American soccer fans get ready for MLS kickoff

by Robert Burns

Updated: March 28, 2008, 8:21 AM EST Comment

Eastern Conference

Chicago Fire

There's no discussing the Chicago Fire without mentioning Cuauhtemoc Blanco first and foremost. The supremely talented Mexican international showed exactly why he was worth every penny last season when he not only brought in the crowds, but also sparked a late Fire surge that carried the team to the verge of MLS Cup.

At 35, Blanco's fastest days may be behind him, but he's proven without a doubt that his smartest years on the pitch may still lie ahead. It will be important for him to lay off some of the diving though this year as referees will be on to him and he can't afford for his reputation as one to grow.

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But while all is well and good with Blanco, Chicago is taking a big gamble by giving up the reins to last year's assistant coach Denis Hamlett. Don't misunderstand — Hamlett has done a solid job as an assistant at Toyota Park, but the scrutiny of the head coaching position, especially after the departure of a special coach like Juan Carlos Osorio to New York, is a very tough burden to bear if results aren't going their way right from the start.

The other big story in Chicago is the arrival of Polish international Tomasz Frankowski. The Fire has a history of overachieving Poles and will be hoping that the scoring duo of Blanco and Frankowski provide dividends on the field.

Outlook: The Fire have excellent home support and with a player like Blanco getting them fired up, there's no reason Chicago shouldn't make another deep run in the playoffs.
Breakout star: American forward Chris Rolfe has put last year's injury-riddled season behind him and should benefit from the space defenders will give up for a very dangerous Frankowski.

Columbus Crew

It's put up or shut up time for Crew coach Sigi Schmid as Columbus has spent the last two seasons rebuilding and is expecting nothing less than a playoff push from the so-called Hardest Working Team in America.

Like Blanco in Chicago, it's impossible to talk about the Crew without bringing up Argentine midfielder Guillermo Barros Schelotto. The supremely gifted playmaker made some questionable remarks about MLS back in South America after his first season in 2007, but rumors about a possible exit never materialized so he will once again take center stage at Crew Stadium in 2008.

Columbus will try and avoid the same miserable late season run they fell victim to last year which kept them out of the playoffs yet again. During that spell they lost 6 games in 9 matches as the defense fell apart despite some promising offensive displays by wingers Robbie Rogers and Eddie Gaven.

In order to avoid a similar fate, Schmid reinforced his defense by signing Argentine Gino Padula to help U.S. stopper Chad Marshall in the middle of the park. Stefani Miglioranzi is back as well along with towering draft pick Andy Iro from England so help may just be on the way.

Outlook: The Eastern Conference race will be a tight one from start to finish but the Crew will once again be on the outside looking in come October.
Breakout star: Young U.S. winger Robbie Rogers has incredible pace and dribbling ability, but more important he's got a nose to go for goal each and every time.

D.C. United

Another team heavily reliant on its South American contingent, D.C. United has once again reinvented itself as one of the league's best teams. The addition of Argentine superstar Marcelo Gallardo has the capital buzzing, while United veteran Jaime Moreno continues to add some class to the league.

Spearheading the attack is the Brazilian duo of hitman Luciano Emilio — last year's Golden Boot winner with a stellar 20 goals — and midfield star Fred. This combination of attacking flair, along with the steady nerve of American players like Ben Olsen and Clyde Simms, should put opposing defenses on the back foot from start to finish.

New goalkeeper Zach Wells will need some time to adjust to the new surroundings at RFK, but luckily he'll have a solid defense in front of him led by Devon McTavish and Latin newcomers Gonzalo Martinez of Colombia and Gonzalo Peralta of Argentina.

Exciting times lie ahead for the Barra Brava at RFK to be sure.

Outlook: D.C. coach Tom Soehn will have a lot on his plate this season with international commitments but he should be able to steer D.C. at the very least to MLS Cup ... if they can avoid that first-round bogey jinx finally.
Breakout star: With young Argentine striker Franco Niell chomping at the bit for playing time, expect Emilio to continue where he left off last season and blast in a lot of goals.

Kansas City Wizards

No longer exposed to the elements and paltry crowds at cavernous Arrowhead Stadium, the Wizards now move to their temporary home of CommunityAmerica Ballpark in an effort to finally create a true cauldron of home support that drives fear into the opposition.

Ironically, K.C. hijacked its biggest-ever foreign signing the same year the club downsized. Argentina's former World Cup striker Claudio Lopez, now 33, will do his best to thrill the 12,000 fans in the converted baseball park with his combination of vision, field savviness and polished finishing. His transition to U.S. soccer might be a difficult one at his age though, but head coach Curt Onalfo is hoping that isn't the case.

The Wizards lost star striker Eddie Johnson to Fulham during the January transfer window, so it will be up to 'El Piojo' to pick up the slack along with bringing along young talents Ryan Pore and Scott Sealy.

D.C. United striker Luciano Emilio strikes a familiar pose after scoring yet again. (Greg Fiume / Getty Images)

The top pick at the 2008 MLS SuperDraft, defender Chance Myers would do well to learn a trick or two from USA center back Jimmy Conrad. His playing time may be limited for the first few months but expect to see him come on midseason and justify his selection.

Kevin Hartman is always a pair of safe hands in front of goal, but there's no denying 'El Gato' isn't quite as cat-like as he used to be.

Outlook: Everything depends on how Lopez acclimates to MLS and his partnership with midfield countryman Carlos Marinelli. It's a coin flip at best.
Breakout star: There shouldn't be any sophomore jinx for midfielder Michael Harrington.

New England Revolution

New England will be an interesting team to watch this season as their second successive MLS Cup final defeat and 3rd in 4 years could begin to have an impact on the team's belief. Another big question is how Taylor Twellman will perform after having been denied the opportunity to move to England. Scratch that — Twellman's a professional and he'll do his job.

The Revs will have some holes after the departures of attacking threats Pat Noonan and Andy Dorman, but head coach Steve Nicol is putting his belief in 2nd-year striker Adam Cristman and Honduran midfielder Mauricio Castro to patch them up.

Matt Reis is back in goal so that's one less thing for Nicol to have to worry about. In front of Reis in the defense is new signing Chris Albright from the Galaxy. If Albright can stay healthy, he and last year's Defender of the Year Michael Parkhurst should have most offenses clamped down fairly tight.

Around those players is a solid core of MLS veterans like Steve Ralston, Jay Heaps, Shalrie Joseph and Khano Smith so New England is looking solid from soup to nuts.

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Outlook: Playoffs without a doubt for Steve Nicol and his lads, but can they finally get over the hump and lift the cup?
Breakout star: Once he puts the injuries behind him once and for all, Chris Albright will show New England fans just why L.A. regretted having to let him go.

New York Red Bulls

Unfortunately for New York fans they still have a year to wait until Red Bull Park opens, but in the meantime they can look forward to the best strike duo anywhere in the country.

Colombian goal machine Juan Pablo Angel (19 goals in 2007) teams up with America's great talent Jozy Altidore to terrify central backs from New England to Los Angeles and all stations in between. New head coach Juan Carlos Osorio will have the easiest job of any manager in the league when deciding who to put in attack.

It's the midfield that will cause Osorio the most headaches with aging U.S. veteran Claudio Reyna and 32-year old Dutchman Dave van den Bergh pulling the strings. Salvation could have been talented winger Dane Richards from Jamaica, but a preseason injury will cost him the first few months of the season.

Hunter Freeman is a defensive standout at times, but the rest of the Red Bulls' back line is going to find it difficult not to let in goals. Fortunately for New York fans, goals should be coming from a steady source in Angel and Altidore so expect a lot of high-scoring affairs when New York comes to town.

Outlook: There's no reason to think that New York won't make the playoffs, but that's exactly why this tortured club will probably end up missing them again.
Breakout star: With so much attention focused on Angel, Jozy Altidore will take the next step and become the first 20-goal American striker in the league since Taylor Twellman in 2002.

Toronto FC

It's a little disheartening that the most passionate fans in MLS (along with D.C.) were cheering for the worst team in the league last year, but that didn't seem to bother Toronto FC lovers one bit during the club's wildly 'successful' first season in Major League Soccer.

BMO Field was always a spectacle with its vibrant crowds, vociferous chanting and showering streamers &#!51; who can forget Cuauhtemoc Blanco's first visit to the corner flag — but more often than not the team let them down with cheap goals conceded and an inability to score more than a few for themselves.

Standout midfielder Carl Robinson returns for his second year and will be vitally important if the Canadian club hopes to come even close to a playoff berth. Luckily for the Welshman, U.S. midfielder Maurice Edu has performed very well for the national team and should be full of confidence heading into his second season after winning the Rookie of Year award in 2007.

Last year's head coach Mo Johnston moved up to the plush office so that leaves John Carver in charge. Who? Believe it or not, the English coach has some big clubs on his resume including stints at Newcastle and Leeds, so he should know what he's doing ... we'll have to wait and see.

But either way, the fans will certainly be entertained, as will viewers on television.

Outlook: The team has simply not done enough in terms of personnel additions to compete for a playoff spot, but they'll be better than last year.
Breakout star: Draft pick Julius James will have plenty of opportunities to show what he's made of as a patchwork Toronto backline continues to be an experiment in progress.

Robert Burns is the editor of FoxSoccer.com and contributes his Side Kicks column every Friday.