Usa - Mls 2008/9

[Kaiser888]

Actually would stress holding out on the DC one, as some possibillity that they may play a weakened team against Toronto. But will post the expected team nearer to the date........ best websites for it are espn.com and mlsnet.com amongst others.

[Kaiser888]

MLS BANK 100 POINTS

PICK 1

SAN JOSE TO BEAT LA GALAXY - 1.5 points at 5.2 betfair.

LA were outworked and tactically exposed in their 4-0 opening day defeat away to Colorado, and whilst high altitude and tiredness after international games might be given as an excuse for the dismal display, I think it's worth a small punt on a San Jose side who will relish this opportunity and posted encouraging pre-season form - going 5-2-1 - with the one loss coming in their first match together against Houston.

Ruiz is out for LA and as such their goal threat is reduced, and Abel Xavier is - I believe - suspended after his red in the opener. Whilst I wouldn't discourage anyone from laying LA at 1.8, I feel that there is more value in taking San Jose for the win here at small stakes, as LA will surely feel the pressure in front of their own fans and may leave themselves open to the counter.

There's a large element of the unknown in this matchup ---- to put it mildly --- but I'm willing to take a punt on the upset.

[dudeman99]

Great writeup of this league Kaiser! You seem to have really done your homework, and I hope your knowledge and analysis leaves the bookies with lighter wallets

All the points you have mentioned (critical LA players out, generally average team, experienced opposition coach, poor defence, lack of cohesion) all leans me towards placing a couple of bucks against LA.

Good luck!

[Kaiser888]

Yeah hopefully, always a chance that San Jose could simply be outclassed........ Beckham and Donovan are probably the two best players in the league after all........ but as a team/squad they are severely lacking.

Hoping that San Jose's strong form in pre-season is an accurate reflection of the sort of level they can achieve this year...... because that's all we have to go on - with San Jose only forming/reforming this season.... certainly worth a few quid at the odds though. Currently 5.5 on BDaq..... so I missed taking the best prices.

[keliot]

Took San Jose draw no bet @ 4.00 on bet365. Small stakes interest bet.

[keliot]

Oh dear. LA one up. Dreadful mistake and Beckham left completely unmarked. Time for bed.

[Kaiser888]

A goal which looked good ruled out for San Jose previous to it

[Kaiser888]

So my mate tells me anyway, switched on to see Becks score....

[Kaiser888]

Another goal for LA

Donovan via a Beckham assist.

And that's goodnight Vienna

First goal was always going to be vital, and barring one San Jose chance, LA have been in control.

Running Bank Total:

98.5 points.

Barring a miracle

[dudeman99]

Yeah, its been a dismal display from SJ. Galaxy look very dangerous and are making a lot of plays while SJ just droop over halfway and lose the ball quickly.

I wanted to cut down a bit of risk so I took the AH San Jose +1.0. It won't help me if Galaxy scores again but SJ could always land a penalty or something to hit the spread.

[Kaiser888]

That's why I took the San Jose win at long odds above laying LA - the element of the unknown making it worth a punt at the longer odds but without much outlay.......

As I posted before always the chance of them being outclassed, but thought it was worth a punt

Just goes to show that pre-season counts for nowt, San Jose working hard but pretty much outgunned.

Interestingly a home team is yet to taste defeat this season - this hasn't been a particularly big trend in previous years, so may just be pure coincidence.

[dudeman99]

Yeah, maybe the best course of action would be to wait three-four weeks into the season so you can get a bit of a feel for how the games play out, key players whose injuries will really affect the team, etc.

Or maybe just skip the whole thing if they're going to play like a bunch of muppets

[Kaiser888]

Better showing so far this second half lol

[Kaiser888]

No, I know the players and the league well enough.

But San Jose are unknown quantities even for the most ardent student of the MLS.......... this is their first competitive game together, although they looked good in a semi-competitive pre-season comp.

Still expected better than this, but I like this league from a betting point of view.

[davidmphill]

Game took a turn when San Jose had their goal chalked off for offside, never was for me.

4 home games in a row gives this over hyped team a chance to put am early season marker down.

[dudeman99]

San Jose was getting better as the game went on, but never really got anyone free to take a shot. I don't think they really recovered from the two crappy LA goals in the first half. Those coupled with the disallowed goal.....

Kaiser, you can't judge a system by one match! Keep at it amigo!

[Xcout]

Indeed San Jose first competitive match with that starting eleven, I prefer to wait how those players reach understandment between each other. Me to I expect La Galaxy to loss due to some of their key players out, but it seems that San Jose needs a lot more work.

I sense next round San Jos and LA Galaxy to loss.

[keyshawn]

So far home teams are 9-2-0 with an amazing 19-2 goal differential in this league.

With that said, the 2 home teams that stick out for me this weekend are:

KC +105
Chivas -222

Not sold on Colorado. They are a different team away from the altitude. Chivas at home should take care of RSL.

[Kaiser888]

There are two matches, which judging from the results in previous seasons, as well as the early home dominance here, appear to be absolute bankers. However, it is worth noting some negatives too.

DC United vs Toronto

DC are undoubtidly one of the MLS' better teams, and last season they picked up Supporters Shield honours for finishing with the most points at the end of the regular season. They also posted a fantastic home record, and were one of the league's highest scoring teams.

Boasting the likes of Gallardo, Emillio, Fred and Moreno in attack, they should beat Toronto and beat them comfortably......... see the previous page's post on the Toronto away record.

Whilst DC will be keen to get their first victory of the season in the bag, it is worth noting that they played in the CCC on Wednesday, going down 2-0 away in Mexico to Pachua, and with the second leg to be played midweek, it's worth checking what team they're putting out before betting.

Initial reccomendation of 3 points DC win at 1.5 with Totesport ----- to be confirmed upon satisfactory team news.


Chivas USA vs RSL

As Keyshawn posted before, Chivas also look to be a home banker....... they were pretty imperious on their own turf last season and posted an impressive record of 10-4-1.

Was relatively impressed with RSL's opening day display against Chicago, where they continued to play attractively on the ground despite the away side's negative tactics, and they can count themselves unlucky not to come away with a win, after Blanco scored a dramatic equaliser in stoppage time.

Kries has promised that his team will continue to play the positive passing football that they attempted in the Chicago match, and would be looking to bounce back against Chivas. Whilst I don't think he'll go gung-ho, I do believe that this might be a fairly free-flowing attacking game, but here they'll be playing Chivas at their own game, and very few teams are able to better them.

Chivas created plenty of chances but could only take 1 in a 1-1 draw away at Dallas, Galindo coming off the bench to score late. But they dominated the stats and will feel relatively content with that first round performance.

They do, however, have some fitness issues, with neither Razov or Galindo yet 100% and so not completely sure to start. And as such my bet selection will also have to depend on the team they name.

Over 2.5 goals interests me here at around evens, but Chivas' high rate of clean-sheets at home last season, dissuades me slightly.

Initial selection Chivas 3 points at 1.58 with Betfred ------ Confirmation of bet on team news.

[keyshawn]

I am loving the NY-Columbus line. I think Columbus is by far the better team. This might be the first away win of the season in the league. NY's back line is awful - and they are only playing with 3 in the back. Their mid-field is almost as bad - they lost their best midfielder in preseason and Reyna is well past his "sell by" date. The one thing they have going for them is Angel-Altidore upfront. But, with Altidore away w/the US Oly team, they've barely trained together and the team has looked very bad in preseason. Then, on Thursday, Altidore got hurt in practice and the manager has said he won't play him if he's not 100%. He was limping at practice on Friday, so I dont think its likely he'll be in the lineup. Columbus is an underrated side and with a game under their belt already have that advantage too. Last year, they had a tendency to play for the draw on the road, hopefully they have enough confidence to go for the kill this year against a weak NY side. Add to the fact that a 3/4's empty Giants stadium does little to give NY a home field advantage and I'll take:

Columbus Pk +175 ****
Columbus ML +270 ****
Over 2.5 -105 **


KC's odds have dropped to -120, but I still think they get the job done vs Colorado. Lopez is looking good and this KC team looks like they will be a contender this year. Colorado was tough to beat at home, but terrible on the road last year and last weeks 4-0 win at home isn't indicative of how this team will play away from home IMO.

KC -105 ****

Chivas should roll as long as Galindo and/or Razov is on the field.

Chivas -1 120 **
Chivas -220 **

With those last 2 games, not only are the home teams the better teams IMO, but I'm also a fan of opposing high altitude teams away from home almost as much as I like taking them at home. Might take a shot at the over in this one as well.