By Ridge Mahoney
D.C. United-San Jose
Saturday, April 3, 4 pm ET/1 pm PT
TV: ABC.
Key Players Out: DC United — FW Santino Quaranta (adductor tear), FW Eliseo Quintanilla (R fibula fracture), FW Thiago Martins (L ACL surgery); San Jose — DF Ryan Cochrane (L torn meniscus), DF Chris Roner (R ankle surgery).
Referee: Kevin Stott.
With or without Adu, D.C. looked sharp during preseason but goalscoring woes marred its preparation. A sputtering attack and questions about how the back line will fare, not to mention a neophyte head coach, will overshadow the Adu factor once the games begin.
Freddy has fueled great optimism but D.C. had long dysfunctional stretches last year that a young kid and a gruff coach won't rectify right away.
Key questions: How much can Ronald Cerritos and Earnie Stewart contribute? Is Ben Olsen finally back to full health? Who will play in goal?
San Jose's back line is dinged up and Landon Donovan missed about a week of training. Yet a fit Brian Ching, a dangerous Brian Mullan, and the ideal midfield duo of Richard Mulrooney and Ronnie Ekelund could control the game.
Key questions: Is Jeff Agoos, who turns 36 in May, capable of another fine season and will he play left back or in the middle? Can head coach Dominic Kinnear follow through on the three excellent seasons, including two titles, the team enjoyed under Frank Yallop?
Columbus-MetroStars
Saturday, April 3, 7:30 pm ET/6:30 pm CT/4:30 pm PT
TV: HDNet, Fox Sports Net New York.
Direct Kick (live) — DirecTV: 794; Dish Net: 464; InDemand: na.
Key Players Out: Columbus — MD Brian Maisonneuve (R ankle surgery), DF Chad Marshall (R shoulder separation); MetroStars — none.
Referee: Abbey Okulaja.
Both teams have been extensively revamped. The Metros signed a fleet of young foreign attackers in the days prior to the closing of the transfer window Wednesday and their impact won't be known until visas are approved and they've had a chance to acclimate. The Crew missed the playoffs last year and 12 players have departed.
The Metros midfield potentially could be one of the league's best. Amado Guevera and Joselito Vaca are skilled and incisive, Ricardo Clark is a force-in-progress, Eddie Gaven is the apple of coach Bob Bradley's eye, and all Mark Lisi did last year was lead the team in assists with 11. In goal, Jonny Walker is as good as anybody in MLS.
Key questions: Can the outside backs match the steel of center men Eddie Pope and Tenwya Bonseu? Does Mike Magee or John Wolyniec get shuffled out of the mix when the foreign forward fleet moves in?
The under-achievers of 2003 have lost Brian McBride and Brian West, so Edson Buddle and Jeff Cunningham have no excuses. Midfielder Simon Elliott may bring just the bite and passing that Kyle Martino needs to blossom.
Key questions: Has Coach Greg Andrulis lost the confidence of his players? Is Matt Jordan a goalkeeping upgrade or equal to Jon Busch?
Kansas City-Chicago
Saturday, April 3, 8:30 pm ET/7:30 pm CT/5:30 pm PT
TV: Fox Sports Net Chicago 10:30 pm CT (delay).
Direct Kick (live) — DirecTV: 797; Dish Net: 463; InDemand: na.
Key Players Out: Kansas City — MD Preki (L fractured fibula/L dislocated ankle), FW Igor Simutenkov (L torn Achilles tendon), MD Stephen Armstrong (sports hernia surgery); Chicago — MD Jesse Marsch (R ankle cartilage damage).
Referee: Erich Simmons.
Chicago looked championship-worthy last year until it self-destructed in the championship game. Defensive mainstays Zach Thornton and Carlos Bocanegra must be replaced and so far Henry Ring/D.J. Countess and C.J. Brown don't look the part.
The rest of the Chicago lineup looks tough. Justin Mapp is primed for brilliance on the right flank, DaMarcus Beasley is already there. Jim Curtin has much more on his shoulders with Bocanegra gone. Chris Armas hunts the ball like nobody else and scores timely goals. Damani Ralph has to contend with the sophomore jinx and a love of the good life. Ante Razov is a menace.
Key questions: Is Andy Williams still bitter about being subbed in the final? What will be the solution in goal?
Kansas City twice led San Jose in the conference final but squandered both leads before being stunned in overtime and won't have Preki and Igor Simutenkov until June at the earliest.
A reliance on defense requires a top-notch season from Tony Meola in the nets. Coach Bob Gansler has gone to a four-man back line; second-year defender Shavar Thomas, acquired from Dallas, pairs up with Jim Conrad in the middle and Nick Garcia goes to left back.
Midfielder Kerry Zavagnin, one of the keystones of Kansas City's 2000 championship season, has looked superb in preseason. Chris Klein will likely see a lot of the ball with Preki and Simutenkov out; his powerful runs unhinge defenses and having Garcia as backup can push him higher more often.
Gansler believes Josh Wolff and Davy Arnaud could be a potent pairing up front, so he waived Wolde Harris. Diego Walsh is the wild card in midfield.
Key questions: Is there room for the fire and bite of Diego Gutierrez? Can Wolff stay healthy and exploit his considerable talents?
Dallas-Colorado
Saturday, April 3, 8:30 pm ET/7:30 pm CT/6:30 pm MT/5:30 pm PT
TV: Fox Sports Net Rocky Mountain.
Direct Kick (live) — DirecTV: 795; Dish Net: 462; InDemand: na.
Key Players Out: Dallas — DF David Wagenfuhr (R hamstring strain), MD Oscar Pareja (R knee surgery), MD Gavin Glinton (L ankle sprain); Colorado — DF Jeff Stewart (R knee), MD Seth Trembly (L knee).
Referee: Terry Vaughn.
The Rapids are a team teetering on the edge and could tip either way with Coach Tim Hankinson's future chained to the fortunes of his team. Dallas can only go up.
The spine of Colorado from midfield to the goal is new. Pablo Mastroeni moves from midfield to the back line and his tutelage of second-year man Nat Borchers will be crucial. English League import Darryl Powell likewise has leadership duties alongside central midielder Kyle Beckermann. Joe Cannon takes over in goal for Scott Garlick; that change in last year's playoffs sparked a storm of strife. They'll square off in this game.
Key questions: Can veterans John Spencer, Mark Chung and Chris Henderson carry the attack and keep the team focused? What can Mexican Antonio De La Torre bring at right back? Is defender Ritchie Kotschau ready for a career season?
Burn coach Colin Clarke has decisiveness and authority oozing out of his pores. He has added skillful players, who should relish playing on a heavenly Cotton Bowl surface.
Ronnie O'Brien's return from a broken leg, courtesy of Dema Kovalenko, a central role for Brad Davis, and a left side manned by Eric Quill (if healthy) considerably alters the look of this team in midfield. The defense is reborn, anchored by new-boys Steve Jolley and Cory Gibbs, and could be changed again if Carey Talley gets fit and/or Milton Reyes is signed.
Key questions: As Jason Kreis recovers completely from his ACL tear, how many goals can ''Toni'' Nhleko, Bobby Rhine and Eddie Johnson produce? Is Simo Valakari the answer at holding mid, and how much time will Ramon Nunez get?
Los Angeles-New England
Saturday, April 3, 10:00 pm ET/7:00 pm PT
TV: Fox Sports World, Fox Sports En Espanol, KWHY (Los Angeles), Fox Sports Net New England.
Direct Kick (live) — DirecTV: 769. Dish Net: 461. InDemand: na.
Key Players Out: Los Angeles — none; New England — DF — Carlos Llamosas (knee).
Referee: Alex Prus.
The 2002 MLS Cup finalists square off with the Revs picked by some to go all the way and the Galaxy coming off a disastrous collapse following its first title.
Status quo is the theme in New England, which lost the 2002 final and last year's conference final in overtime. Somewhat lost amid all the hoopla is a rather poor defensive record: Only the pathetic Burn allowed more goals than the Revs last year and while NE did score the most, its usually the better defensive teams that go furthest.
Yet the lineup is frightening: Pat Noonan, Taylor Twellman, Jose Cancela, Steve Ralston, Shalrie Joseph, and so on.
Key questions: Can Rusty Pierce and Joe Franchino cut down on the stupid fouls that give away free kicks and the missed tackles that lead to goals? Can Joe-Max Moore avoid injuries?
Los Angeles nearly erased a pathetic regular season by rolling up a 4-0 aggregate lead on the Quakes in the playoffs but instead imploded. Andreas Herzog replaces Mauricio Cienfuegos as playmaker — theoretically — and Coach Sigi Schmid has also gone to four in the back. Jovan Kirovski is a fearful presence up front if he meshes with Carlos Ruiz. Youngsters Alejandro Moreno and Arturo Torres have college-bred rivals Ned Grabavoy and Joseph Ngwenya to contend with.
Key questions: Has the spectre of 2003 been exorcised? How will Herzog, 35, fare against tigerish defensive midfielders during a long summer season? Will Cobi Jones replicate his excellent second half of the 2002 season or indifferent displays much of last year?
Note: All of Saturday's games, besides ABC's D.C. United-San Jose telecast, will be available on MLS's pay-per-view package, Direct Kick (formally known as the Shootout package). The Direct Kick package costs $69 and offers more than 100 MLS regional telecasts.
It is available on small dish networks DirecTV and Dish Net, and to InDemand subscribers (cable).
All three systems will offer Saturday's games free-of-charge.