Notable Whitecaps Statistics Against LA Games: 6 (One match in 2012 MLS Playoffs) Wins: 0 Draws: 1 Losses: 5 Goals For: 3 Goals Against: 14 Goal Difference: -11 Preview The last time the Caps met the Galaxy was in the first round of the 2012 MLS Playoffs when they lost out 2-1 to LA. Vancouver ... Continue reading »
SEATTLE, Wash. The Los Angeles Galaxy might have lost the battle, but they won the war that is an aggregate goal series. Dropping 2-1 to the swarming Seattle Sounders on a rainy Sunday night, the Galaxy nonetheless prevailed 4-2 on aggregate in this Western Conference final and advanced to the MLS Cup.
CARSON, CALIF.—Robbie Keane just cannot stop scoring.
The LA Galaxy striker picked up another brace in their 3-0 win over the Seattle Sounders on Sunday night. The victory gave the defending MLS Cup champions a bit of breathing room ahead of the second leg of the Western Conference finals in Seattle on Nov 18th.
On Sunday night, the Seattle Sounders will go somewhere the club has never been before: the Western Conference Finals.
After taking down a tough Real Salt Lake side, the Sounders must now face the reigning MLS Cup Champions. But the Los Angeles Galaxy are also fresh off a difficult series with the Supporters' Shield winners San Jose Earthquakes.
No team who has faced the San Jose Earthquakes at Buck Shaw Stadium this season has come away with a win. Let that sink in for a minute. The Earthquakes have made the small venue – with a capacity just over 10,000 – a fortress during the 2012 MLS season.
The schedule for the 100th edition of the U.S. Open Cup has been set, with MLS teams set to enter the competition in the third round on May 28. And while the playoffs are by no means unreachable for D.C. United, the possibility of reaching them is in enough doubt that it hangs over the season. The precedent is there as well: D.
2012 MLS record: 15-8-11 +18 (3rd in West, advanced to Western Finals) 2012 Open Cup: 4-0-1 +13 lost in Finals 2011-12 CCL: 1-1-0 -4 in Quarterfinals 2012-13 CCL: 4-0-0 +7 advanced to Quaterfinals
Dominic Kinnear his team have plenty to be proud of this season, but the MLS CUp loss will be tough to get over. ( James Nielsen / Chronicle )
There's plenty of reason to be proud if you're a Dynamo coach or player, but it will be a while before the Dynamo get over their 3-1 loss Saturday in the MLS Cup final.
Major League Soccer oftentimes feels like a crapshoot. How else can you explain the San Jose Earthquakes finishing seventh in the Western Conference last year and winning the Supporters' Shield this year or a fifth seed meeting a fourth seed [...]
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Last year was supposed to be the end of an era for the LA Galaxy. Reports had David Beckham signing with PSG in France. Juninho was headed back to São Paulo. Landon Donovan was supposedly considering a permanent move to [...]
The post MLS Cup: Galaxy Look to Set Aside Distractions appeared first on Soccer Perspectives.
Nick DeLeon celebrates game winning goal with teamates.
Washington, D.C. (November 8, 2012) – Following tonight's thrilling 1-0 (2-1 aggregate) win over the New York Red Bulls, D.C. United has secured a spot in the Eastern Conference Finals and will face the Houston Dynamo in the two-game, total-goals series.
For the Seattle Sounders and Real Salt Lake, it has come down to this.
Two of the more evenly-matched teams in the MLS postseason. Two gritty goalkeepers. A number of scoring threats and two scrappy holding/defensive midfielders. It comes down to which team will find some offense against the opponent's strong defense and goalkeeping.
Landon Donovan #10 of the Los Angeles Galaxy celebrates with teammate Mike Magee #18 (Photo by Victor Decolongon/Getty Images)
The Major League Soccer playoffs are underway and no team has shown clear dominance. The MLS Cup Predictor has four teams with fairly equal chance to win with Sporting Kansas City the favorite at 18 percent.
David Beckham and perhaps Landon Donovan got their fairytale ending. The LA Galaxy repeated as MLS Cup champions with a 3-1 win against the Houston Dynamo at the Home Depot Center on Saturday afternoon. After Calen Carr gave the visitors [...]
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When the LA Galaxy and Houston Dynamo met in last year's MLS Cup final, few doubted they were the best teams in their respective conferences. The Galaxy had just won the Supporters' Shield with relative ease, and the Dynamo had [...]
The post MLS Embraces Unpredictability of Playoffs appeared first on Soccer Perspectives.
Hi everybody. My name is Zach, and I hate the MLS Playoffs.
I already feel better having gotten that off my chest because it's been bothering me of late. To be honest, it bothers me every year, but I have a platform to write about it now and dag gummit, that's what I'm gonna do!
Now before you scroll down to the comment section and immediately begin writing a scathing response to my opening line, I beseech you to at least hear me out.
Much like the Houston Dynamo, the LA Galaxy hold an advantage on aggregate goals going into the second leg on the road. And just like Houston, they will be looking to make a return trip to the MLS Cup final in two weeks for the second consecutive season.
They will be doing so, however, with a much different squad than the one they sent out onto Home Depot Center last weekend, as Landon Donovan will be held out of tonight's match.
For the second year in a row, the Houston Dynamo are headed to the MLS Cup.
This time around, they advanced to the championship after defeating DC United on aggregate goals four to two. This came thanks to a 1-1 draw at RFK Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Houston came into Sunday's match with a two-goal advantage on aggregate following a 3-1 win last Sunday at home.
The Houston Dynamo hold a two-goal lead heading into today's Eastern Conference finals second leg-, but D.C. United will have considerable home-field support in a sold-out RFK Stadium today (4pm, NBC Sports).
D.C. United face a stiff challenge, as they try to complete the comeback without team scoring leader Chris Pontius, who is out injured.
The general manager of the Professional Referees Organization, the governing body that oversees referees and assistants in North American pro soccer, admitted that referee Ricardo Salazar erred in not issuing a caution on a takedown of D.C. United's Raphael Augusto late in the first half of the first-leg playoff match against the Houston Dynamo last weekend.
When Kofi Sarkodie buried a late insurance goal in the Houston Dynamo's 3-1 victory against D.C. United last Sunday, it not only provided the perfect cap to a strong second-half rally by the Dynamo, it also set the bar very high for D.C. to overcome in the second leg of their Eastern Conference finals series.
D.C. United started Sunday's Eastern Conference finals opener in Houston as well as they could have hoped, scoring an early goal and putting the Dynamo under pressure to step up their play or risk a costly home result.
After upsetting the top seed in the Eastern Conference, the Houston Dynamo will look to extend their success in the playoffs over the last two seasons, as they play host to D.C. United today at BBVA Compass Stadium (4 PM EST, NBC Sports).
After making last year's MLS Cup, the Dynamo have their sights set on making a return to the championship game, even after narrowly making the playoffs this season.
One squad has the look of a team with the experience and toughness to win a title. The other looks like a team of destiny as it rolls into the conference finals in a nine-game unbeaten streak that began when they lost the reigning league MVP.
The Eastern Conference Finals between the Houston Dynamo and D.
Due to Wednesday night's postponement of the New York Red Bulls-DC United playoff second leg because of snow, NBC Sports Network has changed its broadcast scheduleof MLS playoff games in the coming days.
New York hosts DCU tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET on the network, followed by the second leg of the MLS Western Conference semifinals between Real Salt Lake and the Seattle Sounders at 10:oo p.
The Houston Dynamo went into Wednesday night's showdown vs. Sporting Kansas City knowing that holding their two-goal cushion wouldn't be easy at LiveStrong Sporting Park, but some stout defending and poor finishing from KC helped the Dynamo do just that.
A Seth Sinovic header goal was the only score Sporting KC could put on the board as a night's worth of domination wasn't enough to erase Houston's two goal lead.
This morning, Sporting Kansas City and its fans are left pondering what it is that keeps enabling the Houston Dynamo to knock Kansas City out of the MLS Cup Playoffs. Last season the Dynamo beat Kansas City in the Eastern Conference Finals and back in 2007 the Dynamo eliminated the then Kansas City Wizards from the playoffs.
After finishing the regular season without a loss at home during the 2012 regular season, the Houston Dynamo knew that streak would likely need to be extended into the playoffs if they want to advance to the conference finals. Despite taking on Eastern Conference-winning Sporting Kansas City, it was another streak that also gave Houston confidence coming into Saturday, as Houston had not lost to Sporting KC in their past four matchups, including last year's playoff match between the two clubs.
Hack on why no post-season training. Local colleges in NCAA Division III tournament play. MLS Cup rematch in the makings. Messi on pace for single year record. One World Football. more news.
Union name Ricardo Ansaldi as new director of international player development. Hackworth on offseason training stints abroad. PPL to host Big East championship this weekend. More news.
Mario Martinez scored the biggest goal in Seattle Sounders' history Thursday night, drilling an 81st-minute half-volley from distance past Nick Rimando into the far side of the net, lifting Seattle to a 1-0 win over Real Salt Lake.
The final two spots in the MLS conference finals will be determined tonight in Harrison, New Jersey and Sand, Utah as the New York Red Bulls take on D.C. United at Red Bull Arena and Real Salt Lake faces the Seattle Sounders at Rio Tinto Stadium.
The Red Bulls head into tonight's match (7:30pm, NBC Sports) with the advantage after holding D.
SOUNDERS FC 0 0 REAL SALT LAKE La vida en los playoffs de la MLS para los Sounders sigue siendo imposible. Por tercera ocasión desde el 2009 no pudieron [...]
Take a pick. They all fit Nick Rimando like one of his own blood-smeared gloves after the stunning performance he delivered for Real Salt Lake in its 0-0 tie with the Seattle Sounders Friday night.
The New York Red Bulls-D.C. United Eastern Conference playoff semifinal set for Wednesday night was postponed due to the snow storm that hit the area. The match will now be played on Thursday at 7:30pm (NBC Sports).
Major League Soccer officials made the decision to postpone the match after failed attempts to control the field conditions and keep snow off the field.
Youthful mistakes, spurned opportunities and two own-goals were the story of the night in D.C. United's 1-1 draw tonight against New York Red Bull in the first leg of their MLS Cup playoff semi-finals series. Game two is Wednesday night in Harrison, NJ.
Vote Carlos Valdes and Michael Farfan for Latino Player of the Year. US learns schedule for final World Cup qualifiers. New York-DC playoff match postponed, Houston and LA advance. Rod Stewart cries tears of joy as Celtic top Barcelona. More.
Does that sound absurd? Yes. Is this what people are directly saying? No.
In the past I've pointed out the success of the Sounders in the US Open Cup and CONCACAF Champions League. These have been laughed off as mere auxiliary tournaments; that wins there have no relationship to the mental strength needed in the MLS Cup Playoffs.
The Chicago Fire were a worthy opponent. They seemed to pair well with the Dynamo and had a similar style and we knew it'd be a tough game. Houston showed up confident and controlled the match, getting a well deserved win over the Fire.
This match against Sporting Kansas City is different.
Not to discredit Chicago in any way, but I felt Houston would get through because ultimately they were the better team.
