MLS - Playoff races taking shape

The Western Conference suddenly has a new challenger at the top, while the Eastern Conference is seeing a little separation, after Week 21 of the Major League Soccer campaign concluded over the weekend.   Chivas USA had defeated the Los Angeles Galaxy 3-0 on Thursday, then on Sunday they moved to within two points of the top spot in the West with a 1-0 victory against Real Salt Lake. Chivas is tied with FC Dallas with 36 points (though they have two games in hand and a better goal difference), both teams two points behind Houston Dynamo, who tied the Columbus Crew 1-1 over the weekend.

In the East, the New England Revolution and D.C. United now have a little breathing room at the top, after each won interconference matchups on Saturday. The Revolution still lead the division by three points after their 2-1 comeback win against the New York Red Bulls; United has a six-point bulge on third place after their 1-0 win against Toronto FC which saw the home side set a MLS-record goalless streak.

The Chicago Fire came back to gain a split of their home-and-home series with the Kansas City Wizards, winning 2-0 at home on Saturday after the Wizards took a 3-2 home win at midweek. And the Colorado Rapids maintained their recent hot streak on Sunday, knocking the injury-hit Galaxy 3-0 at home.

At The Home Depot Center, Chivas USA were playing their first "home" game since July 14, winners of three of four on their swing of road games, while Real Salt Lake had followed their second win of the season with a loss the weekend before, falling to the Chicago Fire at home.

The game's lone goal came in the 31st minute. A corner kick was just knocked back out wide, and Ante Razov latched onto it on the right. He drove in a low ball toward the near post where Jesse Marsch got in front of his marker and touched the ball past Nick Rimando for his second goal on the year.  With the victory, Chivas USA remains the only team unbeaten at home this season, with a 7-0-1 mark in games at the Home Depot Center where they've been the home team. The RSL game began a stretch of four consecutive home games for the Red-and-White.

At Robertson Stadium, Houston Dynamo had put an end to a two-game losing streak and four-game winless run with a victory against FC Dallas in their top-of-the-table clash the previous weekend, while the Columbus Crew were making a second trip to Texas in three weeks, having lost two games on the trot.  The Crew took a deserved lead after 17 minutes. Guillermo Barros Schelotto somehow skipped past two defenders at the edge of the area and drew two more toward him before laying a square pass to a completely unmarked Alejandro Moreno at the penalty spot, and the ex-Dynamo man lashed home a low shot for his second goal this season against his former club.

But the Crew went a man down in the 38th minute when Marcos Gonzalez was sent off for a second bookable offense within six minutes, both on fouls from behind on Houston striker (and former Columbus player) Joseph Ngwenya.  Dynamo laid siege to the Crew goal but couldn't find a way through until the 79th minute. Ngwenya somehow escaped the attention of a pair of Crew defenders at the corner of the box and played a quick one-two with Ricardo Clark. He fired a low shot that Will Hesmer was able to get a hand to, but the Crew 'keeper couldn't hold it and Nate Jaqua swooped in to stab home the rebound from close range.

At Gillette Stadium, the Revolution had alternated 3-0 losses with 1-0 victories in their last four games while staying atop the East, while the Red Bulls had allowed seven goals in two games, seeing a two-game winning streak snapped when they started their road trip at midweek with a 3-1 loss to D.C. United.  Sharlie Joseph was given a glorious opportunity to put the Revolution ahead in the 19th minute when Adam Cristman was pulled back in the box and referee Baldomero Toledo awarded a penalty kick. But Joseph flashed his effort outside of the left-hand post.

The Red Bulls took advantage of the opening to score the first goal on the half-hour mark. Jozy Altidore took the ball in midfield and played it forward to Juan Pablo Angel, who laid a sublime pass back into Altidore's path as he raced in free behind the New England defense. Then from the top of the area, Altidore flicked a low shot with the outside of his foot past Matt Reis for his eighth goal on the season.  Yet just seconds after the second-half restart, the Revs pulled level. A long punt from Matt Reis sailed over the Red Bulls back four and Taylor Twellman controlled it with yards of space around him, strolling into the box before slotting home for his 11th goal, third in four games.

Then a grievous error 10 minutes from the end gave the Revolution the win. Carlos Mendes slid over to claim the ball on the left touchline, some 40 yards from goal, and turned and knocked a long back pass toward his own goal. But goalkeeper Jon Conway misjudged the ball and saw it skip past him inside the far corner.

At BMO Field, D.C. United came in riding a four-game winning streak, having seen their club record shutout streak snapped at midweek in the 3-1 win against New York. Toronto FC hadn't won in seven games and had gone 552 minutes without scoring a goal, five minutes shy of the league record set by Real Salt Lake in 2005.  Toronto had two corners and three shots in the first six minutes, but it wasn't enough for the streak-breaking score. At the six-minute mark, TFC officially set the league's new standard for lack of scoring. The BMO Field fans showed a sense of humor by counting down the seconds until the record was clinched, and then "celebrating" the event with streamers and applause.

Two minutes later, United took the lead. A long ball down the left flank from Troy Perkins was flicked on by Nicholas Addlery, and Fred raced in alone behind the TFC defense. Rounding the corner at a tight angle at the left post, Fred poked a low shot that slipped past Kenny Stamatopoulos and into the back of the net.  United held on for the shutout, their fourth in the last five games, and their fifth victory in a row. Toronto's last goal came on July 7 -- an MLS record 642 minutes played without a goal.

At Toyota Park, the Fire and Wizards were meeting just three days after Kansas City exploded for three second-half goals before holding on for a 3-2 win at Arrowhead Stadium.  Unlike that open affair, both teams started the return match a lot tighter, but the Fire took advantage of the one dangerous opportunity they needed just before halftime. Ivan Guerrero was taken down just outside the top of the area, and Cuauhtemoc Blanco curled the resulting free kick around the wall and inside the left-hand post for his second league goal with Chicago.

The Fire sealed the match in the 86th minute. From a short corner, Blanco swung in a good cross to the penalty spot where Calen Carr came storming in and headed home through the legs of K.C. goalkeeper Kevin Hartman.  Once again, Blanco was at the heart of everything for the Fire -- he has been involved in some way in each of the last six goals the Fire have scored, and in seven of the 10 goals Chicago has scored since he joined the club (including a friendly against Celtic FC, when he scored in his first game with the club).

At Dick's Sporting Goods Park, the Rapids came into the game off back-to-back shutout victories against the two conference leaders, while the Galaxy had lost four in a row after the Thursday night home loss in the Super Clasico against Chivas USA and had been shut out in four of five games.  Missing seven first-team players to injury with an eighth suspended, the Galaxy had just 16 available players, two shy of the allowed number. The Rapids exploded for three goals in a 17-minute span to put the game away before halftime.

In the 26th minute, a neat touch from Jovan Kirovski sent Conor Casey free behind the Galaxy back line, and he went haring into the area. As a defender came over and goalkeeper Joe Cannon raced off his line, Casey cut inside to the center of the box and banged the ball home past a pair of retreating defenders in the six-yard box.

Eight minutes later the Rapids doubled the lead. Terry Cooke was sprung down the right flank and swung in a low cross. A Galaxy defender saw it bounce off his foot right in front of goal, and Colin Clark lashed it home inside the right post for his first MLS goal.

Two minutes before halftime Colorado made it 3-0. Cooke swung in a corner from the right, and Cannon barely got a fist to it as he tried to punch it away. The ball fell to the feet of Mike Petke, who poked it home to put the final touch on the win.