Decision Day in the MLS was a big one, as there was a ton of jockeying for positioning in the playoffs. The moment was stolen by San Jose at the death, as the Earthquakes pounded home a goal in stoppage time that put them into the postseason and ripped the hearts out of FC Dallas. All that earned the Quakes for the time being was one more game, though, as eight teams will enter play on Tuesday and Wednesday with just four surviving to get into the home-and-home quarterfinals.
These MLS Cup Playoff duels will go down on Wednesday, October 25 and Thursday, October 26. The matches will be seen on FOX Sports 1 and UniMas.
MLS Cup Opening Odds at BookMaker.eu
Toronto FC +200
New York City FC +600
Atlanta United +800
Sporting Kansas City +800
Portland Timbers +900
Vancouver Whitecaps +900
Seattle Sounders +1000
Chicago Fire +1200
Columbus Crew +1600
New York Red Bulls +1600
Houston Dynamo +3300
San Jose Earthquakes +6600
Chicago Fire vs. New York Red Bulls – The Fire made a tremendous improvement this season to get back into the MLS Cup playoffs for the first time since 2012. If they can win this game and advance to the conference semifinals, it will be the first time they've done so since 2009. The Fire have made some crucial additions to their squad this year that have made all the difference, most notably German superstar Bastian Schweinsteiger. The Red Bulls have a great history in the playoffs, though, and they aren't going to be overwhelmed going into the Windy City. Should Chicago win this match, it would be off to a series with New York City FC. A Red Bulls triumph will set them up for a duel with Toronto FC.
Atlanta United vs. Columbus Crew – You know there's going to be some heat in this match in Atlanta. Mercedes-Benz Stadium has been hell on earth for opponents this year since it has opened its doors, and this will be the first time that Atlanta has hosted a playoff game in the MLS. This isn't your average expansion franchise by any stretch of the imagination, as the team won 11 of its 17 home matches and scored a whopping 70 goals on the season. The Crew were just barely a .500 team, finishing 16-12-6, and their +4 goal differential is dwarfed by that of Atlanta United. The experience is there for the Crew to pull off this upset, but this atmosphere is going to be something else and a true joy to watch for neutrals.
Vancouver Whitecaps vs. San Jose Earthquakes – The Quakes got into the playoffs in spite of their -21 goal differential for the season. That's an absolutely unheard of stat, and it will be one that hurts FC Dallas, the team that was left out of the fold with the same 46 points and a goal difference 21 goals better than San Jose. Still, the Quakes won 13 times in the regular season, and that was good enough to get them here. But will it be good enough to dispose of Vancouver? Probably not. The Whitecaps only narrowly missed out a top two spot this year, and for our money, they were the best team in the West. If they win, they'll get a chance to prove it against Seattle in a Cascadia Cup matchup, while San Jose is hoping to have a home-and-home series against Portland.
Houston Dynamo vs. Sporting Kansas City – SKC has a good history in the second season, but this is a really tough matchup against a team that was beaten just once at home this season. Sporting isn't a flashy squad, but it did have the best defensive mark in the MLS by conceding just 29 times in 34 matches. Peter Vermes could be looking at this playoff run as a chance to try to impress Sunil Gulati and the U.S. Men's National Team, a squad that, as you might have heard, is searching for a manager after missing out on the World Cup.
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