Apologies, folks, but Monday Morning Sweeper has to take another week off.  But fear not, because to try and make it up to you, here are the top fives goals of the weekend that was in MLS.

5. David Beckham does what he does best to draw the Galaxy even with Montreal

4. Sebastian Miranda heads it (yes heads it) into the net from outside the box to put Columbus up 2-1 over FC Dallas

3. Fabian Espindola scores the only goal in RSL’s 1-0 win over Seattle

2. Lee Nguyen adds a second to put New England comfortably ahead of Vancouver, 4-1

1. Brad Davis christens Houston’s new stadium in style

MLS Review Policy to be Tested this Week

Over the past few weeks, MLS players midweek have been issued suspensions or fines by the league for actions that occurred in the past.  The league’s new policy of reviewing harsh fouls and plays have led to the main office retroactively punishing players for deeds that were let go on the field or flat-out missed by the officials.  The goal of this retroactive punishment is to prevent players from getting away with dangerous tackles and make MLS a little less physical, something the league feels is needed after a number of injuries to high-profile players last year.  You can debate the merits of working behind an official’s back and what it says about the league’s officiating staff, or whether it is fair to punish players for crimes not deemed worthy of cards during matches.  However, the reality is the policy is in place and being used by MLS.

This weekend the existence of retroactive punishments should certainly be used and would show the importance of leagues being able to look back and make an after-the-fact judgement.  The Red Bulls v. Earthquakes match is the prime example of why it exists.  Both teams were certainly guilty of careless, even reckless plays in the second half that turned a wide-open game into a slow slug-fest.  Rafa Marquez’s incident stands out as the most flagrantly obvious, when he grabbed Shea Salinas in the box and put him to the ground, then kicked him on his way up.  Salinas, an important part of this San Jose team, allegedly suffered a broken collarbone yet no card or foul was given.

However, the ‘Quakes themselves were not innocent.  Martin Chavez’s tackle on Roy Miller was eerily reminiscent of the type of tackle that ended David Ferreira’s season last year and was nothing more than a classless attempt to slow down a player that had beaten him.  He was lucky to only get a yellow.  Ultimately, the success in the league’s replay system will depend on how (or if) they punish these types of flagrant fouls.  If Chavez and Marquez are not given suspensions for their actions, then the league office needs to review itself.

Player of the Week

The player of the week comes from the team of the week.  Aurelien Collin has played some outstanding defense these past few weeks for the red hot Sporting Kansas City and Saturday was no different.  Although the goalless result was a team effort, Collin was excellent as usual in disrupting the Real Salt Lake attack and preventing them for creating many good scoring chances.  What earns him the POTW nod, however, was his goal scored in the 63rd minute off a corner after a previous KC effort was taken off the board.  For all of his contributions, Collin receives the POTW honors.

Honorable Mention Player of the Week

MMS loves to give love to the defenders, and will do so again this week by giving recognition to the man in the box.  Dan Kennedy of Chivas USA faced a determined Toronto side on their own turf and despite this was able to keep a clean sheet for the Goats.  Toronto had five shots on goal but the quality of the saves is what earns Kennedy this honor.  This is especially true of his denial of Danny Koevermans late in the game after some atrocious play by his defenders.  After a very good 2011, it looks like Kennedy may be ready to step up into a more elite level of MLS keepers.

The Downside of the Unbalanced Schedule

In order to accommodate a 19 team league and not increase the number of games played, the league this offseason switched to an unbalanced schedule.  Gone are the days of seeing an opponent twice a year (home and away) but instead teams now see some division foes three times, some twice, and the other conference only once.  The positive is reduced travel and more games against opponents that, to be frank, matter more in a league where conferences matter greatly.

But the past two weeks have shown the downside of the unbalanced schedule.  Four inter-conference games were played this weekend and two of them I would love to see again at the visitor’s home stadium.  I wonder what RSL v. Sporting KC would look like at Rio Tinto; I suspect Real Salt Lake would be more aggressive in that match with their passionate fans behind their goal.  Also, there is a budding rivalry between San Jose and New York, as it seems like every time they play something interesting happens.  However, due to unbalanced scheduling, we will have to wait potentially for the MLS Cup to see these teams face off in MLS play again this year.  Last week we saw possibly for the last time this year Sporting Kansas City face the LA Galaxy while DC and Seattle renewed a fun cross-country “rivalry”.  I understand the need for an unbalanced schedule and logically I support it.  However, I lament MLS’s missed opportunities for rematches and replays of some juicy early season match-ups.

Coaching Move of the Week

It seems like Schellas Hyndman is destined to be mentioned in this column every week, but the FC Dallas head man has a way of tinkering with the game that either blows up spectacularly or clicks just right.  Such as it was in Dallas’ 2-1 win over a surprisingly strong Montreal team in front of 16,000 fans in Texas.  For the first half, Dallas played a more traditional 4-4-2 lineup that failed to connect the midfield and the forwards.  After the penalty that gave the Impact a 1-0 lead, the home side played with a renewed passion that was assisted by some substitutions and a formation change.  Bobby Warshaw and Bruno Guarda came on at halftime which allowed Hyndman to shift his team into a 4-1-4-1/4-5-1 and allow them to begin to dominate midfield play.

Quote of the Week Part 1

“In soccer, it only takes a few seconds to score a goal, one play to break down for the other team to score and it takes total concentration for 90 minutes.  As the game goes on guys get a little leggy, a little tired, but it can’t be an excuse for us. It’s something we have to get better with.”

Clyde Simms, on the team’s second straight loss by allowing a late goal (h/t to The Bent Musket)

Head Scratcher of the Week

We all acknowledge how good of a team Sporting Kansas City is at this point but I didn’t think that Jason Kreis would recognize this in his tactics.  Kreis must have talked away tactics with Roberto Mancini prior to the game as his team played with conservative tactics throughout the first half before switching to a more attacking, yet no more effective 4-3-3 to match KC’s in the second half.  Steve Davis noted that the RSL fullbacks played back to prevent Kei Kamara and Bobby Convey from roaming the flanks, but the midfield was also slow to support the forwards in the attack.  RSL has the talent to take on KC, so I am disappointed we didn’t see more of it displayed.

Quote of the Week Part 2

“It was a terrible first touch, but it took me into a shooting position and I knew as soon as I hit it that it was going in. I enjoyed it.”

David Beckham on his wonder goal (h/t to Stumptown Footy for the postgame transcript)

Videos of the Week

There are two for you to enjoy this week.  The first is the David Beckham goal making its way through the internet:

while the second is another goal scored in a much more amusing way

MMS Non-Scientific Power Poll

10. DC United (10): If they can win back-to-back games for the first time in three years this Wednesday, I’ll move them up in these rankings.  The potential for a top 8 team is there, but consistency is the key.

9. Chivas USA (NR): 0-3-0 at home, 3-0-0 on the road.  Odd splits but a may work to get them into the playoffs once they figure out the Home Depot Center.

8. Houston Dynamo (8): Rain halted a pretty good match between the Dynamo and Fire, but Houston survives bad weather and injuries with a point.

7. Vancouver Whitecaps (7): Off this week but face quite the challenge hosting Kansas City on Wednesday.

6. FC Dallas (9): This team may be righting the ship as it gets healthy and begins to figure out how to play its personnel.  If they can continue to draw over 15k to games, they will gain a home field advantage.

5. San Jose Earthquakes (5): Go into New York, take a point, and hold them to two goals?  I’m convinced this is a very good team, but one whose depth is about to be tested.

4. New York Red Bulls (3): The draw still saw New York score almost at will and give the Henry-Cooper duo more additions to their impressive numbers.  But San Jose may have figured out how to beat this team, and that bodes ill for their next game at DC United, who has similar strengths to San Jose.

3. Seattle Sounders (3): Seattle basically allowed Colorado to play with the ball, then when they got too close to the net yanked it from them and threatened to score.  Very effective game and a well deserved three points.

2. Real Salt Lake (2): Yes they lost this weekend but their two losses have been to an amazing road team (Chivas USA) and on the road to the best team in MLS.  Can’t fault them too much for that.

1. Sporting Kansas City (1): Safe to say they’ve earned this spot for the time being

All of the hype and eyes of the American soccer community will be on MLS Live Saturday night (yes, someone forgot to negotiate this game into NBC or ESPN’s deal) as Sporting Kansas City host Real Salt Lake in the Battle of First Place Teams.  With both teams playing so well, the hype is justified and I think a well played match is in the making.  But while I plan on watching the match either that night or the next morning, I am more excited about any number of matches this weekend.  Why? First, because I love being a contrarian and throwing out controversial topics to rile up you readers.  But after looking at the entire schedule, you can make a case for why every other game this weekend could potentially be more interesting to watch than the “most important” one of the year.

Let’s take each one in chronological order:

Philadelphia Union v. Columbus Crew: This one is the NBC Sports game of the week (insert joke here) but this is an important early season match for both teams.  While neither team can be said to be “out of the race” this early in the season, the result of this game should give the potential winner a major shot of emotion.  For the visitors, they are coming off a beat-down by the Red Bulls and will be looking to right the ship after what they hope was just a speed bump.  Making the task a little harder is that starting keeper Will Hesmer is now out for the next few weeks.  For Philly, it’s simple.  This may be the best chance to get a win for a few more weeks so they need the points.  Look for a desperate, potentially open game.

New England Revolution v. DC United: Both of these teams are mid-table in the East and arguably punching above their weight the past few weeks with some very eye-catching results.  Winner moves ahead in the “Surprise team of the year” race and begins to garner legitimate early-season buzz.  DC actually hasn’t beaten New England since 2008, but the Revs will be without a few key starters for this match.  Classic MLS match.

Seattle Sounders v. Colorado Rapids: From a more unfortunate perspective, this is the first time Brian Mullan will face the Sounders crowd after his famous leg-breaking tackle on Steve Zakuani.  How the ever creative Seattle fans will respond will be of interest.  Seattle needs this win badly to reestablish some momentum after a draw to DC and a home loss to the ‘Quakes.  This has seen them slide a bit in the standings, behind…. Colorado.  For the Rapids, a point or three would be a major statement on how good they are.

Toronto FC v. Chivas USA: Is Toronto this bad and is Chivas USA this good on the road?  This is a good chance to answer both questions, and the answer may have more results in the standings than the more hyped KC/RSL match.

New York v. San Jose: I’d argue this is the best match of the weekend.  We know the New York story – FIFA12-esque scoring ability from the unstoppable Henry-Cooper duo makes this a very scary New York team suddenly.  But consider the number 2.  As in the number of goals allowed by San Jose this year with a schedule that has included offense heavy teams like Seattle and Vancouver.  Frank Yallop has the ‘Quakes playing like world beaters by beating you with speed down the flanks and tightening up the defense in front of goal.  This will be one of the best defenses New York will face in its early season schedule and, if they drop another 3-4 goals on the visitors, they will shatter the impression of an improved San Jose team.  But what if the ‘Quakes escape with a point or three points?  They could arguably be the best team in the West, depending on how other matches fall out.

FC Dallas v. Montreal Impact:  Ok, this one was a bit harder to get excited about, but this is a good test for Dallas.  They had a strong win last week that signals they may be entering into their annual late-spring/summer run.  For Montreal, four points in two games would be great, and let’s be honest, watching Jesse Marsch’s team is still kind of a cool new experience.

Los Angeles Galaxy v. Portland Timbers:  People like to stare at car wrecks so how would this be that much different?  In all seriousness, this is the type of desperation game that could lead to a ton of goals.  Both teams need a spark to begin their climb out of the bottom of the league, and the last time LA was at home in this position they pasted DC United 3-1.  These are two of the league’s most talented teams, so throw out the records and enjoy what should be an entertaining match.

Chicago Fire v. Houston Dynamo:  If you feel like you don’t have a handle on either of these teams it’s because you probably don’t.  Both have played only three times this year and Houston hasn’t played since March!  Both teams, who should be in the upper half of the Eastern Conference come September, will be playing with some “name” starters injured, including the Dynamo and their three second-string midfielders.  This could be a 2012 playoff preview.

For the first seventy minutes of yesterday’s First Kick match-up between the Galaxy and RSL, the predictions about the amazing 2012 Galaxy season looked like they were more than just hype.  Only the crossbar and some timely RSL defending denied the Galaxy a multi-goal lead and the defense looked shaky but solid.  When Edson Buddle converted a David Beckham pass into a goal in the 71st minute, fans could be forgiven for switching off the game and assuming it would spiral out of control from there.

But a funny thing happened at The Home Depot Center last night, and it was an intangible that we sometimes forget affects soccer games.  The Galaxy had played in Toronto on Wednesday night and with an older team, the travel visibly began to affect the team in the second half.  In addition, they needed a two goal comeback to get a draw from their CCL match.  Those watching closely could see how the Galaxy defense began to sag in the middle of the field and, when losing a step on an RSL player, committed more fouls (fourteen for the game).

Two minutes after the Buddle goal, new RSL midfielder Sebastian Velazquez created some space down the right and put in a cross towards goal.  Brian Dunseth on the MLS Live feed noted earlier that the pitch at Home Depot Center gets a little damp as the temperature drops, and Sean Franklin possibly fell victim to this.  He threw his leg out to deflect the bouncing cross but ended up stabbing it into his own net.  At that point the game changed as Real Salt Lake had the momentum and the home side looked deflated.  Adding to this momentum was key substitutions by Jason Kreis who brought on banged up Javier Morales and Alvaro Saborio midway through the second half, substitutions that gave RSL a more confident and attacking line-up.  In the 80th minute, Morales scored his first goal since his injury last season when he poked a loose ball in the LA box into the net.  Fabian Espindola, who had a big second half, put the exclamation point on the win with a nice drive down the left that saw him juke a few defenders before finishing with a goal.

Even though this was the first MLS game for both teams, the impact cannot be understated.  For the visitors, scoring the first away win against the Galaxy since 2010, especially when down a goal, is a major momentum boost for this side.  Nick Rimando had an excellent game and while LA put RSL under a lot of pressure throughout the game, the Reds held the high-flying Galaxy to only one goal.  The negative this game revealed is the team’s depth.  With Morales and Saborio sitting, players like Paulo Jr., Louis Gil, and Sebastian Velasquez got the start.  Despite Velasquez setting up the first goal, these players were shaky in the midfield and Espindola lacked any consistent quality passes from the midfield.  LA gave the visitors some good chances at counters, but they failed to take advantage of them for the first part of the game.

As for the Galaxy, this game was a bit of a wake-up.  Coming back to force a draw with Toronto is a confidence booster; this result should show them that they can’t play the entire season by wasting chances.  Looking up at Real Salt Lake should help show this team that they won’t cake walk to another title and this is a good lesson to see early.  That said, they could have easily gone home last night with a multi-goal win.  Their offensive pressure was as advertised and the big names (especially Donovan and Beckham) were dynamic.  Fatigue was a factor but that will be a factor all season.  How they handle that will be a key to how far they advance this season.  But this result should in no way lesson the impression that they are the most dangerous team in MLS.

A few other observations for you from the game:

• The broadcast crew for RSL were pretty good, especially Brian Dunseth in the booth.  That said, the unintentional comedy moment of the night was them hosting Don Garber in the booth.  After introducing the Commish, there was about three minutes of play-by-play, with Garber finally interjecting that he felt like he was butting in.
• I watched this game on the new MLS Live on my computer but about 10 minutes in hooked it to my HD TV.  The picture was incredible and when MLS Live says it has an HD feed, it isn’t lying.  I haven’t tried the phone or iPad feed but look forward to it.
• I loved the LA Galaxy faux-Real Madrid shirts.  They look great on TV with the sash.
• The return match on June 20 will be fun to watch.  This game got chippy midway through and it is obvious the players on these two teams don’t care much for each other.

The greatest time of the year has finally come.  After weeks of previewing the teams, we are a day away from the beginning of the MLS season.  Looking ahead to 2012, some things have stayed the same (star-powered LA Galaxy, new playoff format again, ESPN games of the week) and some things have changes (new playoff format, NBC Sports Network games, Montreal Impact).  Just like last year, your writers are going out on a limb and makes some predictions prior to the season.  If you remember, our picks from last year were not so great (especially in the individual categories) but we will strive to do better this year and, again, repost these predictions at the end of the season.

On to our picks!  First up are our predicted standings for the season, with the Supporters’ Shield winners in italics:

Daniel Feuerstein

Robert Hay

Earl Reed

As you can see there is some definite difference of opinion.  Starting with the Eastern Conference we all agree that Sporting Kansas City will win the East and all of us have Toronto and Houston making the playoffs.  In the West, Daniel breaks with consensus and has Real Salt Lake passing Los Angeles to take the West.  Besides order of finish, we all have Dallas, Los Angeles, Real Salt Lake, and Seattle making the playoffs with each of us having a different fifth team (or in my case, fourth place team).  As for the newest MLS franchise, despite making so much noise in the offseason, none of us have Montreal above ninth.  We’ll see if the rumored summer designated player signing proves us wrong.

MLS Cup match-up and winner: Each of us took a crack at predicting MLS Cup 2012 and the winner.  Earl sees Seattle hosting Kansas City with Sporting KC pulling out the upset win.  Daniel also has Kansas City winning but they will be hosting second place Los Angeles.  As for me, after pondering all of the possible match-ups with a scrunched brow, I predict Chicago will bring back the glory days and advance to MLS Cup, but they will lose to the host Galaxy.

CONCACAF Champions League: With three MLS teams playing in the 2011-2012 CONCACAF Champions League, our group took a shot at predicting if any of the three would win the CCL this spring.  Earl and I both predict that none of the three teams will win the competition this year while Daniel anticipates a Galaxy victory to give them early season momentum.

Golden Boot:  MLS has some great goal scorers but it seems like the Golden Boot recently has gone to a player that comes out of nowhere.  Despite this we took a crack at predicting this category.  I selected MLS prodigal son Edson Buddle to lead the league in goals while Earl picked FC Dallas newcomer Blas Perez and Daniel chose soccer icon Thierry Henry.

Most Valuable Player: Dwayne De Rosario rode a dominant second half of the season to this award in 2011.  Did any of us picked him to repeat? No.  Earl and Daniel tabbed annual MVP candidate Landon Donovan to take home the award and I picked his Western Conference rival Mauro Rosales.

Newcomer of the Year:  Which of the hyped offseason signings will help their team the most and win recognition for their play?  Again all three of us stuck with the Western Conference.  Daniel and I picked Austrian important and Kasey Keller replacement Michael Gspurning to take home the prize while Earl selected Blas Perez to add another trophy to his trophy case.

Rookie of the Year:  Since this award has one of the smallest pool of potential winners, it is usually a hard one to pick.  Last year’s winner fell into the right situation in a weak year for rookies.  This year, the draft has a consensus top two followed by a pool of good players.  Earl picked the #2 overall pick Darren Mattocks to break through for some playing time in Vancouver.  I selected the #3 pick Kelyn Rowe for New England to make an impact in the midfield.  Daniel went with #4 overall pick Luis Silva with Toronto FC.

Comeback Player of the Year:  Which player in 2012 will return to previous glory?  Daniel went with hometown newcomer Kenny Cooper while Earl picked past MVP David Ferreira.  I am sticking with my 2011 choice for a second year: Branko Boskovic to finally come back from his nagging injuries and finally live up to his promised potential for DCU.

Team: San Jose Earthquakes

Coach: Frank Yallop

Last Season: 8-12-14, 7th Western Conference, 14th Overall

Hashtag: #SJEarthquakes

Although it is an overused phrase, this year is a critical year for the San Jose ‘Quakes.  The team is at a crossroads and this season will show if the newer franchise with the classic name can create a permanent  and financially successful presence in the San Jose area.  Is this a bit alarmist, considering that they are two years removed from making a deep playoff run and have as the face of their franchise one of the five best goal scorers in MLS?  Maybe but consider the circumstances surrounding this team:

• Shirt sponsor since 2008 Amway and the club parted ways in the offseason and, as can be seen on the jersey, the team is keeping its main sponsor spot open for either Amway or a new partner to sign up with the team.
• The San Jose Planning Council has approved the team breaking ground on its new soccer specific stadium, a major win for the team that promises not only a major financial windfall (the team has sold 10 of 12 field-level suites in the new stadium according to The Sporting News) but creates a shiny new home to keep current fans and attract new ones.
• Head coach Frank Yallop seemingly lost his team in the middle of last season before ending 2011 making a very late playoff push.  Despite his pedigree and past success, this could be a definitive season for him.

We are nearing the end of our Three Questions series, and I hope you have found it insightful and useful during the offseason.  We’ll end the series tomorrow and Tuesday with the MLS Cup participants, prior to the 2012 Superdraft.

Today in addition to Sporting Kansas City we’ll turn our attention to Real Salt Lake, who going into last season looked to challenge Los Angeles (and Seattle potentially) for the Supporters Shield.  But, as we all know, they never fully recovered from the Champions League final loss and while they made the Western Conference finals, it was after an up-and-down season where they never dominated for stretches like many thought they would.  Injuries played a role, but how will their 2011 season influence 2012?  Let’s take a look at some offseason questions that will dictate whether or not Real Salt Lake has reached its peak or the best is yet to come:

1. Can they adequately replace their depth?

The incredible Real Salt Lake fan site RSL Soapbox has a great breakdown of what exactly the team has lost so far this offseason: in the last two months the team has lost 6,700 first team minutes, 4 goals, and 12 assists.  These come from players like Robbie Russell (DC) and Jean Alexandre (SJ) who were traded, Colleen Warner (Montreal) and Arturo Alvarez (Chivas) who were drafted, and Andy WIlliams who retired.  All of these are replaceable players, but with so many players being shifted off the rolls the team is losing some serious depth, depth that was key to them succeeding in multiple competitions despite injuries and schedule congestion.  In addition to another appearance in the CONCACAF Champions League later this season, the team will lose some key players for Olympic duty, likely including captain Kyle Beckerman.

The positive to these trades is that RSL has received some draft picks so they can use those picks for depth.  The team can also look internationally, something that it has done successfully to find good young talent.  How quickly these younger/new MLS players can adjust to the league and contribute will be critical to this team.

2. How will RSL beef up their midfield?

A number of the players mentioned above were contributors to the midfield; for example, Andy Williams was a winger the team could depend on to play well during his starts.  The team has made some moves to secure this part of the team: it extended Ned Grabavoy’s contract and is working to extend Yordany Alvarez’s contract.  In addition, they have some young players like Luis Gil who could contribute more with more playing time.  But the team does need to do a little shopping, and how much money they have free to spend will be important to beefing up that midfield.

3. Are Javier Morales and Alvaro Saborio healthy enough to play at their peaks (or close to it)?

Javier Morales’ gruesome injury was part of an early season MLS trend of key stars going down with serious injuries, and his team certainly missed his goal scoring.  However, when he returned, the team was in a slump and his play could not bring them out of it.  A healthy, back-to-100% Morales is the kind of player who can help carry a slumping team so how healthy he is and back to his previous form is critical to this team.

Another player who failed to inspire last season was Alvaro Saborio, who took 3/4ths of the season to round into form coming off his own injury.  Although his final numbers looked good, his overall body of work was not up to his previous standards.  Again, a fully effective and healthy Saborio makes this team that much harder to beat.  The health of these two players could make the different between wild card contenders and MLS Cup contenders.

This time last year, the San Jose Earthquakes were riding high.  They had upset the New York Red Bulls in the Eastern Conference playoffs and had seen the emergence of Chris Wondolowski as a bona fide goal scorer.  Although the team had definite weaknesses and was not at the level of, say, Real Salt Lake, this was certainly a team that could be a playoff contender.

The outlook could not be more different this year as opposed to last.  Wondo is still a goal scorer, tying Dwayne De Rosario for most goals scored this season, but his goals came in bunches and he was not a consistent threat.  There are question marks throughout the roster including whether the head coach will last through the upcoming season.  This is a team in flux, and if they fail to seriously contend for the playoffs this season we could see a massive roster overhaul this time next year (which arguably is a good thing).

Let’s limit ourselves to the key three questions that will tip the balance on San Jose’s 2012 season:

1. What is the status of Steven Lenhart?

We know he is signed.  He was a critical scoring option for the team last season, partnering well with Wondo to provide a second up-front scoring option for a team that at times desperately needed goals.  But the death of his father took him away from the game for an extended period of time, which coincided with their funk.

I personally will never judge someone for how they deal with the death of a parent, so I will simply say how he is mentally and physically fit for 2012 will be important for this team.  To be blunt, absent signing a big money striker, this team will fail without him.  As many goals as Wondo scores, he is inconsistent and cannot be relied upon to lead a team’s offense if that team is competing for a high-seed in the playoffs.  Lenhart is the perfect partner for him, and San Jose knows this.

2. Can the ‘Quakes run their way into the playoffs?

To address some of their issues from this past season, Frank Yallop is rebuilding his midfield around speed.  And not since Keanu Reeves tried to drive a bus has such a desire for going fast been so confusing.  San Jose made a great trade to bring Marvin Chavez over from Dallas but also this offseason they acquired Jean Alexandre from Real Salt Lake.  Alexandre has been a backup at RSL but has shown some flashes of being a productive midfielder if he gets regular playing time.  Undoubtedly Chavez is a great pickup but time will tell if Alexandre and their additional acquisitions this offseason can make them a faster team that can quickly get the ball up front to Wondo and Lenhart.

Looking at their depth as a whole, however, you wonder if these moves make sense.  In addition to the two players mentioned, the ‘Quakes have also picked up Shea Salinas while re-signing Khari Stephenson.  Looking at the current roster, it is composed of players who would be good depth players on a MLS Cup contender, not ones that can be counted on to drive a team to the Cup.  Maybe the new speed will change this.

3. Can the ‘Quakes count on Ike Opara?

The injured Opara was symbolic of the San Jose defense last season: underachieving and made worse by the loss of Brandon McDonald via trade to DC.  The once rising U.S. star was not even invited to Caleb Porter’s U-23 camp this offseason as he continues to recover from injury.  He was named an “honorable mention” for the MLS “24 under 24″ list but this could be a make or break season for him.  If he stays healthy and helps solidify a bad SJ defense, he will be back on track to be the next U.S. up-and-coming defender.  More injuries or sporadic play and we could be lamenting “what if”.

As our long-time readers know, MLS Talk likes to provide serious, well-thought out news analysis mixed with offbeat and laughable soccer-related thoughts.  This is the latter type of post.

Prior to First Kick 2011, the MLS Talk writers got together to give some predictions for the upcoming season.  At the time, we promised we’d resurrect the predictions to take credit for everything we got right.  Little did we know that such a post would only be about 1-2 sentences if actually written.  Regardless, as promised, here are our predictions for the 2011 season, and a little bit of analysis/defending from yours truly on the picks.  Feel free to post your wrong predictions (and correct ones) in the comments section.

The Final Standings

Prior to the season, it was common knowledge that RSL was the deepest team in the league and was thus primed to make a run at the Supporters Shield.  What we didn’t know was that their loss in the CONCACAF Champions League final and injuries would derail their season, in addition to improved LA and Seattle squads.  As such, only Kristan Heneage accurately predicted that Los Angeles would finish atop the Western Conference.  In fact, besides flip-flopping RSL and Seattle, he got the conference’s top five correct.

As for the Eastern Conference, the chaos that ensued was reflected in our picks.  We all got New York wrong as the Eastern Conference winner but at least they made the playoffs.  Earl Reed identified three teams correctly that made the playoffs from the East, but probably regrets picking DC to finish above Philadelphia.  Playoff picks are in bold.

Daniel Feuerstein

Earl Reed

Kristan Heneage

Robert Hay

MLS Cup Predictions

We were 0-4 on this one.  Earl and I picked Real Salt Lake to hoist the MLS Cup while Daniel thought Rafa Marquez would be showering Thierry Henry with champagne.  Kristan’s pick (DC United) didn’t make the playoffs.

Most Valuable Player

In our defense, while none of us correctly predicted this category, all of our picks were somewhat in the running toward the end of the year.  Daniel had Thierry Henry taking home the trophy while Earl and Kristan had Landon Donovan.  My pick made a late run but was still misguided: Alvaro Saborio.

The Golden Boot

Only Earl and I were ambitious enough to guess at this category, and my pick (Montero 12) edged his (Saborio 11).

Coach of the Year

Interestingly, none of us had a coach that was remotely in the running, although our picks by the end of the season were setting themselves up as candidates for next year.  All of our coach of the year selections were new MLS coaches, with Daniel seeing Toronto head man Aron Winter winning the award while Earl and I agreed upon DC United’s Ben Olsen.

Newcomer of the Year

Again, our picks were solid choices that for the most part contributed in some way but didn’t merit consideration.  Daniel went with Fabien Castillo of FC Dallas, Earl and I chose Omar Bravo for Sporting KC, and Kristan went with the right team  but wrong player (Erik Friberg of the Seattle Sounders).

Rookie of the Year

Well what can you say.  Who’d have thunk that C.J. Sapong would have played such a large roll for Sporting Kansas City?  Well we didn’t think he’d play a bigger role than Juan Agudelo (Daniel), Will Bruin (Earl and I), and Darlington Nagbe (Kristan).

Most Improved Player

Admittedly, this is one of the hardest categories to predict.  With so many players in the league, who will be the one who exceeds their previous year’s stats to be given an award?  Three of us thought that it would be someone from the Red Bulls: Kristan and Daniel thought that Dane Richards would be that player in 2011, while Earl picked Richards’ teammate Tim Ream.  However, the award for most laughable prediction for 2011 goes to me, and here is a direct quote from my prediction:

Since I wanted to show my Black-and-Red colors a little, I thought the player who would finally fulfill his promise would be D.C. United’s Branko Boskovic.

The 2011 MLS Cup will truly be a David v. Goliath affair.  In this corner, you have the regular season’s best team with the most star power and biggest names who, by the way, will be playing at home.  In this corner, you have a team that fought all season for a playoff spot then beat some quality Eastern Conference sides while losing their MVP candidate to injury.  Such will be the storyline as the Los Angeles Galaxy face the Houston Dynamo on November 20 at 9 PM ET at the Home Depot Center.

With an international break providing a Super Bowl-esque week off for both teams, MLS Talk will have plenty of content breaking down the match and its players, as well as the implications for both sides.  All of this will culminate in the annual MLS Cup Live Chat on the site; hang with us as we break down the play, strategy, and peripherals for MLS’s biggest game.

As for the teams themselves, yesterday was fairly anticlimactic as both teams won their matches with fairly comfortable scorelines.  The Western Conference champion Galaxy were even with Real Salt Lake 1-1 at the half, but Mike Magee scored the go-ahead goal early in the second half before Robbie Keane put it away in the 68th minute.  For the Eastern Conference champs, the game was a bit more intense as they had to play in the cauldron that is Livestrong Park against the favored Sporting KC.  Even with Brad Davis going out with a right quad injury in the first half, Houston still kept up the pressure with Andre Hainault breaking through in the 53rd minute.

This will be the third MLS Cup played at one of the participants’ home field: DC United won the 1997 Cup at RFK while in 2002 New England watched Los Angeles celebrate at Gillette Field after their 1-0 victory.  Another statistic of note: Los Angeles are undefeated at Home Dept Center this year.

What did you think of yesterday’s games and the upcoming MLS Cup match-up?  Any early favorites or predictions?