Unbeaten in four and in the thick of a playoff race, the New York Red Bulls had every reason to come out guns blazing on Sunday night at the StubHub Center. The problem? They ran into a buzzsaw.
On the back of Landon Donovan, Robbie Keane, and Omar Gonzalez, the LA Galaxy put up four goals on the Red Bulls while shutting the door defensively in the second half to keep their opponents off the scoreboard. The win brings them level with the Seattle Sounders atop the Western Conference and Supporters' Shield races.
In Toronto, meanwhile, it was all doom and gloom in the early going on Saturday before Greg Vanney's team fought back with two goals from rookie center back Nick Hagglund and a game-winning goal off a free kick from Michael Bradley in the 89th minute. The Reds are now just one point behind the Red Bulls for fifth place in the East after the win.
Who else earned a spot on the latest Team of the Week? Read on to find out.
GK: Bill Hamid (D.C. United)– Came up big against Philadelphia when needed to preserve his ninth clean sheet of the season, tied for the league lead.
D: Je-Vaughn Watson (FC Dallas) – Has settled in nicely at right back and his athleticism proved useful against the Sounders' strong attack on Wednesday night.
D: Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy) – May sound like a broken record, but Gonzalez was unstoppable in the air on Sunday night, cutting out all balls over the top.
D: Jose Goncalves (New England Revolution) – His marauding run down the field and goal was dazzling, but he was also strong defensively against a game SKC attack.
M: Ethan Finlay (Columbus Crew) – His speed caused problems for Montreal's backline all night, scoring one goal and winning the foul on Higuain's PK as Columbus cruised to a 2-0 victory.
M: Boniek Garcia (Houston Dynamo) – If not for two huge saves by Sean Johnson, Boniek walks out with two assists and a goal in his first game back from concussion. Houston won anyway, 2-0.
M: Michael Bradley (Toronto FC) – Settled into his No. 6 role for the second consecutive game and his goal was the game-winner against the Timbers, even though it was unintentional.
M: Pedro Morales (Vancouver Whitecaps) – Missed his first PK attempt, but more than made up for it in the second half. Created numerous chances, converted a second PK try and scored Vancouver’s late winner over RSL.
M: Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy) – Dominated Chris Duvall and Richard Eckersley, set up the first goal with his speed & vision, scored the second, then set up the last two. Ho hum.
F: David Texeira (FC Dallas) – Texeira loves playing the Sounders. All of three of his goals this season have come against Seattle and his two on Wednesday could not have come at a more perfect time.
F: Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy) – Scored two goals, but could have had four and an assist with a little more luck against the Red Bulls.
Coach: Bruce Arena (LA Galaxy) – Has all of his stars in the right places and is reaping the rewards as MLS heads towards the finish line.
Bench:Jaime Penedo (LA Galaxy), Nick Hagglund (Toronto FC), Steve Birnbaum (D.C. United), Jermaine Jones (New England Revolution), Lamar Neagle (Seattle Sounders), Andres Escobar (FC Dallas), Obafemi Martins (Seattle Sounders)
