The impact of Brian Ching's impending retirement is the story to watch in MLS Week 31, but an additional four storylines will complete your weekend preview.

Only five of the nine matches scheduled for the coming days will be covered in great detail. Each of the five selected will be dissected from a unique angle to intensify your viewing pleasure.

So, what exactly warrants your attention in Week 31?

Read on to find out.

Note: Unless otherwise mentioned, credit all statistics to the official MLS Press Box Stats and Standings.

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BMO Field is well taken care of. 

Toronto FC's official website introduces the world to a hawk that fans of the club are already familiar with. 

Enter parabuteo unicinctus, or as she is more commonly known—Bitchy the Harris Hawk. This bird of prey has a 1.2 metre wingspan and strikes fear in the eyes of seagulls (as well as rabbits, rodents, lizards and possibly visiting teams). She will be watching over the club at all TFC home games.

A sports team adopting a mascot is nothing new. From the very real to the insanely fake, teams run mascots onto the field in every sport. 

From Georgia's UGA bulldog to the Washington Huskies' adorable Dubs, we simply can't get enough of animals in the sports world. 

So we assume Bitchy here will be an MLS star shortly. 

As to how and why a hawk becomes the official mascot of a soccer side, the website has us covered. It seems she came to the team in 2012 and the club then ran a "Name the Hawk" promotion. 

In the end, the fans decided to maintain her original name. We can't say they were wrong in doing so, because that is as catchy as any other mascot's name. It also means we have the biggest diva in all of MLS. 

However, the hawk isn't at BMO Field to merely sit atop her perch, because she helps keep the pitch clear of annoying seagulls.

The report continues, "The proximity to Lake Ontario and all the fine food at BMO Field makes the stadium a haven for gulls. The pesky birds have caused quite the nuisance for players, fans and of course the clean-up staff."

In fact, The Star has a collection of vibrant images of the hawk and states, "A fan that lost an entire slice of pizza to a gull was the catalyst for the Amphitheatre to hire Bitchy."

And may Toronto faithful never go without pizza again. 

The club is currently near the bottom of the Eastern Conference with a dismal 23 points through 30 games played. 

We will give a pass to such a young franchise and one that already has a mascot that promises to keep the stands clean. 

Let this be a lesson to you seagulls out there. Nobody messes with Bitchy. 

Hit me up on Twitter: 

Follow @gabezal

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The USMNT Home Guard took to the field for their MLS teams last week as the playoff race and the CONCACAF Champions League group stage come down to the final rounds. 

Or some of them did anyway.

The premier matchup between Landon Donovan's LA Galaxy and Clint Dempsey's Seattle Sounders was contested without the two USMNT stars. 

Donovan is nursing a rolled ankle and Dempsey a bum hamstring.

Neither injury appears serious and their clubs seem to be taking a cautious approach. USMNT fans will only have to work their worry beads until each appears again. Donovan's Galaxy have an away game at Cartagines on Wednesday. Dempsey's Sounders host the NY Red Bulls this Sunday.

USMNT hopeful Juan Agudelo of the New England Revolution also sat out last week with a tricky hamstring that limited his minutes last week. The Revolution are also taking a cautious approach with their young star.

In this week's edition of the Home Guard we'll look at the performances of the remaining MLS players on USMNT head coach Jurgen Klinsmann's short list and look down the road toward the upcoming October World Cup qualifiers.

Player data courtesy of MLSsoccer.com with all metrics computed by the author.

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This week in Major League Soccer, the race for the playoffs in both conferences intensified. 

With a few clubs earning unexpected wins over the last three days, the playoff races are far from being decided. 

One thing that is even closer than the playoff race at the moment is the race to be No. 1 in the B/R MLS Power Rankings.

This week, the margin between the top two clubs was just one point.

Which club squeezed out a victory to earn the title of top club in the B/R MLS Power Rankings? 

Continue reading to find out.

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The best action in MLS Week 30 was highlighted by the Houston Dynamo, Lee Nguyen and Dominic Oduro, but what about the worst?

The Seattle Sounders and Los Angeles Galaxy failed to meet the criteria after a 1-1 draw at the StubHub Center. Real Salt Lake also failed to capture a victory at home this past weekend. The club inexplicably fell 2-1 to the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday.

They won't be featured, either.

Some tough competition also kept the Portland Timbers from making the list of best and worst from MLS Week 30.

Read on to find out why.

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With all of the news coming down recently about the expansion of Major League Soccer to 24 teams by the end of the decade, it is easy to forget that the latest expansion team, New York City FC, is just 18 months away from their first game.

As the 2015 milestone approaches for the club that will be owned by a partnership formed by the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball and Manchester City of English Premier League fame, the search for a man to lead them into their inaugural season is apparently up.

According to a report by Sports Illustrated's Brian Straus, current Real Salt Lake head coach Jason Kreis is the leading candidate for the job. 

Kreis has rocketed to managerial stardom since he took control of the reins at Real Salt Lake at the spry age of 34 in 2007. 

After being an integral part of the club's first two seasons as a player, Kreis was handed the managerial position and he has worked wonders with a club in one of the smaller markets in the league. 

Since Kreis began as manager of the Claret and Cobalt, he has turned them into one of the perennial favorites to contend for both the Supporters' Shield and MLS Cup titles. 

While he is still in search of his first Supporters' Shield, a competition in which RSL led until last week's loss to Seattle, Kreis has led the club to the ultimate goal in MLS, winning MLS Cup.

Back in 2009, Kreis was at the helm when RSL defeated the Los Angeles Galaxy in a memorable penalty shootout at the then-named in Seattle to MLS Cup in what was just the franchise's fifth season. 

Most of the core of that 2009 roster has moved on to greener pastures including defender Jamison Olave and forward Fabian Espindola, who both departed for the New York Red Bulls during the last MLS offseason. 

Those departures have forced Kreis to rebuild his squad, and instead of suffering a rough season during the rebuilding process, Kreis has delivered RSL to the MLS Cup playoffs in every year since lifting the trophy.

Real Salt Lake are on track once again this season to qualify for the playoffs as they currently sit in second place in Western Conference standings. 

Despite all of his continued success, Kreis' contract is up at the end of the season, and it could be time for him to move on to a more intriguing project with New York City FC. 

Unlike RSL, NYCFC will most likely fill all three allotted designated player positions by the time the 2015 season rolls around. 

It is also fair to assume that Kreis will be handed a bigger budget to work with in acquiring players to make sure that the 20th MLS franchise is a contender right away. 

With his experience in building and re-building Real Salt Lake while remaining a competitive side, it makes perfect sense for Kreis to join forces with NYCFC and begin to build a new MLS dynasty that will challenge for trophies in the years to come. 

Is Jason Kreis the right man to lead NYCFC into their first season?

Comment below or leave me a comment on Twitter, @JTansey90, 

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Thierry Henry has gone viral, following in the footsteps of NFL star Tim Tebow and golf's Jason Dufner, after fans started messing around with his goal celebration for the New York Red Bulls.

So first things first: What is Henrying?

Where Tebowing was getting down on one knee and praying, and Dufnering was more of a slouch and sit, Henrying is leaning with arm on hip after a job well done.

You would have thought that after winning just about every major title in football, the 36-year-old would be able to rest on his laurels—as it turns out, it becomes an internet meme even when he does.

According to Sports Illustrated, the celebration has become an Henry staple in recent weeks (or that he's done it twice, and that it's now a trend).

The folks at KickTV came up with the meme concept, and have explained it handily for you here:

The result was a series of somewhat impressive feats of Photoshopping, and we've picked out a few of the best below:

#Henrying pic.twitter.com/BKN3yptf4Y

Thierry #Henrying like a #WreckingBall #Miley #RBNY pic.twitter.com/fePWWn1p9h

"Diego, chill. I got this." #Henrying pic.twitter.com/415LhBms2B

He's had enough. #Henrying pic.twitter.com/s1Kw9R8E6n

#Henrying he was there. Knew it. pic.twitter.com/z3kgrR4Xpo

#Henrying pic.twitter.com/FGvjAkwe7n"

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When the Los Angeles Galaxy host the Seattle Sounders this weekend in Major League Soccer action, two of the biggest stars in United States men’s national team history will be on opposite sides of the pitch.

Landon Donovan of the Los Angeles Galaxy and Clint Dempsey of the Seattle Sounders will lead their sides in a crucial Western Conference matchup with MLS playoff implications at stake for both clubs.

For the Sounders, their pursuit of the Supporters Shield will certainly be tested against the two-time MLS Cup Champions the Los Angeles Galaxy who, in addition to Donovan, boast plenty of other studs like Irish striker Robbie Keane and American center-back Omar Gonzalez.

Despite the gravity of the game for both clubs, many U.S. eyes will be firmly focused on Donovan and Dempsey, two of most electric footballers in American soccer history. This weekend’s game marks the first time these two players will be facing each other as opponents since 2012, when Dempsey played for Fulham and Donovan was on loan for Everton in the English Premier League.  

Donovan got the better of Dempsey on the day, setting up Everton’s two goals to help secure a 2-1 victory.

In preparation for the match, here is a look at some of their career statistics for both club and country.

In terms of international statistics, “LD” tops “Deuce” with more appearances, goals and assists.

This is no knock on Dempsey, though, as Donovan is the all-time U.S. soccer leader in both goals scored (57) and assists (57). The Texan is not so far behind in goals, having bagged 36 in 101 caps.

He is the second-most prolific scorer in U.S. soccer history.

Indeed, in terms of goals per cap, Dempsey is just behind the California native, having secured a goal every 0.36 caps to Donovan’s 0.37 goals-to-caps ratio.

Historical MLS stats favor Donovan as well. “LD” continues to loom closer to breaking the all-time MLS goals record set by Jeff Cunningham. Donovan has 132 and is just two behind the aforementioned Cunningham’s record of 134.

Dempsey was no slouch during his early MLS days with the New England Revolution and will surely add to his goal (25) and assist (14) totals in his upcoming years with the Seattle Sounders.

He likely will not catch Donovan in the MLS record books, but Dempsey’s numbers speak for themselves in regard to what he produced in the English Premier League.

During Dempsey’s years at Fulham, he was a consistent goal scorer. Indeed, throughout his time spent as a Cottager the Nacogdoches, Texas native bagged 50 goals in 184 league appearances.

Perhaps even more impressively, Dempsey was tied for fourth in most goals in the English Premier League in 2011-12, notching 17 total in that season’s domestic campaign. He only trailed Robin van Persie, Wayne Rooney and Sergio Aguero that year in goals—solid company to say the least for Clint Dempsey.

He also became the first American to score a hat-trick in a Premier League match when he helped ensure a 5-2 Fulham victory over Newcastle in 2012.

Donovan has twice spent time in the Premier League for Everton; however, both occasions were during short loan stints. Despite two scant stays, Donovan made his presence known in 2011-12 when he contributed three assists in seven Premier League appearances for the Toffeemen and in 2009-10 when he chipped in two goals and three assists in seven English Premier League appearances.

This weekend’s clash will certainly be an enjoyable one for MLS and U.S. fans alike. With Donovan well within the grasp of etching his name in the MLS record books, it will be of particular intrigue to see how he performs.

Who has the more impressive career stats, Donovan or Dempsey?

Data acquired from U.S. Soccer, MLS and ESPNFC.

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Kenny Cooper's return to Red Bull Arena is the story to watch in MLS Week 30, but an additional four storylines will complete your weekend preview.

Only five of the nine matches scheduled for the coming days will be covered in great detail. Each of the five selected will be dissected from a unique angle to intensify your viewing pleasure.

So, what exactly warrants your attention in Week 30?

Read on to find out.

Note: Unless otherwise mentioned, credit all statistics to the official MLS Press Box Stats and Standings.

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The CONCACAF Champions League may not boast as many clubs with household names, but it's not short on talent as North American foes Los Angeles Galaxy and El Salvador's Isidro Metapan square off on Wednesday.

The Galaxy come in 1-1-1 in their last three MLS matches, and they're searching for three points to help propel them to the top of Group 8. They trail Cartagines by a point but have two matches in hand. 

Meanwhile, Metapan are looking to notch their first win of the Champions League group stage after a draw and loss in their opening two matches.

Let's take a look at everything you need to know for the Galaxy and Metapan showdown. 

When: Wednesday, Sept. 18 at 10 p.m. ET

Where: StubHub Stadium, Carson, Calif. 

Watch: Fox Sports 2, Univision Deportes (Mex.)

Live Stream: FoxSoccer2Go

Key Storylines

In any tournament among North American soccer clubs, the L.A. Galaxy tend to be one of the most talked about contenders, and this year's CONCACAF Champions League is no exception.

However, the Galaxy come in nursing all sorts of issues, including an ankle injury to star midfielder and offensive juggernaut Landon Donovan that will keep him out of the Metapan match, according to Scott French of MLS.com. 

Despite his absence from the upcoming tilt, the Galaxy star talked up the importance of the Champions League showdown, per the club's official site:

We’ve had a Champions League game so multiple games to stay pretty fit and it’s going to be a week where we have to use quite a bit of players. The Metapan game we have to win—we win that game and we’re in good shape in the group.

According to Thomas Floyd of Goal.com, the Galaxy are also facing issues with depth and energy, as many of their players are fresh off World Cup qualifying duty. Donovan admitted the issue after the club's draw to D.C. United:

I’m not exactly sure, but it seemed everyone was a little tired today,” Donovan said. “But that being said, we’re up a goal with eight minutes to go. We still had ourselves in a good position, and we’ve got to finish it off.

If the Galaxy want to come out with three points against their opponents from El Salvador, they'll need to make sure their legs are rested and ready to play a full-blown 90-minute match. 

Prediction

They may be fatigued, but a couple of days off combined with playing in front of their home fans will energize this Galaxy squad to victory.

Even if they're a little winded and even without Donovan, the talent gap is too much to overcome with Robbie Keane and more elite footballers who will be ready to get their club three points at home.

Galaxy 3, Metapan 1

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