Brek Shea Is Having A Rough Week

Maybe the lanky Dallas winger had already been informed of U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann’s plans not to include him in this week’s national-team camp when he lashed out in frustration like this last Saturday:

But either way, the outburst (good stiff-upper-lip reaction from the linesman, btw) earned Shea a three-game suspension from Major League Soccer. Incredibly, he wasn’t even carded for it during the game (way to get your linesman’s back, ref), but the league’s new Disciplinary Committee stepped in on Thursday and gave Shea a three-game break.

And you know what? Maybe that’s just what he needs. He’s been run ragged after more than a year of FC Dallas games, US Open Cup and CONCACAF Champions League matches, national-team appearances and commitments to the U.S. U-23s. It seems like he still hasn’t recovered, as his MLS form has dipped noticeably this season.

Some time off may be just what the doctor ordered, and hopefully will return Shea to the form he found last season, when he did things like this:

Eric Hassli Scored the Best Goal You’ll See Anywhere on the Planet this Week

Stoppage time of the first leg of the Canadian Championship final between Vancouver and Toronto FC last night, Toronto leading 1-0:

File that one in Hassli’s growing collection of audacious goals, right next to this one.

CCL: Rough Night for MLS Favorites as Galaxy, Sounders Crash Out

Having crossed “win an MLS Cup” off their to-do list this past fall, David Beckham, Landon Donovan, Robbie Keane and the LA Galaxy turned their focus to the CONCACAF Champions League as the 2012 season approached.

Winning that competition would be an MLS first and constitute the next frontier for a club with lofty aspirations. A CCL crown would raise the international profile of the franchise and put the Galaxy in the FIFA Club World Cup, where LA could compete against some of the biggest sides in the world.

Last night, those visions of greater glory evaporated in the air of the Home Depot Center as Toronto FC, a team that has never qualified for the MLS playoffs in five years of existence, eliminated the Galaxy with a 2-1 victory. The win, behind goals from Ryan Johnson and Nick Soolsma, sealed a 4-3 aggregate triumph for the Reds and made them the first Canadian side ever to reach the semifinals of the CCL.

Johnson opened the scoring just after the half-hour mark, beating rookie Galaxy defender Tommy Myer to Soolsma’s cross at the far post and heading the ball back across Josh Saunders’ goal and into the side netting.

Los Angeles replied ten minutes into the second half when Toronto defender Ty Harden turned Donovan’s cross, which was bound for an onrushing Keane, into his own net. But Toronto found the winner in the 67th minute, when Johnson beat Myer again, on the left flank, and crossed for Soolsma at the top of the six-yard box.

Keane failed to finish two clear second-half chances to tie the game.

Toronto will face Mexican side Santos Laguna in the two-leg semifinal on March 28 and April 4.

•••

Santos Laguna entered their second leg against Seattle trailing 2-1 on aggregate, but made quick work of erasing that deficit in the 90-degree confines of Estadio Corona. The hosts bagged two goals in the first 10 minutes of the second leg to take a 3-2 aggregate lead.

When Seattle’s Fredy Montero found Alvaro Fernandez at the back post to make it 2-1 (and 3-3 on aggregate) it looked like we were in for a sizzling second half.

We were, except that it was all one-way traffic. Former Sounder and 2010 U.S. World Cup veteran Herculez Gomez scored for the hosts five minutes after the break, and added a second in the 68th minute to blow the game open. Gomez has seven goals in his last five games.

Santos would add two more as Seattle pushed forward to try make up the aggregate deficit. When the final whistle blew, it was 6-1 Santos and 7-3 in the aggregate.

CCL: LA Rallies for 2-2 Draw in Toronto

Major League Soccer clubs returned to action this week as Los Angeles, Toronto, and Seattle all played their CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal first legs on Wednesday night.

In the first game of the night, played before more than 47,000 fans at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, the home team jumped out to an early 2-0 lead on goals by Ryan Johnson and rookie Luis Silva, but could not hold on as Mike Magee pulled one back for LA before halftime and Landon Donovan buried a late equalizer.

Right this way to the highlights:

One interesting sequence not shown in the clip above: As Beckham lined up the corner kick that led to the tying goal, he was showered with streamers, abuse, and one green beer can from the Toronto faithful. He made a point of fetching up the can (it missed him) and showing it to the referee’s assistant on the sideline and the fourth official across the field before taking the corner.

Moments later, after Donovan poked home the equalizer, Beckham turned back to the fans behind him and let them have it. They did not have a counterargument.

It was fairly awesome, and another example of why Becks has won us over: he puts the soccer first, and he’s still fired up to play and compete.

Toronto visits LA for the second leg next Wednesday, March 14 (Fox Soccer, 10:00 p.m. ET).

CCL: Toronto Advances; Colorado, LA, Up Next

Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki was in the house at Pizza Hut Park last night, tweeting earlier in the day that he wanted to see “Brek Shea before he goes to the Bundesliga.” But it was Toronto FC’s Joao Plata, not Shea, who shined brightest in the pivotal CONCACAF Champions League clash between the Hoops and the Reds.

The diminutive Ecuadorian set up Danny Koevermans for the game’s first goal in the 28th minute, then added strikes of his own in the 69th and 81st minutes to ice the match and salvage TFC’s season, sending them to the CCL quarterfinals with a 3-0 win after the club had been eliminated from MLS playoff contention on Oct 1.

Here are the highlights:

FC Dallas—which opened the CCL group-stage by becoming the first MLS club ever to win in Mexico, downing Pumas 1-0 in Mexico City—needed only a draw last night to advance to the quarters. They got some promising forays from Nowitzki’s boy Shea, as well as from Jackson, and Honduran speedster Marvin Chavez, but it was Toronto’s, and Plata’s, night.

TFC joins MLS side Seattle Sounders FC in the CCL quarterfinals, which begin next March.

The Colorado Rapids face Santos Laguna in Mexico tonight (8:00 pm ET, Fox Soccer) with a chance of advancing, and the Los Angeles Galaxy take on Motagua in Honduras on Thursday (10:00 pm ET, Fox Soccer). Wins for both U.S. clubs would put four MLS sides in the CCL quarterfinals.

The Rapids are sending a mixture of reserves and starters to Santos Laguna, a club that routed Colorado 4-1 in their previous CCL meeting.

Midfielders Pablo Mastroeni, Jamie Smith, and Brian Mullan will miss the match, along with defender Tyrone Marshall and first-choice keeper Matt Pickens. Mastroeni (concussion) and Smith (calf) are injured; the other three are being rested for the Rapids’ MLS season finale against Vancouver on Saturday.

Los Angeles’s opponent, Motagua, is already eliminated from the competition, having lost all five of their group-stage games. The Galaxy are sending both David Beckham and Landon Donovan down to Honduras for the game (Robbie Keane is out with a groin strain)—though Donovan (quadriceps) said it will be a gametime decision for him as to whether to play or not.

How Many MLS Teams Can We Get In the CCL Quarterfinals?

After last night’s action, we’ve got one in and four still alive. The league is not likely to place five clubs in the eight-team knockout stage, but three is a genuine possibility. Let’s take a look.

• Seattle Sounders FC got two goals from the normally defensive-minded Osvaldo Alonso to tie Comunicaciones 2-2 in Guatemala City last night and clinch a spot in the CCL quarters.

The 25-year-old Cuban midfielder twice pulled his side level, hitting a bouncing volley off a goalmouth scramble just before halftime to make it 1-1, and punching in another in similar circumstances with one minute to play for the crucial final scoreline.

Highlights and postgame comments here:

The Sounders are in first place in Group D with a 3-1-1 record and can finish no worse than second place, regardless of what happens in their group-stage finale against Monterrey (3-2-0) next month.

The result is another highlight in what’s shaping up to be an excellent season for the Pacific Northwest side. The Sounders are headed to the MLS playoffs and have the second-best record in the league (15-6-9); they’ve reached the final of the US Open Cup—where they’ll be looking for their third straight title on Oct 4—and they’re in the CCL knockout stage.

Not bad for a club in just its third year of existence.

• Toronto FC hosted UNAM Pumas last night, less than two weeks after the Mexican side had thrashed them 4-0, and just three days after MLS club Chivas USA blanked the Reds 3-0. To make matters worse, Toronto was missing three players, including Torsten Frings, due to suspension, and could not afford a loss if it was to keep its hopes of advancing alive.

It was close, and the Reds could twice thank the posts for keeping them in it, but Toronto hung on for a 1-1 tie against a reserve-heavy Pumas side.

Peri Marosevic took a nice layoff from Danny Koevermans to put Toronto up 1-0 in the 36th minute, and Marco Palacios tied it up for the visitors six minutes after the break.

Behold Pumas’s Diego De Buen rattling the upright from 30 yards in the highlights below:

Pumas now leads Group C with a 2-1-2 record and eight points while Toronto (2-2-1) is tied with FC Dallas for second with seven points.

• Dallas plays at Panamanian side Tauro FC tonight (8:00 ET, Fox Soccer Channel) with a chance to reclaim the top spot. The Hoops have just one goal in their last six games and have struggled to three straight MLS losses. But they did hit the woodwork three times in their most recent game, a 1-0 defeat to Houston on Saturday, and they’ve welcomed back winger Marvin Chavez from injury. Tonight would be a great time to bust out of their slump.

• Much like FC Dallas, Los Angeles jumped out to a fast start in CCL play but has faltered of late, dropping consecutive road games to Morelia (Mex) and Alajuelense (CR) to slip to third place in Group A. The Galaxy faces Morelia at the Home Depot Center tonight (10:00, FSC), and pretty much have to win to keep their quarterfinal hopes alive.

They’ll also be looking to avenge a controversial 2-1 loss to the Mexican side two weeks ago, when LA had a Robbie Keane goal incorrectly disallowed in the waning moments.

• The Colorado Rapids are 1-2-1 in Group B and sending a mostly second-choice team to El Salvador for tonight’s matchup against Isidro Metapan (12:30 a.m., FSC, delay).

Metapan was blitzed 6-0 by Mexican side Santos Laguna in its last CCL game, but can clinch a spot in the quarters if it beats Colorado and Santos ties or beats Real Espana in Honduras.

So which of the remaining four MLS clubs will advance? (See current standings here.)

FC Dallas may have the clearest route. If the Hoops can defeat winless Tauro tonight, then they’d head into their final game, on Oct 18 against Toronto, needing only a draw to advance.

Los Angeles needs to beat Morelia at home tonight, a result that, assuming Alajuelense knocks off 0-0-4 Motagua tomorrow, would leave LA and Morelia tied for second with nine points and Alajuelense in first with 12.

The Galaxy faces last-place Motagua in Honduras in its group-stage finale, while Morelia hosts Alajuelense.

If LA wins out, and Morelia beats Alajuelense, the group would wind up with all three teams on 12 points, in which case the first tiebreaker is head-to-head competition between the three. The second tiebreaker is head-to-head goal difference, and the third is head-to-head away goals.

As for Toronto and Colorado, we’d say Dallas is too big an obstacle for the Reds in Group C, and the Rapids, who seem to have placed less of a priority on the CCL than the others, are the biggest longshot of the five MLS teams in the competition.

CCL: Seattle Stumbles, Toronto Scrapes By

Seattle beat Herediano on the road a week ago, but last night, fielding a second-choice team at CenturyLink Field, Sounders FC came up short against the Costa Rican side, falling 1-0 on Yosimar Arias’s 25th minute free kick.

Despite the loss, the Sounders (3-0-1) remain in first place in Group D with two games to play.

In Toronto, the home team got another goal from ace designated-player signing Danny Koevermans and held on for a 1-0 win over Tauro FC of Panama. Koevermans has seven goals in eight games for the Reds.

The win was a nice bounce-back from the 4-0 pasting the Reds received at Pumas last Wednesday, and puts them at 2-2-0 with hopes of advancing still very much alive.

CCL: Pumas UNAM Crushes TFC; Tauro Ties Dallas

Toronto FC have never been to the playoffs in four previous MLS seasons, and they look unlikely to make the postseason this year.

But after overhauling their roster in midseason, and qualifying for the CONCACAF Champions League group stage, the Reds still have plenty to play for in 2011. They could become the first Canadian team ever to reach the quarterfinals of the CCL. To do that, though, they’ll have to come up with some much better performances than the one they produced last night at the Estadio Olímpico Universitario in Mexico City, where the Reds were thumped 4-0 by Pumas UNAM.

The hosts got three goals in the first half from striker Martin Bravo. Highlights below, but TFC fans may want to avert their eyes:

The loss drops Toronto to 1-1-0 and into third place in Group C.

The Reds host Colorado in an MLS match on Saturday, and return to CCL action on Sept 20, when they host Panamanian side Tauro FC, which tied FC Dallas 1-1 last night.

The Hoops scored the fastest goal in CCL history in that game, with midfielder Daniel Cruz finding the net after just 27 seconds, but had a George John strike dubiously called back for offside, and eventually succumbed to some heavy pressure from the visitors, giving up an equalizer just before halftime.

Those highlights below:

Dallas host Thierry Henry and New York on Saturday in MLS play, then welcome Pumas next Wednesday to battle for the CCL Group C lead.

Los Angeles, Dallas Roll in CCL Group Play

Both the LA Galaxy and FC Dallas won CONCACAF Champions League games on Thursday to go 2-0 in group play, and both games were impacted by weather, in slightly different ways.

A few hours before they kicked off against Costa Rican champions Alajuelense, the Galaxy learned that their game scheduled for Sunday evening in New York had been postponed to Oct 4, due to the impending arrival of Hurricane Irene.

That allowed coach Bruce Arena to start midfielder David Beckham and defender Omar Gonzalez, two players he had planned to rest for the MLS tilt against the Red Bulls.

It worked out well, to put it mildly: Gonzalez headed in a Beckham corner kick for LA’s first goal just before halftime, and Beckham sprung Sean Franklin on the right in the 77th to set up the second goal, which came after Franklin found Chad Barrett in front of the net. LA won 2-0 to stay on top of Group A. Highlights ahead:

The weather played a more direct role in Toronto, where the CCL game between the Reds and FC Dallas was delayed repeatedly and finally suspended on Wednesday night, then rescheduled for the following morning at 10:00 a.m., hence the sparse crowd at BMO field in the highlights below. Jack Stewart, an American defender the hoops acquired from NASL (D-II) side NSC Minnesota Stars on Aug 15, got the goal in a 1-0 Dallas win.

Toronto FC Makes MLS a Perfect 5-for-5 in CCL Group Play Openers

Toronto FC have struggled this season in MLS play—they’re 4-11-11 and all but eliminated from the postseason, a place they’ve never been in four-plus years of existence—but they’ve overhauled their roster (again) and the new group has plenty to play for in the CONCACAF Champions League.

The Reds opened their Group C slate down in Panama City last night, and got goals from Ryan Johnson and Julian de Guzman two minutes apart in the first half, then held off their hosts, Tauro FC, in a nervy second half to lock down a 2-1 win.

Highlights:

There was a downside to the win, though, as Toronto’s Dutch striker Danny Koevermans left the game in the 57th minute with an apparent leg injury. He will be evaluated today.