Normally, when your club scores 40 seconds into the match, it's a good sign of how well your night will go.

Unfortunately for Sporting Kansas City, that wasn't the case Saturday night as defender Chance Myers notched his first career MLS goal in the first minute, but the Portland Timbers came from behind twice to notch a 3-2 win at Sporting Park in front of a sellout crowd of 20,186.

The loss marked Sporting KC's first at home since a 2-1 defeat to the Columbus Crew July 28, 2012.

In the postgame press conference, Sporting KC manager Peter Vermes said the uncharacteristic breakdowns on defense cost the club dearly. Vermes said:

"When you lose the ball like we did in the areas of the field that we did and then you have to travel so far to win it back, at some point you're going to then open up as a team. And credit to them, they went right to goal and finished off those two chances. The set piece is a set piece but the other two plays, again we gave up the ball in critical areas of the field that we normally don't do. And we (did) a poor job of putting out the fire."

The game seemed to start off really well for Sporting KC. It took the kickoff and took it straight up the field and Portland was forced to put it out for a throw-in.

Defender Matt Besler launched a monster throw into the middle of the Portland 18-yard box and found the head of Myers, who put the ball into the back of the net. Officially, the goal came after 40 seconds, the third-fastest goal in franchise history.

Portland almost equalized in the fourth minute. Midfielder Diego Valeri made a run into Sporting KC's 18-yard box, but his shot caromed off the onrushing Jimmy Nielsen and bounced off of the crossbar. It was then headed clear by defender Aurelien Collin.

Portland did equalize in the 24th minute on a header from Ryan Johnson. Valeri took a left-footed corner and found Johnson, who beat Besler to the ball. It was the first goal Sporting KC had allowed from a corner kick since a 1-0 loss to Seattle on May 23, 2011, a span of 75 matches.

Sporting KC regained the lead just five minutes later. Graham Zusi's free kick found the foot of Benny Feilhaber, who chipped the ball into the penalty area, where it fell to Collin. Collin one-timed it off the inside of his left foot and into the path of Myers, who calmly finished the chance to make it 2-1.

Four minutes later, however, Portland equalized yet again, this time through Darlington Nagbe. Johnson pounced on one of the many giveaways Sporting KC had in the midfield and immediately started the counterattack. Johnson outran Collin into the 18-yard box and when Nielsen came out to cut the angle, he passed it to Nagbe, who almost had the ball go behind him but managed to make contact and put the ball in the empty net.

Halftime found Sporting KC in the unusual position, for them at least, of having had less than 50 percent of the possession and a lower passing percentage than its opponents.

Portland finally took the lead in the 58th minute. Diego Chara took advantage of yet another giveaway in the midfield and hit Rodney Wallace in stride near the top of the penalty area. Wallace put the ball past Nielsen just before being tackled from behind by Myers.

Wallace's goal marked the first time Sporting KC had given up three goals at home since a 3-2 loss to FC Dallas on August 27, 2011.

After the game, Vermes talked about the inability to hold the lead. He said, "That's not normal for us. Defensively, I say it again, we were very poor to deal with those situations. They were run of the mill plays. They weren't something where they had great buildup or whatever. And then the corner kick, the guy's wide open. I'll have to look at the film again, but he's wide open."

Sporting KC did have chances to salvage a draw out of the match but just couldn't find an equalizer.

Its best chance came in the second minute of stoppage time. Defender Seth Sinovic put a cross into the box from about 30 yards out. Collin headed the ball on frame, but Donovan Ricketts made a very good save and pushed it wide and out for a corner.

In the locker room after the game, Nielsen said:

"We’ve been begging for teams to come here and (attack). They did, and we didn’t have an answer for it. They made it very difficult for us to play the way we wanted and really punished us. Them attacking gives us a little more room, but we didn’t’ take advantage of that. We were poor in making the right decisions."

On a more positive note, Sporting KC also unveiled its new third kit, black with Sporting blue trim, with an argyle pattern on the front above the sponsor logo.

Up next for Sporting KC is a home match Sunday, May 5, with Chivas USA. Kickoff is set for 4:00 p.m. CDT.

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Players making the move from Major League Soccer to the Barclays Premier League is nothing new. Many people forget that players like Carlos Bocanegra, Brian McBride and Brad Friedel once played in MLS.

But as MLS's track record of developing players has improved, it has become a more popular option for Premier League clubs to fill areas of need.

Players from North America often come at a discount compared to similar-quality players from Europe. This will become more important as clubs must comply with financial fair play rules.

MLS players such as Clint Dempsey, Tim Howard and more recently, Brek Shea, Geoff Cameron, Kei Kamara and Roger Espinoza will continue to find their way overseas. Here's a look at eight players who will likely be following the well-worn trail to the Premier League.

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MLS favorites remain on upset alert in Week 9. And just like Trey Parker and Matt Stone, you can "blame Canada" should they falter.

Clear-cut favorites are difficult to identify, especially in MLS.

So in order make sense of the league's infamous parity, current standings and points per game were considered to determine your Week 9 favorites. Everything else was considered to determine your winner.

So, who needs to keep their head on a swivel this weekend? Read on to find out.

Note: Stats taken from MLS MatchDay app unless otherwise noted.

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It is an arguable, albeit defensible, position that the most important date in Major League Soccer history to this point was July 13, 2007.

It was on that day that more than 700 accredited media members arrived at Home Depot Centre to witness David Beckham’s official unveiling as a Los Angeles Galaxy player. An agreement between the then 32-year-old and the MLS club had already been reached in January, and over the following six months Galaxy shirt sales would hit a record high.

Interest in the North American top flight peaked as well, and over the next five years part of Major League Soccer’s identity was tied to the fact that it was the league in which David Beckham took his famous free-kicks.

Individual players have always been vital to the continued growth of MLS. While Beckham was obviously the most important, there were others who played important roles as well.

The following slides will reveal a handful of those players, ending—naturally—with Beckham.

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In their most recent MLS match, the New York Red Bulls dominated the New England Revolution 4-1.

A brief look at two statistics and this would appear to be a more even game than the score suggests.  In terms of possession and duels, these teams were similar.  They each won 49 individual battles and held the ball nearly 50 percent of the time.

These metrics are misleading, though, as New York was the clearly superior side.

Advanced study is required to determine why New York was able to win so soundly. 

So rather than using pure numbers, this analysis examines the MLS Opta Chalkboard from the match.  The Opta Chalkboard displays nearly every touch of every game and reports exactly where it happened on the pitch. 

A deeper look into the Opta Chalkboard in this match explains three key tactical elements in New York’s victory.

All Chalkboard data gather directed from MLSSoccer.com and powered by Opta. 

Dax McCarty and Winning the Midfield

Since arriving via trade from D.C. United, many believe Dax McCarty to be New York’s best and most consistent player over the past two seasons. 

Marred slightly so far this campaign in trying to figuring out spacing with Juninho, McCarty looked far more comfortable than he has been all season with the Brazilian out of the lineup due to suspension. 

The American was free to playing his holding role as he’s done so in the past, allowing the rest of the midfield to attack at will.  Not only did McCarty have the most touches of anyone on New York, his midfield play distribution was sublime. 

Here’s a look at his pass attempts in the midfield. 

He also picked up five ball recoveries in the midfield (half of his 10 total), and chipped in one interception and four tackles. 

McCarty’s play offered New York the chance to either slow the pace of play when necessary with his more basic sideways and backwards possession, or to counter quickly with forward passing.  His perfect pressure-releasing pass into space lead to his team’s third goal. 

It was simply a clinic on how to boss a match through the midfield. 

Thierry Henry and the Left Side of the Attacking Half

A quick look at all of Thierry Henry’s touches makes it clear that the Frenchman was stationed on the left side of the attacking half of the pitch.  That is not to say that Henry did not float, as he is wont to do, but the majority of his time on the ball was spent on the left.

That makes sense.  Henry has mastered the art of fake-shot cutback to his right.  He also spent much of his prime starting on the left and drifting in for Arsenal. 

The tactics were clear as a result: get Henry the ball on the left side of the field and let him create.

As such, Revolution fullback Roy Miller had more touches than his counterpart on the right, Brandon Barklage.  Not only did Miller see the ball more, it was in more advanced areas too. 

Manager Mike Petke did his best to surround Henry with as many teammates to combine with as possible.  This worked quite well, too, as Jonny Steele, another left-sided player, contributed a goal of his own.

Simply stated, Henry is critical to New York’s possession: he knows exactly when to play one-touch and when to draw defenders by holding the ball.  His five lay-offs gave attackers the chance to get forward and his four key passes illustrate how accurate and incisive his passing can be.

Defensive Third Positioning: Reading the Game

The Red Bulls did a fine job of stifling the New England attack when forced to defend in their own defensive third. 

Rather than relying on tackling, New York’s backs and midfielders effectively spaced themselves to shut down passing lanes and tighten gaps between lines allowing New England nowhere to play.

New York’s 16 interceptions, 26 clearances and two blocked crosses in the defensive third of the field suggest a synced defense.  They were disciplined, too; only conceding one foul.  

Such a small figure may be the result of attempting fewer tackles (only five) and relying on superior positioning.  Regardless, it worked, as they only allowed two corners in addition to the singular goal.

It’s no wonder that New England had difficulty connecting passes and crosses as they ventured closer to New York’s goal.  The Revolution only completed 65 percent of their final third pass attempts.

The New York coaching staff will certainly be happy with the result and look to continue to build on some of the trends discussed above that provided them with such success. 

The biggest question for New York the rest of the season is figuring out if Juninho and Dax McCarty are best-served playing together or not.  Their roles do not seem clearly defined when the two are both on the pitch at the same time.  It will be intriguing to see if Petke continues to deploy these two next to one another in the midfield, or if he instead considers a different strategy. 

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This week in Major League Soccer was all about the return to form of Landon Donovan.

Donovan and his Los Angeles Galaxy teammates delivered a dominant performance over Sporting Kansas City on Saturday night in front of a national audience. 

But that was not the only entertaining moment of the MLS weekend as the Dynamo and Earthquakes both equalized in stoppage time against Toronto and Portland respectively.

Find out where those six teams and the other 13 teams in MLS landed in this week's edition of the MLS power rankings. 

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Week 8 in MLS served as a reminder of many things. Landon Donovan prompted our World Cup memories. A pair of supporters groups reminded us that we are all one.

FC Dallas continued their ascendancy over MLS competition. The Hoops now sit comfortably atop the Supporters’ Shield standings with 19 points. The Chicago Fire returned to the win column, while Adam Jahn salvaged a point at home with his late-game heroics.

But that wasn’t enough to make the best and worst from Week 8 in MLS. Read on to find out who made the list.

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After a franchise worst 0-3-2 start, the Seattle Sounders FC have finally won a game this season. 

New designated player, forward Obafemi Martins, scored the only goal in the 27th minute against the Colorado Rapids at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Denver. 

The play began with Shalrie Joseph shooting from the top of the box.  That shot was saved by Rapids keeper Clint Irwin but returned by Martins.  Joseph impressed fans from both teams with a celebratory cartwheel-backflip.

Unfortunately, Sounders fans have seen just three backflips this season—and the Sounders have played six of their 34 games. 

Martins, Joseph, DeAndre Yedlin, Marc Burch and Lamar Neagle were all acquired during what appeared to be a strong offseason.  Sounders’ star Fredy Montero was sent away on loan to Colombia, but between Martins, Joseph, Neagle and Eddie Johnson, that didn’t look like a big problem.

Montero is the Sounders franchise leader in goals and assists with 47 balls finding the net and 36 assists.  He has led the Sounders with goals scored all but last year (Montero had 13, Johnson netted 14) and assists all four years (besides this season).  On loan to Millonarios in Colombia, Montero already has three goals in eight games.

If the Sounders do not bring back Montero, the biggest fanbase in American soccer will certainly demand someone else capable of scoring like Fredy.

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Sound the alarms, especially in Commerce City. MLS favorites are on upset alert in Week 8.

Parody reigns supreme in American soccer. Head-scratching results have become synonymous with the league. How often does a Reading defeat a Manchester United? When was the last time Granada took down Barcelona?

But the woeful Chicago Fire surprising the New York Red Bulls, now that’s feasible.

If there’s one rule that will always ring true in MLS, it’s this: Don’t sleep on your opponent. You’ll be laid out if you do.

So who needs to keep their head on a swivel in Week 8? Read on to find out. 

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It’s still early in the young 2013 Major League Soccer season with most teams only six or seven games into the 34-game season.

With that being said, there are many signs that already point to an L.A. Galaxy three-peat for the 2013 MLS Cup.

Here are five reasons the Galaxy are already the early favorites to win the title yet again.

They’ve been there before

The L.A. Galaxy have been the most dominant team in MLS the past four seasons, winning the Western Conference in 2009, 2010 and 2011, the Supporters’ Shield as the MLS team with the best regular season record in 2010 and 2011 and the MLS Cup in 2011 and 2012.

Experience counts in MLS, and the Galaxy has loads of it. The only major loss from their 2012 championship season is David Beckham.

Omar Gonzalez

Early in the 2012 MLS season, with Omar Gonzalez still recovering from an off-season ACL injury suffered while on loan with Nuremberg, the Galaxy struggled. Of their first 13 games, the Galaxy won only three and fell to last place in the Western Conference.

After Gonzalez’s return to the starting XI, however, the Galaxy went 11-4-3 (win-loss-draw format) and made a playoff run, which included knocking off all of the league’s hottest teams in the San Jose Earthquakes, the Seattle Sounders and the Houston Dynamo.

Gonzalez went on to win the MVP award in the 2012 MLS Cup final with a terrific defensive display and the game-tying goal to boot. Since then, Gonzalez has been on an absolute tear, earning four caps with the United States men’s national team, being a vital piece of the USMNT’s 0-0 away draw to Mexico and having a number of dominant performances for the Galaxy already this spring.

There is little doubt that Omar Gonzalez is one of the best, if not the best, center-backs in the league.

The rest of the LA Galaxy defense

While Gonzalez is the foundation of the Galaxy’s back line, there are many other great defenders filling in the rest of the puzzle for the Galaxy defense.

Sean Franklin, the Galaxy’s right-back, is one of the best attacking right-backs in the league.

A.J. DeLaGarza, who can play as a center-back or on either flank, is one of the most versatile and tactically astute defenders in the league.

Add in a veteran like Todd Dunivant, a healthy Leonardo and youngster Tommy Meyer, and the Galaxy have a defense any MLS team can be jealous of.

And all of this is to say nothing of the improvement the Galaxy made in the net, replacing Josh Saunders, easily the weakest player in the starting XI for the 2012 Galaxy, with former Chelsea and Tottenham goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini. While Cudicini has appeared rusty at times so far in 2013, once he gets a string of games under his belt, he will represent a marked improvement for the Galaxy defense.

The return of Donovan

While Landon Donovan’s missed penalty this past weekend was not exactly confidence inspiring, he has returned from his offseason sabbatical and is already back in the starting XI for the Galaxy.

And while Donovan is no longer a spring chicken, he has not overtly relied on his athleticism for years, instead contributing with his playmaking and goalscoring abilities.

When Donovan and Keane are on the field together, they form one of the most dangerous offensive duos in the league, making runs off of each other like the two top-class players that they are.

Once Keane returns from injury and Donovan returns to top form, the Galaxy will again have the most feared offense in the league.

The rest of the squad

In addition to the prowess of Gonzalez, DeLaGarza, Franklin, Donovan and Keane, the Galaxy have a host of veterans and youngsters who make them one of the deepest squads in the league.

Juninho has been a workhorse in the Galaxy midfield for the past three seasons, starting 99 games for the team in that time. Additionally, the Galaxy have Mike Magee, who currently leads the league with five goals and has a penchant for scoring big-time playoff goals.

The Galaxy have a number of talented youngsters in 18-year-old forward and U.S. youth international Jack McBean and new signing Gyasi Zardes, who scored 33 goals in his last two years at Cal State Bakersfield.

And that is to say nothing of 19-year-old phenom Jose Villarreal, who was so impressive recently with the U.S. U-20 team during Olympic qualifying.

To top it all off, the Galaxy are led by Hall of Fame coach, Bruce Arena, who has four MLS Cups and three MLS Coach of the Year awards to his name.

With no disrespect to some of the other top contenders such as Sporting KC, the Houston Dynamo, FC Dallas or the Montreal Impact, the Galaxy have too much talent and experience not to be the favored team to bring home the 2013 MLS Cup.

Follow me on Twitter @JohnDHalloran

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