With only three games left in the regular season, the battle for the best record in Major League Soccer heats up with the Seattle Sounders FC and LA Galaxy each playing at the top of their game. Obafemi Martins and the Sounders will look to put themselves three points ahead of the Galaxy on Friday (10:00 p.m. ET; NBCSN) when they take on Cascadia rivals, Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
The Whitecaps currently hold the fifth and final playoff spot in the west, but are closely followed by the third team in the Cascadia contingent, the Portland Timbers. This game also has implications in the race for the Cascadia Cup trophy. A win by either the Sounders or the Whitecaps will see that team win the 2014 Cascadia Cup.
The LA Galaxy will also have no easy task when they take on another playoff hopeful team, FC Dallas, on Sunday at 7:00 p.m. ET (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes, and TSN2). After downing the Red Bulls 4-1, the LA Galaxy scored another emphatic win over the weekend, beating playoff hopefuls Toronto FC by 3-0. The game held historical significance as Landon Donovan broke the MLS all-time assist record.
On the opposite side of fortune, FC Dallas enter this game following a tough loss to the Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Dallas will look to their dynamic scoring duo of Blas Perez and Fabian Castillo to upend the Galaxy’s back line. In the two team’s most recent matchup, goals from Robbie Keane and Alan Gordon helped the Galaxy secure a 2-1 win.
Eastern Conference leaders DC United claimed their passage to the playoffs when Ben Olsen’s men tied reigning MLS Cup champions, Sporting KC, on Friday night at RFK Stadium. This is a complete turnaround for the four-time MLS Cup champions as last year saw them bottom of the table with their worst MLS regular season performance (3-24-7).
A win on Saturday would see the New England Revolution join United as the second team in the east to secure a playoff berth. The red-hot Revs travel to the “Great White North” to take on the Montreal Impact (4:00 p.m. ET; UDN, TSN1, TSN4, TSN5).
Toronto FC will be the busiest of the playoff hopefuls as they play twice this week. The team will welcome the Houston Dynamo to BMO Field on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. ET; TSN) and then travel to the Tri-State area to take on the New York Red Bulls on Saturday (7:00 p.m. ET; UDN, TSN). A win on Wednesday could see Toronto come within a point of the Red Bulls before their clash.
Quotable Quotes
“That was a big lift for everyone to see him again. I know it was for me. He basically told us that we can do this again. We can win another one and come back here next year. That’s going to resonate with me for the rest of the season.”
Sporting Kansas City forward Dom Dwyer on the speech given to team by 2013 captain Jimmy Nielsen
“There’s nothing I would love more than to be on this field celebrating with my teammates in front of our fans at the end of the season, but there’s a lot of work to be done until that can happen. If it doesn’t happen, that’s OK, but I promised my teammates that is my main goal.”
LA Galaxy forward Landon Donovan on his hope for the end of his final MLS season
“I don’t feel I can be at my best if I am trying to be a nice person, I am not good enough to stroll through the game. There are some guys who can get away with that. I am not one of those guys. If I don’t have that, I am not being myself. I can’t change that about myself. I can’t survive without it.”
D.C. United midfielder Davy Arnaud on his mentality when he plays in a game
"I'm just hungry to play, regardless if it's Clint Dempsey or Joe Bloggs, I just want to play. It could be the best team, could be the worst team. I've been itching to play in MLS for a while and getting the opportunity. I want to take it."
Colorado Rapids defender Zat Knight on getting to make his MLS debut for the Rapids
“It truly is going to be a battle until the end. Thinking about earlier in the season — we had a 10-point cushion — we knew that wasn’t going to be that easy. It’s never going to be that easy. So we came in today, put in a real workman-like performance and did what we needed to do.”
Seattle Sounders FC midfielder Brad Evans on the battle for the 2014 Supporters’ Shield
"Our backs have been against the wall several times. Every time you think we're down, we get up and we respond. This is another big result on the road after we swallowed a bitter pill last week...I like our team's chances when our backs are against the wall."
Portland Timbers head coach Caleb Porter on the confidence of his team headed into the final stretch
MLS National Broadcasts
Wednesday, October 8Toronto FCs vs. Houston Dynamo, 7:30 p.m. ET (TSN)
Friday, October 10
Seattle Sounders FC vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC, 10:00 p.m. ET (NBCSN, TSN)
Saturday, October 11
Montreal Impact vs. New England Revolution, 4:00 p.m. ET (UDN, TSN1, TSN4, TSN5)
New York Red Bulls vs. Toronto FC, 7:00 p.m. ET (UDN, TSN)
Sunday, October 12
Houston Dynamo vs. D.C. United, 3:00 p.m. ET (UniMas)
FC Dallas vs. LA Galaxy, 7:00 p.m. ET (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes, TSN2)
-MLSsoccer.com
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