Another great weekend of Major League Soccer action. It began with a rare San Jose Earthquakes victory and included a 70 yard David Beckham empty net goal. Here are summaries of this weekends games.
D.C. United 3, Toronto FC 2
Jaime Moreno scored on a penalty kick and Luciano Emilio had a goal off a rebound as D.C. United rallied in the second half for a rare victory. United (3-7-0) trailed 2-1 at halftime before Moreno tied the game in the 70th minute after Marvell Wynne was called for a foul on United’s Santino Quaranta. The decisive goal came 2 minutes later when Emilio scored unassisted off a rebound in front of the net to beat Toronto goalie Greg Sutton, who had allowed only seven goals in his past seven games. Danny Dichio scored two goals in the first half for Toronto (4-3-2), the second one in the closing seconds of the half. United’s first-half goal came on a diving header by Gonzalo Peralta, who beat Sutton following a corner kick in the 41st minute.
It was the first loss for Toronto in its past seven games. Dichio, who has a team-high four goals, scored the only goal in a 1-0 win over United on Wednesday in Canada. Laurent Robert of Toronto was given a red card and ejected in the closing seconds of the match.
Revolution 1, Crew 0
Kheli Dube’s goal in the 89th minute helped the New England Revolution hand the Crew their first home loss of the season. New England (6-3-1) moved into a tie with Columbus for first place in the Eastern Conference and has not lost on the road since April 3. The Crew fell to 6-2-1.
Dube’s goal came seconds after Crew goalkeeper William Hesmer made a diving save on Shalrie Joseph’s penalty kick. The penalty was called by referee Richard Heron in the 88th minute when Crew defender Ezra Hendrickson tripped Revolution captain Steve Ralston as Ralston moved the ball along the edge of the penalty area.
FC Dallas 2, Real Salt Lake 1
Dominic Oduro scored twice in the final 10 minutes to help interim coach Marco Ferruzzi win his coaching debut. Oduro, who entered the game in the 65th minute, scored the decisive goal in the 91st minute when he dribbled around Nat Borchers and fired a right-footed shot into the left corner of the net.
Ferruzzi took over the team when Steve Morrow was fired Tuesday, following the club’s 5-1 loss last Sunday to the Los Angeles Galaxy. Fabian Espindola, who entered the game as a substitute in the 54th minute, had given Real Salt Lake a 1-0 lead in the 69th minute.
Chivas USA 2, Rapids 1
Jesse Marsch and Jorge Flores scored goals and CD Chivas USA withstood a late Rapids rally. Chivas (3-4-2) has won consecutive games after enduring an 0-4-1 stretch. The Rapids (4-5-0) entered the match leading the Western Conference but still are seeking their first back-to-back wins of the season. Marsch scored his third goal of the season just before halftime, taking a pass from Justin Braun inside the penalty box before beating Rapids goalkeeper Bouna Coundoul.
Chivas extended its lead to 2-0 in the 79th minute on a header by Flores, but the Rapids answered 1 minute later when Scottish striker Tom McManus blasted home his second goal of the season from about 30 yards out.
Los Angeles 3, Kansas City 1
Landon Donovan posted a goal and an assist Saturday, leading the Los Angeles Galaxy to a 3-1 win over the Kansas City Wizards. David Beckham added an insurance goal in the 94th minute, his fourth tally of the season, for the Galaxy (4-3-2), who moved atop the Western Conference with their second straight win.
After Claudio Lopez gave the Wizards (3-4-2) an early 1-0 advantage, Donovan answered back with his MLS-best ninth goal of the season, a penalty kick in the 54th minute to knot the game at 1-1. Donovan contributed his sixth assist of the season in the 74th minute, feeding Edson Buddle from inside the penalty area for his fourth goal of the campaign.
Chicago 5, NY Red Bulls 1
Mexican superstar Cuauhtemoc Blanco tore a much-vaunted defense to shreds with a goal and four assists to propel the Chicago Fire to a crushing 5-1 victory over the New York Red Bulls. The two meanest defensive units in Major League Soccer had begun this match with the Fire conceding just five goals so far this season at an average of 0.63 per game. For their part, the Red Bulls boasted an 0.86 goals against average.
Chad Barrett had two goals, and Chris Rolfe, Gonzalo Segares and Blanco also tallied for the Fire (6-2-1), who pulled into a three-way tie with the idle Columbus Crew (6-2-1) and New England Revolution (6-3-1) atop the Eastern Conference standings. Jozy Altidore had the lone goal for the Red Bulls (3-2-3), who dropped their first match at home this season.
