At the end of the MLS 2010 season we find ourselves awash in end-of-season awards.   After some thought, I’ve decided to create one of my own…"Most Valuable Country 2010” (MVC).

Okay, I’ll admit that I entered into this thinking with a certain bias.  I have two nations that are close to my heart—both in soccer-wise and otherwise—the USA and Colombia. 

Since this is an American league, dominated by American players, I excluded the USA. 

So I’ll admit it, I entered into this with the belief that my adopted second country had the inside track.  But, I did my best to be objective by sifting through the official roster lists and comparing country contributions.

(Note that the MLS official player roster “NATL” (nationality) breakdown was almost frustrating enough for me to forgo this whole idea…many players were listed according to where they were born…which is fine, but means very little in the international soccer world.  U.S. International Pablo Mastroeni as Argentine?  "Reggae Boy" Andy Williams as Canadian?  Ugh.  So, when I talk about how many numbers of players come from these countries, please understand your mileage will vary.)

Here are a few thoughts…

Argentina makes a very strong case for being MVC as it brings 10 players to the mix and two of them, at least, are top-class in Javier Morales and Guillermo Barros Schelotto.   Add to those, the effective Fabian Espindola who was a solid contributor for Real Salt Lake, and a few other solid players, and you have a credible argument.   And, if the ability to play a pickup game against some of the other countries in the showdown mattered, they bring a decent goalkeeper in Dario Sala.

Brazil’s argument about its MVC candidacy is a strong one. However, despite the undeniable depth and skillfulness of the MLS Brazilians, there are more role-players than stand-outs in that 16.  Geovanni, Fred, Miglioranzi, etc., all good players, but I don’t see too many superstars—at least not this year.

Jamaica offers an impressive array of talent.  Eleven MLS players are Jamaican internationals. Omar Cummings and Donovan Rickets lead a very strong talent pool.   Andy Williams, Tyrone Marshall and Dane Richards all offer a glimpse into the strong role-players that Jamaica brings to bear in MLS.

Other honorable mentions go to Canada, Costa Rica and Ghana.  Canada, in particular, brings a dozen players, and Dwayne De Rosario is their clear standout. Pat Onstad, Julian de Guzman and Will Johnson add some depth to the proceedings. 

Both Costa Rica and Ghana have seven MLS players with solid resumes.  Gonzalo Segares, Leo Gonzales and stellar newcomer Alvaro Saborio show the combination of skill and tenacity frequently displayed by better Costa Rican sides.   Patrick Nyarko, Dominic Oduro offer a taste of the speed and skill of Ghanian soccer.

But Colombia’s contribution trumps them all.

Starting in defense Jamison Olave, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Wilman Conde and Jair Benitez are top-notch MLS defenders.

Colombia’s midfield contribution to MLS could have started and ended with David Ferreira and that would have been a strong enough argument right there.   Ferreira is quite possibly the best player in MLS this year, a thought shared by a just-defeated Landon Donovan after FC Dallas—with Ferreira pulling the string—ran up a 3-0 victory.  

Colombia also provided us with Roger Torres, who shows significant potential—a potential Ferreira in the making?

At forward, Juan Pablo Angel and Fredy Montero are very different forwards, but both of them are inarguably among the top forwards in MLS.

So, emotion aside… I don’t see any real argument that (outside of the USA) Colombia was the country that brought the most to MLS this year. 

Congratulations Colombia, Soccer Soap Box tips our sombrero vueltiao to you.   

Enjoy your phony award.

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On November 21st, the MLS cup final will be played, for the first time in Canada, at BMO Field in Toronto.

Last year, Real Salt Lake and the L.A. Galaxy slugged it out for Major League Soccer's top prize at Qwest Field in Seattle. Normally a football stadium, Qwest Field drew a respectable attendance of 46,011, the largest crowd for the MLS cup since 2002.

The 2009 season marked only the second time the MLS cup has been played at football-specific stadium since 2003, thanks to the rise of soccer-specific buildings across North America. While I like the idea of more smaller soccer stadiums housing MLS teams, I believe the championship game should be played at a more bigger facility.

So with the 2010 edition dawning, I got thinking: Which football stadium could host the MLS cup final in the near future? 

Note: The following stadiums have never hosted the MLS cup or hosted it only once.

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Here's an open secret: MLS is flustered. The illustrious sides of the Los Angeles Galaxy and New York Red Bulls were eliminated. Two clubs that have fewer, yet still dedicated, fans made it to the final of MLS Cup 2010. 

Meet the Colorado Rapids and FC Dallas, your two finalists contending for the league cup. The Rapids, a team that's been ignored for consistently finishing around the playoff bubble range and FCD, the club that's been the laughingstock of the league due to their meager attendances.

They've been rather unpopular within their local media, but have been gaining some media credibility only recently, thanks to their success in the playoff chase. 

The fact that they've even made it to the Cup finals has already generated numerous Denver Post stories. The Dallas Morning News, on the other hand, found it to be too much of a chore to send a reporter out to Los Angeles to cover the story. Thankfully, they found a freelance writer. 

The sole fact Colorado made it to the finals has generated incredible interest from the Rapids' media, while FCD might get some mild interest if they win. 

An appearance has given Colorado's media time to catch up with the rest of the local soccer media from other American markets, while Dallas might be to finally trot along. 

But one victory can be all Dallas needs to jump start their attention to the local media. 

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Toronto, Ontario, Canada is a wonderful city in late autumn. If you will forgive the forecast for a few showers, the air is cool, crisp and refreshing, and peacefulness abounds amidst the hustle and bustle of the country's economic, financial and cultural center. But for one day, at a stadium called BMO Field located in the heart Exhibition Place, there will be chaos, there will be emotion, and there will be football.

As in association football.

The 2010 Major League Soccer Cup will be staged for the very first time in this stadium, erected in late April 2007.

The home of the MLS Eastern Conference's Toronto FC, one of soon-to-be three teams from Canada competing in MLS (the Vancouver Whitecaps will be playing next season, and the Montreal Impact will follow suit in 2012), BMO Field will showcase two sides from the Western Conference, whose teams have shown their superior pedigree against their Eastern counterparts.

In one corner: the Colorado Rapids of Commerce City, Colorado. A club owned by the great Stan Kroenke of Kroenke Sports Enterprises, the Rapids will look to avenge their 1997 setback to DC United and hoist the trophy on a Rocky Mountain High.

In the other corner: Football Club Dallas of Frisco, Texas. A club owned by the Hunt Sports Group, FC Dallas make their first-ever appearance to an MLS Cup Final and are riding on a huge wave on momentum into the shores of Lake Erie after defeating the outgoing champions Real Salt Lake and Supporters Shield winner Los Angeles Galaxy in the playoffs.

This is a budding rivalry between the two sides, highlighted by the Rapids' recent successes over the Hoops in the 1996, 2005 and 2006 MLS Cup Playoffs. Colorado are out to provide more of the same, while Dallas look to serve on an ice cold maple leaf dish some hard-earned revenge.

Let's take a look at the two teams that will battle it out for the prize on Nov. 21.


Colorado Rapids

Gary Smith's Colorado Rapids hold a unique honor of being the first-ever team to have won both the Eastern and Western Conferences of the MLS Cup Playoffs They finished the 2010 MLS regular season with a 12-8-10 record (46 points), good for seventh place overall and the third seed in the MLS Eastern Conference bracket.

In the Eastern Conference Semifinals the Rapids faced a stern challenge from the Columbus Crew. In the first leg, team captain Pablo Mastroeni scored a goal in the 23rd minute to win the first leg at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City 1-0.

The second leg saw Columbus jump out to a 2-0 lead late in the second half. All hope seemed lost for the Rapids until Conor Casey scored in the 84th minute to force extra time and penalties (there is no away goals rule in the semis, which would have seen Colorado off to the conference championship).

Colorado converted all five of its penalties in the shootout and watched the attempt from the Crew's Brian Carroll miss high and well out of range to progress to the conference championship, where the San Jose Earthquakes awaited.

The result? A 1-0 victory over the Quakes. What was an intended delivery for Omar Cummings instead found the net for Japan's Kosuke Kimura in the 42nd minute to send the Rapids back to their first MLS Cup Final since 1997.

Cummings and Casey are the two driving forces behind Colorado's scoring success. Cummings has 14 goals for the season, while Casey has chipped in another 14 when adding his goal this postseason. Casey is also solid as a provider, with six assists in 2010. However, Jamie Smith has been the team's leading assists man, with eight to his credit.

The Rapids won the Eastern Conference through sound defending and tactical marking. The play of Kimura, Drew Moor, Anthony Wallace, Marvell Wynne and Wells Thompson will be key to Colorado's chances.

Defensively, Matt Pickens, the Abraham Lincoln of the team, has been nothing short of spectacular. Pickens finished the 2010 MLS regular season with an 11-8-10 record, 88 saves, a 1.10 goals against average and a 73.3 percent save percentage.

Whatever Colorado does, it needs to place the ball at the feet of Casey and Cummings. Think of it this way. If all goes as planned, the combination of Casey and Cummings will capture the cup for Colorado in Canada. That's a lot of C's, for the record, but an "A" performance will need to be in order to send the Rapids out on a Rocky Mountain High.


FC Dallas

The wait is over.

Schellas Hyndman's FC Dallas are in the MLS Cup for the very first time in their long history. And they did it by defeating two of the top teams in the MLS Western Conference, placing them as favorites on Sunday. You want momentum? This is how you gain it.

The Hoops came close in 1996, losing to the Rapids and in 1999, losing to the Los Angeles Galaxy, both in the Western Conference Championship. Since then, they never got to come within touching distance of the MLS Cup Final for over a decade.

Until now.

In the regular season, FC Dallas finished with a 12-4-12 record (50 points), good for fourth place overall and the third seed in the Western Conference bracket.

In the first leg of their Western Conference Semifinal with Real Salt Lake at Frisco's Pizza Hut Park, a 44th minute goal from Jeff Cunningham combined with an 88th minute strike from super sub Eric Avila proved to be the difference in their 2-1 victory.

The second leg at Sandy, Utah's Rio Tinto Stadium saw more of the same from the Hoops. A Dax McCarty goal in the 17th minute gave FC Dallas a 3-1 lead on aggregate. After RSL's Robbie Findley evened the score 1-1 in the second leg, the Hoops held on to win 3-2 on aggregate and face the Los Angeles Galaxy, the 2010 MLS Supporters' Shield winners, in the Western Conference Championship.

No one among among the 27,000, outside of the team and the traveling supporters of the Inferno, thought that FC Dallas would make the third time the charm. Well, the boys from Frisco made it the charm...with authority.

MLS league MVP candidate David Ferreira may have made a strong case to garner the award with his 26th minute strike off a solid delivery from Marvin Chavez. A 54th minute goal from George John as well as a 73rd minute goal from Chavez was all the Hoops needed to give FC Dallas an impressive 3-0 shutout victory over the Galaxy.

Ferreira now has nine goals this season to go with 14 assists, including his efforts in the MLS Cup Playoffs. Colorado will have a tough assignment in having to stop David Ferreira's playmaking.

Not only can Ferreira score, but he can also hurt the Rapids by placing the ball at the feet of Chavez and Brek Shea, who finished the 2010 regular season with five goals. Watch for Atiba Harris to make a statement with his speed and finishing. Harris ended 2010 with four goals and two assists.

The backline of John, Ugo Ihemelu, Jackson Goncalves and Jair Benitez will be important in stopping Cummings and Casey. Watch for the play of Dax McCarty to dictate the tempo when the Hoops have the ball.

Goalkeeper Kevin Hartman seems to have shaken off the injury suffered earlier this year, and pulled a sensational performance on Sunday against his old team, the Galaxy.

Hartman has a 10-1-8 record to go with 56 saves, a 0.62 GAA, and a 78.9 percent save percentage to finish 2010.


Prediction

This is FC Dallas's to lose. How can you go wrong with David Ferreira on your side? He continues to show the doubters why he should be MVP in Major League Soccer. The 4-5-1 system clogged Los Angeles at the Home Depot Center and this will be a test for the Rapids to overcome.

Both teams played to 1-1 and 2-2 draws, respectively, at DSG and PHP. The winner on Sunday will have dictated the tempo, played a sound, tactical game, and most importantly, finished their chances.

I really like the Hoops' chances of earning their first star to put on top of their crest. Take this scoreline to the bank!

FC Dallas 3, Colorado Rapids 1

Kickoff is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET and will be televised by ESPN and ESPN Deportes.

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It's a cruel irony, in the case of Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy, that the two teams that close out the 2010 regular season are not only the teams that they suffered their last defeats to, but are the same opponents that will be clashing at BMO Field in Toronto, Ontario, Canada for the 2010 MLS Cup.

The third time was the charm for Schellas Hyndman's FC Dallas to make their first-ever MLS Cup appearance with an emphatic 3-0 victory over the Galaxy before 27,000 at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.

What a disastrous display, Bruce Arena. I swore you were ready for this.

And I sure that a certain MLSSoccer.com columnist by the name of Simon Borg (more on him in a bit)—in spite of all the hate he has received from bastions of fans on BigSoccer and maybe elsewhere—was exonerated tonight.

And I mean exonerated. This is a performance that has to make the Hoops the favorite to win the Anschutz.

I can't see how David Ferreira—who probably deserves league MVP after this performance—and the rest of FC Dallas can't silence the Colorado Rapids up in the frozen north next Sunday.

A matter of great speed, great pace and excellent ball movement was all it took for FC Dallas to silence the doubters and throw themselves at the forefront of history.

Getting a goal against the run of play, utilizing the counterattack and the transition in the 4-5-1 system (which Bruce Arena may want to try using one of these days), and jamming the midfield is how FC Dallas will stymie Colorado. It was beautiful football from the hoops.

And this is also a nod to parity in Major League Soccer.

I tell you: MLS may be the most parity-infested league in the world. It's not like it was in the old days of the 90's, when it was DC United on top of everybody else. Now anyone can beat anyone on their day or night.

This is not the Premier League, where there are a select handful of legit contenders in your Chelseas and Manchester Uniteds and Liverpools and Arsenals of the world that can get their hands on that 30" x 17" x 9.8" hunk of hardware.

Because of the parity that distinguishes Major League Soccer from other competitive leagues around the world, we now have two sides that have a shot at gaining their first star to their crest.

I don't understand why the Galaxy did not show up for this contest. They couldn't finish, they couldn't solve El Gato, whom you all know as Kevin Hartman, LA's original Big Cat, and their defending was a babyshambles.

Whenver you have fringe players like Marvin Chavez and George John scoring, it's not gonna be your night if you are FC Dallas's opposition.

Mike Magee probably should take the biggest blame for the lack of execution down at Victoria Street on Sunday. He was horrible, didn't have any confidence on the ball, and stunk to high heaven when it came to running the sequences in Arena's 4-4-2 diamond system.

In fact, the Galaxy FO, if they know what's good for them, should not protect Magee for the upcoming Expansion Draft. Portland or Vancouver, you can have him; we don't need him.

Juninho needs to come back to the Galaxy for the long haul. This young Brazilian from Sao Paulo's got potential to be a star, but he couldn't execute and just didn't have the right shot selection in a match that probably asked a little too much.

If Edson Buddle is to replicate the production he had this year, he has to avoid getting manhandled. The Galaxy need to find another forward in the SuperDraft who can take some of the slack off the American Pele.

It didn't look like this was going to be his night.

David Beckham has to work on his fitness. He's still in preseason mode and probably won't be back in season mode until next season starts.

Landon Donovan had a fair performance but should have kept the intensity that he maintained earlier this season. Could have used it.

And finally, the Galaxy back line showed why they are the unit I have called out all season. Terrible breakdown against the Hoops.

I swore I was seeing a group of clowns with the speed of tree trunks posing as the back four of Los Angeles. It was a joke of an effort, and Ferreira, John and Chavez exploited those weaknesses to perfection.

This was a dog and pony show for the Los Angeles Galaxy tonight against FC Dallas. Make no mistake about it. It was a disgraceful way to end their MLS Cup campaign.

And now, would you believe it: here comes another dog and pony show in the form of a meaningless friendly against the Newcastle United Jets at EnergyAustralia Stadium in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia to close out the calendar year of games.

I have to be wondering if a certain Branko Čulina is studying Hyndman's tactics and perhaps ingraining it into the players for this match.

And the other question I am wondering is: will the Galaxy even bother to show up, let alone win?

Kickoff for the Galaxy vs. Newcastle Jets is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 27, at 7:30 p.m. AEST/12:30 a.m. PT/3:30 a.m. ET.

Simon Borg...well done, that man

Met up with Simon Borg, MLSSoccer.com columnist at the FC Dallas match. He was following tabs next to me in the press box. "People don't understand how good FC Dallas is," he says when I noted that he is a supporter of the Hoops.

Now I don't dislike Simon, but I was quick to note that on BigSoccer, he's made his own share of enemies from Los Angeles, Columbus, Chicago, and several other fan bases and individuals. Borg told me that this was all a way to get MLSSoccer.com some reputation.

There's always the adage "Haters Gonna Hate," but I take it this way, when you have your share of detractors, you know you're doing a good job. Simon agrees. The exonerated Simon Borg of MLSSoccer.com.

Well done, that man.

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I'm a soccer fanatic. A season-ticket holder to the Portland Timbers, I can't wait until they make their debut in MLS next year. Every Saturday—and Sunday—is spent watching the Premiership on FSC (to the consternation of my wife).

I love the flow of the game, the strategy and the anticipation of the development of the play.

I would like to show my allegiance to the American league by tuning in to watch MLS.

There's just one problem.

The likes of Brian Dunseth.

Dunseth is a commentator for Fox Soccer Channel. He's an expert in the painfully obvious. His vocabulary might be 1,000 words.

If Vin Scully is jazz, Brian Dunseth is elevator music.

I don't watch MLS because the skill of the game is below the Premiership (though it most obviously is). I don't watch it because listening to Dunseth is more annoying than listening to a screaming 2-year-old.

The executives at MLS still have't figured out their audience, or their product.

The MLS just isn't a great product yet, and they need commentators who can sell the game. Tommy Smythe and Andy Gray are two examples of excellent British commentators. They can take a boring game and make it interesting simply with their analysis and banter. They provide insight into the strategy of the game that is both interesting and educational.

Dunseth, on the other hand, is simply annoying.

He essentially says exactly what is happening on the screen. An example of his recent coverage of the Colorado-San Jose playoff game:

"Convey makes a left foot shot. Cronin, big first touch. Brian Johnson on the left. Cut-off by Mullin."

Wow! Riveting stuff.

Someone needs to explain to Dunseth that viewers are watching the game and can determine the action on the screen. This isn't radio.

His commentary reads like short sentences designed to teach a 6-year-old to read. They're basic, boring and painfully, painfully uninteresting.

The sad truth is that every time Fox tries to insert an American commentator, they are just awful (see Foudy, Julie and Stone, Rob). The strategy seems to be find a former player and stick them in the broadcast booth.

Bad strategy.

Dunseth was a former MLS player of some notoriety. He looks, and sounds, like a frat boy/male model. Nice to look at, but I just wish he would keep his mouth closed.

The best sports commentators, in my opinion, are rarely ex-players. Vin Scully, Howard Cosell, Bob Costas and Marv Albert were never successful players. They are broadcasters and masters of their craft.

So, until FSC can figure it out and get some broadcasters that don't make me want to turn off the TV and stick my head in the oven, I'll be watching the Premiership and tuning out MLS.

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LA Galaxy and FC Dallas will be facing each other tonight for a spot at the MLS Cup. Both teams are part of the MLS Western Conference and have come this far.

The stakes are high for both teams; both will be playing to win. It has not been an easy road for these teams, though, and both know it.

The winner will be facing the victorious Colorado Rapids who have a berth in the MLS Cup after defeating the San Jose Earthquakes.

Let us take a look at the two teams in order to make a prediction.

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The Colorado Rapids and the San Jose Earthquakes are in the MLS East Finals, one game away from the MLS Cup. 

Each team has made the MLS Semi-Finals twice before in their histories, with San Jose going on to win two MLS titles and the Rapids never advancing to the MLS Cup.

This year's tale of the tape has the seventh (Colorado) and eighth (San Jose) place finishers in the MLS table battling it out in a one-game, winner-takes-all shot at the Final. 

Because of MLS' somewhat odd table/conference playoff scheme, both Colorado and San Jose ended up playing in the Eastern Conference playoff bracket as the #5 (Colorado) and #6 (San Jose) seeds.

San Jose defeated the number one team in the East, the high-spending New York Red Bulls with Juan Pablo Angel, Thierry Henry,and Rafa Marquez 3-2 in the aggregate score, including their 3-1 pasting of the Red Bulls on the road in New York.

The Rapids defeated the No. 2 team in the East, the perennial MLS powerhouse Columbus Crew, in Colorado 1-0.  In Columbus, the game ended 2-1 in favor of the Crew, or 2-2 aggregate, which forced two scoreless fifteen minute overtime periods, followed by penalty kicks. 

The Rapids were a perfect 5-for-5 on their penalties, and Columbus' last kicker, Brian Carroll, couldn't handle the pressure and skied the last attempt over the crossbar for a Rapids win.  

On to the matchup:

San Jose Earthquakes

The Earthquakes possess MLS Golden Boot winner Chris Wondolowski, whose 18 goals out of 34 is the second highest percentage of team goals in MLS history. 

Wondolowski's run at the end of the season was truly marvelous, as he scored 4 goals, including a hat trick, in his last two regular season games to take the title away from USMNT 2010 World Cup player Edson Buddle, and put his team in the eighth spot for the playoffs. 

In addition, Wondolowski scored the go-ahead goal vs. the Red Bulls to win the quarterfinals for the Earthquakes on aggregate in New York. 

Colorado Rapids

The Rapids possess one of the best striker tandems in MLS in Omar Cummings and Conor Casey, accounting for 27 goals and 9 assists between them, and they have Mac Kandji, the late-season trade from the NYRB coming off the bench for late game support.   

Why The Rapids Will Win

Both teams are getting hot at the right time.  San Jose lost at home 1-0 to high-priced New York, then went on to torch them 3-1 in NY for the win. 

Colorado closed out their season with a tie against FC Dallas, a win against the L.A. Galaxy, and a tie against defending MLS champion Real Salt Lake, eliminated from the playoffs by FC Dallas.  FC Dallas and the Galaxy are in the other Semi-Final for the MLS Cup. 

Balance.  After Wondolowski's 18 goals, the next highest scorer on the Earthquakes has three goals.  Yes, you read that right.  The Cummings-Casey combo is much harder to contain.  Plus, Colorado's second-best scorer, Jeff Larentowicz, managed four goals (wink).

Offense + Defense.  Colorado also has a league 4th best +12 goal differential.  San Jose's goal differential?  +1.  Only the remaining Western Conference semifinalists, LA Galaxy (+18) and FC Dallas (+14) best Colorado in goal differential. 

Midfield.  Colorado's midfield contained Columbus home and away, and should be able to contain a team that squeaked into the playoffs.

Weather and Altitude.  Colorado does well at home.  The Rapids are 8-5-2 at home.  That's right.  They've only lost two games at home this season.  

The temperature at kickoff on Saturday is expected to be 39 degrees and falling.  Colorado has had the chance to practice at this temperature all week long.  San Jose, not so much. 

Prediction

The game will come down to a late goal when San Jose is tired from the altitude and cold. 

Colorado 2-1.

Oh, and where's the MLS Cup being played?  In Toronto ;) 

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For Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy, it's one final chance to home-cook their opponents as the road to MLS Cup 2010 continues. LA will look to cap it all off with a glorified home match against FC Dallas in the 2010 Major League Soccer Western Conference Finals on Nov. 14.

“They’ve got to come here to play us,” LA captain Landon Donovan said. “That’s why we worked so hard all year, to have a chance to play this game to go to the cup at home.”

No travel issues or hostile environment will await the G's—unless they advance and face some fans in Toronto who wished the Reds of Toronto FC were there to represent the MLS Eastern Conference instead of the San Jose Earthquakes or Colorado Rapids.

“It helps next week being at home and we’ve done it in the right way so far," Beckham said. "We need to continue to do that. We’ve been on the road and have done well and won games.

"Being at home obviously gives us the advantage of having our home fans on our backs with us. We’re in a good position but we need to work hard.”

The Galaxy are a balanced 10-2-4 at home and 10-3-3 on the road (including playoff games).

“The first round of the playoffs, there is no advantage in this league," Donovan said. "What you’re really playing for in the regular season is to have the chance to play this home game to go to MLS Cup. Now we’ve done that and we’ve got to take advantage of it.”

A key part of the success as of late for Los Angeles has been the play of midfielder David Beckham.

“What he can do technically on the soccer field, in my opinion, is better than anybody in this league and better than a lot of people around the world,” Donovan said on Wednesday.

Beckham recovered from a torn Achilles tendon in March to make a full recovery and impact from September onward.

“Who knows what our team looks like next year with the Expansion Draft and Re-Entry Draft,” Donovan said. “We have a very good chance to win. This might be one of the last two years that David has if he decides not to play again after next year.

“He understands how crucial that is and if I were him I would want to make the most of it.”

Kickoff between the Galaxy and FC Dallas is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. PT/9:00 p.m. ET and will be televised by ESPN 2 and ESPn Deportes.

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Real Salt Lake striker Alvaro Saborio has just been named MLS Newcomer of the Year for his impressive first season with the team.

Saborio out-polled Thierry Henry and Joel Lindpere from the New York Red Bulls.

He signed with Real Salt Lake in the beginning of the 2010 MLS season as part of a loan agreement between the team and FC Sion in Switzerland. 

Saborio started the MLS season and rose like a meteor with 12 goals and four assists within 27 appearances.

He also left a great impression in the CONCACAF Champions League with six goals for Real Salt Lake. While Saborio and Real Salt Lake are becoming a big hit in the football/soccer world, his contract expires at the end of December 2010.

It appears that Real Salt Lake, Alvaro Saborio and FC Sion are trying to hammer out a deal which would leave the striker in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The response of Saborio has been that if Real Salt Lake wants him to remain with the team, he will do that.

At the present time, there have been no comments about the deals between Real Salt Lake and FC Sion concerning the future of Alvaro Saborio.

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