Every team has that one guy that will either help lead them to the MLS promise-land or be partly the reason why they are stuck at home in November instead of seeing the playoffs. These are you X-Factor players.

I have one (maybe two) guys for each MLS team that are those X-Factors for this new season. Some guys are really no brainers while others may surprise you a bit. Its safe to say that each club needs a big year out of their X-Factors.

If you think I’m way off base on someone or think I missed a sure-fire X-Factor please list it below.

1. Marco Pappa (Chicago Fire): I thought long and hard about the Fire’s biggest X-Factor for the 2010 season. Part of me leaned towards Brian McBride but the rest of me stayed with Pappa. Mainly because the midfield will be more dependent of Pappa in 2010 now that Blanco is gone to Mexico.

Pappa will help control the midfield, which will help create goals for McBride, Patrick Nyarko and newly acquired Collins John.

2. Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA): This one wasn’t really hard to figure out though I did come close to writing down Jesus Padilla down. Kljestan has to control the midfield and generate offense for this club to reach the post season again in 2010. We saw glimpses in 2009 of what he really can be once he broke out of his early season slump that he was in.

The thing about Kljestan is he needs to have a fast start to the year and build up his confidence. If he does that then expect another strong year out of the Red-and-White.

3. Omar Cummings (Colorado Rapids): We saw just how good he and Conor Casey can be together in 2009. The thing was the party ended and so did their season. I know a lot had to due to the midfield being all banged up but with the recent additions to that area they have no excuse anymore. I see Cummings as a big facilitator in that offense as he had double-digit assists last year before the wheels came off the wagon.

If Cummings doesn’t produce then don’t expect Casey to have high numbers again this year. The two went hand-in-hand last year in scoring goals.

4. Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew): I nearly went with Guillermo Barros Schelotto here but thinking about it more, the more I came to Rogers as this club’s X-Factor. As important as GBS is to the Crew, Rogers is pretty far up there. If he isn’t on the wings and producing quality passes in the midfield the team will suffer for it.

I think this is the perfect year for Rogers too. He will and should show that he’s a quality leader for the team too. If he can help bring in some goals this season the Crew will be all the better for it and will have another shot at a MLS Cup in the process.

5. Santino Quaranta (D.C. United): A lot, and I do mean a lot of pressure is going on Quaranta this winter. The word is he is coming into an attacking midfielder role of some sorts this year for Curt Onalfo. Honestly I love the idea of him facilitating things offensively for the Black-and-Red. The club is moving away from that tradition No.10 role in the midfield and guys like Quaranta and Clyde Simms will be asked of more this year.

But the question will be is he up for it? As long as he brings in some assists and helps get newcomer Christian Castillo involved in the midfield the club will be fine. If he throws in a few goals in the process I’m sure the Screaming Eagles will love him all the more for it. But if the pressure is too much he’ll get back out on the wings fairly quickly.

6. David Ferreira (FC Dallas): This one was simple for me, if Ferreira sets up the goals like he did towards the end of the season in 2009 for Dallas the club will make the playoffs easily in 2010. If he struggles however look for another playoff-less year in the Big D. He means that much to the offense and to a lesser extent the defense of this club. If he isn’t controlling things in the midfield then it puts pressure on the defense, it is as simple as that.

7. Geoff Cameron (Houston Dynamo): Another fairly simple one for me to pick out. Cameron moves into the midfield to replace Stuart Holden. If he succeeds it will continue to make Dominic Kinnear a genius. He along with Brad Davis have to drive the offense through the midfield for this club. There may be some growing pains at first but Cameron should slide comfortably into this role.

8. Jimmy Neilsen (Kansas City Wizards): The Wizards are going to be very interesting to watch early on this year. For one we’ll all need name tags on the players for a few weeks until we know who all these new guys are. Neilsen is one of those new guys, one that definitely got plenty of talk when he signed a while back. Neilsen takes over for the departed Kevin Hartman, who’s now in Dallas.

Neilsen is being brought in to smooth out a defense that was not so smooth in 2009. He’s known as a guy that controls his box very tightly and can organize any defense. If he gets this bunch organized and collected right in 2010 the Wizard’s could have a nice turn around.

9. Clint Mathis (LA Galaxy): Bruce Arena got most of the old band back together with this addition of Mathis at the SuperDraft in January. While some may think Landon Donovan is a X-Factor for this club I see Mathis as an even bigger one for a midfield that will definitely need his abilities to control things. If Mathis steps in and plays like he has in the past couple of seasons for Real Salt Lake then it will make Arena look more like a genius here. If Donovan ends up leaving town in the summer after the World Cup like most speculate, the Galaxy will have to lean more on Mathis at that time to keep the ball moving.

10. Shalrie Joseph (New England Revolution): This one is pretty simple like it was a year ago, the ball for New England will run through Joseph once again in 2010. If he continues his MVP form the Revs will likely find themselves back in the playoffs again this year. Taylor Twellman could also be listed here once he is fully healthy again, but until then Joseph is it for the Revs.

11. Joel Lindpere (New York Red Bulls): From all the reports and people I’ve spoken to this winter about the Red Bulls (that didn’t center around Red Bull Arena), all mostly said the same thing – Lindpere is the guy in the midfield that can make them into winners again. That’s good news for a club that has seen nothing but failures over the years.

Most of the reports I saw on him this winter he did a great job of controlling the midfield and created good chances for the guys up top. It will be up to him to get the ball out to the wings and create chances. But this 30-year old Estonian international shouldn’t have too much issue with that pressure.

12. Sebastien Le Toux (Philadelphia Union): I asked around in Philly who some folks thought would be their biggest X-Factor and surprisingly the couple folks I spoke to said Le Toux. Simple reason really, if will likely have the pressure of creating their attack and controlling possession. If he can do that it will be easier on other MLS veterans like Fred and Alejandro Moreno to do what they do best on the wings and up top respectively.

13. Javier Morales (Real Salt Lake):  Yes Robbie Findley has to score and the defense has to hold up but the bigger thing that has to happen for a possibility of a repeat champion is the play of Morales has to return to MVP form. When he was on top of his game this club was a handful to deal with offensively and defensively there was less pressure.

Consistency will be key for Morales and RSL in 2010, along with finding balance to win on the road like they do at Rio Tinto Stadium.

14. Jason Hernandez (San Jose Earthquakes): A lot of the defensive pressure will likely fall on the Quakes vice-captain. If he is fully fit this season the Quakes defense will be much better because of it. Last year we saw their defense go into the gutters due largely to this man missing a lot of action.

15. Freddie Ljungberg (Seattle Sounders FC): I don’t like picking DPs for this but in this case it almost has to be. Ljungberg has to be the man to generate offense on a consistent basis in Seattle this year. When he was on his game last year the Sounders were easily one of the best teams in the league because of it. He has to help make Freddy Montero look good along the way too.

16. Chad Barrett (Toronto FC): I nearly went with Dwayne De Rosario but upon further look and with the recent news of Ali Gerba being sent home from a preseason camp makes me realize exactly how important Barrett is to this club’s offense in 2010. If Gerba gets the boot (which part of me thinks will happen), a lot of the offense weight goes straight to Barrett. We know the Reds will likely sign a striker in the summer transfer window but Barrett has to keep them afloat until then.

DC United fans are hoping for a return to playoffs in 2010. (Getty Images)

I wasn’t entirely sure I’d get to this offseason look at DC United today but extra time this afternoon came out of no where. So far these last couple weeks we’ve looked at a handfull of teams including Philadelphia, Chicago, Chivas, Colorado and Columbus.

Today is all about the Black-and-Red who have seen a pretty big change this winter. From Curt Onalfo taking over for Tom Soehn to seeing Ben Olsen retiring to not offering Christian Gomez or Luciano Emilio a new contract, this is a whole new United.

Let’s see exactly what they’ve done and what they need to work on before the season starts.

Keepers:

Who they have: Troy Perkins, Milos Kocic, Josh Wicks, Bill Hamid.

Notes: Obviously when they made the deal to get Perkins it was to sure up this area. Wicks was too on and off last year and Kocic and Hamid aren’t quite ready to take over. Perkins gives them stability in between the pipes and will help them win. No need to look elsewhere for any additional keepers right now. I am curious to see Hamid develop though, hopefully he’ll get some PT in some US Open Cup games.

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Defense:

Who they have: Julius James, Marc Burch, Dejan Jakovic, Devon McTavish, Bryan Namoff, Jordan Graye.

Notes: I like certain parts of this group like Burch, McTavish, Namoff and Jakovic but the rest not as much. Injuries are always an issue and right now Namoff is out with some sort of head injury and those can linger long depending on how bad of an injury it is.

If I were Onalfo I’d be worried about this bunch. Perkins will probably have to come up big for them more times then they’d like to admit right now. DC fans may answer this easier than I can at this point but who is the leader in the back out of this group? They have some veteran players but not one that you know right away is going to step up, maybe I am missing something here.

Right now I see them defending like Onalfo’s KC teams, solid for a game with a shutout and then give up two or three in the next.

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Midfield:

Who they have: Floribert N’Galula, John DiRaimondo, Danny Szetela, Christian Castillo, Clyde Simms, Tiyi Shipalane, Rodney Wallace, Brandon Barklage, Santino Quaranta.

Notes: This group will be fine if two things happen, Castillo lives up to the billing surrounding him and if Quaranta can help create some offense on a consistent basis. I do where they are in the back part of this group in terms of defensive midfielders.

Another interesting question will be whether or not N’Galula, the young 22-year old former Manchester United product will do anything of note. If he can be productive in the midfield for Onalfo he could end up being one of the bigger steals of the winter by any club.

With Christian Gomez gone you have to wonder where the offense will come from this group though. I think defensively in the midfield they will be fine and even on the wings they should be good with Castillo and Quaranta. They still however need that go-to guy in the midfield that will help with the attack, a playmaker if you will. Right now I just don’t see that. Maybe one of these young guys will surprise me.

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Forwards:

Who the have: Danny Allsopp, Chris Pontius, Boyzzz Khumalo, Jaime Moreno, and Adam Cristman.

Notes: An interesting group to say the least. One hand they are fairly young with Pontius and Cristman but on the other they aren’t with two 30+ year olds in Moreno and Allsopp.

I like the Cristman move for Onalfo and United though. You know he is familiar with Onalfo and his style of play. Moreno we know is going to get his normal amount of goals, mostly from the penalty spot.

I think the big thing to see is whether or not Pontius continues to develop into a goal scorer and if Allsopp can come in and produce at least six to eight goals. I think if those two things happen DC should be fine in the goal scoring department.

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Overall:

This will be an interesting season for the Black-and-Red. For one they are very young in respect to other teams in the league. Just like Philadelphia they only have three guys right now on their roster over 30 years of age. Finding a leader other than Moreno will be interesting to see. Hopefully someone steps up and leads this team because there will likely be a big drop off in leadership with Ben Olsen retired now.

With Gomez and Emilio out it looks like United aren’t looking for a big name product from South American to step in like they normally do. Its a risky move not to bring in a bunch of signings but as we’ve seen in recent years out of DC it doesn’t always work out. Instead they are now focusing on talent here and adding one or two pieces from outside MLS. I like the move on their part but it may take a while to produce well.

But we’ll see, this is a club that is bound to make a move or two more before the season starts so it will be interesting if they add depth in the back, find a playmaker and most importantly someone to be a leader.

Today Garber selected two RSL players (the game is at Rio Tinto Stadium): Kyle Beckerman and Javier Morales.

Good picks, especially since I highly doubt either would have been picked by Kinnear and since they are the home town favorites.

Good to also see Garber not go with David Beckham. However I do have three other guys that I was kind of hoping to see in these two spots. (I’m picking three because I am assuming Dominic Kinnear may do one of the picks)

Those three are: Chivas USA keeper Zach Thornton, RSL midfielder Clint Mathis, and DC midfielder/forward Santino Quaranta.

I kind of see Quaranta getting picked by Kinnear but I was kind of hoping to see The Don go this way in his selections. I put Thornton up there since he is having a stellar comeback season this year. Mathis I thought is a little more deserving than both Beckerman or Morales here if he wanted to go with a RSL player.

What do you make of The Don’s picks? Good or bad?

Order of video: Eddie Lewis (LA), Josh Wolff (KC), Andre Rocha (Dallas), Maykel Galindo (Chivas), Luciano Emilio (DC), Santino Quaranta (DC),Conor Casey (Colorado), Chris Wondalowski (Houston), John Wolyniec (NY).

The Cauldron will be loud tonight with DC in town. (Brian Stevens, WVH Photo Correspondent)

Two midweek games for week eight. A big night in general if you count Toronto FC’s game in the Canadian Champion tonight against future MLS side Vancouver. But I’ll just stick with the MLS games for the evening to preview.

RSL returns home to host the Galaxy who just scored their first win of the year. And in Kansas City, DC comes to the CAB for a big time clash of two up and coming eastern clubs.

DC United – at – Kansas City Wizards:

1. First place on the line, who steps up for DC on the road?

No Ben Olsen, Marc Burch, or Fred tonight for the boys in black. Guess the need to lead will come on Jamie Moreno who easily stepped into that role last week against Dallas. As long as the offense is rolling fine for DC they could be fine on the road here. Just remember DC only has a single loss on the season here so far and it was at Salt Lake (a place DC and no one else wins at). Also KC is a play DC typically sees success in as well. As long as guys like Moreno step up on the road they should be fine.

2. What does Kansas City need to do to pull this one off?

Remember KC had last week off so they should be nice and rested up for this one. With only a couple guys on the injury list we should see the same roster that Curt Onalfo has been using for the last few weeks on the field tonight. KC needs to get more from guys like Josh Wolff and Davy Arnuad in this one. Defensively they should have their hands full tonight with the likes of Emilio and rookie Chris Ponitus.

Most of what KC needs to do is control the midfield play from the start. On their homefield they’ve done a good job of taking care of the ball so far this season. Doing that and maybe catching a break on offense from time to time could help the Wizards move back into the lead in the eastern conference.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

With no Olsen or Fred in the midfield tonight for DC, I’m going to be watching Santino Quaranta in the midfield. If he can have a nice controlled game like what I’ve see out of him recently DC could be looking at another three points when the night is over. He’s a guy that can really sneak up on people and put home a game winner.

Quick Thoughts:

This game should really be competitive. Both clubs are really starting to come into their own this season and right now I see both contending in the eastern conference. So this game is big for the three points and for some bragging rights as well. Not having Olsen and Fred worry me a bit in the midfield for DC but the loss of Burch is also big to consider. KC has shown they can come back from a couple goals ot grab some points this season so even if they go down early in this one you cannot count KC out of it.

I think in the end these two are pretty evenly matched at this point so I am going with a draw for the night. It should be a tightly contested game in the midfield with a couple breaks for each club that lead to a goal for each. Pontius for DC grabs one and KC gets a goal from Jimmy Conrad off a corner kick to tie it up.

WVH Prediction: KC 1, DC 1

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LA Galaxy – at – Real Salt Lake

1. What can LA do to keep the wins coming here?

First of all they have to figure out a way to get points at Rio Tinto Stadium. A tast that has not been done so far this season. Secondly they still have a lot to prove to the rest of the league here that last week’s win wasn’t a fluke or a lucky win.

It could be a good time for LA to get points at Rio Tinto. RSL will be without midfield leader Javier Morales (suspension) and defensive beast Jamison Olave (suspended) and veteran keeper Nick Rimando (broken finger). Losing those three could be a break for LA to get points as long as Landon Donovan controls the offense and guys like Chris Klien and Eddie Lewis step up.

2. Without Morales in the middle, who leads RSL in this one?

Jason Kries needs a big game out of guys like Kyle Beckerman, Will Johnson and maybe an even bigger game out of veteran Clint Mathis. RSL has plenty of talent in the midfield that should match up well against the Galaxy who are a bit shaky to say the least in the middle of the park. Also it wouldn’t hurt to see a guy like Robbie Findley put it to his old club either for RSL.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

Even though you hate to see Rimando out it does come at a good time for Chris Seitz. We’ve been wondering for a couple years now when he would get his chance in goal and the time is now for the youth national team keeper. A big game from him could go a very long way for this club if Rimando is going to miss any more time this season.

Quick Thoughts:

If RSL had been fully set to go with no injuries or suspension I would have easily thought they’d win this one with little trouble at home. They’ve been so good at home this season so it is hard to even think of picking against them here. However losing Olave and Rimando in the back is pretty big when you have a guy like Donovan coming into town. I think LA will get their chances in this one but RSL will have to battle a little more than they normally would at home for the three points. Donovan gets a goal for the visitors but Mathis and Yura Movsisyan put the game away for RSL.

WVH Prediction: RSL 2, LA 1