CONCACAF Champions League returns this week just three months after the Montreal Impact’s Cinderella run to the final fell just short. Five teams—D.C. United, Vancouver Whitecaps FC, LA Galaxy, Seattle Sounders FC and Real Salt Lake—now take aim at becoming the first MLS club to ever hoist the coveted CCL trophy.
All MLS clubs, aside from D.C. United, open their campaigns this week. Real Salt Lake kicks off tomorrow night when it visits Guatemalan side Deportivo Municipal at Estadio Mateo Flores (10 p.m. ET, FOX Soccer Plus). RSL is one of two MLS teams to appear in the tournament’s final since it reformatted in 2008. In the 2010-11 tournament, the Claret-and-Cobalt became the first MLS club to reach both the semifinal and the final. Several key players from that year’s roster including Nick Rimando, Kyle Beckerman, Jámison Olave, Javier Morales and Tony Beltran return hoping to polish off unfinished business.
On Wednesday, Cascadia rivals Seattle Sounders FC and Vancouver Whitecaps FC meet for the second time in five days (10 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1). Whitecaps FC dispatched Sounders FC with a convincing 3-0 win in Seattle on Saturday. Wednesday’s rematch shifts to BC Place, where Vancouver is 5-4-1 in league play but fell to Seattle 0-2 on May 16. With Clint Dempsey and Brad Evans back from Gold Cup and GM Garth Lagerwey (who was RSL’s GM during its 2010-11 CCL run) making the tournament a priority, pressure is on Sounders FC to rebound from this weekend’s loss and establish regional dominance.
LA Galaxy wrap up the week’s CCL action on Thursday, when it hosts Trinidadian side Central FC at the StubHub Center (10 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 2). The Galaxy won the tournament in its former iteration in 2000, and made a run to the semifinal in 2012-13. The additions of Giovani dos Santos, Steven Gerrard and Sebastian Lletget gives LA the firepower, depth, and big-game experience to make a deep run in this year’s tournament.
On Wednesday, Cascadia rivals Seattle Sounders FC and Vancouver Whitecaps FC meet for the second time in five days (10 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1). Whitecaps FC dispatched Sounders FC with a convincing 3-0 win in Seattle on Saturday. Wednesday’s rematch shifts to BC Place, where Vancouver is 5-4-1 in league play but fell to Seattle 0-2 on May 16. With Clint Dempsey and Brad Evans back from Gold Cup and GM Garth Lagerwey (who was RSL’s GM during its 2010-11 CCL run) making the tournament a priority, pressure is on Sounders FC to rebound from this weekend’s loss and establish regional dominance.
LA Galaxy wrap up the week’s CCL action on Thursday, when it hosts Trinidadian side Central FC at the StubHub Center (10 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 2). The Galaxy won the tournament in its former iteration in 2000, and made a run to the semifinal in 2012-13. The additions of Giovani dos Santos, Steven Gerrard and Sebastian Lletget gives LA the firepower, depth, and big-game experience to make a deep run in this year’s tournament.
By: Editor
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