This one is hard to figure out. On one side of the coin you have a 36-year-old defender who is one of the greatest of all-time, if not the greatest (even if other greats may have won more trophies). He is more than willing to come and continue his career in the United States in Major League Soccer. He loves it here and spends much of his free time away from the pitch at his home in Florida.

Italy’s Alessandro Nesta is more dominant than Fabio Cannavaro, MVP of the 2006 World Cup and subsequently the FIFA World Player of the Year.

He helped his first club Lazio win the Scudetto (Serie A title) in 2000. It was its first Scudetto since 1974.

Moving on to AC Milan in the summer of 2002, Nesta continued by helping the Rossoneri win the Scudetto in 2004 and 2011. The club also won the 2003 and 2007 UEFA Champions League, the 2007 FIFA Club World Cup. Sadly, he missed most of World Cup 2006 due to injury even though he was regarded as Italy’s top defender entering the tournament.

He also won a number of individual honors. Perhaps Nesta’s biggest claim to fame is one many forget.

The magnitude of the strength of his partnership with fellow legend Paolo Maldini in the center of the AC Milan defense allowed then-coach Carlo Ancelotti to try an experiment that was certainly risky given that the Rossoneri don’t settle for anything but top results.

Ancelotti was able to insert current legend Andrea Pirlo into a defensive midfield position even though he was a player with offensive-minded skills and was considered at the time a very weak defender.

The experiment worked over time as Pirlo improved defensively while still bringing a new dimension in his play-making abilities from just in front of the defense. AC Milan won two Champions League titles and could have won a third had it not been for a loss in a penalty shootout with Liverpool in 2005.

Nesta announced in May that after a decade with the club he would be leaving AC Milan. He immediately had offers to play for a number of teams, including current Serie A champion Juventus.  Plenty of other sides in Europe also offered contacts.

But Nesta made it clear he was open to moving to the United States.

However, as of this weekend, he says he has received no offers. 

“I don't have a shot to play in MLS," Nesta told Goal.com. "I tried to play [in the league] but I never received any offers."

It has been suggested that perhaps Major League Soccer clubs are looking for goal scorers instead of defenders as “designated players.”

But any sports fan knows that championships are won through defense.

A quick look at any YouTube video exploiting Nesta’s highlights as a defender would show one that his level of play is nothing short of spectacular. 

One theory for MLS not wanting Nesta could be that his dominance might influence shutouts, which league officials might fear could in turn cause fans to lose interest in watching scoreless matches.

MLS has made great progress in recent years in bringing in top talent from around the world. Rejecting a chance at bringing in one of the greatest ever would be a major setback.

One can only hope this gets resolved quickly. If it doesn’t Nesta will either return to Europe or simply retire and the game will lose one of its greatest players.

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The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup returns to action tonight with the quarterfinal round. Of the four matches, only one is an all-MLS matchup.

Let's look at all four matches and see who plays who and where for the semifinal round.

San Jose Earthquakes (MLS) at Seattle Sounders (MLS)

Site: Kezar Stadium, San Francisco, CA.

Time: 10:30 p.m. ET

The Seattle Sounders have won the last three U.S. Open Cups, so you know they will be taking this match seriously, something MLS clubs are not known for, with a few exceptions. They are trying to become the seventh team to win four or more cups, but the first to win them all consecutively.

The Sounders will be looking to bounce back from a 2-1 loss to their bitter rival Portland Timbers on Sunday in Portland. They are in fourth place in the Western Conference of MLS, winless in their last seven league matches.

Seattle's last cup match was a 5-0 win over Cal FC, but they were the last amateur side left in the tournament, assembled about a month-and-a-half before the match by former US international Eric Wynalda, and they had already beaten Portland. Cal FC held Seattle scoreless in the first half.

The San Jose Earthquakes would be the second team from San Jose to win the Cup. In 1992 (before the start of MLS), the San Jose Oaks won the cup.

The Earthquakes used a 2-1 road victory over Real Salt Lake on Saturday to leapfrog over RSL into first place in the Western Conference, three wins in their last four matches.

Prediction: San Jose will attempt to use the quasi-home field advantage to knock a tired, struggling Seattle team out of the tournament. San Jose wins 2-1.

Charlotte Eagles (USL Pro) at Chivas USA (MLS)

Site: Titan Stadium (Cal State Fullerton), Fullerton, CA.

Time: 10:30 p.m. ET

The Charlotte Eagles are sitting in ninth place in USL Pro. Their last league match resulted in their first home win of the season and they've struggled to score in league play, tallying 13 goals in 13 games.

Charlotte, however, has won three straight Open Cup matches against teams from Texas, including a 2-0 third round victory over MLS side FC Dallas. They have also had a week to rest their players.

CD Chivas USA are in seventh place in the MLS Western Conference. They've had a harder time of scoring goals than Charlotte, notching only 11 goals in their 14 league matches.

Chivas will be facing their second straight opponent from the state of North Carolina, having defeated the Carolina Railhawks in the fourth round. They are also playing their fourth game in 11 days. Their last match was a scoreless draw against FC Dallas.

Prediction: Charlotte will show no fear going up against another MLS side, having already defeated one. Charlotte wins 2-1.

Harrisburg City Islanders (USL Pro) at Philadelphia Union (MLS)

Site: PPL Park, Chester, PA.

Time: 7:30 p.m. ET

The Harrisburg City Islanders currently stand in seventh place in USL Pro, the third division of soccer in the United States. They're coming off of a 2-1 road loss to the second-place Charleston Battery on Saturday. Harrisburg is also the highest USL Pro team left in the competition, all three of which are in the bottom half of the table.

The City Islanders, though, in the David v. Goliath nature of the tournament, have already slain a couple of giants. In the fourth round, they used extra time to beat the New York Red Bulls 3-1. That was after they produced a dramatic comeback to even get that far.

Harrisburg trailed a 10-man New England Revolution side 3-0 in extra time. They scored three goals in a period of nine minutes to tie the match and then won it on penalties.

The Philadelphia Union find themselves in ninth place in the ten-team Eastern Conference and have only three league wins on the season in 13 matches. However, they are also coming off that third win, a 4-0 home thrashing of potential semifinal opponent, Sporting Kansas City.

Philadelphia will be in their third game under interim head coach John Hackworth and trying to build off Saturday's win, as well as their extra-time victory over conference leaders DC United in the fourth round.

Prediction: Harrisburg's Cinderella story will find the clock has struck midnight. Philadelphia wins 2-0.

Dayton Dutch Lions (USL Pro) at Sporting Kansas City (MLS)

Site: LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, Kansas City, KS.

Time: 8:30 p.m. ET

The Dayton Dutch Lions are in 10th place in USL Pro, having only one league win so far this season, a 4-0 home win against the Wilmington Hammerheads. Those four goals represent almost half of the nine goals Dayton has scored in 13 league matches.

The Dutch Lions, however, have already beaten an MLS side in this tournament, defeating the in-state Columbus Crew 2-1 in the third round.

Sporting Kansas City are sitting in third place in the MLS Eastern Conference, one point out of first. They are coming off their worst loss all season, a 4-0 defeat to Philadelphia.

After the game, defender Aurelien Collin tweeted, "Hey SKC I wanna apologize for this game it was embarrassing . Now let's go back to kc and rest well and prepare for the next one..."

Sporting KC has, however, already beaten USL Pro frontrunners Orlando City and a fellow MLS side, the Colorado Rapids, in their Cup run so far. They are making the tournament a priority and should have All-Star defender Matt Besler back after his appendix was removed just over two weeks ago.

Prediction: Sporting KC uses a full-strength starting XI and an enthusiastic home crowd to send Dayton home. Sporting KC wins 2-0.

Potential Semifinals

Semifinal 1

If Seattle defeats San Jose, they will host the winner of the Charlotte-Chivas USA match at the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila, WA, at 10:00 p.m. ET on July 10th.

If San Jose defeats Seattle, they will host the winner of the Charlotte-Chivas USA match at Buck Shaw Stadium, Santa Clara, CA, at 10:30 p.m. ET on July 10th.

Semifinal 2

If Philadelphia defeats Harrisburg, and Sporting KC beats Dayton, Philadelphia will host Sporting KC at PPL Park, Chester, PA, at 7:30 p.m. ET on July 11th.

If Philadelphia defeats Harrisburg, and Dayton beats Sporting KC, Philadelphia will host Dayton at PPL Park, Chester, PA, at 7:30 p.m. ET on July 10th.

If Harrisburg defeats Philadelphia, and Dayton beats Sporting KC, Harrisburg will host Dayton at the Skyline Sports Complex, Harrisburg, PA, at 7:30 p.m. ET on July 10th.

If Harrisburg defeats Philadelphia, and Sporting KC beats Dayton, Sporting KC will host Harrisburg at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, Kansas City, KS, at 7:30 p.m. CT on July 10th.

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Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Mario Balotelli, Fernando Torres: Those are just a few of the players you won't be hearing about in this Seattle Sounders-Portland Timbers live blog. 

While the eyes of the soccer world are turned (as usual) to Europe, the best rivalry in North American soccer also takes place today, and we're coming to you live from Portland to cover the action the best we can.

Portland and Seattle are geographical and cultural rivals, with the most passionate fans in the MLS. And instead of the European superstars invoked at the top, today you'll be hearing about Kris Boyd of Portland and David Estrada and Fredy Montero of Seattle. 

Seattle comes into the day in fourth place in the MLS Western Conference, with Portland sitting dead last in ninth. But this is the sort of game where you can throw the stats and the form sheets out the window and more than the season standings are on the line.

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Ho hum. That's all it was. It was simply another ho hum performance for midfielder David Beckham as the Los Angeles Galaxy rolled to a 3-0 shutout victory over the Vancouver Whitecaps at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. on Saturday.

Nothing too fancy, nothing too outstanding, just regular workmanlike football from a player who has worked all his life to get to where he is today. But sometimes having a ho hum performance isn't so bad if you have a solid supporting cast to back you up.

Three of those members—Landon Donovan, Mike Magee, and Robbie Keane—were the stars of the show. Oh yes, and Juninho's efforts in closing space and winning second balls were commendable. The effort by those players reduced the work that Beckham needed to do as a provider.

He had a number of set piece opportunities that just didn't materialize the way he wanted to. Had at least one them gone through, perhaps the rating for Becks may have been improved. Also, Beckham picked up a yellow and did have some words with referee Allen Chapman.

The thing about this is that this might be the situation Beckham faces as a member of Team Great Britain. The Olympic Football Tournament from the men's perspective is about the kids. They are the stars of the show.

David Beckham is going to generally have these types of ho hum performances and get away with them in London because he can rely on the young players to do the work and help Team GB's cause.

All in all, this was a night in which Beckham didn't have to do too much because the supporting cast lifted the burden for him. It was all a matter of creating plays and generating set piece opportunities—otherwise knows as "par for the course."

Rating: 6.5/10

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What a comprehensive performance from Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy, who reverted to their 2011 selves and dismantled the Vancouver Whitecaps 3-0 at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. on Saturday night.

I can't stress this any more: We are the midway point of the year, and Los Angeles followed their biggest win of the season up with their most complete win of the season.

All cylinders were firing for the Galaxy, whose defense neutralized the attack, whose midfield closed space and won possession, and whose forwards finished the play. In fact, the result would have been more one-sided if the finishing was a little bit crisper.

That isn't to say this wasn't already a beatdown; this may go down as Vancouver's worst performance of the season, or at least one of the worst. Without further ado, it's time for some player ratings.

Here we go. 

Josh Saunders: 8

Saunders had a clean shutout, didn't have to do a lot of work, only made two saves, but they were big ones. Having Josh Saunders back in the mix has proven to be a lifesaver of sorts for the Galaxy, who need to keep getting these results.

And it all starts with clutch goalkeeping. 

Sean Franklin: 7

Another night at the office for Sean Franklin. Franklin kept the likes of Sebastien Le Toux in check. I don't think I even called his name that much in the Live Blog, so this means Franklin had a field day on defense. He did have some problems with Camilo, but they were minimal because Camilo was subbed in late and Los Angeles had a manageable lead by then. 

A.J. DeLaGarza: 7.5

Gershon Koffie had no chance of getting anything by A.J. DeLaGarza. He was a menace in the back. And this comes from being one of the most consistent defenders on the team. What an outing from DeLaGarza. 

David Junior Lopes: 7.5

This was the best performance of the year from David Junior Lopes. This was the game in which he paid his dues because he frustrated one of the most promising rookies in the league in Darren Mattocks. Will we see more of this from Lopes this Saturday against San Jose? 

Todd Dunivant: 7

Dunivant suffered a knock just seconds into the match, but he was able to shake off the injury and play the full 90 and stoppage. The Iron Man's assignment: Davide Chiumiento, and he limited Chiumiento's production on Saturday. 

Hector Jimenez: 6

Not much of a factor this match, but he did help string up some good passes as part of a wave of sequences that tested Joe Cannon.

David Beckham 6.5

The set piece slot machine didn't pay off very well for David Beckham. The set piece either went wide or were cleared. The silver lining in all this: The supporting cast allowed Becks to get away with an average effort on Saturday...in spite of a yellow.

Juninho: 8

Great night for Juninho. The young Brazilian won the second ball and also closed the space generated by Jun Marques Davidson and John Thorrington. You don't need goals or assists to have a good game if you are stellar in the intangibles, which Juninho was. 

Mike Magee: 8

The likes of Lee Young-Pyo probably didn't understand how valuable Mike Magee was to the Galaxy until the 16th minute, when he scored on a rebound from close distance.

Magee was on fire on Saturday, and if Magee is on fire, the whole team is destined to join in the blaze.

Landon Donovan: 8.5

A goal and an assist from the captain, combined with a flurry of other chances gone awry highlighted Landon Donovan's performance tonight. If Donovan had more confidence on goal, we could have seen a hat trick.

And if Donovan didn't get a hat trick, someone else would. That man is... 

Robbie Keane: 9

The Man of the Match, ladies and gentlemen.

Robbie Keane really upped the difficulty level of this match and when he scored at the half-hour mark, he dedicated the goal to the memory of James Nolan (courtesy of AP). Like Donovan, if Keane had been onsides and/or accurate with his finish, Vancouver would have been in even worse shape.

That's how one-sided this match turned out.

Michael Stephens: 5

Michael Stephens is going to have to get used to doing cleanup work for the rest of the season. He seems to perform well when the game is already decided and it's just a matter of preventing the opposition from trying to steal some chicken. Stephens filled in for Hector Jimenez admirably late in the second half. 

Bryan Jordan NR
Chad Barrett NR

Came into the game late, no rating given.

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The biggest victory of the season for Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy was followed up by their most complete performance of the year: a 3-0 shutout of Martin Rennie's Vancouver Whitecaps at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California.

With the win, Los Angeles now improve to 6-8-2 (20 points) and are fifth in the MLS Western Conference.

And as with every victory, lessons are to be learned from this performance. Here are six things we learned from Saturday night's result for LA.

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Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy continue their 2012 Major League Soccer season on Saturday night when they take on the Vancouver Whitecaps at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.

The Galaxy are currently 5-8-2 (17 points) and have an uphill battle to climb just to get back in the chase for a spot in the MLS Cup playoffs.

The Whitecaps are 7-3-5 (26 points) and will look to chase San Jose and Real Salt Lake with a win this weekend.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. PT and will be televised locally by KDOC and KWHY. The live blog will start at approximately 5:15 p.m. PT.

Keep it right here on Bleacher Report for continuing coverage of the 2012 MLS season and all things world football. 

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Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy conclude their gauntlet of matches with a Saturday night match against Martin Rennie's Vancouver Whitecaps at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.

Arena's men are boosted with the prospects that Robbie Keane will return to the lineup after a rather terrible campaign with the Republic of Ireland at Euro 2012.

Los Angeles are currently 5-8-2 and take on a Vancouver team that is coming off a 1-1 draw to the New York Red Bulls at home.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. PT/10:30 p.m. ET, and will be televised by KDOC and KWHY. Here are 10 bold predictions ahead of Saturday's tilt.

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Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy had their biggest victory of the season, a 3-2 win over Real Salt Lake on the road at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah.

The kicker: midfielder David Beckham didn't play much of a factor in all of it except for the passing aspect of the game. He did have a couple of chances and his best chance came in the 22nd minute, when a free kick just missed the top-right corner by meters.

The issue here for Beckham as he continues his preparations for London is that he still cannot find the right people to receive his set pieces on a consistent basis.

Case in point: 17th minute, when a free kick for Beckham was headed high and over the crossbar by David Junior Lopes. I am sure that the kids on Team GB can finish those chances better than Lopes will ever finish them.

Also to his credit, Beckham did help sway the calls for referee Kevin Stott, who I think was starstruck by the moment of it all. While the RSL fans will disagree with me here, I will go for the record and say that Kevin Stott called a fair match.

That said, I still don't think Beckham played much of a role in determining this contest. That honor goes primarily to Landon Donovan, whose efforts as the captain turned the tide against Real Salt Lake.

Average night for David Beckham.

Rating: 6.5/10

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This is what you call a statement victory. Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy were in need of upsetting someone to ensure that parity reigned supreme in Major League Soccer. They got it on Wednesday night in their 3-2 win over Jason Kreis' Real Salt Lake at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah.

The Galaxy only improve to 5-8-2 with this victory (17 points), but if you're a Vancouver Whitecaps fan, you might have a reason to hold your breath coming into Saturday.

Big victories like this deserve good ratings. Here are the player ratings for Wednesday night's surprise result.

Josh Saunders 7.5

Didn't acquit himself in the first 30 minutes of the game, but as soon as Landon Donovan got the Galaxy back on track, Josh Saunders' play improved. Saunders made three big saves and he was instrumental in helping maintain L.A.'s 3-2 victory late.

Todd Dunivant 6

Consistent defending from the Iron Man. Really kept the likes of Fabian Espindola, Javier Morales, Will Johnson and Kyle Beckerman in check late. I am giving him minus points for not marking Kyle Beckerman on the first goal of the game.

David Junior Lopes 6.5

This was a much better effort from David Junior Lopes. Giving this guy bonus points for beating a higher-ranked team. He did have some mistakes defensively that could have allowed Real Salt Lake to rally late. Fortunately for him, RSL's sloppiness took its toll.

I am also giving Lopes minus marks for delaying the match a bit. I almost thought Lopes decided to quit playing midway through the second half, but it seems it was only something in his eye. They don't call that town "Sandy" for nothing...

Bryan Jordan 6

Another player that I have not been generous to, I will go ahead and give Bryan Jordan a free pass for trying to receive the pass and create something out of nothing. I still don't believe Jordan made his case for a higher grade early, and so I am giving him minus points for a lousy start, but bonus points for improved play later on.

If Jordan can play a full, consistent match on Saturday, I think we can all expect him to be in the starting lineup for a while, as much as I hate to say it.

Sean Franklin 6.5

Decent defending from Franklin, but, like a majority of the players on defense, his grade is impacted by the early start the home side had to begin the match.

A.J. DeLaGarza 7

Another consistent effort from A.J. DeLaGarza, although his score is a bit lower due to the early Real Salt Lake onslaught.

Juninho 6

Juninho was nonexistent in this match. The only contributions that I saw from him was a handball in the first half and a very speculative one-timer in the second. Step your game up, Paulista! To be fair, though, Juninho did help weave some decent passing together, but Real Salt Lake dominated that statistic on Wednesday.

Mike Magee 8

This is what we like to call...redemption. Fresh off suspension, Mike Magee nabs home the equalizer and the game-winning assist to pace Los Angeles to a full three points. You can only wonder how lopsided the match with Portland on Sunday would have been if Magee was in the lineup.

Marcelo Sarvas 6.5

Not a good first touch from Sarvas tonight against Real Salt Lake, and I don't believe he was much of a factor this game, aside from playing a part in a number of sequences.

David Beckham 6.5

David Beckham, aside from a few threatening set pieces, was not a factor in this match. However, one of his set pieces in the first half just missed the top right corner by a meter or two. Otherwise, this was just an average outing for the Olympian-to-be.

Landon Donovan 9

Man of the Match, hands down. When you get two goals and assist and become the sole reason why the Los Angeles Galaxy got this statement victory, you deserve this award. A hat trick, though, and it could have been a 10.

Michael Stephens 5

Reduced to cleanup duty yet again, but didn't do anything that jeopardized Los Angeles's precarious lead and in fact helped maintain it. I expect Stephens to stay as a sub for the rest of the game. He also helped neutralize Javier Morales' super sub potential this time around.

Chad Barrett NR
Rafael Garcia NR

Came into the game late, no rating given.

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