Sounders at Sporting Kansas was the Open Cup Final. Could Sounders return in MLS for a dose of revenge?
Photo: Denise McCooey/Prost Amerika
Obviously the most important matter for both sides in tonight’s Seattle v RSL match is securing that place in the last eight and avoiding a pesky play-in round. The Top 3 sides in the West will achieve that with the side in fourth having to entertain the side in fifth in an additional round
But there is another small matter, still on the horizon, which makes every point vital. The MLS Final will be held at the home of the club with more regular season points.
For RSL and Seattle that makes every point valuable, as it is not purely a matter of shutting out LA Galaxy.
In the back of every fan, coach and players’ mind is glory and glory means the MLS Cup Final. The team that navigates its way through the Western Conference will meet the side that emerges from the East. There is no crossing over this season. At this stage, it is realistic to look at likely Eastern Conference finalists.
Real Salt Lake and Sounders FC can both reach 61 points. Nobody in the East is out of their reach. Sporting Kansas City lead with 59 points so whoever loses tonight’s match will not be able to catch them.
Beneath them are the Chicago Fire on 56, DC United on 54 and New York on 53. Houston Dynamo on 50 and Columbus on 49 are still able to qualify. All Eastern sides involved have two games left.
Ideally for the Westerners, all the sides would stay where they are and allow Seattle, RSL and LA Galaxy to pass them but there is a spanner in that works.
There are some key games where the contenders back East play each other.
This starts on Saturday when struggling New York can do the West a big favour by beating Sporting Kansas because if SKC win either of their remaining games, (and the other is at home to Philadelphia), then they will reach 62 points putting them out of reach of all but San Jose in the West.
Chicago Fire (56) meet DC United (54) a week later.
One of them will be on 57 or higher after that match. Chicago winning takes them to 59 plus what they take at New England this weekend. With DC United hosting Columbus, it could well be that they enter the final weekend on 59 (Fire) and 57 (United) respectively.
Everyone in the West should be hoping that Columbus and New England can scratch something out of this weekend.
New York at 53 could start to become everybody’s favourite should they make the play-off and make no more than 55 or 56 points. Certainly the star studded side would make for great finalists from a global perspective. How many tickets could the dynamic Sounders ticketing juggernaut sell for that with a week’s notice?
It could well be that New York turn out to be the only side that would have to travel to either Seattle or Salt Lake, both of whom only have matches left against sides with plenty to play for although FC Dallas could hear some very bad news fifteen minutes into their Sunday match in the Emerald City.
If Vancouver have beaten Portland then their post-season chances are over and to rub it in, the home fans will be celebrating the retention of the Cascadia Cup.
There is also the chance that Vancouver would then relax and play a second string when they head to Salt Lake. The Whitecaps will not be expecting home advantage in any MLS Final on 48 points which is their maximum. That could make life very comfortable for Real Salt Lake.
The wild card is the Philadelphia Union who play two of the involved sides, SKC and New York, in a matter of four days and could be the key to ensuring a good chance of home advantage for either of tonight’s sides.
Key Eastern Conference Matches Remaining
Saturday 20th
New York v Sporting Kansas City
DC United v Columbus
New England v Chicago
Wednesday 24th
Sporting Kansas City v Philadelphia
Saturday 27th
Philadelphia v New York
Chicago Fire v DC United
Current Standings (W = Western Conference)
|
P |
PTS |
|
GF |
GA |
GD |
||
|
1 |
San Jose (W) |
32 |
64 |
69 |
40 |
29 |
|
|
2 |
Sporting Kansas City (E) |
32 |
59 |
40 |
26 |
14 |
|
|
3 |
Chicago Fire (E) |
32 |
56 |
45 |
39 |
6 |
|
|
4 |
Real Salt Lake (W) |
32 |
55 |
46 |
35 |
11 |
|
|
5 |
D.C. United (E) |
32 |
54 |
49 |
40 |
9 |
|
|
6 |
New York (E) |
32 |
53 |
54 |
46 |
8 |
|
|
7 |
Sounders FC (W) |
31 |
52 |
48 |
31 |
17 |
October 17, 2012 at 11:39 am
What will today’s starting line up be?
Could it look like this:
F – Montero, Ochoa
M – Evans, Tiffert, Alanso, Rosales
D – Burch, Parke, Ianni, Scott
K – Gspurning
October 17, 2012 at 1:45 pm
One correction:
“Real Salt Lake and Sounders FC can both reach 61 points.”
Actually, both can’t. One of the two can. Because they play each other, it’s mathematically impossible for both to reach the maximum points.
And that alone is why this match is important.
October 17, 2012 at 1:47 pm
Michael, the statement is true. There are however two ways to interpret it; one which is obviously the intention of the sentence, indeed the article’s entire premise – and one which made no sense in the context of the article.
You deliberately chose to interpret it in a way you know makes no sense. (It’s one of my pet hates!)
October 18, 2012 at 7:27 am
One correction: “Peeves”
October 18, 2012 at 8:25 am
October 18, 2012 at 11:30 am
I actually interpreted it in the way the English language is written. “Both” and “either” are quite different words.
You have your pet peeves, but as a writer I have mine too, and “you know what I said, even if it was written incorrectly” is one of mine.
In any case, it is now true that neither can reach 61 points, so it all works out, right?
October 18, 2012 at 11:51 am
Now they can both reach 59 points, and do so simultaneously whereas before they could just do so individually.