Ladies and gentlemen, readers on Bleacher Report: Week 1 of the 2012 Major League Soccer season is in the books. We've had numerous player transactions and preseason matches since the preseason power rankings, and as promised, they will be reflected in this week's power rankings.

Real Salt Lake rise to the top as the No. 1 team on this list, while the brand-new Montreal Impact remain at the bottom.

Let's take a look at this week's MLS power rankings.

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After a long three-month offseason, Major League Soccer returned to action this weekend. The opening round featured a nice slate of games ranging from battles of recent champions (Real Salt Lake v. LA Galaxy) to games between recent expansion teams (Vancouver v. Montreal).

Here are the highlights from the seven weekend Major League Soccer matches.

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The CONCACAF quarterfinals began last Wednesday when LA Galaxy clashed with Toronto FC at the Rogers Centre.

I was lucky enough to be at attendance for this star-studded game.  Despite being played on artificial turf and being indoors, this game had everything a fan from either team could have hoped for. 

It was announced that over 47, 000 people were at attendance for this match.  The stadium was jumping, enthusiastic and ready for greatness.  

Toronto, the underdogs of the match despite being at home, sent the home fans into a frenzy early with an early strike off a corner kick.  A fortunate bounce ended with the ball on Ryan Johnson's foot, which he quickly sent in behind the keeper to give Toronto an early lead in the 12' of play.  The crowd erupted and the sound was deafening.

Just five minutes later, the fans exploded again.  A rookie midfielder landed his head on a Torsten Frings cross just inside the top of the 18-yard box.  He placed his header beautifully just inside the goalpost to put Toronto up by two early.  This goal was absolutely beautiful, if you haven't already seen it you must watch it.  

Toronto was up two early and in control of the match. However, a goaltending error changed the course of the match. In the 29' Mike Magee was gifted a goal after a Donovan cross was slapped down back into play and onto the foot of Magee by Stefan Frei.  Magee had the open net and put LA on the board silencing the Toronto faithful.  The score remained 2-1 heading into half.  

The second half saw a few changes. Beckham began to drop back deeper into defense, as he distributed the ball throughout the pitch.  This second half also got a bit scrappy, with several players picking up knocks.  There were chances at both ends, however, the tying goal would be earned very late to spoil the win for Toronto.

After being completely covered with streamers at every corner flag, Beckham would find more than just streamers thrown at him on this occasion.  Two beer cans were thrown in Beckham's direction as he set himself up for the corner that would crush Toronto's night.  

After voicing his displeasure, Beckham sent in a kick that created a scramble in the Toronto box. Donovan found his foot on the ball and sent it in behind Frei, tying the game for the Galaxy.  LA players rushed the scene of the accident and while Beckham scolded the crowd. Donovan blew kisses to the Toronto fans. 

This was a very exciting contest that Toronto, by all rights, should have one.  Each LA goal was a gift of poor work in the box.  Despite the result, the home crowd went home happy earning a draw and having a chance of continuing in this tournament with a win (or tie if more than 2 goals are scored) in Las Angeles.  

*The CONCACAF officiating was absolutely horrendous in this match, I believe both teams and fans will agree to that. 

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Week 1 of the 2012 MLS season is (mostly) in the books. While not exactly chock full of surprises, the first slate of games gave us a tangible set of results to judge how the first part of the season might go.

Despite the hype and anticipation ahead of First Kick, it takes awhile for MLS clubs to fully get into the swing of things. New players in new systems rarely head into the campaign flying. Teams moving into the season without massive changes from 2011 should have an advantage, but still have to find their feet. 

That means the soccer we saw was a far cry from the best the league will offer this year (hopefully).

But uneven play can still produce moments of excitement. There were a few of those.

Some of what we thought we knew before games kicked off is still true, while some suddenly deserve a reassessment. So what did we learn?

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The New York Red Bulls have spent a lot of money on their current roster, pushing as close to the salary cap as possible. The team has two designated players and 12 players who have made appearances for their respective senior national teams.

With the amount of talent on the team and the money invested on it, it seems surprising that they are a work in progress. But after New York’s 1-0 loss to FC Dallas on Sunday, improvement is a necessity.

There were so many things that the Red Bulls did in the first game of the season that showed the team was not ready for the match or prepared for its opponent.

The first and most obvious issue the team had was defending.

Things were always going to be interesting without Tim Ream (transfer to England), without Rafa Marquez (suspended) and with a new rookie goalkeeper starting. While Ryan Meara showed some moments of fearlessness and made a couple of nice saves, the defending in front of him was sub-par.

Communication was lacking, allowing guys to roam free. They were pulled too far up and into the attack, both on the wings and in the middle of the field, and were beaten often in transition. The clearing was also bad, exhibited on FC Dallas’ first goal.

The Red Bulls whiffed twice on clearing a cross out of the box before Zach Loyd was able to pounce on the ball and put it in the back of the net to take the early lead.

Newcomer Markus Holgersson was one of the two defenders to muff the clearance and he struggled throughout the game with the ball on his feet.

It wasn’t just the clearances that accounted for bad ball movement though. The passing wasn’t sharp at all. The Red Bulls are fond of moving the ball on the ground, but in the opening game of the season it looked like the team was rusty. Many of the passes were short of their target and turnovers were abundant.

The second Dallas goal came from an intercepted back pass—a rather poor decision—from fullback Roy Miller, which lead to a two-on-one breakaway and a chip over a diving Meara.

Coupled with bad passing was a bad touch on the ball, either on a first touch or when making a push forward. They may have held onto the ball longer, but their possession was sloppy.

Mehdi Ballouchy came on as a sub with four minutes remaining and managed to turn the ball over at least three times.

All these things were made worse by poor spacing. New York players looked to bunch together often, both on and off the ball. Many times players would dribble into spaces occupied by other players, with the teammate failing to clear out. Other times players would make off-ball runs right into each other.

The spaces were congested with players and made it easy for one defender to cover two Red Bulls, and for two defenders to absolutely smother the offense.

Another failure from the team was a lack of midfield presence, specifically in the middle. While passing was poor, there was no conduit from the defense to the offense. Thierry Henry and Juan Agudelo failed to get many touches early on.

For Henry to get involved in the game, he had to come back deep into the midfield, almost out of the same spot where defensive midfielder Teemu Tainio was at, in order to get the ball.

He had to navigate himself out of a crowded midfield, was never truly in a dangerous position on the field to make a positive play and when he sprung the ball forward the team never was able to get on a fast-break because there was only one person forward. Often, it was only one or two Red Bulls against about four defenders.

Give credit to FC Dallas, which defended as a unit and capitalized on turnovers and opportunities.

New York, however, looked like they thought they were still playing in a preseason game.

Maybe it was first-game jitters, especially for the new players. Maybe the team needs more time to gel.

Whatever the case the team was not prepared for this game and things need to be improved otherwise it could be another disappointing season.

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It would be easy for me to say that David Beckham had a terrible game on Saturday night against Real Salt Lake only because the offense couldn't finish and the defense could stop Real Salt Lake from leaving it late.

Indeed, the set piece slot machine, which I refer Beckham's series of set piece chances per match as, did not pay very well, and it reflected in the tenacious defense the RSL backline exhibited at the Home Depot Center en route to a 3-1 victory for the visitors.

But there is a silver lining to this: He did get his first assist of the season, in the 71st minute on a great ball to Edson Buddle, who headed it home. This shows that the man has not lost his touch, and if the slot machine decides to pay the man, out goes the money.

When asked of manager Bruce Arena taking responsibility for the humiliating display of football, Beckham disagreed.

“It’s not down to the coach once the players are on the field," Beckham told reporters. "He picked the team that he feels is a strong team and is ready to play and then it’s down to the players. It’s down to us collectively.”

The comeback reduced what could have been a great game for Beckham into another average performance bordering on below-average. I believe Beckham could have done more in breaking up possession by Real Salt Lake because the visitors were dictating a majority of the possession, and this is not the way you want to perform against Toronto FC, who will have clearly see this performance and use it to their advantage.

Beckham will have to work on finding his targets on Wednesday. Just another average performance from No. 23.

Rating: 6/10

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Perhaps the Long Beach State women's basketball team should be blamed for this effort from the Los Angeles Galaxy. After the 49ers lost the Big West Conference Tournament Final to UC Santa Barbara on Saturday, I knew that a lot of people at the Home Depot Center would leave the stadium with long looks on their faces and questions to answer.

With that said, I have an important announcement to make.

Attention, members of the Los Angeles Galaxy first team. You are in the 2012 Major League Soccer season. After a solid 2011 campaign without a single loss at home, I am stripping you of your status as the "only club that matters in MLS" and designating you as a club on par with the other 18 teams in the league.

Dismissed. But before I dismiss all of you...here are the player ratings.

Josh Saunders 6.5

To be fair, Saunders worked his tail off in stopping shots for a majority of the match. However, he simply could not stop enough of them. This score is a testament to a subpar defense that never really got it together late in the Second half.

Sean Franklin 2

It's amazing how one poor clearance can affect your score. That own goal was committed with very little confidence, and as a result of the howler, the tables were destined to turn on Los Angeles.

A.J.DeLaGarza 4

DeLaGarza needs to build confidence in shot-blocking and making better decisions when making his players. In the sequences that led to the RSL goals, he made poor decisions when marking players like Espindola.

Tommy Meyer 5
In all honesty, I should be giving Meyer a 3 for not doing enough to hold down the RSL attack late in the second half. But, since this is his first game, I decided to be a bit nice to Meyer and applaud him on a brave performance. Nice work you did, but you're not going to go far kid. At least not yet. You have a long ways yet to go.

Todd Dunivant 4
Quiet game. Didn't really do much to impress, but the scoreline really affected Dunivant's player rating as I feel he could have done more to stop the Real Salt Lake attack late.

Landon Donovan 5
Not up to health. He's still reeling from the flu and bronchitis and may be left gasping for air on Wednesday against Toronto. Donovan just didn't have it in him.

David Beckham 6
Other than the delivery to Edson Buddle in the 71st minute, David Beckham's deliveries were easily cleared. The set piece slot machine didn't pay very well on Saturday, and it shows in his player rating.

Marcelo Sarvas 6.5
This wasn't exactly a breakthough game for Marcelo Sarvas, but it was a breakthrough game nonetheless, as he dominated his part of the midfield to put on a stellar effort in what was a losing battle. Arena subbing Sarvas out was essentially akin to raising the white flag.

Mike Magee 5
Mike Magee was one of a handful of Galaxy players victimized by inept finishing. The Magee Magic missed the mark, and this raises a red flag heading into Wednesday.

Robbie Keane 6.5
Keane tried his best to get open, and he did get a lot of chances. In the end, the man couldn't finish, and one can only wonder if he will ever score this month.

Edson Buddle 7
Best player on the pitch once again. Scored what could have been the winner with 19 minutes and change to spare. Ultimately, the defense could not hold up.

Juninho 2
There is a reason why Juninho was offloaded by Sao Paulo in the offseason and is in a second loan spell with the Galaxy. He's rusty, slow, and got torched in the Espindola goal late. Not an impressive performance off the bench. He'll stay as a sub for a while in league play.

Michael Stephens NR
Chad Barrett NR
Neither of these two players did much for me to give them a score, so they get a pass on Saturday.

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This isn't a shock score by any stretch of the imagination, but it is a crystal-clear example of how tough the MLS Western Conference is in 2012. Real Salt Lake begin the year in impressive fashion, defeating the Los Angeles Galaxy 3-1 at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.

Here are six things we learned:

1. Bruce Arena took a gamble...and lost

The hope for Galaxy manager Bruce Arena was that he would be able to see from his first team a similar effort from last Wednesday against Toronto FC. I predicted that he would rest the starters on Saturday, but it looks like I was wrong on that. And Arena paid the price by seeing them burn out late.

2. The Galaxy are their own worst enemy

The fans at Victoria Street found out that their own team can be their own worst enemy. Case in point: the own goal by Sean Franklin that triggered the comeback for Real Salt Lake. A poor 73rd minute clearance attempt by Franklin resulted in a howler that would effectively turn the tables on the home side.

3. Welcome back, Edson

I think it's safe to say that as long as Edson Buddle is able to find the next this season, the Galaxy will be able to get their head in a number of games. Buddle's 71st minute goal will not be the last one, that's for sure. A shame that that was all the No. 14 could muster.

4. The boys simply can't finish

The shots don't lie: eight of the 16 attempts made on goal by the Los Angeles Galaxy were off target, whereas for Real Salt Lake, only five attempts on goal were off. The lack of effectiveness to finish is the No. 1 issue that will be on Arena's mind right now heading into Wednesday.

5. Real Salt Lake are ready to contend

This result is an example of Real Salt Lake looking to make a statement as a contender for some league hardware. It doesn't look like there are much health issues, and with Javier Morales and Fabian Espindola getting on the score sheet in emphatic fashion, it's safe to say that RSL are going to be all right in 2012.

6. There is hope for Toronto

Meanwhile, Toronto FC have to look at the game film from this match and have reason to believe that they can seal the deal Wednesday at the Home Depot Center in front of a reduced crowd. The Galaxy seem to be worn out from all the games played, including preseason, and the Reds will look to take advantage of LA's lack of match fitness when CCL resumes.

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After another early exit in the playoffs, the New York Red Bulls underwent sweeping changes to their roster.

The defense is a mystery. Will the endless revolving door at goalie ever be settled? With Rafa Marquez moving to the midfield and Tim Ream moving to England, who will step up in the center of the defense?

But something the Red Bulls did in abundance last year—although not always opportunistically—was score goals. The team was tied for second in the league in goals scored (50) with Sporting Kansas City and behind only the Seattle Sounders (56).

The team’s biggest acquisition in the offseason was another forward. It now has four forwards that would start on any club. The depth is necessary, though, due to the constant questionable status of the players’ availabilities.

The logjam on offense combined with the uncertainty of who will actually be around to play makes for one good question the Red Bulls should be excited to answer: who will score the most goals on the team in 2012?

Right away, with so much depth up top, it’s fair to say that forwards Corey Hertzog, Jose Angulo and Jhonny Artega won’t get much playing time and won’t be in the running.

Last year, six players—Thierry Henry, Luke Rodgers, Dane Richards, Joel Lindpere and Juan Agudelo—accounted for 43 of the team’s goals, or 86 percent. Add in Kenny Cooper to that group and there should be a large outpouring of offense.

Henry was the team’s leading goal scorer last year with 14 goals. He is the favorite to lead the attack again this year. With so much big game experience and talent at his feet, the French Designated Player is in the elite class of MLS players.

He’s fresh off a loan with Arsenal in the offseason, where he proved some critics wrong and showed that he still is a top-level player. In seven appearances with the club, he scored three goals, including two game-winners. He returns to the Red Bulls in shape, in form and healthy.

That health question is the big one for Henry, though. He played in only 26 games last season and his injuries seemed to flare up when the team went on the road and was going to play on artificial turf. Players coming over from Europe don’t like playing on that surface, but Henry is obviously an important player to the team and will have to play more games to really help the Red Bulls get over the hump.

Cooper, with Portland last season, scored eight goals. With greater individual talent surrounding him, he should be able to continue his success. His ability to use his size and play as a target forward should not only help the possession-obsessed Red Bulls, but allow Henry to make runs off of him and create great combination play.

Cooper has a lot working in his favor as far as playing time goes: He stays healthy and the other top options at forward could miss a lot of action this year.

Luke Rodgers was a revelation last year for New York. He scored nine goals (second on the team) and gave the team a toughness and attitude that has been missing for quite some time. He works well with Henry and brings a lot of energy to the pitch.

The problem is that his attitude in the past has gotten him into trouble. Those issues have come to head now as they have held up Rodgers’ work visa approval and return to the country.

A verdict was supposed to be reached Thursday, but no concrete outcome came of it. He will miss at least the season opener. No one is sure how long this process will take, reducing the number of games he could play in. This issue comes on top of Rodgers inability to stay healthy; he played only 23 games last year due to various injuries.

Rodgers can’t score if he can’t get on the field, and right now his outcome is not looking too good.

Juan Agudelo scored six goals last season, but he fell out of favor with the coaching staff fast. The emergence of Rodgers kept Agudelo on the bench. But even when Rodgers was injured, the coaching staff preferred to go with Richards as a forward and use Mehdi Ballouchy in the midfield then start Agudelo.

There is some speculation that coach Hans Backe is not a fan of young American players, which certainly does not bode well for Agudelo. The forward will also miss time this season to be with the US U-23 team in Olympic qualifying and possibly the Olympics.

It will be tough for the coaching staff to feel comfortable playing Agudelo, knowing he will be leaving them for a lengthy period of time and have to fill his spot. The more time Agudelo spends on the bench, the more frustrated he gets, and there have been some whispers that he will soon make a move to Europe.

The situation with Agudelo and the club could get ugly.

On the wings, Lindpere (seven goals) and Richards (seven) provide a lot of offense. Lindpere is the team’s most valuable player; he started every game, played all but 12 minutes the entire season, provides great service to the forwards (he was also tied for the team lead with seven assists) and knows when to go forward himself. His effort and durability keep him in the game and always makes him a threat.

Richards uses his great speed to get behind the defense or blowing past them with the ball. He’s very attack-minded but often makes poor decisions on the ball. He also is not as talented individually as some of the other players and relies on other teams focusing on them as well as their vision and passing skills to create more opportunities for himself.

So who stands out for the Red Bulls on offense? Henry seems to be the favorite with Cooper and Lindpere giving him a run for his money.

But with a defense as questionable and untested as the Red Bulls have, the New York offense will have to once again be a strong unit and score often to keep the team on the right track as they fight for their first-ever MLS Cup.

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Today in my Washington Examiner column, which did not make the online edition, I looked at what might be a bold new way to cover soccer.

Major League Soccer will make its debut on NBC Sports Network Sunday at 3 p.m. EST as FC Dallas will play host to the New York Red Bulls. It is the first game of a brand new three-year deal between the network and the league.

Well, NBC plans to use a new way to broadcast soccer that has not been tried before and they feel strongly that it will work out well. Play-by-play voice Arlo White will call the action from the broadcast booth—as is the normal practice—but his broadcast partner, color analyst Kyle Martino, will be positioned on the field between the benches where he will follow the action.

If this sounds a familiar, it is. NBC hockey coverage introduced the “Inside the Glass” rinkside analyst to the sport and it has become an industry standard. So why not use it to allow Martino the chance to get a better feel for the game from field level?

In a conference call this week with the network about the coverage, I asked both White and Martino about this new style of broadcasting soccer.

White on calling a game without having his partner in the booth next to him

”Well for many years in Seattle I did the Sounders games without a color analyst so being alone in the broadcast booth will not be an issue with me. Kyle can hear every word that I say and we have developed a rapport that works with him on the field and frankly, I don’t think the viewer at home will care if we are sitting next to each other or not. We did a dress rehearsal in Orlando a few weeks ago and it went quite well. I really think having Kyle on the field near the action will be a great thing.”

Martino on doing analysis from the field

”First of all, I have a monitor so I will be able to comment on any and all of the replays. But as a former player being down on the field gives me a real feel for the sense of the action. I will have access to hear what the players and coaches are saying and the flow of information between Arlo and me should be fine. [Coordinating Producer, MLS on NBC] Pierre Moossa, who will direct all the telecasts along with [NBC Sports executive producer] Sam Flood, have proven this can work. I look forward to showing the fans how something new will simply make things better.”   

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