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Two talented and evenly matched teams, the Chicago Fire and Columbus Crew, are set to kick off the Major League Soccer Eastern Conference Finals on "MLS Primetime Thursday," which airs 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
The Fire scored three goals against the New England Revolution to secure a spot in the Eastern Conference finals. The team's level of play showed stark improvement, as the Fire managed to increase pressure on the ball, take better shots, and utilized quick counter attacks. The first score of the game came from a rebounded ball launched by Cuauhtemoc Blanco that landed in the path of Chris Rolfe, the forward. Rolfe was able jam the ball into the back of the Revolution's net, while defenders Wilman Conde and Gonzalo Segares headed in the other two goals.
The Crew finished the Eastern Conference Semi finals with a 2-0 home victory against the Kansas City Wizards. Goals by Brad Evans and Robbie Rogers secured the Crew's place in the conferences finals, putting the team a little closer to the championship game.
This game has the second-seeded Fire contending with the number-one-seeded Crew. These teams met twice during regular season play; both contests resulted in a tie. The winner of this contest will go on to play either Real Salt Lake or the New York Red Bulls in the The MLS Cup Championship game on November 23 at the Home Depot Center.
We'll be keeping our eyes on a handful of players:
Chicago Fire
Forward Cuauhtemoc Blanco--generally floats around the field looking for gaps in defense, exhibits good control, a powerful shot, and a boatload of experience.
Striker Brian McBride--great in air, has a knack for finding the goal, can rely on extensive international and European club experience.
Columbus Crew
Midfielder Guillermo Barros Schelotto--an expert on the ball and with passes, hell be looking to feed the ball to forwards Brad Evans and Robbie Rogers.
Both teams are riding the momentum from their first-round victories into Thursday night's showdown. We're eagerly waiting to see whose momentum holds.