It was the sort of ugly road game U.S. fans would like to think are in the past. A lot of the decision-making was suspect. Many players just never found their groove and suddenly developed feet of stone.
But Trinidad and Tobago failed to punish the defensive lapses, and Ricardo Clark slammed one into the net.

The U.S. men's national team will face Trinidad & Tobago on Wednesday night in a World Cup qualifier it desperately needs a result from in order to stay in good shape in the super-tight CONCACAF qualifying race.

Who will start in this all-important match? U.S. head coach Bob Bradley has plenty of options to choose from, both in defense and in the midfield.

Oguchi Onyewu out for sushi with the lads. I fully support his decision to get rid of the corn rows and go with a buzz cut. Muchos caliente! The boys from the USA keep fans up to date with their day to day activities via Twitter. Today, Charlie Davies posted a few photos from the past few days [..

Photo by ISIphotos.com

The U.S. men's national team's crucial World Cup qualifier vs. El Salvador is just four days away and it is time to start thinking about the starting lineup head coach Bob Bradley will turn to in what is shaping up to be a must-win game in the tight CONCACAF qualifying race.

Kartik Krishnaiyer and Chris Riordan co-located for this show discuss the US-El Salvador match and the choices Bob Bradley must make for next year's World Cup. Clint Dempsey as a #10, should Brian Ching start ahead of Jozy Altidore, will Edgar Castillo feature at left back and whether or not Eddie Johnson should get another look are among the big picture items discussed.

To all those who rode their first wave of U.S. soccer fandom into the hot Mexican dust, welcome! Brush that dirt off your coat. Hang it up. Stay awhile. And chin up for god sakes. It's not that bad. I'm here to help you through it. There are just a few things you should know so you don't make rookie blunders like buying an Eddie Johnson jersey or dislexifying Onyewu's name.

Seattle needs another big game out of Fredy Montero this weekend. (Getty Images)

There's not too many more weekends left in the 2009 regular season. Week 27 is a full one as we gear towards the playoffs in a few weeks. With so many clubs still in contention the action this weekend should promise to be very good.

"Candidly, if we can't beat El Salvador at home, we don't deserve to go to the World Cup." - Landon, more or less, I'm working from memory
YAY! We deserve to go to the World Cup! Hip hip hooray! Hip hip hooray!
I had the perfect title in case of a loss - "SLC Punked." Or did I use that last year for the Red Bulls playoff game?

The U.S. Men's National Team played (and won) their first game in Cuba in over 60 years (ASN, Sept. 7, 2008).

In rainy, muddy conditions at Havana's Estadio Pedro Marrero, Clint Dempsey got the only goal of the match in the 40th minute, assisted by Brian Ching. Only six of the players who started the game for the U.

As mentioned yesterday the playoff race has gotten pretty clear for me. Aside from two or three clubs I pretty much have a good understanding of who will be in the second season and who will not. The rankings sort of reflect that this week and there was some movement across the board.

First up I think LA has finished climbing the charts for now.

The US National team have an all-important World Cup Qualifier against El Salvador on Saturday night, and Jeff Carlisle of ESPN SoccerNet has a preview of what lies ahead.
The U.S. hasn't lost a home qualifier since Sept. 1, 2001, when it fell to Honduras 3-2. Since then, the Americans have gone 16-0-1 at home, the lone blemish being a 1-1 semifinal round tie versus Jamaica during the 2006 campaign that occurred after passage to the final stage had been secured.

So I was reading an excellent piece from Steve Davis (link here) about the US-El Salvador game tomorrow at Big Sandy. Davis speculates about line-up options for the US and also includes this little tidbit:

(Brian) Ching is almost sure to be in the lineup. His ability to rattle around and make things happen by winning second balls will be critical against what is sure to be a crowded Salvadoran defensive third.

Not even the Guardian of Forever can bring me back far enough in the past for this it seems. Man, do the last two weeks feel like an eternity or what? It seems like forever since Dynamo last played a game, instead of the two weeks since the loss to Colorado.
Hopefully, plenty has changed over that time, and if you need a positive sign, there's this from the Boz' Facebook page on Sept.

Photo by ISIphotos.com

With a full stable of forwards, and a player in the final year of his contract, the Houston Dynamo did what it always seems to do: finds a way to make a deal that helps the club.

Good lord, that was a long layoff. I don't know about you but I'm glad the Crew finally played again.

This past Sunday, in front of a handful more than 14,000 sun-scorched fans, the top two teams in MLS squared off for the right to be called numero uno.

It quickly became evident that these two teams are not fond of each other because things got heated right away.

Photo by ISIphotos.com

The U.S. men's national team hasn't booked its place in the 2010 World Cup just yet, but a pair of recent qualifying wins has the Americans on the doorstep.

Regarding what happened yesterday? I'm over it. Done. New day. Time to end suckers.
At least RSL and TFC lost last night. Thank god. The only bad part was having to listen to Glenn Davis be a smarmy tool throughout the Houston game. As for Houston and Kinnear? That's a team slowly dying inside:

A visibly frustrated Dominic Kinnear could be seen on the bench and the Dynamo continued to make poor decisions on the ball, lacked movement and generally played direct.

Now why would you think I am worried about RSL making the playoffs?

But sometimes, you have to face reality. Real looked awful out of the blocks in Houston. It was as if RSL was still working at fifty percent effort at the start of the game while the Houston Dynamo was playing at high tempo.

As the playoff race has heated up in Major League Soccer, so have the goals that have been scored. This week we saw plenty of good goals but only a select amount were above the rest.

The best goal for me was either Sainey Nyassi's run against New York or Brad Davis' strike against RSL.

(Note QuickKicks on the league site did not have the Columbus/Chicago goals)

Order of video: David Beckham, Edson Buddle, Brian Ching, Yura Movsisyan, Brad Davis, Dax McCarty, Jimmy Conrad, Sainey Nyassi, and John Wolyneic.

US National Team players and Houston Dynamo forward Brian Ching has agreed to a new four-year contract with the club. Ching had a year left on his current deal, but Houston opted to negotiate a new contract. "I think it's a sign of how much they care," Ching told Houston's FOX 26 Sports.... "I think this contract just shows the organization cares about us too.

GBS is returning to MVP form, that is dangerous for everyone else. (Getty Images)

A full weekend is upon us here as we head into the final month of the season. Once again we have a weekend that has a lot of playoff implications from top to bottom. Can the spoilers like KC and San Jose step up and bring down some clubs gunning for the playoffs?

Major League Soccer powers Columbus Crew and Houston Dynamo battled each other in league play on Sunday (a match won by Columbus on a last-minute penalty) and tonight both hit the road in CONCACAF Champions League action.

The Houston Dynamo faces familiar foe Pachuca in Mexico (10pm, FSC), while Columbus is in San Jose, Costa Rica to take on Deportivo Saprissa.

I don't think so. Last night they became the first MLS team to beat Deportivo Saprissa on the road in the CONCACAF Champions League. It was a gutsy match where the Crew left 5 regulars at home - Chad Marshall (injury), Eric Brunner (discipline), Alejandro Moreno (rest), Frank Hejduk (rest?), Gina Padula (illness) - and Schelotto was parked on the bench.

After what appeared to be a whole mess of home cookin' the last time these two teams faced eachother, the weather seems to favor the road team this time around. Here's a brief lesson in climatology... Arabe Unido hails from Colon, a city in Panama that averages 129 inches of rain each year. Houston averages 54 inches per year.

Lot of American/MLS influence today:

• Ade Akinbiyi to Notts County?
  
• Speaking of which, did New York pass on Sol Campbell?
  
• Is Roy Keane and Ipswich also interested in the waffling veteran?
  
• De Rosario to get a new deal?
  
• Houston gave Brian Ching one?

Photo by ISIphotos.com

The U.S. men's national team's crucial World Cup qualifier vs. El Salvador is just four days away and it is time to start thinking about the starting lineup head coach Bob Bradley will turn to in what is shaping up to be a must-win game in the tight CONCACAF qualifying race.

The United States host El Salvador in CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying on Saturday September 5, 2009 as they look to move closer towards automatic qualification for the 2010 World Cup. The United States has been very successful as home in World Cup Qualifying but has struggled on the road. They will be playing at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah where the USA will be the favorites.

Photo by ISIphotos.com

The U.S. men's national team will face Trinidad & Tobago on Wednesday night in a World Cup qualifier it desperately needs a result from in order to stay in good shape in the super-tight CONCACAF qualifying race.

On a day when England qualified and the U.S. won 0-1 over Trinidad & Tobago perhaps the most telling World Cup qualifying result was El Salvador's win over Costa Rica.

The result created space at the top of the hexagonal for the U.S. and Mexico all but guaranteeing them qualification. The U.

The CONCACAF Champions League continued on Wednesday with three more group stage matches. The Columbus Crew visited faced Saprissa, Pachuca hosted the Houston Dynamo, and Pumas traveled to W Connection. It's about halfway through the group stage with the Columbus Crew the only MLS team in position to advance to the quarterfinals.

STARTERS
The Derby du Nord between Lens & Lille this past weekend ended in a 1-1 draw.
dN
Portsmouth became the first team in Premiership history to open the season with 6 straight defeats. Oof.
USL FIRST DIVISION PLAYOFFS
The regular season ended on Sunday, with Portland claiming the Commissioner's Cup.

The Forecast reflects on the meaning of Brian Ching's new deal before tackling the Week 28 schedule.