MLS, Week 29: Real Salt Lake take down Galaxy; San Jose cruise again

Sporting KC took the early lead on an 11th minute goal from CJ Sapong. The goal came when Zusi sent in a cross that deflected off a defender and right to Sapong at the far post. Sapong’s initial shot hit off the near post, but the rebound came right back to him and he was able to finish it for his eighth goal of the season. It was also his third goal in five games. Zusi was credited with his league-leading 15th assist.

The big story was Wondolowski, though. The Earthquakes forward now has 25 goals, more goals than any player in MLS since Mamadou Diallo scored 26 for the Tampa Bay Mutiny in 2000. Wondolowski also has 59 goals in his past three years, the highest three-year total in MLS history.

It’s kind of a new thing for MLS teams to play two league road games at the same stadium in one year, so don’t put too much stock in the soon-to-be often-repeated “statistic” that Real Salt Lake are the first team to ever win twice away to the Galaxy in the same season.

However, it’s still notable that RSL won two road games against the same good team in the same year. This is going to help Real Salt Lake distance themselves from a play-in game and fourth place, a spot LA might occupy shortly.

Unfortunately for the Dynamo, they surely will come away feeling as though they left points on the field. The real heart-breaking moment came at the very end of stoppage time when Brian Ching appeared to score the winning goal when he got behind the Montreal defense and chipped goalkeeper Troy Perkins. But after a discussion between the assistant referee and referee, he was ruled to have been offside when Cam Weaver got a flick onto the ball.

That was actually the second waved off goal in stoppage time, as Sanna Nyassi also scored from an offside position.

A pair of goals by Dutch forward Sherjill MacDonald powered the Chicago Fire past the New York Red Bulls 2-0 Saturday afternoon at Red Bull Arena. The result moves Chicago into second place in the Eastern Conference with just two matches left in their regular season.

Both teams showed bright spots in the first half, but neither could get a goal. Chris Rolfe started with a tricky shot that bounced off the turf in the 6th minute, forcing Red Bulls goalkeeper Luis Robles to block the knuckling shot. Perhaps Chicago’s best chance of the first half came in the 44th minute, when Alvaro Fernandez headed a Jalil Anibaba cross that went just over the crossbar.

Everybody wants to be in the playoffs! That seems obvious, but the results actually showed it last weekend as every team in the race for the one of the last postseason spots got results.

Of course, that means that some teams lost, but everyone ceased to acknowledge that Chivas, New England Philadelphia and Toronto existed months ago. Everybody got results!