- Lastly, the butts-in-seats look for the week was okay, everyone except for one club got at least 11,000+ to their game. New York brought in the low number (8,000+) with Seattle having their usual 29,000+. Everyone else was pretty much expected though I would say DC showed a lower number than I would have liked to have seen.

Jimmy Conrad and Josh Wolff will try to keep Columbus winless. (Brian Stevens, WVH Photo Correspondent)

Week eight has already kicked off with a bit of a bang with two draws on Wednesday night in Kansas City and in Salt Lake City. The RSL-LA draw was something to talk about for sure while the DC-KC draw was pretty much expected.

Time to shift focus to the weekend however as we have plenty of games on the menu to keep us going. Seven games this week, on three straight days. We have all conference battles except for one match tonight in New York with San Jose and the Red Bulls. Also this weekend we have a couple rivalry games like in Texas between Houston and Dallas. And in the east we get to see a lovely battle with Chicago and New England, two clubs that really don’t like one another.

As always feel free to post your score predictions for this weekend’s action below.

San Jose Earthquakes – at – New York Red Bulls

1. What can San Jose do to turn things around in Giants’ Stadium?

One thing going against San Jose so far this season is not sloppy defense or poor offense it is injuries killing Frank Yallop’s bunch. The loss of Jason Hernandez early on hurt the defense in a big way while having Darren Huckerby out for some time hurt the offense just as bad. Right now it is time for Yallop to step up in the locker room and get his troops back to square one here. He also needs guys to step up on the field like Bobby Convey or Romario Corrales.

In this game they face a Red Bull club that is also just as bad as they are this season so getting on the board early will definitely help. Offensively they just need a spark out of anyone at this point. If someone like Ryan Johnson or Pablo Campos can find a way through the Red Bull defense, which has been very shaky this season we could see a surprise tonight in the Meadowlands.

2. Is this the right time for New York to get things going this season?

One would think that this is the perfect time for Juan Carlos Osorio’s bunch to turn the page on this season and get their act together for once. So far this season we just haven’t seen enough solid play for 90 minutes to think they can do it though. While San Jose is just as bad as they are they haven’t been able to beat bad clubs like themselves this season (the loss to LA proved just that a couple weeks ago).

Mainly what needs to go down is some better control in the midfield. No one is servicing the ball into Juan Pablo Angel like last season, which has lead to many questions about this club’s offense. It mainly comes down to quality of service from the wings I think. They just haven’t gotten that so far this season. With how poorly San Jose has been in defense this season this could be the right time for Dane Richards to have a big game.

3. Player to keep an eye out for.

I’m watching New York’s Macoumba Kandji in this one. He has all the tools and skills to be super dangerous here. I think its a matter of him realizing that too here. Once he and Angel get on the same page consistently this club will really start piling on the goals…and maybe the wins.

Quick Thoughts:

Honestly it is hard to pick a west coast club that is playing so poorly coming over to the east coast to play. Then again both clubs have given us very little reason to believe in them so far this season. Each sit near the bottom of the table with near identical records on the year and even the same goal differential on the year. And oddly enough neither club knows how to score on the road. I think with that the advantage has to go to the homeside, which lucky enough for New York means they should win this one. And in reality they should win this one.

While I am picking the Red Bulls to get their second win of the year I doubt it will be too convicing here either. I also wouldn’t be at all shocked to see a 0-0 result out of these two. Especially considering the fact that New York only has five goals on the year (one of which was an own-goal).

WVH Prediction: New York 1, San Jose 0

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Kansas City Wizards – at – Columbus Crew:

1. Once again, will the Crew finally break through here?

Honestly this looks like the one for you Crew fans. At home against a club that played in the midweek and expended themselves a bit at home in the process. Yeah, it could be the one but will it be. A lot needs to happen and the biggest is for the Crew to close out the game if they get the early advantage. Too many times this season the Crew have gone up early and fallen late due to poor defense or sloppiness in general.

Defensively they should be able to get a better pickup once Frankie Hejduk is back in the lineup for good. Hejduk is said to be fit enough to go on Saturday and that should lift this club a lot with their veteran leader back in the lineup.

2. What can KC do to keep Columbus out of the win column again?

For the visitors they need to control the midfield and shut down Gulliermo Barros Schelotto. Easier said than done but the Wizards have been able to slow him down a decent bit before. Secondly they need better service into their attack and better finishing. I wasn’t overly impressive with how they handled DC on Wednesday night for the better part of the game. They had a decent attack but nothing that would really set them apart in the east. I am starting though to think this club is one good striker away from being a really title contender.

Rattling the Crew early also won’t hurt in this one. Emotions could be high for the Crew since they are still searching for that first win so getting under their skin could go a long way.

3. Player to keep an eye out for.

I’m looking out for Columbus’ Pat Noonan on Saturday. I honestly feel he is due for a goal or at least an assist with the way he’s been playing as of late. He’s finally fit and I think once he and Alejandro Moreno link up together it could be a good combination going forward for the Crew.

Quick Thoughts:

Yes, I am drinking the Kool-aid that this is the game for the Crew to get their first win. For one they are throwing a big bash to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Crew Stadium and a lot of key guys are coming back to the lineup. Some stars just seem in line but if anyone would ruin it I think the Wizards are very capable of pulling it off. I just think the Crew are too hungry for a win at this point to let another slip by.

WVH Prediction: Columbus 2, Kansas City 1

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Toronto FC – at – DC United:

1. With Dwayne De Rosario back in the line up, how does TFC stack up against DC?

Without DeRo the Reds looked pretty good, in fact they sort of turned their season around after a bad two game spell against Dallas. Now that DeRo is fit again the club is continuing to play well. Both clubs are coming off a midweek game where each played fairly well so each should be just as tired as the other when it comes to Saturday’s game. The thing for Toronto is, DC has owned them in the past at RFK Stadium.

Toronto needs to work the ball through DeRo early in this one. He has to be the X-factor that controls this game for them or DC will take full advantage of TFC just like they always have at RFK.

2. How can DC control this game from start to finish?

Something DC failed to do on Wednesday was close the game out. That’s been a problem here and there for them so far this season, closing out games. And with Toronto not being a pushover these days finishing out the game in a good manner is a big thing right now for DC, especially since they are the leaders in the east right now.

Keeping the ball in the midfield and getting good runs out of the back from guys like rookie Rodney Wallace will definitely go a long way. We saw on Wednesday that when Wallace makes his runs he can be very dangerous for DC.

3. Player to keep an eye out for.

I think a big game could come from DC’s Luciano Emilio. He didn’t go the full 90 on Wednesday so he could be fully ready for Saturday’s game. That’s a good thing too as he’s done fairly well over these last two years against Toronto.

Quick Thoughts:

This one really has game of the week potential written on it. Toronto is playing some good soccer these days and DC is right up there with them. Hard to believe that these two are contending for the top spot in the east right now.

I think in the end DC gets the best of Toronto. RFK has never been a friendly place for the Reds and right now I just don’t see that changing. Toronto has been decent on the road so far this year but until they can prove they can win in places like DC it will still be hard to take them very seriously on the road. This one will be tight but in the end DC marches on with a win.

WVH Prediction: DC 2, Toronto 1

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New England Revolution – at- Chicago Fire:

1. Does Chicago continue to get draws here or will a dose of New England be the cure?

Let’s face it the Fire are in a little bit of a rut right now. Yes they aren’t losing a game but they also aren’t winning at the same time. That’s a problem no matter how you look at it, especially when they aren’t closing out games that they should win.

But if last year is any indication, the Fire playing New England is something the Fire look forward too. Maybe the Fire have been overlooking the past few games for this weekend’s clash with the Revs. It comes at a good time too since the Revs are still very banged up and are in a bit of a funk due to the major injuries on their roster.

2. Can we even expect New England to be competitive in this one?

Last year the Fire spanked the Revs all over the place during the regular season and even in the playoffs. With the amount of key guys still out to injuries it is hard to look at New England seriously here right now. I do love a Steve Nicol coached club but right now he is struggling to find a way out of the pile of injuries that is club has, which is understandable.

But to the question, they will be competitive in this one. Its a rivalry game for one and you know Nicol is posting scores from last year in the locker room this week to get the guys pumped up.

3. Player to keep an eye out for.

No one more to watch than Chris Rolfe for me. For some reason Rolfe has had New England’s number in the past and I doubt that will change at all this season.

Quick Thoughts:

Its really hard to pick New England right now. I want to but I just know it would be a waste of a pick with the amount of injuries this club has. Its a shame too because when healthy they are still a very good club. Thing is they don’t have the depth to do much right now and offensively they just aren’t scaring anyone. On the flip side Chicago has as good of an offense as anyone in this league and defensively they are pretty sound right now.

I think this one goes to the homeside pretty easily. Still too many key guys missing all over the field for Nicol and in the end Chicago just has more talent on the field.

WVH Prediction: Chicago 3, New England 0

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FC Dallas – at – Houston Dynamo:

1. Is this the time that Houston starts to turn things on here?

I think last week was a good indication as to how well Houston will start playing here. They controlled a lot of the game against New England and even though this is a rivalry game I still think Dallas has a very small shot at beating Houston in Houston. Stuart Holden is proving he can carry the load for the Dynamo in the middle and really that is something great to finally see.

2. How can Dallas sneak in and get the three points?

Luck may be one way but in all reality they need better midfield play. They have guys getting balls in the box but not to Kenny Cooper and not in ways that allow this club to be good on offense. Its kind of like having too many chefs in the kitchen. Its just messy. Plus defensively Schellas Hyndman still hasn’t figured out which combination of players works well enough to hold teams off.

Let’s not forget Houston has practically owned Dallas in this series. Only one Dallas win in three years between these clubs.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

If Dallas is to get any sort of success in this one it may have to come from Dave van den Burgh. He’s been a big lift to this club on the wings so far this year and I’m sure folks in New York miss his service too. Dallas needs a big game from him is they want to get on the board in this one and come out with any kind of points.

Quick Thoughts:

The El Capitan series kicks off for 2009 but it just doesn’t have that same bang to me as it has in recent years. Maybe it is the lack of De Rosario for Houston that is doing that to me or maybe it is because Dallas is a tough club to get behind these days. I don’t know what it is but its a good rivalry nonetheless even if Houston has won most of the games in it.

I think Houston will start to roll here with this game. They showed a lot of promise last week in their win at New England and I think it will continue this week at home against Dallas. I see Houston getting on the board early with Brian Ching and never looking back from that.

WVH Prediction: Houston 2, Dallas 0

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Real Salt Lake – at – Chivas USA

1. What will it take to knock off Chivas?

RSL is a club that can do it really. They get Javier Morales back in the midfield after his suspension and that will help. The thing is I’m still not totally convinced this club can do anything of note on the road. Three games on the road this year for RSL and they haven’t even mustered a single goal. That isn’t very good. Its showing that their defense really isn’t as good as advertised. Against a club like Chivas that exposes weaknesses easily RSL has to clamp down in the middle of the park in order to shut Chivas down.

The thing that Chivas is doing well right now is spreading their attack out to multiple people. Plenty of guys have goals this season for this club and that is always tough to defend. On any given night one guy could be the hot hand and as a defender that can be very tough to defend. RSL has to get more out of guys like Nat Borchers and Jamison Olave. But in all reality they need a bigger game out of Kyle Beckerman and Clint Mathis in the midfield.

2. What does Chivas need to do to control this game?

From the start Chivas just needs to continue playing their style of soccer. Its worked for them through eight games and there is really little reason why it won’t continue to work tomorrow night. Preki has gotten the most out of this bunch so far this season and I wouldn’t expect anything different now that some veterans like Sacha Victorine are coming back. Plus it doesn’t hurt if Sasha Kljestan continues to improve on his form. I thought last week he got himself involved a lot more and that can only lead to bigger and better things for this club if he continues to show interest here.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

I think a guy to watch has to be the AmeriGoats’ Maykel Galindo. He will likely be coming off the bench still but look for him to be a second half sub that could give this club a boost late in the game. If he can regain that form he had two seasons ago this Chivas club could go from really good to something amazing.

Quick Thoughts:

Another potential game of the week here leads me to wonder if we will ever see RSL show up on the road this season. Chivas has been a very good home club these last couple of seasons while RSL has stunk up the place outside of Salt Lake City. Plus was anyone really that impressed with the way RSL finished the game at home against LA on Wednesday? I know they didn’t get a call go their way but still if you can’t close out LA at home then something must be up.

I’ll keep saying it, until RSL shows me they can do it on the road I won’t pick them when they are visiting. Plus this is a big stretch for Chivas I believe. They’ve made it this far and I know Preki will want them to continue pushing forward in attack and continue getting these wins. I like Chivas is this one. It will be close but I think Chivas at home in a physical game should do it.

WVH Prediction: Chivas 2, RSL 1

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LA Galaxy – at – Seattle Sounders FC

1. Will LA continue to improve on the last two results?

Four points in the last two games would normally mean a club is doing something right. Plus not to mention how Bruce Arena’s club got the draw on Wednesday. That should be a big boost going into Seattle on Sunday. They need to carry that momentum into Qwest Field in a big way and get the expansion Sounders off their guard early in this one. LA is showing they have a decent club right now. Let’s not forget here that they haven’t lost a lot of games this season…but they’ve again only win a single game too. If they can rattle the Sounders early with something from Landon Donovan they could see another positive result.

2. What will Sigi Schmid do without Fredy Montero?

Well Montero is suspended for this one from his cheap shot a week ago. Probably a good thing too because he really hasn’t done a lot for this club in recent weeks in my opinion. Schmid needs to get more out of guys like Nate Jaqua anyways. More than likely rookie Steve Zakuani will be in place of Montero and we will see a decent amount of offense through him. Which hasn’t been a bad thing so far this season.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

I want to see more out of Seattle’s Sebastian Le Trox here. So far he’s been involved a lot in the attack but has only produced an assist on the season. I’m still waiting for him to break out a little bit and start scoring some here for the Sounders. Against a young defense like LA it could be a good time for that.

Quick Thoughts:

This game will probably be more competitive than most think. LA’s defense is really starting to come together I think but that’s only if the young three (Gonzalez, Franklin, and DeLaGraza) play well and on the same page as veteran Gregg Berhalter. Like I said if they can get under the skin of the Sounders early and take the crowd out of it as well they could be in for a good battle.

In the end however I think Seattle takes the points from this one. Seattle has a few more weapons up top and defensive are better in the midfield than LA is right now. It will be tighter than most think but I see Jaqua sticking it to his old side.

WVH Prediction: Seattle 2, LA 1

A lot of clubs are still in need of some wins here, especially LA and Columbus who are both winless so far this season. A couple other clubs are hoping to change their luck with a win this weekend as well while others are hoping to stay on course with their current run of play so far this season.

As always feel free to leave your game predictions below.

Columbus Crew – at – Toronto FC:

1. Can the Crew finally get over the hump against their main rivals?

One thing remains the same so far this year, Columbus is not the same club it was a season ago. Main reason is the depth has come in question along with the lack of toughness that exsisted last year with a club that didn’t see a whole lot of injuries to key guys. If there is ever a time to get things going in the right direction it is on the road against your rival. Thing is with key guys possibly still sitting this one out it could be another week before Columbus gets over the hump here. That may be a week too late in the end.

2. What does Toronto need to do to get over the coaching change?

So far they’ve done things right. They had the switch late last week, got the win over Kansas City on Sunday and now they’ve had a full week under the interim boss Chris Cummins. The main thing in a coaching change is try not to change much at all in training and in the lockerroom. I really see Toronto being okay for the time being since Cummins has been there with the club all along.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

For me a guy to watch on Saturday is Columbus’s Alejandro Moreno. He’s finally healthy and as we saw last week he is finally dangerous once again for this club. Moreno is the type of guy that can be such a pest and that had been something the Crew were missing most of the start of the season. If he can get them on the board early in this one it could be a good afternoon for the Black-and-Gold.

Quick Thoughts:

The good old Trillium Cup heads north to Toronto. While Toronto is pretty hot from last week’s two home victories they still have to figure out a way to get over their main rivals in Columbus. In seven league matches the Crew have owned the Reds in each match, including the 1-1 draw earlier this year. Had it not been for the own-goal late by Gino Padula, the Crew would have walked away with their first win of the year. Crazy how own-goals have a way of hurting a club more in the following games than in the game that it happened.

Columbus needs this win in a bad way but I just don’t see it yet. Unless they get Moreno being the pest that he is and Frankie Hejduk pacing up and down the wings and in defense I just don’t know if Columbus can get the three points on the road here. I do think they are still good enough to get another draw out of this one and that’s what I am predicting. Toronto has the talent in place to win this one but offensively they still haven’t put away a club yet. Columbus is good enough offensively to stay with Toronto and I see the Crew grabbing a late goal this time around to get the road point.

WVH Prediction: Toronto 1, Columbus 1

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FC Dallas – at – DC United:

1. What does DC need to do at home to control this game?

Basically in the middle of the pitch they need to make sure guys like Pablo Ricchetti or Dax McCarty don’t handle the possession for Dallas that much. Those are two key guys for Dallas in the midfield and when Dallas plays well like they did in the first half of last week’s game at Chivas (before the Sala red card) it was due to the possessional play out of Ricchetti, McCarty, Andre Rocha and Dave van den Burgh. Dallas has some talent in the midfield that if given the time they can create some dangerous plays for guys like Kenny Cooper.

2. What does Dallas need to do to win this game?

First of all they have to mentally get over the hump in RFK. Dallas has not won at RFK since 2005. Second of all they need to go to their goal scorer in Kenny Cooper. Getting him active early and often will go a long way against a defense that DCU has that has been shaky at times this season. Dallas has shown improvement over these last couple of games and could catch a break against a DC club that does go soft for a stretch or two during the game. If they can find the right times to defend when needed and then attack when the chances present themselves they could leave RFK a winner for once.

3. Player to keep an eye out for.

DC has to be riding high off their win over New York last week. If anyone is going to carry the banner in this one for the boys in black it will be Ben Olsen. His toughness and leadership are more than enough to get the three points at home against a Dallas side that isn’t all that great on the road.

Quick Thoughts:

Both clubs could easily use the points here but I like DC in this one. They do show signs that they will go cold for stretches of the game but Dallas’s defense hasn’t improved enough with the rest of their club yet to make me want to pick them just yet here. Once the defense catches up to the rest they could be a very solid club. DC should have enough momemtum leftover from last week to carry them in this one. I see Luciano Emilio and rookie Chris Pontius having a good evening in this one.

WVH Prediction: DC 3, Dallas 1

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Seattle Sounders FC – at – Chicago Fire

1. What can the Fire do to get back on the winning track here?

Let’s not forget here that Chicago has been playing so-so soccer here lately. Two wins and four draws on the year isn’t bad but they are still the only undefeated side left in the league. With that said they host one of the best sides in the league this weekend in the Sounders FC. Chicago has to control the pace of this game from the start and not allow Fredy Montero, Steve Zakuani and Freddie Ljungberg to control the game for the visitors. This game has potential to be very wide open in the midfield with how each club plays. Blanco has to set the tone of this game early and get MLS Player of the Month for April, Brian McBride involved as early as possible. Seattle still has some questions in the back and McBride is as good as they come for testing any defense in the box.

2. Can Seattle pull one off on the road?

The Sounders have to hope that the Fire are a little more tired than they are since the Fire hosted Club America in the mid-week (Seattle had a USOC play-in game on Tuesday). Seattle has played well on the road so far this year with a win and a loss. Their loss to Chivas was a very close game for the most part so you have to think that Sigi Schmid is doing something right here. If Seattle can control Blanco, Marco Pappa and John Thorrington in the midfield they should be able to do well in this one. If not they will have more pressure on their backline.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

I want to see when Chris Rolfe is on the pitch what happens with the Fire. If he starts he has the skills to be dangerous and if he comes off the bench he will have the late game speed and energy to close things out for the Fire.

Quick Thoughts:

Easily the game of the week. Two of the league’s best square off. Chicago really needs a win though to be honest. They are the league’s only undefeated club left but draws only get you so far in this league. Seattle as we all know have looked very impressive but I want to see how they handle facing another of the league’s best. It didn’t go well for them last time around in LA against Chivas.

To me this one smells like a draw. Chicago is good at home but they tend to drop games that they shouldn’t at Toyota Park for some reason. Seattle is dangerous enough to stay in games and even put home some attacks when the Chicago defense could go to sleep (think the KC game). Seattle goes up first in this one I think with Chicgo coming from behind again for the draw. Blanco won’t be tossing any more jerseies in to ref’s lockerroom this week.

WVH Prediction: Chicago 1, Seattle 1

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Real Salt Lake – at- Colorado Rapids:

1. Can Colorado put it together for a full 90 at home for once?

One thing is certain about this Colorado club, they have the talent to be really good here. Thing is they just haven’t figured it out how to do it at home yet. They dropped points at home last week to LA in a game that totally controlled. Against a rival that is playing well like Salt Lake they cannot afford to go cold for stretches of the game or RSL will get hot in a hurry as we saw last week.

2. Does RSL have any more goals left in them?

Six goal games are usually followed by one goal games. At least from what I’ve seen in the past they have. RSL has the offense to do some serious damage and the league has taken note of that for sure by now. Thing is they haven’t done it on the road yet. However with the way Colorado closed out last weekend’s game against LA, there could be potential for another outburst from this club.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

Colorado’s big leader Pablo Mastroeni has to step up in this one since it is a rivalry game. If he can set the tone early for the Rapids that could be a key thing that leads the homeside to a vital victory over their rivals.

Quick Thoughts:

This one also has the makings of game of the week material. The Rocky Mountain Cup has been a very hot contest these last two seasons and I see this year being no different. I’ve said before I want to see RSL get consistent road play and with the way Colorado plays at home there is no better time to start than now. They need a big game out of Yura Movsisyan and guys like that. On the flip side Colorado needs Conor Casey to step up and lead the way in this one, just like he has time and time again so far this season.

In the end I see a Colorado going through by the slightest of margins. RSL will keep it close and physical but thanks to a goal by Omar Cummings, Colorado will see three points while RSL will be left wondering how to win on the road yet again.

WVH Prediction: Colorado 1, RSL 0

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Chivas USA – at – San Jose Earthquakes

1. Can San Jose actually turn things around here against the league’s best?

On a tight field San Jose could turn their luck around easily but it will not come easy against a Chivas club that has been proving themselves to the league over and over again this season. I thought Chivas did well to overcome last week’s loss to Toronto with the home win over Dallas. It was a good turn around after the season’s first loss. San Jose hasn’t been able to bounce back yet from defeat like Chivas has here.

San Jose has to get a better turn around out of guys in their defense. Either it’s age or injuries that are causing this bunch to be so sloppy this season. I think the key has been the loss of Jason Hernandez. Without their most stable defender the Quakes have give up a lot of goals already this season (tied for second-worst in the league).

2. Will Sasha Kljestan ever come out of his current funk?

Amazing fact that Chivas is playing so well this season without some key guys on offense and without quality play from Sasha Kljestan (no goals and no assists so far). This would appear on paper to be a good game for him to break his spell and actually do something of note for this club. I guess failing to land a deal in Europe really set him back a bit. You’d think he would kick it up even a notch more to get that big deal for this summer.

3. Player to keep an eye out for.

I’m watching the AmeriGoats’ Justin Braun who is back and healthy. So far Chivas has spread out their attack enough that a lot of people are scoring, I think this is Braun’s game to get on the board.

Quick Thoughts:

Normally I wouldn’t go with Chivas on the road in a place like San Jose but the way the Quakes have played so far this season doesn’t give me enough reason to pick them every week like I would like to. Chivas is too talented of a club to not get three points in this one I think and if Kljestan can join the party all the better in Chivas-land. I think San Jose can stay in this game but in the end good defense will trump bad defense and that’s why I am going with the visitors.

WVH Prediction: Chivas 2, San Jose 1

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New York Red Bulls – at – LA Galaxy

1. Will Bruce Arena’s club finally get on a winning path here?

Honestly with the way New York dropped last week’s game to DC at home I think this is an excellent time for LA to get their first win of the season. With Landon Donovan playing as well as he is this seems like a perfect game for it to happen. Plus New York’s offense hasn’t given anyone a reason to believe they will play all that well on the road anyways here. So far they haven’t scored a single goal on the road this season.

2. What needs to go right for New York?

To go right they need better play out of the midfield. It is as simple as that. Going against a fairly weak midfield in the Galaxy, New York should have plenty of chances to spread the field out and find guys like Juan Pablo Angel in the box. This club is going to want to prove that last week’s result was a fluke. And to be honest they have to prove that it was a fluke or Juan Carlos Osorio could find himself out of a job very soon.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

No other person to watch in this one than Donovan. He has carried this club on his back so much this season and I wouldn’t expect anything less in this one. With a shaky defense in New York I think Donovan could find himself in some big spots on Saturday evening.

Quick Thoughts:

This one will either be really fun to watch or just really ugly to watch. I can’t put my finger on which it will be. New York hasn’t been anything special on the road this season and LA has shown they aren’t terrible or great all at the same time this season. I think Bruce Arena’s club gets their first win on Saturday but not by much as New York makes it interesting late in the game.

WVH Prediction: LA 2, NY 1

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Houston Dynamo – at – New England Revolution

1. Will the Revs respond to their 6-0 defeat?

Losing that bad in one half is never an easy thing to swallow. It’s also never easy when you have to face a club like Houston in the following week. Just as we saw last week when you have such a young club on the field and so many key defensive injuries some goals are eventually going to pile up. I didn’t expect six that quickly though. I see the club responding pretty well for a while in this one but it has to come offensively, an area that hasn’t been that impressive by this club so far this season.

2. Can Houston finally beat New England in regular season play?

If there was ever a time to get their first win over the Revs it would be this weekend. All-time in regular season games the Dynamo have not beat the Revs, even at home. But as we all know Houston has beat New England when it mattered most in the MLS Cup twice.

To get their first win they need their big guys stepping up and making the impact early on the road while New England is still figuring out how to get over the 6-0 loss to RSL.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

I think this could be a big game for Houston’s Brian Ching. One thing we all know the Dynamo do well is get free kick situations and if Brad Davis or whomever is taking the kicks can find Ching in the box it could go very well for the visitors on Sunday.

Quick Thoughts:

I can’t see a Steve Nicol club getting downed two weeks in a row in that kind of manner that they lost last week in Salt Lake. Thing is it is tough to bet on their young defense stepping back up without a veteran like Jay Heaps or Chris Albright leading the way like normal. Missing a veteran in the back and having mostly young players can be like playing with dynamite. I think Houston should be able to go in and get some road points here. I just have trouble betting on a club that is missing so many key players in the back.

WVH Prediction: Houston 1, New England 0

Chivas keeps rolling...but for how long? (Getty Images)

Looking back on this past week and even a season as a whole up until now there are plenty of questions surrounding these clubs. I think we are seeing who is contending this season, who is pretending and who is already playing themselves out of contention.

I’ve been jotting down a few notes recently about a few clubs and how they are playing. Some are coaching questions as we move into the first edition of the coaching hot seat (coming up soon I promise), and other random thoughts I’ve had so far this year. You all may be able to answer some and if not they could be good topics of discussion.

So let’s get to it shall we?

Just How Good Is Chivas USA?

This may be one of the biggest questions on everyone’s mind right now. Seven games in and this club has 16 points are the best club in the league. Or are they?

Let’s look at who’ve they beat so far:

FC Dallas (twice)
Colorado
Columbus
Seattle

They’ve also tied LA (then again who hasn’t by now) and lost to Toronto on the road (Chivas is never a good turf club).

I’ve had a couple emails asking my opinions on just how good this club really is. From first hand experience they are good. But there are concerns that I do want to point out about them here. First of all their defensive depth will come into question before long this season. It just has to. Secondly, how long can Zach Thornton keep up his current pace? All legit conerns.

One bright note too is that this club is playing well despite the fact that Sasha Kljestan has not been playing well this season. We’ve seen little to no production out of him and it makes me wonder if he even really wants to be there any more.

Then there is the reality that is what will Preki do once he gets a healthy Ante Razov and Maykel Galindo to go with his current starting XI? Start’em? Sit’em? Trade’em? Honestly, I see one of those two getting traded this season. Its a weird gut feeling I’ve had all year, even before the season started that probably Galindo or Razov would be traded away for allocation or something. It just seems like it is going to happen, especially once they are healthy.

I don’t know though, this club has all the makings of a playoff side and I fully believed they would be anyways before the season. There is just the worry I guess that this club will pull a New England from last year and just flame out after a really hot start. We’ve seen it happen a few times in recent years, a fast start followed by a playoff birth in the middle of the year followed up by a flame out at the end with no deep run into the playoffs.

I sort of see their current run continuing on in May. Three out of five are at home and the two road games in San Jose and KC are definitely win-able games. In other words they aren’t games on turf.

For me though I still need this club to learn to come from behind. Historically it’s not something they’ve been able to do. We didn’t see them do it in Toronto this past week either which raised the concerns about them from a few folks.

Why is FC Dallas so bad?

I look at the roster in Dallas and really wonder why on Earth this club is sitting with record of 1-4-1 on the year. Defensively they are a joke still and I think it could be safe to say that a lot of the issues are coming down to coaching on the part of Schellas Hyndman.

Sad part is the club is producing offensively but defensively they can’t seem to figure things out. Another sad part is that Hyndman isn’t even anywhere close to a hot seat even though he normally would be in most situations.

Any Worries in the Windy City?

What’s going on with the usual dependable defense that is in Chicago. Bakary Soumare for one has been shaky at best lately. Don’t be shocked to see Dennis Hamlett make a change for a game or two to get things back in gear for Soumare. He had a couple possible fouls in the box that could have been easily wistled for a PK.

Overall though the Fire are the only undefeated club left on the block. They are still the deepest club in the league and really should have no worries right now. Of all the clubs I think their start is in line for a great summer run to break away from the rest of the eastern conference. Once they get going here in the coming weeks we could see the making of a Supporter’s Shield type club.

Possible Coaching Hot Seat

I’ve mentioned before that I am close to starting up a coaching hot seat list for this year. John Carver in Toronto was looking to go this way until his club pulled off two straight home wins this past week…also his resignation with the club changed a lot of what could go on this season with this list. Anyways…early candidates include:

Juan Carlos Osorio (NY)

….and that is about it. Most guys have a little bit of time on their hand but I put Osorio on the initial list due to the poor performance of his club through seven games. Not to mention his new additions are not paying off…again.

Guys with a little heat though:

Schellas Hyndman (FCD): Obvious reasons mentioned above

Frank Yallop (San Jose): Its a low simmer kind of heat but if his club doesn’t start turning around by the end of the year he could see more heat.

Bruce Arena (LA): Club can’t win…but on the flip side they aren’t losing as much.

Crew Blunders

Will Columbus make the playoffs this year? Only two defending champions failed to do so the next season (DC in 2000 and LA in 2006) so it can happen. But why is it happening? The club isn’t hungry at all. Injuries finally caught up with this club unlike last year.

Mainly I think it comes down to a lack of fire and sharpness. Point blank they are missing guys like Frankie Hejduk too much and it is costing their club dearly.

Contender/Pretender

I love playing this game, even this early into the season. I won’t go into any in-depth reasoning here because its more for fun than anything right now. I really only see a couple true contenders and a few pretenders. There is just a lot of muck in the middle.

Contenders:

Chivas USA
Seattle
Chicago

Mixed in the middle (for now)

Real Salt Lake
Kansas City
Toronto
DC United
Colorado
New England
Houston

Pretending:

San Jose
New York
Dallas
Columbus
LA

Not a lot of changes at the top of the overall voting list.In fact that top three remain:

1. David Beckham
2. Landon Donovan
3. Cuauhtemoc Blanco

Once you get by the top three the positions break down pretty easily. You can also tell which fan groups are voting like crazy here for this game. Mostly the home fans in Toronto wanting their own in the line up as the All-Stars take on West Ham United. Its also interesting to see Toronto’s main rival Columbus have a few players on this list. The Crew are having a solid season so far and their players deserve the nod in my book.

Goalkeepers:

• Greg Sutton
• Jon Busch
• Matt Reis

Defenders:

• Frankie Hejduk
• Marvell Wynne
• Jim Brennan
• Jimmy Conrad

Midfielders:

• David Beckham
• Cuauhtemoc Blanco
• Amado Guevara
• Dwayne De Rosario
• Guillermo Barros Schelotto

Forwards:

• Landon Donovan
• Danny Dichio
• Juan Pablo Angel
• Jeff Cunningham
• Alejandro Moreno

Am I surprised by any of this news? Not really. The one shocker to me may be Juan Pablo Angel getting the votes. He was the MVP in last year’s game but he has been hampered by injuries and clearly isn’t as effective as last year because of those injuries.

Other than that I’m not totally surprised by it. I would like to see Kenny Cooper or Edson Buddle get some votes.

Some are still asking for my line-up, that will come later on once voting is complete on July 2. Remember, the online fan voting will comprise one quarter of the All-Star First XI selections, with coaches and general managers (25 percent), players (25 percent) and media (25 percent) all getting a say in who is named to the First XI, which will consist of one goalkeeper, three defenders, five midfielders and two forwards.