
The first Wednesday night match of the 2015 season brings Columbus Crew SC to British Colombia for a date with Vancouver Whitecaps FC at 10 p.m. ET (TSN). Since dropping its season opener to Toronto FC, Vancouver has turned scorching hot, rallying off four consecutive wins. The ‘Caps most convincing effort yet came on Saturday, when they blanked the defending champs LA Galaxy 2-0 behind goals from Kekuta Manneh and reigning Player of the Month Octavio Rivero. David Ousted also delivered his third clean sheet of the win streak, proving to be an invaluable part of Vancouver’s early success. Crew SC, meanwhile, look to avoid consecutive losses after falling to the New York Red Bulls two weeks ago. Columbus is not only tasked with cooling off one of MLS’ hottest teams – it’s also looking to snap a three-game losing skid versus Vancouver.
Long standing Western Conference rivals face off in this week’s edition of Viernes de Futbol (7 p.m. ET, UniMás) as FC Dallas play host to a Colorado Rapids, a club searching for their first goal and win of the season, at Toyota Stadium. The 63rd regular season matchup between the two clubs will be one where the two sides will try to rebound after both of their undefeated starts to the season ended last week. FC Dallas leads the series 31-20-11 and are riding a three-game win streak against the Rapids.
Portland Timbers welcome Orlando City SC to Cascadia
Orlando City SC makes its first ever trip to the Pacific Northwest for the first leg of MLS Soccer Sunday, paying a visit to the Portland Timbers at 5 p.m. ET (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes). The Lions suffered an agonizing loss on Friday night, yielding a 91st minute goal to D.C. United’s Luis Silva. It marked the second consecutive home match OCSC conceded via a stoppage-time goal. Now seeking its first win since March 13, Orlando faces a Timbers team fresh off its first win of the regular season. Portland handed FC Dallas its first regulation loss with a 3-1 victory on Saturday. Three Timbers players opened their 2015 accounts with goals, including Nat Borchers, Maximiliano Urruti, and Diego Chara. Portland will look to replicate Saturday’s team effort against Orlando, but the Lions have held their own on the road so far, securing four points in two away matches.
Seattle Sounders FC, LA Galaxy square off in Western Conference Championship rematch
Seattle Sounders FC and LA Galaxy face off in their first meeting since last year’s pulsating Western Conference Championship in the backend of MLS Soccer Sunday’s doubleheader at 7 p.m. ET (Fox Sports 1, Fox Deportes) at the StubHub Center. The two teams had contrasting weekends as Sounders FC forward Obafemi Martins scored his third goal in three matches, and a back line was resilient enough to overcome a 56th minute red card shown to Gonzalo Pineda to defeat the Houston Dynamo 1-0. The Galaxy will be happy to play at home again after losing their second consecutive game on the road as second half goals from Kekuta Manneh and Octavio Rivero propelled Vancouver Whitecaps FC to a 2-0 victory over the SoCal club. LA will hope to replicate last year’s 1-0 win over the Sounders at the StubHub Center in the first leg of the 2014 Western Conference Championship series to get back to their winning ways.
MLS National TV Schedule
Wednesday, April 8
Vancouver Whitecaps FC vs. Columbus Crew SC 10:00 p.m. ET (TSN)
Friday, April 10
FC Dallas vs. Colorado Rapids, 7:00 p.m. ET (UniMás)
Sunday, April 12
Portland Timbers vs. Orlando City SC, 5:00 p.m. ET (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes)
LA Galaxy vs. Seattle Sounders FC, 7:00 p.m. ET (Fox Sports 1, FOX Deportes)