MLS Power Rankings: Week 10
Carlos Ruiz and the Philadelphia Union have moved up in the Power Rankings.
OK, so we've got the top and the bottom of the Power Rankings down cold. But what about the middle of the pack? That's where there's some real jostling this week, including a rebound for Philly and another big drop for Columbus. Got an issue with ours? Vote for your own!
All match times for this week's games are ET; only MLS regular-season games reflected on schedule.
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Didn’t dominate vs. Chivas, and now they’re heading into a stretch where they’ll be missing some key players due to international and personal commitments. But they’ve played that game before, and played it well.
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Still can’t score, but still don’t concede. Maybe Álvaro Saborío’s offseason injury was worse than RSL let on? Either way, he’s gone for the next month on Gold Cup duty, anyway — as is Arturo Alvarez. The low-scoring trend will continue.
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Getting out of Houston with a point on Saturday was a pretty significant step in the right direction. They didn’t play well, but fought back and got the crucial late goal. What happens next, with seemingly half the team at the Gold Cup, will determine whether or not they can compete for the Shield.
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Has there been a single FC Dallas game this season that wasn’t played in biblically bad weather? Between that and the injuries it’s amazing that they’ve done as well as they have, as they’re now undefeated in five straight.
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Seeing Jeff Parke nod home Tyson Wahl’s cross on Saturday must have been a relief for Sigi Schmid. The Sounders obviously need to catch a few breaks on set-pieces in order to compensate for their run-of-play shortcomings, and that’s exactly what happened last weekend.
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What really made the 2010 MLS Cup winners go was the forward combination of Conor Casey and Omar Cummings, something that’s been absent for all of 2011, more or less. They’ll have to wait a while longer, as Casey’s back but Cummings will be with the Reggae Boyz for at least the next few weeks.
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Philly got a win they desperately needed on Carlos Ruiz’s golazo, and Michael Farfan’s cracker wasn’t too bad, either. But they still look disjointed, and they can’t count on two thunderbolts to save them each week.
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JELD-WEN is officially a fortress. As long as Portland keep winning there, they’ll stay in the playoff hunt. Add in a couple of road draws, and they may even find themselves in the Shield race. Crazier things have happened.
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Houston had the Red Bulls on the hook and let them off in shocking fashion. Seeing the Dynamo concede a late set-piece equalizer was a script rewrite that took just about everyone by surprise. Don’t expect to see this team make that mistake again.
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Andrés Mendoza says his game doesn’t fit the league’s style, Emilio Rentería is hurt, Jeff Cunningham is a shadow of his former self, and the rest of the forwards are unproven. Maybe it’s time to toss the dice on rookie Justin Meram? He couldn’t do much worse than the other guys Robert Warzycha has tried this year.
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In 2010, Frank Yallop righted the ship by coming up with innovative new tactics and lineups. In 2011, he went back to basics with a flat 4-4-2, and suddenly the Quakes are cruising — even getting non-Wondo goals in the process.
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The Rojiblancos couldn’t duplicate their giant-killing ways in the year’s first SuperClásico, and at times looked like deer in headlights. It’s a safe bet Robin Fraser will have addressed that lack of mental toughness by the time they take the field again on Saturday.
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The Revs really needed to head into the Gold Cup with a winning streak, but against the Quakes looked like a team that was “almost” on the same page. So there were almost a lot of goals and nice defensive plays — which isn’t good enough for a result. Missing Benny Feilhaber and Shalrie Joseph for a month means things will get worse before they get better.
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The goalkeeper spot has just about murdered the Fire this year, as both Sean Johnson and Jon Conway have let in some absolute howlers. The way they controlled the better part of the game against Philly says good things are coming, but they can’t keep conceding bad goals.
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If Blake Brettschneider is good enough to score against Ajax, he’s good enough to score in MLS — right? We’ll find out over the next couple of weeks as the big rookie No. 9 will get his shot to fill in for the injured Josh Wolff and Charlie Davies.
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They did well to fight for a NCC draw in Vancouver at midweek (and got a few fortunate calls along the way, it must be said), then posted a shutout on Sunday with a makeshift lineup at Colorado. Two road draws — one against a rival, the other against the Cup champs — could mean things are looking up for the Reds.
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Would anyone ever have thought that it would be an injury to Atiba Harris that ruined Vancouver’s season? The ‘Caps have plummeted without the big forward, and it’s beyond time for Teitur Thordarson to make some tactical shifts in his absence.
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Two more games until they get to open their new stadium. Unfortunately for Peter Vermes and SKC, there's not much to say beyond that.
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