Rivalry Week started at University of Phoenix Stadium on Wednesday night with the U.S. National Team’s 2-2 draw against Mexico, but it doesn’t end there for Major League Soccer.
In addition to the nationally televised match between Sounders FC and the Portland Timbers at 12 pm PT on Saturday, there are several other great storylines and rivalries on the schedule in Week 5 of MLS action.
Texas Derby
FC Dallas @ Houston Dynamo (5 pm PT, Saturday)
They may only meet once a year, but the battle for supremacy in the state of Texas – and the cannon known as El Capitan that is awarded to the winner – is going to be heated yet again this year. Dallas is off to a hot start at 3-0-1 to lead the Western Conference while Houston is 2-1-0 and third in the East.
Trillium Cup
Toronto FC @ Columbus Crew (3 pm PT, Saturday)
This year’s derby between Toronto and Columbus is shaping up to be quite the event. Columbus is racing out to a fast start with a perfect 3-0-0 record to lead the East while Toronto has been impressive in a 2-1-0 start and will be looking to bounce back after a disappointing 3-0 loss to Real Salt Lake last week. However, TFC will head into Crew Stadium without an injured Jermain Defoe and a suspended Steven Caldwell.
SuperClasico
LA Galaxy @ Chivas USA (12 pm PT, Sunday, UniMas)
These aren’t just crosstown rivals, these are foes from across the hall as LA and Chivas share the StubHub Center. The Galaxy has dominated the all-time series and each of the past two years has featured a crushing performance for LA. However, Chivas has proven to be feisty in the earlygoing this season at 1-1-2, currently leading the Galaxy (0-1-1) in the standings thanks in large part to the four goals of Erick Torres and three assists from Mauro Rosales.
Elsewhere, Real Salt Lake hosts Sporting Kansas City (5:30 pm PT, Saturday) in a rematch of the 2013 MLS Cup final in another meeting that has turned up the heat in recent years. KC’s shootout victory to win the MLS Cup just added some fuel to that fire.
LEO REACHES THE CENTURY MARK
With his late substitute appearance on Saturday against the Columbus Crew, Leo Gonzalez became the fifth player in club history to reach 100 matches for Sounders FC, joining Alonso, Fredy Montero, Brad Evans and Jhon Kennedy Hurtado. It was the second straight appearance off the bench for the Costa Rican and eighth substitute appearance in his six seasons in Seattle.
CASCADIA CUP OF LITERACY
In February, Seattle was named the second-most literate city in America in a study by Central Connecticut State University, behind only Washington, D.C. To prove the cities dominance over 11th-ranked Portland, though, the Seattle Public Library has challenged the Multnomah County Public Library in a battle to prove which city has the best library.
On Thursday from 4:30-6 pm, fans are asked to tweet to their respective libraries with book titles that they are reading now or that they enjoy. The library will then reply with another recommendation based on the book title tweeted by the fan. The library that tweets the most responses will be named the winner, while the losing library will create a display from the winning team’s city in their library and post a photo to the library’s Facebook page with librarians wearing the opposing team’s colors.
Seattle fans can tweet their entries to @SPLBuzz using the hashtags #SEAreads and #bookmatch.
DC ADDS ANOTHER FORWARD
After a slow start with the Chicago Fire, forward Chris Rolfe was shipped to D.C. United on Wednesday in exchange for Allocation Money. At one time in his career, Rolfe had potential for some time with the U.S. National Team and has 10 caps to his credit. In MLS, he has 48 goals and 22 assists in 178 matches with the Chicago Fire. This is his eighth season in MLS.
