Saturday, May 11
Tampa Bay at Colorado
Location: Mile High Stadium
Kickoff: 4:30 p.m. (EST)
Televsion: ESPN2
Satellite: Galaxy 5, Tr. 14
Preview: The Rapids succumbed meekly to the Clash on Wednesday night, missing two good chances after SJ goalie Tom Liner pushed a cross into Marcelo Balboa’s body from whom the ball caromed into the net in the second minute. San Jose’s winning goal came on a bad goalkeeping mistake by Hudock, who raced out of his penalty area to clear a ball and couldn’t get back in time to stop Paul Bravo’s long shot. Anyway, Hudock is out and ex-England international Chris Woods is in. Forward Shaun Bartlett looked dangerous in the first half before fading, and forward mate Jean Harbor seldom threatened after being hobbled by an injury.
Woods, whose 35-year-old legs haven’t had much use lately, is slated to make his U.S. debut, and the Mutiny won’t have flank midfielder Evans Wise (with the Trinidad & Tobago national team) to test Woods with crosses, so someone needs to complement the subtle touches of Carlos Valderrama. After collapsing in the Meadowlands — squandering a 3-0 lead in less than four minutes! — Tampa sorely needed its shutout over the Wiz Wednesday night. But Tampa’s erratic defense and Mark Dougherty’s shaky goalkeeping forces Martin Vasquez to stay back, which makes support of Valderrama and Lassiter’s runs vital.
PROBABLE LINEUPS
Tampa Bay — Dougherty, Pittman, Kooiman, Yallop, Vasquez, McKinley, Backman, Ralston, Valderrama, McKinley, Lassiter, Viera.
Colorado — Woods, Cannon, Butterworth, Hamlett, Kmosko, Balboa, Henderson, Rodriguez, Benedetti, Bartlett, Harbor.
Prediction — The Mutiny is a shade better, 2-1.
New England at Columbus
Location: Ohio Stadium
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. (EST)
Television: WABU-68 Boston
Satellite: SBS 6, Tr. 17
Preview: Back in the cozy confines of Ohio Stadium after dropping two straight on the road, the Crew have to struggle through a few more games without Paul Caligiuri, whose experience in the back line would help stabilize the Columbus defense. However, aside from the wonderous winger Welton, the Revs’ offense hasn’t terrified anybody, and with Giuseppe Galderisi out of the picture, look for local college product Paul Keegan to get his first start.
One might think New England’s thump-and-run style would play well in the corridor the Crew call a home field, yet Colorado had limited success playing Route 1 in San Jose Wednesday night. Teams can adjust, as Tampa showed by winning in Columbus 2-1 April 20. But New England lacks the Mutiny’s versatility and flair, and is riddled with dissention as well.
PROBABLE LINEUPS
New England — Heaney, Lalas, Burns, Chronopoulos, Ibsen, Naveda, Woodring, Aunger, Welton, Ukrop, Keegan.
Columbus — Oshoniyi, Michallik, Watson, Clark, Bliss, Yeagley, Battelle, Khumalo, Thompson, McBride, Paz.
Prediction: The Crew get back on the beam, 1-0.
Dallas at Kansas City
Location: Arrowhead Stadium
Kickoff: 8:30 p.m. (EST)
Television: Prime
Satellite: Satcom 1, Tr. 10
Preview: No team typifies the roller-coaster nature of most MLS teams better than these two: After banging in six goals against Columbus on national TV, the Wiz were blanked twice; after beating Tampa on the road and shutting out KC at home, Dallas showed almost nothing in losing 3-1 to DC United May 1 and scraping past the Crew in a shootout. Both have played six games and are one point apart in the standings, yet KC has conceded more than twice as many goals (15-7).
In most cases like this, the team with the better defense will prevail. However, the Wiz has no defense to speak of. However again, the Burn’s offense has sputtered of late. However for the third time, the Burn could capitialize with counterattacks on a KC offense desperate to score, as Dallas did to set up two free kicks for goals in a 2-1 win at Tampa last month. Who knows?
PROBABLE LINEUPS
Dallas — Dodd, Sonora, Lozzano, Santel, Pollard, Farrer, Haynes, Kreis, Rodriguez, Eck, Kerr.
Kansas City — Harrington, Reasoner, Bowers, Ekeme, Okafor, Sorber, Preki, Chung, Gutierrez, Takawira, Johnston.
Prediction: Dallas wilts under a relentless stream of Wiz pressure, 3-2.
Sunday, May 12
MetroStars at Washington
Location: RFK Stadium
Kickoff: 3:00 p.m. (EST)
Television: Univision
Satellite: Spacenet 3, Tr. 5
Preview: The Turmoil Cup: When the league planned its launch around parity, it’s unlikely it had in mind this showcase match would pit a team with only a shootout win (NY/NJ) against a team with one win, period, in six matches. United brings USISL attacker Tony Sanneh, who dazzled at the MLS combine but initially refused MLS’s salary offers, into the squad after a proposed deal for the Revs’ Rob Ukrop fell through. He will probably play right midfield as Steve Rammel and Raul Diaz Arce retain their spots up front.
Collapses played a role in both team’s matches last weekend: The MetroStars took advantage of Tampa’s crumbling as well as some unbelievable good fortune, and United quickly melted down into a puddle of squabblers after conceding an equalizer to the Galaxy.
Outside midfielder Mario Gori is back in the United lineup, and his duel with Roberto Donadoni will be a most fascinating one. United’s defense receives another boost with the return of defender Eddie Pope. Childhood buddies John Harkes and Tab Ramos face off, and Richie Williams should give Harkes enough help to keep Ramos in check — United will be in deep trouble if he doesn’t.
PROBABLE LINEUPS
MetroStars — Meola, Restrepo, Caricola, Knowles, Harty, Kydes, Ramos, Donadoni, Joseph, Vermes, Hernandez.
Washington — Causey, Agoos, Pope, Peay/Imler, Gori, Harkes, Williams, Etcheverry, Sanneh, Rammel, Diaz Arce.
Prediction: The wolves out for Eddie Firmani’s head are really howling after United wins, 3-1.
Los Angeles at San Jose
Location: Spartan Stadium
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. (EST)
Television: ESPN2
Satellite: Galaxy 5, Tr. 14
Preview: The loss of Jose Vasquez (fractured foot) hampers the Galaxy’s attack, but head coach Lothar Osiander has some options. He can play Cobi Jones up front and slide super-sub (two goals, one assist in 77 minutes) Jorge Salcedo into midfield. Vasquez had replaced Harut Karpetyan up front for good reason, but Osiander might give the Armenian another shot. Defensive midfielder Chris Armas is perhaps the most neglected factor in L.A.’s 4-0 start. Galaxy defender Mark Semioli played with several Clashers (well, what DO you call them — Clashites? Clashians? Clasheers?) on the SF Bay Blackhawks and knows the tight spaces of Spartan, as does ex-APSL star Robin Fraser. The Clash battled back admirably Wednesday night after giving Colorado a 1-0 lead in the second minute, and new midfielder Missael Espinoza prompted several promising attacks with probing passes. With Espinoza in the lineup and Jorge Campos — who has played several games in the area for Pumas and Mexico — on display, the Clash could approach a sellout crowd of 31,000 with a hefty walk-up of Hispanic fans. Defender Michael Emenalo misses the game due to yellow cards.
PROBABLE LINEUPS
Los Angeles — Campos, Motajo, Calichmann, Fraser, Semioli, Armas, Salcedo, Cienfuegos, Jones, Karpetyan, Hurtado.
San Jose — Liner, Corrales, Iroha, Doyle, Dayak, Martin, Butler, Baicher, Espinoza, Bravo, Wynalda.
Prediction: Roared on by a capacity crowd, the Clash falter and lose, 3-2.