Assessing the Competition

Revs Well Placed for Post Season, But What About the Rest?

By Andrew Hush

Consecutive wins over a pair of their Eastern Conference rivals have the Revolution sitting pretty at the top of the MLS standings and only a catastrophic decline in form will prevent Steve Nicol from taking his side into the postseason for the sixth straight year.

Questions remain as to whether this is a Revolution side capable of finally winning it all. Last Saturday?s victory over New York ? albeit with the help of a crazy own goal ? showed that falling behind in matches need not be the death knell for the Revs, but this ability to fight back from an early deficit is something that must become a habit. On the road, especially, riding out the hosts? early storm is crucial and a capability to hit back after initial setbacks can be the difference between being a champion and an also-ran.

What makes assessing the Revolution?s chances all the harder is that, throughout MLS, there has been no dominant team in this regular season. In 2005, San Jose swept the Supporter?s Shield while, 12 months on, D.C. United had the best record in the league. However, the unsuccessful translation of April-October form into end-of-season silverware - neither the Earthquakes nor United reached MLS Cup - has seemingly inspired a blueprint as to how not to approach a championship run, thus giving rise to summer months that have seen coaches adopt a longer-term view towards their season.

That being said, with six weeks left in the part of the year that everyone gets to play in, the runners and riders for the postseason look set already. From the East, the Revs and D.C. are in; while the west?s top three will be defending champions, Houston, perennial playoff let-downs, Dallas and dark horse, Chivas USA.

The remaining three spots look set to be fought for by four teams. New York and Kansas City have the ability (and the points already in the bag) to grab two places, so it will be between Columbus, Chicago and Colorado for the final postseason berth. Toronto will lick their freshmen wounds, while Real Salt Lake can focus on building a new stadium. LA, meanwhile, will continue their Harlem Globetrotter-esque existence as the laughing stock of the league.

The final month of the season will see jockeying for position among the top sides but, if the playoffs were to begin today, who would pose the biggest threat to the Revs? hopes of placing an MLS Cup in the Gillette Stadium trophy cabinet? It?s wide open.

Last year's winners, Houston, look like the team to beat. With the addition of Joseph Ngwenya and the development of Stuart Holden, this is arguably a better side than the one which broke New England hearts last November. Dominic Kinnear has at his disposal a group that can win in different ways, as the brawn personified by the likes of Eddie Robinson at the back and Brian Ching up front is supplemented by the brains of Dwayne de Rosario and Richard Mulrooney.

The other Texas threat, FC Dallas, is a more enigmatic proposition. Losing Kenny Cooper to a broken leg was a big blow and the potential return of the tall striker in time to partner Carlos Ruiz in the post-season will be like signing a new player for Steve Morrow. In Cooper?s absence, we have seen the impressive emergence of Juan Toja but the Achilles heel of FCD is their backline, which is prone to errors.

Perhaps the most interesting team in the shake-up is another western side, Chivas USA. They are young, even after pushing Houston close in the playoffs last year, but that naivety may stand them in good stead. With Maykel Galindo and the experienced Ante Razov leading a line supplied by the guile of Francisco Mendoza and Sacha Kljestan, Preki?s side poses a genuine goal threat. Defensively, like Dallas, they are not great and will need the experience of Claudio Suarez to guide them through.

Among the eastern teams the Revs know well, D.C. would appear to have the most tools to go deep into November. This is a different United side under Tom Soehn. There is no Freddy Adu, while Christian Gomez and Jaime Moreno have not had to carry such a load as in recent years. Instead, the focus has been on the excellent Luciano Emilio while Fred has been increasingly effective out wide. Behind them, the shrewd purchase of Greg Vanney has been a master stroke, to the extent that the previous blue-eyed boy, Bobby Boswell, has had more time to spend developing his website.

New York and Kansas City are the wild cards and both will likely go as do their top strikers. If Juan Pablo Angel and Eddie Johnson can step up, they are more than capable of dragging their teammates with them. However, that is a tall ask and the need for others to carry the can is stark. For the Wizards, Carlos Marinelli?s guile needs to be seen more consistently, while New York require an renaissance from Claudio Reyna to bring success to the Big Apple.

The chances of this year?s champion coming from the rest of the league are slim, although Colorado has proved to be effective spoilers in past years; just ask FC Dallas. Home form is more important to the Rapids than any other MLS side. Columbus, meanwhile, is probably a year or two away from the promised land, even with Guillermo Barros Schelotto. Chicago, with Cuauhtemoc Blanco and Paulo Wanchope up front, may emerge as the winner of the final spot and could be a genuine threat come playoff time.

Parity among teams has always been at the heart of the MLS ideal and this year is seeing a group of sides that can beat each other on any given day. Experience will be key but, more than anything, this year's MLS Cup champion will be the side that can grasp the opportunity when it presents itself. The Revolution did that last year for an all-too brief time. They have stood on the precipice before, can they take the final step this time?

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