The final round of group play in the 2010 Superliga starts on Tuesday with Group B matches in New England and Chicago.
Superliga 2010 Update: Group B Closes-Out Play On Tuesday
New England is already through to the next round, having defeated Chicago 1-0 this weekend at Toyota Park, moving to the top of the group with six points. The Revolution got a late goal from Marko Perovic - a strike from distance converting a turnover from defender Kwame Watson-Siriboe - to put New England out of Superliga, the Revolution sitting with zero points and no chance to finish in the top-half of Group B.
For Fire fans, the 77th minute goal was a bitter turn of play, with the home team looking the more likely to score throughout the match, the most glaring instance being a Mike Banner left-footed rocket that hit squarely off Matt Reis’s right post in the 13th minute. Marco Pappa and Justin Mapp (amongst others) also had chances to put last year’s finalists in front, but when an opportunistic Perovic beat Sean Johnson to the goalkeeper’s left, Chicago lost their chance to redeem themselves for last year’s shootout loss to Tigres.
Chicago closes out Superliga 2010 with Tuesday’s second match, hosting Pumas, by which time the sides will know whether UNAM has a chance to advance. Coming off a 2-2 draw with Morelia on Saturday, Pumas now needs Monarcas to lose the night’s first match to New England. If that happens, Pumas can advance to the competition’s next round by defeating Chicago with a margin big enough to reverse a goal difference that starts Tuesday five goals to Morelia’s advantage.
For New England, their match with Morelia will carry special significance as it will be Steve Ralston’s last with the club. On Monday it was announced that Ralston, who rejoined New England recently after a brief stint in USSF Division II, will retire after Tuesday’s match. Ralston has played in every Major League Soccer season dating back to his debut with the Tampa Bay Mutiny in 1996. Since 2002, he has played for New England, becoming Major League Soccer’s all-time leader in games and minutes played. The midfielder is expected to play on Tuesday and make his retirement official at a post-match press conference.
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| 2 Joseph Ngwenya, Houston Mario Ortiz, Puebla Luis Angel Rey, Morelia 1 Franco Arizala, Pachuca Leandro Augusto, Pumas Javier Cortés, Pumas Hugo Droguett, Morelia Álvaro González, Puebla Elias Hernández, Morelia Steven Kinney, Chicago Jaime Lozano, Morelia Damian Manso, Pachuca Rafael Marquez, Morelia Nicolás Olivera, Puebla Jesús Padilla, Chivas USA Lovel Palmer, Houston Gabriel Pereyra, Puebla Marko Perovic, New England Miguel Sabah, Morelia Zack Schilawski, New England Michael Umaña, Chivas USA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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