The playoff chase in the Western Conference is starting spread out as the top teams pull away from those fighting for one of the last few spots. The Seattle Sounders FC are one of the teams in the top tier sitting in first place coming into the weekend; the Portland Timbers and Vancouver Whitecaps are in the pack of clubs fighting to get in to the playoffs. The latter two clubs faced very winnable games against other teams desperate for points while Seattle played Real Salt Lake in a battle for first place in the West.
Real Salt Lake 2, Seattle Sounders FC 1
Seattle came into the match fresh off of a huge mid-week victory over the Chicago Fire in the semi-finals of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Key reserve players Andy Rose and Kenny Cooper each scored twice to lift Seattle to a 6-0 win and a spot in the U.S. Open Cup Final against the Philadelphia Union in mid-September at PPL Park.
Saturday at Rio Tinto Stadium though would be a completely different animal for the Sounders who are just starting a stretch of 12 matches over seven weeks. The Sounders had been struggling offensively in league play since the World Cup break having scored just five goals in six games. Unfortunately for the Rave Green, the offense is still not clicking.
Real Salt Lake scored two goals early in the second half to pace a 2-1 victory. With the win, RSL jumped into the lead in Western Conference and temporarily in the race for the Supporters' Shield as well.
The Sounders were only able to get two of their 12 total shots on frame which was quite an accomplishment considering their lack of possession. To make matters worse for the club, both shots on target came within three seconds of each other in the 72nd minute. The second of which resulted in Chad Barrett's goal.
New England Revolution 1, Portland Timbers 1
Portland traveled to Gillette Stadium for a massive match with the New England Revolution. They entered the match in 7th place in the Western Conference only two points behind their Cascadian rival Vancouver Whitecaps for the fifth and final playoff spot. The Timbers know that every point is important with only 11 matches left in the season.
At the end of the night though, Portland was only able to secure one point but they did have a chance for all three taken back on a controversial offside call. The play started when Diego Valeri fed Maxi Urruti on a breakaway, New England defenders threw their hands up in the air to signal offside as Gaston Fernandez was five yards behind the defense. The play instead went on with Urruti drawing Bobby Shuttleworth off his line before dishing the ball to Fernandez who gracefully slid the ball into the net for what looked to be the go-ahead goal.
The celebrations were quickly squashed as the near-side assistant referee held his flag aloft for offside. Here is a screenshot of the moment the ball was played from Urruti to Fernandez.
As you can see it is a very close call that could go either way. In this circumstance where both players are behind the last defender, as long as the player without the ball (Fernandez) is not in front of the ball when it is passed then he is onside. This was a really close call.
Portland manager Caleb Porter had some words about the blown call after the match telling media "We got the wrong end of the call, that's the reality. I've just seen it and it's a goal. So that's fine, I'll come off as the whiner but that's the reality, we should have had it."
On the positive side though Portland saw the first goal from designated player Liam Ridgewell. The defender took possession at midfield before making a dashing run through the Revolution defensive third. He continued his run into the penalty box and fired a low shot into the far corner to level the score at 1.
Chivas USA 0, Vancouver Whitecaps 0
The Vancouver Whitecaps missed a big chance to take a leap in the Western Conference standings. Earlier in the day the Los Angeles Galaxy lost big away to the Columbus Crew giving the Whitecaps an opportunity to jump into 4th place as well as put some distance between Vancouver and the teams chasing them for one of the final playoff spots.
On top of that Chivas USA had not scored a goal since July 20th when Erick Torres scored a late penalty in a 3-1 loss away to DC United, moreover Vancouver had not allowed a goal for 321 minutes of league play. On this night in front of 4,215 fans at the StubHub Center, it would be the Vancouver offense that could not find a goal. They mustered up only three shots on target against Chivas USA, who was without both of their starting center-backs.
It was a very disappointing result for the Whitecaps who remain in the fifth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. They have a two point lead over the Portland Timbers but have played one fewer matches than their Cascadia rivals.
The Week Ahead
Tuesday, August 19: Alpha United (Guyana) vs. Portland Timbers, 8:00 pm ET, CONCACAF Champions League
Wednesday, August 20: Seattle Sounders FC vs. San Jose Earthquakes, 10:00 pm ET
Saturday, August 23: Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Vancouver Whitecaps, 10:30 pm ET
Sunday, August 24: Portland Timbers vs. Seattle Sounders FC, 5:00 pm ET
There is so much to play for this weekend. The Whitecaps and Galaxy face off for fourth place in the West while the Sounders and Timbers face off in Round 7 of the 2014 Cascadia Cup competition. Seattle has two matches left while Vancouver and Portland have three making this a must-win match for Sigi Schmid's team. The match is a must-win for Portland as well who will be eliminated from the competition with a loss.
Cascadia Cup Standings:
Vancouver Whitecaps; 3 GP, 7 Pts, +2 GD
Seattle Sounders FC; 4 GP, 5 Pts, +1 GD
Portland Timbers; 3 GP, 1 Pt, -3 GD