MLS Week 25 Review: The Three Cs

By: Daryl | September 23rd, 2007

Blanco has Fire on his back Week 25 is over and there are now four teams with playoff spots in the bag: DC United, New England, Chivas and Houston will all be having a post season. Four more will join them, we just don’t know exactly who they are yet. It looks like New York, Dallas will make it barring some sort of meltdown, and Kansas should just about have enough to hold onto the seventh spot. But the eighth and final spot is where all the action is. The three Cs: Chicago, Columbus and Colorado are the likely contenders. Find out how they got on via the slightly haphazard medium of The Offside MLS Awards…

Worst Two Minutes of the Week: Chris Gbandi
You’re Chris Gbandi. Your team (FC Dallas) is chasing a playoff spot. Your team is beating LA Galaxy 1-0. You spoil it. How? First you retaliate to a Kevin Harmse tackle by blatantly kicking him as he walks past. You get booked. Two minutes later you pull Chris Klein’s shirt in the box and then dive on top of him just to make sure. Galaxy get a penalty, you get a second yellow and hit the showers early. Your team plays the remaining hour of the game a man down and eventually loses 2-1. You suck.

Earliest Celebration: Ante Razov
Razov struck a sweet 92nd minute winner to give Chivas a 2-1 win over Kansas, and a playoff spot. Not only was it a great goal, Razov was so sure it was going in he was off celebrating while the ball was still bending into the top left corner.

The Offside MLS Award for Worst Offside Decision: Richard Heron
It’s probably more his linesman’s fault, but Heron is the ref so he gets final say. During New York and New England’s 2-2 draw, Francis Doe raced on to a Claudio Reyna through ball and scored. He was called for offside, but replays showed it wasn’t even close.

Official Record for Longest MLS Goal Drought: Toronto FC
824 minutes. And when they finally scored they still lost 2-1 to Columbus Crew.

Best Penalty Percentages: Landon Donovan (200% success rate)
After missing one earlier in the season, Landon Donovan is well and truly back as a pen taker. He took two penalties this week and put the ball in the net four times, which is a good record by anyone’s standards. He converted one against Real Salt Lake to earn Galaxy a point on Wednesday. Then on Saturday he faced Dallas keeper Dario Sala. Sala saved Donavan’s first attempt, but LD buried the rebound. Then the ref ordered it retaken because Sala had come off his line (surely irrelevant if Donovan scored anyway?) So Donovan retook it, scored it, and then lashed the rebound home again because he’s a petulant bee-atch. Unfortunately for Landycakes your team doesn’t get credited with a second goal when you do that, but you do get a shiny yellow card.

Goal of the Week: Chris Rolfe
Dario Sala was outstanding for Dallas against Chicago on Thursday so it was going to take something special to beat him. Chris Rolfe had just the thing: a shot from 30+ yards that flew into the top right corner like an arrow.

Best Team Over 80 Minutes: Chicago Fire.
Rolfe’s rocket would have been the gamewinner if Carlos Ruiz hadn’t poached a 93rd minute equalizer for Dallas on Thursday. Three days later Fire were leading DC United 1-0 with four minutes to go, only to concede a goal to Jaime Moreno. Depends on whether you’re a glass half full or half empty type, but the two results are either four points lost or two point gained for the Fire. Given that the two points was enough for them to hand on to the final playoff position it has to be half full and two points gained.

Ballsiest coaching decision: Jason Kreis
Rookie Real Salt Lake coach took a big decision and benched Eddie Pope, The Best Defender America Has Ever Produced (tm.) Turns out it was the right decision as RSL beat Colorado 1-0.

All that leaves Fire with 32 points and a grip on the final playoff spot, Columbus on 31 points and Colorado trailing on 29 points, with four games each to go.