No excuses this time as Seattle Sounders put four past LA Galaxy

When these two sides last met in Seattle on May 2nd, it was a strange time for both sides. Seattle had yet to build momentum in their campaign - hindered by an on again off again routine built round a mooted Champions league schedule that never materialized. Eddie Johnson too was looking like a gamble rather than a winning gambit and there was deep uncertainty as to whether he and Montero could play in the same team. Los Angeles meanwhile had suffered a Champions league exit of their own - and that shock defeat to Toronto, and the loss of Omar Gonzalez, had threatened to utterly derail the defense of their title. They'd arrived in Seattle just at the point where a slow start was possibly stabilizing, but then meekly capitulated in a game that was chiefly remarkable for a wonderful Montero goal from distance and an unfamiliar line up for LA (Beckham and Keane were among the high profile absentees). They woudn't win again until June 17th as a slow start lurched into a crisis.

Fast forward to August 5th and suddenly this was a game with a real competitive edge to it, played in front of an expectant crowd of 60,908. Both sides were now in the play-off places and victory for LA would have catapulted them to a season high of third, leapfrogging the Sounders, and this time all their big players were present - with the Galaxy coming in to the game on a five match unbeaten run and looking to re-establish the dominance they'd long held over the Sounders.

But the Sounders have changed too. A ten game winless streak had been offset by a cup run and the gradual bringing to the boil of Johnson's role in the team, as Rosales in particular worked out how and when to feed both him and Montero. Since getting back to winning ways, the Sounders have generally looked strong, and after five minutes of this game, Johnson raced between the LA center backs, including the now rehabilitated Gonzalez, to head past Saunders from a Rosales cross and set them on their way again.

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Even the most optimistic Sounders fan, though, would not have expected their team to go on to score four - including goals of great reaction and improvisation from Montero, opportunism and vision from Caskey, and an incisive run and finish, for his first MLS goal, from Andy Rose. No excuses - a confident and well stocked Los Angeles side were comprehensively beaten. How they react now compared to the wake of that last defeat to the Sounders, may affect the destiny of their season. Seattle meanwhile, are now six points behind second placed RSL, with two games in hand, and with their LA jinx well and truly overcome. San Jose next week...GP

Advantage Houston Dynamo in New York Red Bulls series

For two teams contesting the lead in the Eastern Conference and separated by a single point coming into Friday night's first of consecutive home and away ties, the performance gap between Houston Dynamo and New York Red Bulls was pretty remarkable.

Houston scored early in the second minute - Jermaine Taylor forcing home from inches out after a routine free kick into the box had caused some Keystone Kop havoc in the defense - and never looked like relinquishing their lead. Their midfield, inspired by the creativity of DP Oscar Boniek García and the ubiquitous Brad Davis, repeatedly found space to slot balls behind a ramshackle New York defense, with ex-New York player Mac Kandji in particular causing havoc down the left flank, as he repeatedly charged past Pearce and Solli on that side of the New York back line. Kandji's persistence down that side gave Houston a second, after he had bullied Solli in the build up to a cross headed home by Calen Carr, as Houston ran New York ragged.

They were no less dominant in organizing their own defense, repeatedly crowding New York's players and forcing turnovers as Dominic Kinnear barked orders to organize them off the ball, as well as on it. Having found their groove at the halfway point of the season and with a home game heavy run favoring them, they'll be very tough to dislodge at the top of the East.

The first team to try, next Friday, will be... the New York Red Bulls, back at Red Bull Arena. In Houston, the Red Bulls started with an attacking pair of Henry and Le Toux, ahead of Cahill as the attacking midfielder. Cooper was left on the bench, but with the stranglehold Houston had on the supply from midfield, his presence from the start may have been academic. In mitigation New York could point to Solli and Pearce just coming back from injury, and perhaps most crucially, the absence of Dax McCarty through suspension. While all eyes were on what Cahill could bring to supporting the New York attack when arriving from deep, the absence of McCarty in the holding role he has performed with diligence all season, arguably provided a bigger absence than the presence offered by a non-match-fit Cahill.

There were flashes from Cahill, especially arriving on set pieces, but his team mates will take time to get used to his play, and Friday was all about a side who are rallying around their own much less vaunted, but no less significant DP, and the system his arrival has ushered in. Advantage Boniek Garcia and Houston. GP

Colorado Rapids get some rare joy against Real Salt Lake

Colorado Rapids must have been relieved this game didn't take place in July. Since beating Portland 3-0 on June 30th, the Rapids have been on a miserable losing streak, that left them without a point last month. On that form, the lopsided schedule that saw them pitted against Rocky Mountain Cup rivals Real Salt Lake on Saturday night, for the third time this season, must have seemed like a cruel joke. Oh, and Real Salt Lake had won the last eight meetings between the two, including the last meeting just a couple of weeks ago.

So of course, the Rapids won - and deserved their win. Joseph Nane's shot in off the crossbar, after an earlier range-finder had cannoned off it, rewarded an industrious performance from the midfielder - who had never scored a goal in MLS up to that point. But it was a sharp all round team performance from the Rapids, who never gave up the same space down the channels as they had in their last meeting, nor conceded the kind of sloppy turnovers and individual mistakes that had done for them at Rio Tinto on the 21st July. And, until going off injured, Nane played a disciplined part alongside midfield partner Jeff Larentowicz - one staying, one going, as the Rapids held their shape and chose their moments.

Oscar Pareja's 4-2-3-1 has been an enigma this season - showing plenty of potential at moments, but sometimes seeming to swimming upstream against the time it takes to change the onfield culture of a physical 4-4-2 team, and to bed in the technical players to populate that team. Fairly or not, the pressure on Oscar Pareja has also been keenly felt by Technical Director Paul Bravo, who brought Pareja to the team in the wake of the dismissal of Gary Smith and Bravo's boss, Managing Director Jeff Plush, in the off-season. With Bravo also awarded a three year contract extension at that time, his position seemed assured - but the bumpy road this season has put the spotlight on his acquisitions, from Pareja down. This match may not have affected the outcome of the Rocky Mountain Cup (already RSL's after their two previous victories over the Rapids this season), but as a dominant victory over their closest rivals, it may have bought some more time for a project that needs that time to succeed.

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The result also meant that RSL missed the chance to leapfrog San Jose, who did not play this weekend, at the top of the standings. Jason Kreis could have had no complaints as his side rarely threatened to extend their dominance over the Rapids, and indeed even at 1-0 down were on the back foot for much of the second half. They have to go to the Whitecaps next, and try to rebuild momentum that emphatically stalled against their nearest rivals...GP

Montreal are making moves

With a solid 2-0 win over Philadelphia on Saturday night, the Montreal Impact moved just one place outside the playoff spots in the East. Yes they've played more games than anyone - three more than Chicago who sit five points ahead of them occupying the fifth and final playoff position – but they've adapted to life in the big leagues remarkably well in recent weeks.

Montreal's current success can be attributed to two main factors: The opening of Stade Saputo and adding players with a wealth of experience to strengthen the squad.

To focus on the former, since it opened, a hostile atmosphere has been present in the cramped confides of the Impact's new home. Recently Les Blues have been unstoppable at home. Four wins from four, knocking off Columbus, New England, New York and the Union, proves their dominance in the Province of Quebec.

However their upturn has not been a coincidence. Adding the duo of Marco Di Vaio and Alessandro Nesta is a masterstroke from manager Jesse Marsch. Both Italian stars are edging towards 40-years of age but they still possess all the qualities needed to perform at the highest-level week in, week out. Their additions have galvanized the squad, raising the level of performances from players who'd previously taken their spots for granted.

Di Vaio hasn't delivered goals – scoring just once in his first eight appearances – but he's added so much more than that. Intelligent running, guile, work rate, professionalism and passion. Youngsters Andrew Wenger, Felipe and Sanna Nyassi will be learning from the ex-Italian international every single day in practice. The first two showed "Di Vaio-esque" finishing in the 2-0 win over the Union, with Wenger's deft header opening the scoring before Felipe scissor kicked a spectacular second to seal a deserved victory. Designated player and star forward Di Vaio was missing from the lineup on Saturday, after inspiring his side to a hugely impressive 3-1 win over New York last week, as he attended a hearing concerning the match-fixing allegations currently rocking Italian football.

The arrival of fellow Italian Nesta, has helped the Impact settle defensively after some kamikaze defending at times earlier this season. The 36-year-old AC Milan legend has slotted in seamlessly, oozing class, confidence and panache with each perfectly timed interception. He has a 100% record after two games in an Impact jersey, but may have to have more than a quiet word with fellow center back Nelson Rivas about this crazy head butt, which saw him pick up a straight red. A longer suspension from the MLS Disciplinary Committee will likely ensue.

That craziness aside, how exactly do Montreal matchup as a first year expansion side? Well, Marsch seems to have learnt from mistakes others made. Portland and Philadelphia both failed narrowly to make the playoffs in the first seasons in MLS. Montreal may replicate that, but they're certainly a lot further along than Vancouver were during their inaugural season.

The careful addition of quality veterans, nursing in exciting rookies and deploying a squad rotation system has kept things fresh. Their home form will keep Montreal in the playoff hunt, while Impact fans are hoping the experience of Di Vaio, Nesta, Davy Arnoud, Donovan Ricketts and Matteo Ferrari will prove decisive down the stretch. Oh and speaking of expansion sides, the second-year Portland Timbers finally got a point under their interim coach - drawing 1-1 with FC Dallas in the earlier Sunday game. JPW

The Fire gets stronger

Chicago aren't messing about this year. With two Designated Players, Alvaro Fernandez and Sherjill MacDonald arriving this week from Seattle and Germinal Beerschot respectively, they've sent out a message of intent to the rest of the league. This season they mean business.

Their tough mentality surfaced once again on Saturday night, as they downed Toronto 2-1 despite trailing 1-0 at the break. A poor defensive error from the Fire let Ryan Johnson in to open the scoring. Marco Pappa's pass to center back Austin Berry had inadvertently sent Johnson in to slot home. But both Pappa and Berry redeemed themselves for that mishap, scoring a goal each in the second half to snatch all three points for Frank Klopas' men.

That defensive error isn't characteristic of Chicago's defending this term. They've been sublime at the back all year, as they've not conceded more than two goals in any game - boasting the third best defensive record in the East by conceding just 25 in 22 games. The biggest reasons for the huge improvement at the back – Chicago had the sixth worst defense in 2011, leaking 45 goals – is down to the form of central defenders Arne Friedrich and Austin Berry. The duo come from completely different soccer backgrounds. Friedrich is a 33-year-old former German International who was capped 82 times for his nation, while Berry is in his rookie season, after anchoring the hugely successful Louisville Cardinals back line throughout college.

The latter was not an automatic starter at the beginning of the season but his no-nonsense displays, coupled with his composure on the ball and his threat from set pieces, saw Berry cement his place firmly in the starting lineup. The German and American dovetail superbly, with Berry winning balls in the air and taking first knock, while Friedrich sweeps up behind.

But their solid defense isn't the only reason Chicago fans have room for optimism. The key signing of Fernandez from Seattle could well propel them to a deep playoff run. Flaco impressed in his debut early on, as he almost turned provider with a delicate header that set Chris Rolfe free, but Rolfe finished tamely. Fernandez's creative spark will unlock many defenses and the Fire's possession style of soccer suits him down to the ground. It could be the best trade of the year if the Uruguayan settles quickly and shows anywhere near the form he displayed in Seattle last term.

And the addition of forward Sherjill MacDonald as a DP will enhance the Fire's attacking options further. The Dutchman's brute strength and direct style of play certainly made a huge impact after he came on at half time on Saturday. He had four shots, held the ball up magnificently and generally tormented Toronto's defense. With a solid back line, MacDonald and Fernandez can give Chicago that something extra to continue their march up the Eastern conference. Chicago's next two games come against struggling Philadelphia and New England, providing the perfect opportunity to close the five point gap between themselves and Houston at the top of the table. JPW

MLS STANDINGS

Sunday's games were prefaced by a moment's silence for Kirk Urso - the young Columbus Crew player whose sudden death had been announced in the early hours of Sunday morning. Prior to the games, many friends and former team mates of Urso paid tribute to him throughout the day.