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The Audi 2015 Major League Soccer (MLS) playoffs are around the corner and the teams are busy plotting their way ahead. With just three weeks remaining in the regular season, the picture is becoming clearer.
However, there is still a lot of soccer to play, which makes the weeks before the play-offs very exciting indeed. There are two blockbuster matches scheduled for this round, and in the segment below we look a little closer at these games.
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New York Red Bulls vs Montreal Impact
The hosts have already clinched a place in the MLS play-offs and are on top of the Eastern Conference division. Is it time to relax for The Red Bulls? Not really, because the Supporter's Shield is on the line and they would very much like to clinch a second Shield in three seasons.
Bradley Wright-Phillips is in great form and scored his 15th goal of the season in his last outing. That helped The Red Bulls secure an impressive 2-1 win against The Columbus Crew on Saturday. Montreal, on the other hand, ended their three-game winning streak with a 2-1 loss to Orlando City SC.
This is the second meeting between these teams this season and the last encounter at Stade Saputo ended in a 1-1 draw on August 5th. Montreal currently has a slight edge over Orlando in the play-off race, although their away match form is abysmal. In their last 31 away matches in the MLS, Montreal has failed to win in 29 of them.
The Impact will inevitably look to the infinite skills of the legendary Didier Drogba who has set the league alight with his performances over the last seven matches. However, they will miss some of their key starters as the game is scheduled at official FIFA dates. Right-back Ambroise Oyongo (Cameroon) and Johan Vanegas (Costa Rica) are called up to their national squads. There are plenty more players called up by their national teams and this could certainly hamper the Impact’s performance.
This should be a test of the Red Bull’s defence against Montreal's attack but the home side looks good to continue on their march to another Supporter’s Shield.
Vancouver Whitecaps vs FC Dallas
FC Dallas clinched their play-off berth last Sunday with a very impressive 4-1 win over the Houston Dynamo. However, the absence of their top scorer, Fabian Castillo, will motivate the Whitecaps. There is the added incentive for the winner, who will advance to the top of Western Conference. This could be crucial in the final analysis as the higher ranked team earns home advantage in case they advance to MLS Cup final.
Castillo is called up to the Colombia national team and will be dearly missed by the visitors. However, Vancouver has a bigger roster of missing internationals as Sam Adekugbe, Kianz Froese and Marco Bustos have all been called up for international duty by Canada.
Dallas has an advantage of a game in hand and can afford to slip up in this match, not that they would want to. The Whitecaps have little to lose, especially after their win less run in last three games, and they will desperately try to get a result in this game.
With so much to play for, these two games promise to be an exciting round of action for MLS lovers. However, if you are hoping to get a better picture of the play-off race after these matches – you might be in for a disappointment. The Audi 2015 MLS play-off race is set to test the finish line and the only thing that's predictable will be the unpredictability to the remainder of the season.
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