who did what, what it means and what to look for next:
Chivas USA 1, Real Salt Lake 0
Man of the match: Ante Razov was a livewire all night, getting after the Real Salt Lake defense and making things happen in different ways. His driven cross in the 31st minute turned into Chivas' only goal.
Bigger picture: Everything about Preki's club is clicking with precision right now, especially at home. Sacha Kljestan and Francisco Mendoza enjoyed good matches along the outside. Jesse Marsch had another workman performance in the middle. And what can you say about a defense that just posted its third consecutive clean sheet?
Pressure point: The pressure going forward will be on Houston and Dallas, who were slugging it out by themselves for first place in the West before Chivas USA's latest run. Now Preki's men own a most favorable September schedule, with five of six matches at The Home Depot Center, where they still haven't been defeated in 2007.
Colorado 3, Los Angeles 0
Man of the match: After spending most of the season stuck on Colorado's bench, Conor Casey is suddenly having quite an impact. Even before he scored the opener Sunday, he had been a handful for the Galaxy back line, making strong runs into the corner or holding up balls as a target forward.
Bigger picture: There was substantial chatter in August about Chicago's chances of catching Columbus for the final playoff berth. The Rapids are now saying, "Ahem. What about us?" Colorado has won three in a row (all shutouts, in fact) and might have something to say about the playoff race after all.
Pressure point: It looks like SuperLiga or bust for the Galaxy. Los Angeles faces Mexican powerhouse Pachuca on Wednesday, and the new tournament's championship match could be the Galaxy's most meaningful match of 2007. The MLS playoff dream drifted a little further still with Sunday's setback. Frank Yallop's men would probably have to win eight or nine of their last dozen matches to claim a playoff berth.
Chicago 2, Kansas City 0
Man of the match: Cuauhtemoc Blanco put on another clinic of efficiency in movement and pinpoint passing. He not only assisted on the insurance goal, but for the second consecutive week he supplied a nice strike of his own, this one on a free kick from just outside the penalty area.
Bigger picture: The Fire is 3-2-1 since Juan Carlos Osorio took over last month and continues to gain in the race to overtake Columbus for a better shot at a playoff berth. Chicago has one game in hand and can target a huge match at Columbus on Sept. 8.
Pressure point: Not only have Curt Onalfo's Wizards lost three of four in August, they've been shut out in all three of the defeats. Eddie Johnson hasn't scored since notching No. 12 for the season on July 22.
D.C. United 1, at Toronto 0
Man of the match: Yes, Toronto is struggling mightily to score goals. But they had their chances Saturday, when only a huge night from United goalkeeper Troy Perkins kept the sheet clean. Perkins' four saves included a couple of gems on shots by Todd Dunnivant and Maurice Edu. And he was quick and confidence off his line all night, cutting down services all over the penalty area.
Bigger picture: D.C. United can walk proudly away from a busy month, even if it's a little beat up physically. They went 5-0 in league matches with just one goal conceded. It could only have been better with a win in that SuperLiga semifinal two weeks back against Los Angeles.
Pressure point: Toronto came close to scoring a few times, but still went oh-for-August in wins and goals scored. Mo Johnston's men haven't put one past an opposing 'keeper since July 7 in a 1-1 draw with Chicago.
Houston 1, Columbus 1
Man of the match: Crew midfielder Danny O'Rourke was busting up plays left and right from his holding spot, especially after Marcos Gonzalez's ejection for a second yellow card in the 38th minute. O'Rourke helped keep Ricardo Clark and Dwayne De Rosario in check, then did his part as Brian Mullan and others sent cross after cross into the goalmouth.
Bigger picture: The Crew now have a league-high nine ties. But Sigi Schmid's team probably won't match the league record in this category. Heck, the Crew probably can't even match its own team record. The 2004 Columbus team played to draws 13 times. Houston and Chivas USA matched that total with 13 ties apiece last year.
Pressure point: Crew manager Sigi Schmid picked Duncan Oughton and Danny O'Rourke for the two holding midfield spots, with the slumping Danny Szetela moving to the bench. It didn't help Szetela's case that Houston scored about three minutes after the U.S. youth international entered.
New England 2, New York 1
Man of the match: The Red Bulls like to play balls into their forwards, who can knock them back to the trailing midfielders. So the key to defending Bruce Arena's team is often down to dealing with those second balls, and Jeff Larentowicz was a monster at scuttling those efforts Saturday. Holding midfield partner Shalrie Joseph was big, too, although his missed penalty kick could have cost the team dearly.
Bigger picture: The Red Bulls are winless with just two draws in their last 10 visits to Gillette Stadium. It's not far-fetched to think that Arena's boys could be right back at Gillette for the first round of the playoffs, especially now that New England and United seem to be pulling away from the pack in the race for Eastern Conference honors.
Pressure point: The league's eighth own goal of 2007 decided this one. It will officially be credited to Carlos Mendes, although goalkeeper Jon Conway certainly should have done better on the defender's long back pass. New York had one of the league's 11 own goals last year. That one was also credited to Mendes.
Chivas USA 3, at Los Angeles 0Man of the match: Maykel Galindo scored Nos. 9 and 10 for the year, including one opportunistic strike and one calm, classy finish off Francisco Mendoza's pass.
Bigger picture: Chivas USA players and coaches attempted to downplay the significance of the contest, hoping to vent some pressure in a lopsided series. But make no mistake, the win was huge for Preki's team; Before Thursday, Chivas USA had one win in the series against the Galaxy's seven wins.
D.C. United 3, New York 1Man of the match: Not only did Ben Olsen score United's opener and assist on the second strike, D.C. United's veteran midfielder started the latter attack when he stripped defender Chris Leitch in the Red Bulls' defensive third.
Bigger picture: It's been about three months since Jaime Moreno tied Jason Kreis' all-time league scoring mark. The Bolivian veteran and longtime D.C. United fixture converted a penalty kick for No. 109. Taylor Twellman or Ante Razov could have something to say about the record eventually, but for now it belongs to Moreno.
Kansas City 3, Chicago 2
Man of the match: Jose Burciaga contributed a goal and two assists, proving once again that he's one of the league's premier threats coming out of the back.
Bigger picture: While Burciaga's offensive production can hardly be argued, he also loses possession too easily at times, and his crossing is wildly inconsistent.
THIS AND THAT FROM ROUND 22
Technician's notebook:
Was that really him?: Who was this guy playing right back for Chivas USA? Preki gave Jonathan Bornstein his first start ever at right back as Orlando Perez lined up at Bornstein's usual spot on the left. So, not only was the U.S. international in an unfamiliar spot, his look was very un-Bornstein. Gone was the mop of dark hair, replaced by a military-esque high and tight look.
Newest Red Bull sees the field: Liberian forward Francis Doe, who had been training with the Red Bulls for a few weeks but was signed officially just before the match, got on the field against United. He came in for Jozy Altidore in the 71st minute. Red Bulls created room on the roster by placing Santino Quaranta on season-ending injured reserve.
A hole in the Galaxy: Then Galaxy's injury situation has gone from bad to absolutely unbelievable. Left behind due to injury over the weekend as Los Angeles traveled to Denver were: Chris Albright, David Beckham, Landon Donovan, Kelly Gray, Ty Harden, Ante Jazic and Abel Xavier. Plus, Kevin Harmse was unavailable due to a red card suspension.
Steve Davis is a freelance writer who has covered Major League Soccer since its inception. Steve can be reached at BigTexSoccer@yahoo.com. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author's, and not necessarily those of Major League Soccer or MLSnet.com.
