Major League Soccer is already past the halfway point with the playoff races starting to take shape. In the Eastern Conference the Chicago Fire and Columbus Crew continued to remain at the top of the standings. In the Western Conference, the Houston Dynamon remain on top while teams such as Chivas, Real Salt Lake, and Colorado have been inconsistent. Here’s a recap of this weekend’s matches along with video highlights.
| AWAY CLUB | HOME CLUB | RESULT | HIGHLIGHTS | ATTENDANCE | ||||||||||
| Saturday, August 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Toronto FC | at New England Revolution | 1-1 |  | 12,014 | ||||||||||
| D.C. United | at Houston Dynamo | HOU 4, DC 3 | | 14,694 | ||||||||||
| Kansas City Wizards | at FC Dallas | DAL 6, KC 0 | | 10,317 | ||||||||||
| Real Salt Lake | at Chicago Fire | CHI 1, RSL 0 | | 14,534 | ||||||||||
| Columbus Crew | at Colorado Rapids | CLB 1, COL 0 | | 10,851 | ||||||||||
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Columbus Crew, Chicago Fire, and Houston Dynamo all win
All three teams had wins on Saturday as Columbus remained one point ahead of the Fire in the Eastern Conference while the Dynamo still are on top in the Western Conference. The Crew and the Fire both had 1-0 victories and have opened up a bit of space at the top of the East. Columbus is really starting to show their form of last season that saw them win the MLS Cup while the Fire are winning despite some key injuries. Right now Columbus has to be the favorite to come out of the East and retain the MLS Cup as they are the defending champions.
FC Dallas destroys KC 6-0
Dallas has struggled all season while the Wizards have been very inconsistent. Jeff Cunningham scored 6 goals are Dallas won 6-0 in an absolutely beatdown of the KC Wizards on Saturday night. The win puts Dallas closer into playoff contention and are 7 points behind 4th place Chivas USA. The team recently sold Kenny Cooper to German team 1860 Munich and might start playing better with no pressure. Many have already counted them out of making the playoffs but they still have a decent shot. On the other hand, the Wizards have not looked great the past month and have a bye week as the host the Fire on August 16th.
Toronto FC draws with New England
Toronto FC earned a much needed draw on the road and remains in good position for their first playoff berth. New England had a slow start and is just starting to find their form as they only remain 3 points out of a playoff spot. There’s still plenty of time for both clubs to move up the standings and as the Red Bulls proved last season, anything can happen if a team catches fire in the last few months.
San Jose dominates Seattle
The Sounders looked horrible against the Earthquakes as they lost 0-4 on Sunday. It was a bad start as Alonso gave up an own goal and James Riley was given a red card in the first half. Seattle was without Freddie Ljungberg and couldn’t get back in the match after being a man down as they would concede 3 second half goals. For the Earthquakes it was a much needed victory as they look to get back into the playoff race.
