Red Bulls down Dynamo in stunning upset

                                                                     Photo by ISIphotos.com

The New York Red Bulls pulled off one of the most stunning upsets in MLS playoff history on Sunday, knocking off the two-time defending champion Houston Dynamo, 3-0, in the decisive second-leg of their Western Conference playoff series.

Dane Richards scored the opening goal of the match, drew a penalty to set up the second goal, then finished Houston off with a 65-yard run before setting up John Wolyniec for the third goal as the Red Bulls booked a spot in the Western Conference final against Real Salt Lake.

While Richards was terrorrizing the Houston defense, Red Bulls goalkeeper Danny Cepero was enjoying the best game of his young career. Cepero made six clutch saves, most of the highlight-reel variety, as he and a organized and gutsy Red Bulls defense kept the Dynamo off the scoreboard in a decisive home game.

The victory means the Red Bulls will face Real Salt Lake on Saturday for a place in the 2008 MLS Cup final.

"We were physical, scored on chances that we created, we defended with our lives, we were a team,  a unit," said Red Bulls striker Juan Pablo Angel, who converted a penalty kick for the Red Bulls second goal.

"If you play like that you always have a chance to beat anyone."

The Red Bulls looked like they might get overwhelmed early on as Houston applied good attacking pressure and Cepero struggled with some early jitters, but Cepero eventually found his feet and began making some key saves, including an early stop on a close-range shot from DeRosario.

"There were some times when I kind of laughed to myself when Danny made some of those saves because those are the ones that keep us in the games, especially big games," Red Bulls defender Andrew Boyens said of Cepero. "(Cepero) was quality tonight. Hopefully he can keep on doing that for us."

While Cepero kept Houston off the board, Richards was busy abusing Dynamo captain Wade Barrett on the flank. He ran onto a long pass from Sinisa Ubiparipovic, raced past Barrett and slammed home a 12-yard blast to make the score 1-0.

Richards torched Barrett again just 11 minutes later, getting in behind Barrett before sending a cross off the hand of Dynamo midfielder Ricardo Clark. Angel converted the penalty kick to make the score 2-0.

Houston adjusted in the second half by replacing Barrett with the speedy Corey Ashe, but Ashe was also toasted, as Richards capped a mazy 65-yard run with a perfect pass to John Wolyniec, who tapped home from close range for his first career playoff goal and first goal of the 2008 season.

“Every game I try to perform as best as I can but today was exceptional I guess,” Richards said. “And it’s a historic game so I’m happy I could do it today, and hopefully I can do it next week also.”

The victory was a satisfying one for Osorio, who watched his lineup decisions pay off in the playoffs after shaking up his squad following an embarrrassing 5-2 regular-season ending loss to Chicago. After that loss he inserted Luke Sassano and Sinisa Ubiparipovic into the starting lineup along with John Wolyniec and that trio helped form the physical, tireless and determined squad that knocked off the Dynamo.

"I was one hundred percent sure that this team would give me its best," Osorio said of the starting lineup he used to beat Houston. "I felt we could play a certain way that would make it difficult for opponents to play against us and you saw that with Houston."

Now the Red Bulls turn their attentions to Real Salt Lake, knowing that one more win will put them into the MLS Cup final. Given the way the team has looked in the post-season, and with the confidence they are sure to draw from upsetting Houston, the Red Bulls have suddenly gone from a team that barely made the playoffs to a team that looks capable of reaching the final.

"I hear a lot of people say that we didn’t deserve to be in the playoffs and I think that’s nonsense," Angel said. "We’re here and now people are starting to talk about us.

"It’s not over," Angel said. "We know that we’re on the doorstep of the big party of the year. We would like to get it right, but we have a very difficult challenge ahead.

Comments

[CACuzcatlan]

Wow!

Hopefully they can sell-out Rio Tinto Stadium for this game. They have a full week of advanced noticed and the game is on a weekend. Arguably, the most important game in Red Bulls/Metrostars history and definitely the most important in RSL history.

[Eugene]

Amazing victory, and not the first time this season that Houston has struggled with NY. The fact is that the Houston backline has gotten a bit older and slower and they've had difficulty dealing with Richards pace.

RSL has also struggle a bit with NY this season, so next Sunday's game will be very interesting.

Its fantastic that Rio Tinto gets to host the Western conference championship.

Hopefully Osorio sticks with the same first 11, because these guys are playing really well together and fighting for each other. No reason to tinker with what works, right? Hopefully

[kahlva]

GO BULLS!!!

If we keep on playing this way, we'll be a very hard team to beat. Great to finally find the right combination of players that click!

[Freddy]

Please tell me there's gonna be a massive viewing party for this. I don't care if it's in NYC or Jersey but I'm there....

[cb]

what an amazing team effort! outstanding play by richards and cepero, determined and spectacular. the defense garnered new respect with their focus and guts under a relentless attack. (an extra shout out to jimenez who played hurt, but undaunted.) the new midfield disrupted and possessed, and to top it off, both strikers scored! it was a great match. i owe woly some kind words: thank you for your hard work and that goal.

[Tom From Syracuse]

GO NYRB!!!!!!

[martha in miami]

I am so proud of JCO and the lads! With amore mio Del Piero and Juventus upset at Real Madrid, Redbulls upset at Houston, and great article front page Mia. Herald today, below the fold but still!, by the dynamic Michelle Kaufmann, profiling Mr. Marcelo Claure, and of course quoting the delightful Ray Hudson, on the MLS Miami/Barca bid...I am one estatic futebol fan! Oh and I got a new job offer friday, in this chaotic climate too!

[kpugs]

I think it's a sign of how much disappointment this team has given us over 13 years that I'm viewing anything after today as gravy.

Great series, great game. I gave them a shot to win but didn't think it would happen. A big ef you to the people who guaranteed they'd get knocked out by Houston. Have some humble pie. 4-1.

[Clayton]

Ives (or anyone),

Any news yet as to where the viewing party will be at? Hopefully Mulligans...

[Chosun]

Wow, that was a great game. I am shocked, but glad the JCO proved me wrong. Let's hope the team continues to fight like they did tonight...

[Isaac]

I'm definitely cheering for the Bulls. My prediction?

NYRB-CC MLS Cup Final.

After that it's kind of up for grabs. I just hope that this isn't like the Red Bulls of the regular season, where they smoke someone and then they get smoked the next game. can someone tell me the longest winning streak that the Red Bulls had this season?

[Rene]

Angel and his true leadership on and off the field has me cheering for NYRB, but Jason Kreis' leadership at RSL has me cheering for them too (that and the fact that they downed Chivas). RSL vs NRYB will make for a great Western Conference Final.

If there are any viewing parties in the San Francisco area next weekend for the game, let me know. I'll be up there for the USC vs Stanford game.

[Dominghosa]

If David Stern ran the league, it will be New York v. Chicago Fire in Los Angeles.

[onionsack]

Watch Party at NEvada's again. Cant do Mulligans because it cuts into their big saturday night crowd in hoboken...besides everyone had a blast tonight that went to Nevada's in the city and we won...its good luck and we cant mess with that!!

[Joe]

Anyone else interested in Osorio v Fire Final? That has a good story line in which the Fire would destroy the metros in LA and add another trophy to the case.

[Brokenbil]

Good riddance to the Houston Dynamo, the most overrated team in the history of MLS. They are 0-for-4 in competition this year (PPC, USOC, Superliga, & MLS Cup) and will soon be eliminated from the CCL. Congratulations to the Red Bulls, one of the most underperforming teams in MLS history. No offense to RSL, but as a former Metrostars fan, I'd love to see the team from NY finally make it to the Cup final.

[martha in miami]

p.s. I hate to repeat myself, but I must...I told ya so on Woly, this line up, and Double I told ya so on JCO...and when you people were all like *off with his head*, lol!

[irishapple21]

I'm still recovering from the excitement of that match. Wow! The Red Bulls fought like warriors out there and their win was so impressive. It was like seeing an entirely new team on the field. And all this time, these young guys were already with the team -- playing consistently as a unit with the reserves or off the bench. Just waiting for their chance to show what they can do. Just amazing.

[CD]

Brokenbil, Houston is the two time defending MLS champions and they drew 30k to the game. They are a quality club no reason for the hate. Next year hopefully the schedule congestion will be alleviated and no clubs will have so much responsibility representing the MLS in all 3 of those tournaments.

I am thinking no one would have guessed this would have been the final four standing in the MLS this season. A few might have guessed the FIRE but the other 3 probably weren't predicted by most.

[4now]

do i recall someone saying something about a ching game winning goal?

[Supsam]

Housten Dynamo? The Most overrated team in MLS history?????!?! Umm excuse me but they did win back to back MLS cups not to mention they had won 2 more earlier when they were the Earthquakes and were always battling for top of the Western Conference, finalist for Superliga 08 and are the only MLS team putting up a fight in Champions league. Thats what is expected of a top class MLS club and Housten has done that. If Housten is overrated, then who deserves the title of top MLS club these past few years?

and no, im not a Dynamo fan. Just a person who uses his logic.

[martha in miami]

I am still smiling since 5.01pm, thanks JCO, JPA, Dane, Woly, Cepero and Jimenez not to play as kpugs and I mentioned! and ofcourse to Ives, as always. Miami Update, also article front pg. sports, below fold but w/ pic of Messi saying we would get barca players! Almost fainted but ofcourse she writes on 2nd pg., NOT YET on Messi and Eto*o, but maybe Henry. Dont forget Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, and Figo, whom Id pay to see even if hes 103!

[Rudy]

Unbecredible.

[Aguinaga]

Shock the world!! Best week ever!!!! Dane, I take back every doubt I had about you coming into this series, you looked like a man amongst boys on that last run, unbelievable!!! JCO, I had faith in you in pre-season and defended you till that end of season loss vs Houston, after which I was at a loss for words... strangely, I'm even more speechless now, 3-0 away to the best team/defending champs of the last 2 seasons?! Viva Metro, I'm looking up Salt Lake City flights!!!!

[Supsam]

Official attendance for the game: 30,053

Good job Housten. Almost makes me sad to think that all those fans deserved a better result

[Mark]

Those fans did deserve a better result, I'm just glad they didn't get it since we Red Bull fans have waited quite a while for a playoff series win.

I'd love to compare the average salary of the players used in the game today, omitting highest and lowest the DPs don't skew the numbers. With Woly, Ubi, Sassano, Leitch, Jimenez, Boyens, Goldy and Cepero, those guys probalby only count about $300K combined against the cap. Pretty amazing...

[thomas]

And more good news...we're done with gridiron lines for the year!!! Columbus, RSL and HDC will all look like real foooooootball fields!

Ives: I trust you will have a four-way poll soon for us to predict what the matchup will be for the final. I assume MLS HQ is hoping Chicago-NY (big cities+Blanco will do better drawing fans to HDC). I will vote for RSL...and I'm not sure who I expect/prefer in the (real) East.

Congratulations to RBNY.
-T

PS: Ives: how about a comment on the crowd...

[SonicDeathMonkey]

Houston really had their lack of team speed exposed today. I swear everytime Richards had the ball, it looked like the Dynamo were jogging. Once they got up 2-0, you could tell by the Dynamo players body language that they were done. I'm glad for all the long suffering Metro/RedBull fans....you guys certainly needed something like this. I have a feeling that RSL won't be as generous as Houston were today. Can't wait for this weekend!!!

[milo]

Its 2am was working and I'll be celebrating the whole effing week!!!!!!

I have Sats off, hopefully the game will be archived cuz I'll prolly have alchohol poisoning by kick off!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[kpugs]

Martha, I personally agree on Woly. He was the victim of a trade no one wanted to include him in a few years ago.

Woly is a tireless worker and the DEFINITION of a finisher. That is how he roles. He's not super fast, and he can't dribble around more than a defender or two.

But that skinny mofo can hold the ball up better than Brian Ching, pass the ball 100 times better than Brian Ching, and finish like Angel. Well said.

[nelson]

i like how enthusiastic Juan Pablo Angel gets with his celebrations.

im not a RBNY fan personally, but i think that increasingly I have become a Juan Pablo Angel fan, just because he is hands down the best goalscorer in the league, and because he really, really, loves to win. his celebrations show it, its like he cant hold back his happiness.

that being said, ill be rooting for them to make it all the way, but if that means going up against my Columbus Crew, then no moar will i root for Angel.

[Tim F.]

Hopefully New York can quickly refocus for game against Real Salt Lake!

[Arnold ramirez]

Juan Carlos. I am glad that you turned things around in New York. All those soccer experts believing that the job was too big for you should shut up. From the first day that you were appointed I knew you could do it. I have seen how hard you have worked. REWd Bulls won last night becausew Juan Carlos had a game plan. Luck had nothing to do with it.
Arnie ramirez

[Tim F.]

IT IS TIME TO SUPPORT Ives' blog as the best there is in the 2008 edition of US Soccer's "best of" awards.

Until Thursday, e-mail Soccerbyives nomination for best soccer blog to centercircle@ussoccer.org.

Here is the announcement:

http://www.ussoccer.com/articles/viewArticle.jsp_10878983.html

Go Ives go!!!

[Beckster]

Congratulations to the Red Bulls. That being said, I think MLS really has to assess the schedule for the top teams. Look what happened to DC, NE and Houston after the gruelling season of multiple tournaments in addition to MLS. These squads are not deep like European squads and able to handle multiple competitions at the same time. Let's assess what can be done so that the best teams aren't decimated the following year.

[DCU 4EVER]

U Got that right Beckster. DC United was hammered with injuries all year and seldom fielded the same team due to their crazy schedule. I am sure that the MLS powers have been hearing it from the DC, Houston and NE management about the schedule.

However, we did end up with a piece of silver this year. More than Houston and NE can say. Good luck with RSL and u will see again why DC should never have let Nicky Rimondo go. (Along with Bobby Boswell but if you have a personality in DC don't expect Kevin Payne to keep u around).

Would love to see a Chicago vs. NY showdown in MLS Cup (and so would Dandy Don Garber).

[MIKE FROM LINDEN]

I HAVE NEVER BEEN MORE PROUD TO BE A RED BULL FAN. OOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEE OLE OLE OLEEEE OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
RED BULL FOR LIFE

[ag nigrin]

Issac: Bulls need to win 3 in a row to win MLS Cup...1 down and 2 to go... In August when they were hot they did just that.... If they play like they have the last two games...with gusto and bravura and with luck...I am sure they will win.

[joe k]

the red bulls have played well against salt lake in the past. i actually have a pretty good feeling about saturday's game

[Chris]

Props to the Red Bulls. I was at the game and you guys took your chances very well. I lost count of how many times the ball skimmed diagonally across the face of Cepero's goal, only to wind up out of bounds. The Dynamo couldn't score in a whorehouse with hundred-dollar bills stuck in their jock straps today.

But Dynamo fans like me can't be too down. Two championships in three years is hard to complain about. Now all we need is a stadium.

Also of note, the local sports radio in Houston was treating the Dynamo as the same level as Tcxans and Rockets (who also lost yesterday). Soccer has arrived in Houston. One playoff loss will not erase all the good that's happened during the last three years.

[Mario in SJ]

Congratulations RED BULL!!!
JCO is the real thing. That first game in NY I thought would have incentivized the three new guys to fight for a spot for the return game and I expected them as starters in this game. Apparently JCO saw something better and kept them on the bench.

Now I wonder if they are going to be around next year. Could all three of them be that bad or have they not been able to integrate into the team? What do you say Ives?

[Rob C]

I didn't see much of the game (I was at Giants Stadium watching the Jets demolish the Rams), but I talked to a lot of friends about it and watched the highlights online. Every fan, from the Metro to the Red Bull days, should be proud of this team. It was an up and down regular season, but they did enough and now can bask in some playoff glory.

But the work is not done yet. This is a league of parity and the Red Bulls have just as much of a chance to win the Cup as everyone else. Also, the winners of the semi-final games are guaranteed a spot in next year's Champions League. I would love to see the Red Bulls get into that tournament (and hopefully MLS will fix some of the scheduling for next year). What a memorable year! Can't wait til Saturday!

[G]

RSL will sell out.

BYU and the University of Utah's football teams both play on the road Saturday, and the Utah Jazz are on an East-coast trip.

[Sandro]

Let's go Red Bulls...too bad there is no home and away game to cheer for the Bulls. Would be great to finally see NY win the MLS cup.

[Dom Kinnear]

nothing about that bs penalty call on Clark, Ives? From what I saw the hit his head and then bounced down against his arm. that is not a pk.

[brett]

i must say congrats to the redbulls for their win, AWAY win at that....

[A.S.]

On October 30, Ives asks: "What lineup would you like to see the Red Bulls use"?

A.S. responded: "Here's my lineup:

Not Magee.
Not Rojas.
Not Pietravello.
Not Cichero."

JCO follows A.S.'s advice, and Red Bulls win a historic series. Coincidence? I think not.

[brett]

2 things killed Houston on sunday (simply watching the highlights)

1) speed- dane was a beast and thrashed that old exp. back line....

2) Cepero- just on the highlights, Cepero had 4-5 goal preventing saves..... he was a beast

things seem to be rolling for RSL... its going to be an interesting game... i wouldnt even know where to begin with who is the favorite.... i guess it depends on who shows up that night...can the redbulls pull a 2nd away win?? RSL always seem to have a collective cool when playing at home (even their new home), however i didnt Redbulls beat RSL on their home opener?? oh well, looking forward to a good game

[Chrös]

Chicago over NYRB in the finals = Yay!

[Jacob]

I have to admit, at the end of the regular season I was calling for Juan Carlos Osorio to be fired. I felt his constant tinkering with the lineups made for an inconsistent team and that he sometimes just put the wrong starting XI on the pitch, especially the season finale against Chicago.

However, I must give credit where credit is due. Osorio swallowed his pride for these two playoff games and benched three of his big mid-season signings (Rojas, Cichero, and Pietravallo), and fielded a team that has showed nothing but heart, determination, and guts. He has chosen chemistry over skill (i.e.- Wolyniec vs Kandji) and it has paid off. I’m not saying that Osorio should be forgiven for his poor/mediocre coaching during the 30 regular season games just because RBNY won a playoff series, but based on the players’ reactions towards the end of the game, Houston was humiliated because they had been outplayed and outcoached.

RBNY still has a tough road to the cup, winning on the road vs RSL and then having to beat Columbus/Chicago are no easy tasks. But this win vs Houston has given the fans something to be proud about, and I will be riding this high all week.

Let's go Metro!

[MemRook]

And more good news...we're done with gridiron lines for the year!!! Columbus, RSL and HDC will all look like real foooooootball fields!

Posted by: thomas | November 10, 2008 at 12:22 AM

er, no duh, they are all soccer specific stadiums, lol.

[The Rest of the League]

a. Real Salt Lake
b. New York Red Bull
c. Genital Herpes

We'll take C.

[Javier]

I'm going to piss some people off here, but what the hell.

If having #1 and #2 teams in the west Houston and ChivasUSA go down to the #5 team in the east and #3 team in the west isn't proof that the playoffs need to go and the league needs to go to either a single table or championship game between the #1 team in the east and #1 team in the west I don't know what is. What does this say about the work that was put in for the last 32 games. If anything the teams that should be in any kind of championship game right now should be Houston and Columbus as the number #1 teams in their divisions.

Yes Columbus won their game against K.C.#4 in the east, but Chicago #2 against N.E.#3 in the east? These are games that should never have occurred.

There has been some soccer played by the teams in the playoffs, but they need to play like that all season to be #1 team in either the west or east. That should at least make the rest of season meaningful and not leave it to the teams that are peaking come playoff time.

It's time MLS dumped the playoffs.

[brett]

Javier - consider the SS as the true champion of the league and the MLS cup as an overhyped cup if it makes you feel better...

personally i agree to an extent... id rather keep the playoffs but see the league as far as the playoffs are concerned held as a single table....

[Modibo]

Congrats to RBNY. Cepero was pure class in a very big match where no one would have written him off had he not come up big. He stepped up in a big way for a raw rookie.

But while fans applaud Woly's finishing skill, it needs to be brought up that Cepero's goal-scoring drought continues. What gives?

[Tim]

You have to love these dumb f*cks like Jacob who think Houston got "humiliated". That acne faced troll Dane Richards is humiliated everytime he goes on national TV. Seriously, Pro Activ anyone? Next time you are in 4 tournaments this year, let us know. And when RSL beats you or you lose to Columbus in the final, no one will remember that one time NY beat Houston. Good thing you guys didnt win too many games this season otherwise we would have to watch that suckfest turf field with 5k people in the stands again.

[Pico]

Hey Ives,

Great game on Sunday. As much as I enjoyed the win, I could not help but notice a couple of issues with the RB. First, as good as Cepero was, he stills needs to improve his game inside the box. There were a couple of Houston corners where came out for the ball but fell short. Also, there were times when his two center backs were expecting him to come out of his goal to get a ball but he stopped halfway.

Talking about center backs, I don't know if it is by design but they seem to be playing on the same line and not covering each other backs. On one play Boyens came out to clear a ball with his head but the Houston player beat him to it and pushed the ball forward. Jimenez came out at the same time and all of a sudden there was no one in the middle.

In another play, Jimenez came out to challenge but was late, and Boyens was caught going the wrong way and fell, luckily Cepero saved Brian Ching's shot.

Hope JCO works a little more on those two.

Cheers

[Nick]

Cerpo and Richards to Europe? I think if Cerpo keeps up this form, he'll join in the ranks of Guzan and co. as the next great young American keeper.

[inkedAG]

In the Matchday commentary, Ives, you had said that JCO has gotten more criticism than he deserves. I would have to disagree. NYRB got into the playoffs via mathematics, not by winning. The big signings of Cichero, Rojas and Piertavallo were benched. Things could have and should have been done better during the season. And if by some chance they win against Real Salt Lake and get into the final, his missteps during the season are still pretty evident.

[brett]

Nick- Richards has been less then consistant all season.... he's had games that would get looks from abroad, and then there are games where he's been non-existant.... i think Richards could do well abroad bar he continues his solid for for an entire season...

Cepero has a handful of games under his belt... as you said IF he continues his form he could amount to alot, but let slow that thought process down a bit... lets not forget that we have had the likes of Reis in our league without a hint of interest... then you have players like Pickens who went abroad and failed (still failing) and on his way home to the MLS (most likely LA).... tough road to go down

[brett]

inkedAG - i would expect to see them in the game against RSL...

this season is pretty much the same that chicago had last season.... barely into the playoffs, upset of top team and a coaching blunder (by the name of wanchope) in the confrence finals....

i wouldnt be shocked if JCO puts the big signings in for the RSL game

[Brokenbil]

Back-to-back MLS Cups aside, Houston is totally overrated. MLS has loved promoting their two-time defending champions this year only to see them lose in four straight tournaments. Schedule congestion didn't seem to be a problem for DC (USOC champs) or New England (Superliga champs) so why is it an excuse for Houston? Yes, Houston is a good team, but not a great team. They haven't lived up to their hype.

[brett]

brokenbil- lol are you possibly comparing the USOC and Superliga to the CLcup???

kind of a farce comparison...

DC didnt even make the playoffs, but hats off to them on such an amazing USOC win, clearly they are better....

NE were 1-5-4 in their last 10 regular season games not to mention lose in the opening series of playoffs... but again, clearly a better squad b/c they won superliga...

Hou made the finals of superliga, they were 2nd in the league, and probably one of the most consistant teams in the league... its hard to call them overrated, and yet you do b/c of...???

[silent e]

brokenbill, your comment is absolutely idiotic. Overrated? You need merely see the level of shocked disappointment from Dynamo fans and surprised elation from Red Bull fans to know that in the grand scheme of things, Houston is the better team and favored to win. Schedule congestion not a problem for DC? Sure they won a tournament, but they also played like crap in the other 2, not to mention the league. Not a problem for NE? Sure they won SuperLiga (on PKs to Houston) but they crapped out in 2nd half of the league season, lost by the same goal diffential and the same round of playoffs as Houston, crapped out as well in the CL and barely managed to squeak past CP Baltimore at home on PKs before losing to DC in the USOC. Also, I have yet to hear Houston fans using fixture congestion as an excuse. Most of us in the know will say Cepero was great, Houston too slow to deal with Richards, and Houston's passing was often suspect. Simple as that. (PS to Red Bull fans I'm not slagging on your team. Red Bull clearly played the better game yesterday; Houston looked out of sorts almost the whole game. I kept telling people to watch out for Red Bull because they are a team that gives Houston a hard time, personally I was hoping DC would be our first round oppponant).

Mark, I think omitting the DPs *does* skew the numbers. RBNY has made a choice to have JPA on the field; Houston has made the choice not to have a DP. If you want to evaluate the salaries of the players on the field that day you absolutely have to include JPA or it's not a real comparison. It's an interesting study--is spending on a DP worth it, and what effect does it have on the rest of your team, but if you drop the highest paid players from your analysis what are you really measuring? BTW, Houston had at least 3 players on the field earning minimal salaries--Ashe makes 33K, as do Holden and Boswell. Kamara only makes 58K. Perhaps another interesting study would be to see how much money the players who didn't make the field for each team made :)

DCU 4EVER, NE won some silver as well: SuperLiga. And Houston were runners up. Oh well, I can understand if you'd want to forget that tournament :)

[silent e]

Oh, and brokenbill:

Houston is still in the Champions League. A win at home on Nov 26th sees us through to the quarterfinals. A challenge, sure, but assuredly not an impossible task.

[brett]

good luck in the CL silent e.... houston has dealt with alot this year and they were still a top force in nearly all of their competitions...

[brentmcd]

would have liked to have seen some halfway decent replays yesterday. richards looked offside on the first goal? and i never could tell whether rico handled the ball on the penalty. i know....sour grapes....whatever

[Brokenbil]

Houston fans, you talk the talk but your team can't walk the walk. First, you brush off the 6-0 drubbing by Gamba Osaka in the PPC as a meaningless pre-season game. Then you dismiss the importance of the USOC after the Dynamo loses to Charleston Battery, a USL team. Then you scoff at the folly of Superliga when the Dynamo lose to New England. The Dynamo finishes second in MLS, loses the Supporters Shield to Columbus. Finally, the Dynamo are "upset" by the Red Bulls, 3-0 at home in front of a huge crowd, and will not return to a third successive MLS Cup final.

Funny, that defines overrated to me.

[silent e]

brent, I was at the game and neither I nor it seemed anyone else in the stadium saw the handball. From my admittedly poor position I genuinely thought he had blocked the ball with his foot and I and certainly our entire side of the stadium were absolutely bewildered that a penalty was called. When I got home I watched telefutura's broadcast which I had recorded. You could sort of see that the ball might have hit his arm, but the angle was so bad you couldn't be certain and you couldn't see what part of Rico it hit before it hit his arm.

My Spanish isn't very good, but it sounded like the announcers were affirming that the ball had hit his arm but questioning the issue of intent.

Later I read somewhere, not sure where--maybe Fallas' blog or maybe the Chronicle--that it had hit his head first.

That said, we didn't just lose because of the penalty call, whether it was correct or not.

But yes, I agree. Telefutura's announcers are pretty good from what I can tell with my limited Spanish, but the visual quality of their broadcasts is awful. Our local station does better.

[silent e]

Brokenbil, on what are you basing your assertions? Maybe you are correct in saying Dynamo fans brushed off the PPC result. (Although you really ought to do a little research before you type. The result was 6-1.) Do you know any fans of American soccer who didn't brush off the PPC? Let's be honest--of all the competitions in which the Dynamo participated this year it probably ranks 2nd from bottom in importance to the team, barely beating the Texas Pro Soccer Festival, a true preseason tournament. I personally was a bit shocked by the result but not overly concerned.

I'm not sure where you get the impression that the Dynamo "scoffed at the folly" of SuperLiga. I think the team and all the fans were proud of their performance in the tournament, and hoped it would signal the beginning of better play in the league (it did). How does our 2nd place finish in that tournament make us overrated?

Yes, we finished 2nd to Columbus. How does that make us overrated?

How does failing to make it to their 3rd successive final qualify as overrated? What team are you a fan of that you have such a chip on your shoulder?

NE has had multiple failures in the MLS Cup, as well as a poor performance in CCL and the final third of the season and the playoffs. People still speak of them as a good team and I agree. I don't consider them overrated. What's your problem with people saying Houston is a good team?