Chicago at Portland: This one is simple, should Chicago’s defense step up and hold Portland’s emotions in check, then the Fire should stand a good chance in this one. Thing is the Timbers have had plenty of rest to get ready for this one. They are ready to blow to roof off their stadium in this home debut and the fans will be energized to pack this place. Expect a great atmosphere that rivals the top ones in the league. Portland rides the emotions in a crazy back and forth game.

WVH Prediction: Portland 2, Chicago 1

Rafa Marquez will look to slow down the New England Revolution tonight. (Getty Images)

Tonight we could crown one conference champion as the New York Red Bulls host the New England Revolution. In the season finale for each club the Red Bulls are looking to claim their first Eastern Conference crown since 2000.

The Revolution hope to play spoiler yet again this week as they helped knock out the Kansas City Wizards from playoff contention. Oddly enough New England has a bit of an edge against the Red Bulls in recent meetings too. The Red Bulls have failed to get three points against the Revs dating back to 2005.

The midfield battle in this one will be fun to watch as you’ll have Shalrie Joseph going against Rafa Marquez. No doubt to of the best central midfielders in the league going head-to-head will be fun to watch.

I think the Red Bulls get by in this one even without Thierry Henry. With this being Juan Pablo Angel’s last regular season game in front of the Red Bull crowd you have to expect something special out of him tonight. Though I do think the Revs will put up a good fight I just don’t see enough offense in this one from them to see them get three points.

WVH Prediction: New York 2, New England 1

LA travels east to battle Philadelphia at PPL Park tonight. (Getty Images)

This may be a quick and dirty preview on my part, plus fellow WVH writer Kevin Kinkead did a good enough job the other day talking about tonight’s game between the LA Galaxy and the Philadelphia Union.

Today has been a fairly hectic day around these parts for me so that’s why the quick and dirty preview is here. I feel tonight’s game will be a good one even though it has a team that is out of the playoff picture in Philadelphia. Peter Nowak’s club will want to play some sort of spoiler here in one of their last home games of the year. LA is hoping to put some distance between themselves and others chasing them for the Supporter’s Shield right now.

This game comes down to who’s midfield contains the other better. LA looks pretty strong now that David Beckham is back to his old tricks. How he plays in the midfield will go a long way for this club, especially if he is more central than on the wings. On the flip side LA will have to slow down MVP candidate Sebastien Le Toux.

I think Philadelphia gets their crowd involved and jumps on LA early but this time around LA battles back for the road draw.

WVH Prediction: Philadelphia 1, LA 1

Juan Pablo Angel will battle rookie Zac Loyd tonight in Dallas. (Getty Images)

Could a streak come to an end this evening in Frisco? FC Dallas hosts the star-studded New York Red Bulls tonight at Pizza Hut Park. FCD is hoping to keep their 14-game unbeaten run going here.

FC Dallas is hoping to get revenge tonight on one of the two clubs that have beaten them this season. The Red Bulls were able to get a 2-1 win on FCD back in April at Red Bull Arena.

Tonight’s match should be slightly different as both clubs look fairly different than the ones back in April. New York has a couple high profile guys now with Rafa Marquez and Thierry Henry. Also the Red Bulls should have newcomer Medhi Ballouchy who was just traded there from Colorado.

The guy New York will have to key in on tonight is Jeff Cunningham who has 13 goals and seven assists all-time against them. New York will hope to score against a Dallas defense that has not given up much at home, shutting out five of their last six opponents at Pizza Hut Park.

The battle in the midfield should be interesting to watch as well with Marquez and Joel Lindpere going against Brek Shea and David Ferriera. Who wins the battle on the wings in and in the middle will get the points tonight. I think this one will end on level terms as New York is really starting to gel nicely and FCD just looks tough to break down these days.

WVH Prediction: Dallas 1, New York 1

Steve Zakuani and Seattle host RSL tonight. (Getty Images)

A lot could change tonight in Seattle after tonight’s clash between the Seattle Sounders FC and the defending MLS Cup champions Real Salt Lake. For one its a chance for RSL to leap over Columbus and LA for the top spot in the league’s overall standings and take possession of the Supporter’s Shield race. But for the hosts, the Sounders could use another win to put further distance between them and the three clubs from the east (Toronto, KC, and Chicago) that are knocking on the playoff door.

Seattle stumbled last week in New England after a terrible 10-minute stretch that saw them go from potentially winning a game to losing 3-1. Blame it on their busy schedule or jetlag but the Sounders lost their edge for a few after going 5-0-2 in their previous seven matches.

RSL on the other hand gained a big win at home once again over the New York Red Bulls. It was a statement win in some folks eyes even if it wasn’t all that pretty at times. Jason Kreis’ bunch continue to impress here as they find ways to get results. RSL is 11-1-6 since April, not a bad record to have at all.

The champs are a still a bit vulnerable on the road this season. Their 3-4-4 mark away from Rio Tinto isn’t anything stellar. I’d imagine RSL will lean heavily on Alvaro Sabario for offense tonight in this one. He scored a goal the last time these two met earlier this year in a 2-2 draw.

The Sounders will obviously continue to lean on the hot foot of Fredy Montero. Seattle showed earlier this year that spreading RSL out on the wings with the play of Steve Zakuani will do wonders for their attack. Doing that tonight will be a key in winning this game for the Sounders.

I’d expect RSL to go physical against Montero in this one too. That may be a key to getting a result in this one. I like RSL even away from home but my heart leans a bit towards Seattle. So for the second straight day I end up with a draw. Seattle will push for three points that they really need right now but RSL will find a way to get something behind Kasey Keller.

Player to watch out for: Alvaro Fernandez – The only DP on the field tonight (Blaise Nkufo is out) will need to put his stamp on this one. Going through him on the wings along with Zakuani will create more chances for Montero and Nate Jaqua up top.

WVH Prediction: Seattle 1, RSL1

Guillermo Barros Schelotto and Columbus hope to regroup in Philadelphia tonight with a win. (Getty Images)

While some folks will be focused on friendlies or SuperLiga here in Texas the rest of the league is certainly going to be focused on PPL Park tonight as the expansion Philadelphia Union host the eastern conference leaders the Columbus Crew.

The frist ever meeting for the two sides comes at a big moment for the expansion side. Philadelphia has to make a serious playoff push starting with this game if they want to be in true contention this season. This game marks the start of an important stretch of games against top competition in the league including RSL and Dallas. Getting a win tonight will only help them out in their pursuit of a playoff birth in their first season.

Columbus enters this game hoping to bounce back from a nasty loss to Chivas USA last weekend. For some reason Chivas gives this Crew side fits every time and really gives folks a way to beat the Crew. You have to limit Guillermo Barros Schelotto’s time on the ball and spread them out with quality wing play and good possession on the ball. Chivas did a good job at that and Philadelphia has to use that blueprint tonight.

I’d expect a fairly physical game tonight between these two sides. Just look at their two Polish coaches and you’ll see why this one won’t be at all clean. Peter Nowak and Robert Warzycha both employ a very physical, in-your-face style of play and it should be interesting to see it go head-t0-head tonight.

Philadelphia has to get guys like Danny Mwanga and Sebastien Le Toux involved early in this one to get by the Crew. Columbus won’t have Eddie Gavin in this one so the space in the midfield may be there to give Le Toux a little more room to work with. Also if Robbie Rogers isn’t fit enough to go for Columbus it will give Philly a slighter edge on the wings.

I see this one going to a draw though. Columbus will regroup from their nasty loss last week but will cause more trouble to the Union than what they think. Philadelphia is always good for a late goal from Mwanga too.

Player to watch out for: Alejandro Moreno – It will be interesting to see him against his old club tonight. No doubt he’ll be out to score one on them.

WVH Prediction: Philadelphia 1, Columbus 1

Landon Donovan and the Galaxy host San Jose tonight. (Getty Images)

For the first time in a few years, the league’s first big rivalry between the San Jose Earthquakes and the LA Galaxy actually has a little meaning to it. The last couple years its been all LA as the Quakes haven’t quite been the same since coming back into the league as an expansion club.

Tonight the two square off in the first meeting of the California Clasio of 2010 at the Home Depot Center. LA sits atop the league standings with an amazing 39 points through 17 games while the Quakes aren’t too far off the pace getting 22 points out of 14 games. The gulf in class seems a lot but this game will still have plenty of meaning and intensity. San Jose sees this game as one to move up the standings with and to get some points off the mighty Galaxy.

Going on the road won’t be easy for the Quakes, they haven’t done well against LA in the Home Depot Center in the past (only one victory in LA since 2001). Finding ways to lock down both Edson Buddle and Landon Donovan will be a challenge for the Quakes. Its one that most teams have yet to figure out so far this season. Minimizing their chances and space with the ball will go a long way in getting three big road points tonight.

LA on the other hand need to stay head of the game and keep a watchful eye on rookie Ike Opara in set piece situations, especially corner kicks. Sean Franklin and Omar Gonzalez will have their hands full with Bobby Convey and Chris Wondolowski too. I’d expect the Galaxy defensive duo to get the best of those matchups though tonight.

I like the Galaxy in this one but it will be tightly played and probably a good bit physical. Bruce Arena’s bunch has a busy slate ahead of them with the CONCACAF Champions League so it will be interesting to see how he starts to juggle his lineups. Still I like the Galaxy tonight with Donovan continuing his impressive form.

Player to watch out for: Edson Buddle – He got back to his scoring ways last weekend in D.C., can he continue to set the league pace in goals?

WVH Prediction: LA 2, San Jose 1

Boskovic should make all the difference tonight for D.C. (Getty Images)

Oh the Thursday night clash on ESPN2. This week’s game is a pretty interesting one too with Seattle Sounders FC travelling to RFK Stadium to face D.C. United.

Both clubs sit in 7th place in their respective conferences and each will be getting some new faces on their rosters tonight now that the summer transfer window is open. Getting some much needed points is also a big thing for each club as right now three points will go very far for each.

These two have become a little mini cross country rivalry lately too. After last year’s US Open Cup win for Seattle over D.C. in RFK Stadium, things haven’t been so calm between the two sides. In other words these two don’t like each other.

The big games coming into tonight are each club’s new Designated Players that should/will be on hand in this one. D.C. has been waiting on someone to take over the creative side of things in their midfield all year and hope that Branko Boskovic is the right guy for the job. Seattle on the other hand needs a boost up top and Swiss international Blaise Nkufo should certainly be the right guy for that.

United’s defense has looked much better lately and in doing so have earned some tough draws against teams like New York. Seattle on the other hand continues to struggle in the back which is why I’m leaning D.C. tonight. I think the new additions for Curt Onalfo will be enough to get by Sigi Schmid’s team who really need more than Nkufo at this point.

Player to watch out for: Boskovic – If he controls things in the midfield like they need then this signing will be huge for them.

WVH Prediction: D.C. 2, Seattle 1

Patrick Nyarko and the Chicago Fire hope to cool off red-hot Real Salt Lake. (Getty Images)

The World Cup final may be this weekend but Major League Soccer continues to roll through their schedule with another week of action. Its nearly the midway point for most of the league as week 15 gets under way with a rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference finals between Real Salt Lake and the Chicago Fire.

RSL comes into tonight’s match with a nine-game league unbeaten streak. Chicago is hoping to just get themselves back into the playoff picture with a win as they’re sitting 4th in a weaker east right now while RSL is holding steady in a much crowded west in 2nd place.

A lot has changed between these clubs since that last meeting at Toyota Park that saw RSL go through to the MLS Cup last November. RSL is looking good while Chicago is still figuring some things out about themselves here.

The midfield battle in this one will be interesting to watch. Javier Morales and company continue to impress each week but we know RSL hasn’t always been a good road side. They’ve never won in Toyota Park in regular season play but the confidence from last fall should be enough in this one.

Chicago has to find a way to shutdown Newcomer of the Year candidate Alvaro Saborio. The match-up between Saborio and Wilman Conde should be fascinating to watch. I just don’t think the Fire have enough cover to slow all of the RSL attack down.

RSL will have their hands full too with Marco Pappa in the midfield. If they don’t close him down early there could be plenty of action in the RSL defense and in front of Nick Rimando’s goal. No doubt Pappa and veteran Brian McBride will have to do their part to get the Fire attack going in this one.

I’m taking RSL to win this one. They’re too loaded in the midfield for Chicago to handle and I don’t think the Fire will have enough to defend those tough RSL set pieces that Morales sends in.

Player to watch out for: Logan Pause – He’s the big X-factor for the Fire in this one. If he shuts down Morales the Fire stand a great shot at getting points in this one. That’s a big ‘if’ though.

WVH Prediction: RSL 2, Chicago 1

Dwayne De Rosario goes head-to-head with his old mates from Houston tonight. (Getty Images)

Week 14 in Major League Soccer looks to get kicked off with a bang. The Houston Dynamo travel north to face their old mate Dwayne De Rosario and Toronto FC at BMO Field. TFC looks to continue their impressive home record this season while the Dynamo are hoping to begin getting some consistent play going forward in the second half of the season.

Both teams are hoping to use tonight’s match either way to move up the standings a bit. Toronto can inch a little closer to their rivals from Columbus and New York with a win tonight. The Dynamo can move into a three-way tie in the western conference with a win as well.

Houston has to cut down on their mental errors across the field, especially in the back where they’ve look nothing like their old self. Houston will also hope to lockdown the Reds offense which has been cold lately despite getting a couple draws in the standings.

Toronto will rely on former Dynamo midfielder De Rosario in this one. He’s likely to be the main offensive part in this one for Toronto but they’ll also need a big game from guys like O’Brien White and Chad Barrett. If one of those two can help out DeRo then Toronto stands a great chance at getting three points in this one.

Houston has been tricky to pick this season and their defense still worries me and their offense sees to be too hot and cold for my liking. I think Toronto will get a win tonight and continue their impressive play at home.

Player to watch out for: Dwayne De Rosario – He’s only a goal away from tying the league lead for goals with Edson Buddle, so you know he’d like to take over that lead tonight against his old club.

WVH Prediction: Toronto 2, Houston 1