Sporting KC are now three points back of the San Jose Earthquakes in the race for the 2012 MLS Supporters' Shield. A San Jose draw and Sporting win closed the gap from five points to three with three matches left in the regular season. In the Eastern Conference, Sporting holds a solid five point lead over Chicago and New York.
Below is a closer look at the race for the Supporters' Shield and the Eastern Conference title.
Supporters' Shield
The race for the best record in the regular season is likely down to just KC and SJ with Chicago still having an outside chance. The Fire do have one more match to play and could be within five points of SJ by Wednesday evening. The Red Bulls would need SJ to have a dramatic collapse to have any chance but do have the most favorable schedule with two home matches against KC and Chicago.
San Jose and KC have very similar schedules with one home match and two on the road. The three point gap means Sporting will need to continue their current unbeaten streak and likely get at least two wins to have a realistic chance to catch the Earthquakes. San Jose will be favored in probably all of the matches as the toughest (LA) is at home and the away matches are two of the weaker teams in MLS. KC have two tough road tests at Columbus and NY before finishing the season at home against Philadelphia.
<u>Team</u> |
<u>Points</u> |
<u>Matches Remaining</u> |
San Jose Earthquakes |
61 |
3 (at COL, v LA, at POR) |
Sporting Kansas City |
58 |
3 (at CLB, at NY, v PHI) |
New York Red Bulls |
53 |
3 (v CHI, v KC, at PHI) |
Chicago Fire |
53 |
4 (v PHI, at NY, at NE, v DC) |
Eastern Conference
The race is should be very competitive as all of the top four teams will play at least one of the other sides in the final month. New York has the most potential to move up in the standings as they will host Chicago and Sporting at Red Bull Arena. Both Sporting and Chicago will have two away matches before finishing their season at home. While Chicago does have one more match to play, it means they will be playing two matches in a four-day span. They will be expected to win at home against Philadelphia but then be traveling to NY. The win on Friday (against Chicago) was crucial for Sporting as it gave them some breathing home. If Sporting are able to match or even improve on their recent road trip (win at NY, draw at MTL), then their Eastern Conference title hopes will be greatly improved.
<u>Team</u> |
<u>Points</u> |
<u>Matches Remaining</u> |
Sporting Kansas City |
58 |
3 (at CLB, at NY, v PHI) |
New York Red Bulls |
53 |
3 (v CHI, v SKC, at PHI) |
Chicago Fire |
53 |
4 (v PHI, at NY, at NE, v DC) |
DC United |
51 |
3 (at TOR, v CLB, at CHI) |
