The 2014 MLS Cup playoffs have been all about managers making perfect tactical adjustments. Mike Petke's usage of Peguy Luyindula helped New York advance to the Eastern Conference Final, while LA's Bruce Arena worked magic with his pairing of A.J. DeLaGarza and Stefan Ishizaki on the right wing in the win over Real Salt Lake. 

FC Dallas boss Oscar Pareja had a chance to add his name to the tactical-genius list Monday night. Instead, he made a few questionable moves that led to his side's elimination at the hands of the Seattle Sounders. 

Pareja's side entered the clash at CenturyLink Field in need of at least one away goal in order to pave their path to the Western Conference Final. Despite a valiant effort, they came up short and drew 0-0 with the Sounders. Seattle advanced on a 1-1 aggregate thanks to a first-leg away goal scored by Osvaldo Alonso. 

The Hoops were handed a golden opportunity to pounce on the hosts after Alonso limped off the pitch with an apparent hamstring injury in the 56th minute. From that point on, Pareja should have adjusted his lineup to attack during every remaining minute of the match. 

Pareja waited until the 80th minute to make his first switch, which turned out to be the wrong one in hindsight. Andres Escobar was inserted into the match in favor of Blas Perez, who is the best forward on the team's roster. 

The experience of Perez could have been useful in the final 10 minutes of a game in which one goal was needed for FC Dallas to advance to take on LA Galaxy in the next round. With Perez absent from the pitch, rookie Tesho Akindele was left to man the forward position. Akindele was quiet during the final 10 minutes up front after playing on the left flank for most of the match. 

Leaving Akindele up front by himself to fight against the experienced duo of Chad Marshall and Zach Scott was not a smart call by the Colombian manager. Had Perez been left in the game, he would have been able to benefit from the crossing abilities of Escobar and Fabian Castillo. 

The second move was a tad questionable, as Walker Zimmerman replaced Moises Hernandez in defense. Zimmerman's insertion allowed Zach Loyd to bomb forward on the flank, but that move did not help FC Dallas as much as Pareja expected. 

Just a minute later, Michel was taken off the pitch in favor of David Texeira in a baffling move. Michel is the best weapon the club has on set pieces, and his absence hurt FC Dallas on a late free-kick, which was taken by Mauro Diaz instead. Diaz's shot from just outside the penalty area caused little threat to the Seattle back four. 

If Michel was still in the match, he could have challenged Seattle 'keeper Stefan Frei with a shot. Even if the Brazilian didn't score on the set piece, he could have set up an opportunity for a rebound among the chaos following the free-kick. 

Not only did Pareja make the wrong personnel moves, he made them too late. Once Alonso was taken off the pitch, FC Dallas should have taken the game to the hosts and punished them with a great chance in front of goal. 

By inserting Escobar for Akindele with just over 30 minutes to go, Pareja would have handed Perez a terrific opportunity to latch on to a cross following a daring run down the wing by Escobar. If more attention was given to Escobar, and his wing counterpart Castillo, a player like Michel would have had a chance to cut through the middle of the pitch and combine with Perez in tight space. 

The next man entered into the game should have been Texeira, who was given only four minutes to make an impact on an important match, Taking out either full-back would have been the right call by Pareja in order to keep the consistency in midfield between Michel and Victor Ulloa. 

By shifting to a two-man front, FC Dallas may have caused more problems against a tiring Seattle back four, especially if a fresh Escobar was able to exploit the spaces on the wing. Pareja did eventually put two forwards up top, but there is no way you can expect an instant impact from the duo of Texeira and Akindele in the final four minutes. 

Learning this rough lesson early on in his managerial career will only make Pareja a better manager in the future. But after his questionable decision making Monday night, the loss will sting for a little while, as FC Dallas were just one goal away from springing a major upset in the Emerald City against a wounded Sounders side. 

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90. 

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With the possibility of playoff elimination staring them in the face, a few stars shined in the second leg of Major League Soccer's Conference Semifinal round. 

The best team performance came from the LA Galaxy, who blew out Real Salt Lake 5-0 at home. Because of the dominant showing, four Galaxy players feature in our Team of the Week. 

Not all the players in the Best 11 from the four second-leg matches this weekend were on the winning side of the coin. There were a few impressive contributors for clubs that are now planning their offseason vacations. 

Here is a look at our MLS Team of the Week from the second leg of the Conference Semifinal round. 

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Seattle Sounders are through to the penultimate round of the Major League Soccer play-offs following Monday's scoreless draw at home to FC Dallas.

Having come out of the first leg of this Western Conference semi-final with a 1-1 draw in Texas, Seattle never needed to score in the return fixture and ended up progressing on the away-goals rule.

Dallas, meanwhile, created plenty of chances on the Pacific Coast but lacked precision in the final third, and at the final whistle questions swirled over manager Oscar Pareja's second-half substitutions.

Overall, several performances stood out from the second leg, as the following slideshow will highlight.

Here are the individual winners and losers from Monday's encounter.

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It wasn't pretty, but the Seattle Sounders advanced to the Western Conference final after a 0-0 draw with FC Dallas on Monday night at CenturyLink Field, moving on by an aggregate score of 1-1 on away goals.

This was the first year that Major League Soccer used the away-goals rule in the playoffs. Away goals don't technically count double—which is often how they're described—but in order to go on, Dallas needed a minimum of one goal on Monday in order to advance.

That gave Seattle the incentive to park the proverbial bus and play for the draw.

Entering the second leg, however, Sounders center back Zach Scott denied that he and his teammates would revert to a defensive position and protect their slim lead.

"We’ve never really adjusted the way we play around a specific result we need to get," Scott said, per MLSsoccer.com's Ari Liljenwall. "We’re not going to bunker in, we’re not going to look for any specific scoreline. We’re just going to play our soccer."

While the Sounders failed to score, it wasn't for a lack of trying. Seattle enjoyed the lion's share of chances and was on the whole the better team on the night.

FC Dallas were game challengers, though.

In the 24th minute, the Sounders were lucky to at the very least not concede a penalty. Scott shoved down and tripped up Dallas midfielder Fabian Castillo in the box, but the referee waved play on.

Kurtis Larson of the Toronto Sun felt that Scott committed a clear penalty:

Richard Whittall wondered if Castillo was punished simply because he was so much faster than the Sounders defense:

The 22-year-old was a constant nuisance for the Sounders back four during the first half, using his blazing speed to get round Seattle's defenders.

In the ninth minute, he cut inside from the right to create a goal-scoring opportunity. His shot was wide of the mark, however, in what was Dallas' best chance in the first half.

Tesho Akindele had a shot on goal after cutting inside from the left in the 45th minute. His effort was high and wide.

While FC Dallas played well, the Sounders arguably were closer to breaking the deadlock.

Clint Dempsey nearly gave Seattle a 1-0 lead seven minutes in. He executed a couple of impressive step-overs to create some separation from the Dallas defense before firing a shot on goal. Dallas goalkeeper Chris Seitz palmed the shot over the bar and away from danger:

A little over 20 minutes later, Michel cleared a Chad Marshall header off the line to deny the Sounders center back a sure goal:

In the 40th minute, Seitz stepped up big once again. Dempsey and Obafemi Martins quickly pinged the ball back and forth, with Dempsey in position to put Seattle ahead from close range. However, Seitz was there to make the save:

On the balance of play, neither team had a discernible advantage through the first 45 minutes. The Sounders posted the stats from the opening frame:

After a scoreless yet entertaining first half, the pace of play slowed down quite a bit in the second half, which was a bit surprising considering Dallas needed a goal to advance from the tie.

FCD lacked much of an attacking threat beyond Castillo, and Seattle manager Sigi Schmid ensured that the Colombian was swarmed by multiple Sounders players at all times, limiting his ability to make an impact on the match.

Things nearly went from bad to worse in the 58th minute after Dempsey had a strong penalty shout turned down by the referee. At the very least, Baldomero Toledo was consistent, having not awarded a penalty for the foul on Castillo in the first half.

Matthew Tomaszewicz of MLS' March to the Match podcast observed that the physicality increases in the MLS playoffs, often an aesthetic detriment:

The overall beauty of the match wasn't helped by Dallas' inability to adapt to how the night was unfolding. Manager Oscar Pareja sat back for the majority of the second half without making any major changes to his lineup or tactics.

MLSsoccer.com's Matthew Doyle was particularly critical of Pareja down the final stretch:

When Pareja made his first sub, which came in the 80th minute, he raised a few eyebrows by taking off Blas Perez, arguably Dallas' best pure goal-scorer. Fox Soccer's Kyle McCarthy questioned the decision-making process behind removing a player like Perez when you needed to score:

Dallas' desperation increased as the clocked ticked toward the 90th minute, but it never offered much of a threat to Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei.

Pareja will be second-guessed in the days and weeks following this aggregate defeat. There's no shame in going out to the Supporters' Shield winners, but his failure to adjust stuck out in the second half.

Meanwhile, the Sounders move on to the conference final, where they'll meet the Los Angeles Galaxy in what is MLS' dream fixture. The Galaxy are the most in-form team in the playoffs right now, and they're facing off against the top seed in the Western Conference. Not to mention it's Clint Dempsey versus Landon Donovan.

The two legs will make for captivating viewing.

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Major League Soccer—CenturyLink Field, Seattle

SEATTLE SOUNDERS 0-0 FC DALLAS

Seattle advance on away goals

Referee: Baldomero Toledo

Lineups

Seattle Sounders: Frei, Yedlin, Marshall, Scott, Gonzalez, Evans, Alonso, Pineda, Pappa, Dempsey, Martins

FC Dallas: Seitz, Hernandez, Loyd, Hedges, Watson, Ulloa, Michel, Castillo, Akindele, Diaz, Perez

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After leaving Rio Tinto Stadium with no away goals in the first leg of their Western Conference Semifinal series with Real Salt Lake, the LA Galaxy made a massive statement with a 5-0 home win in the second leg. 

From the first minute until the final whistle, the Galaxy embarrassed the defending Western Conference champion at StubHub Center to get one step closer to qualifying for the MLS Cup. 

In the victory, every single player that manager Bruce Arena named to the starting 11 played a key role in shutting down one of the most dynamic teams in the league. Not only did Landon Donovan and Robbie Keane come to life, but the Galaxy dominated in their own half and the midfield as well. 

While the headlines may tell us about Donovan's hat-trick in his final trip to the postseason, all of the pieces came together perfectly for the Galaxy in the triumphant victory. 

Every goal scored by the Galaxy saw terrific combination play from multiple players in order to break down the strong Real Salt Lake back four. 

The first goal, which was netted by Donovan, was the product of two tweaks to the lineup made by Arena. Stefan Ishizaki and A.J. DeLaGarza were handed starts on the right to provide more width to the squad. 

That width showed itself in the buildup to Donovan's first strike. The move started when Ishizaki received a cross-field pass from Juninho. Once the ball found its way to the right side of the pitch, the Galaxy worked their magic. 

The Swedish winger attracted two defenders, which allowed DeLaGarza to cut in and chip a pass over to the head of Donovan. The middleman on the play was Marcelo Sarvas, who played a perfect ball to DeLaGarza. 

"When we're playing well. We create a lot of chances like that and this team is fun to play on. You don't want the game to end," Donovan said after the match.

The little piece of detail that started the buildup to the second goal was a tackle by Robbie Rogers in the attacking third. Once Rogers forced the turnover, the Galaxy began their precision passing on the way to Keane's 20th-minute strike. 

Keane impressed with his instincts, as he ran back behind the ball to stay onside so he could slot home the pass from Donovan. Small moments like the run by Keane and tackle by Rogers separate contenders from pretenders in the postseason. 

With a two-goal advantage, the Galaxy did not sit back and try to defend their lead. They did the right thing and continued to pounce because RSL just could not contain them. 

The strong defense played a role in creating the third goal, as Juninho dispossessed Javier Morales in RSL's attacking third. The ball found the feet of Omar Gonzalez, who played the ball out to Gyasi Zardes to kickstart another impressive team goal. 

Donovan sprinted right past Tony Beltran, who had a terrible night marking the American legend, to latch on to a pass from Keane to beat Rimando for a second time. 

Rimando said after the match that he doesn't see anyone beating the Galaxy in the postseason, per Chris Kamrani of The Salt Lake Tribune: 

The picking apart of the RSL defense was not over with, as the fourth goal produced another example of team fluidity. Rogers took a backheel pass from Zardes and played it into Keane. The Irishman then found Sarvas, who proceeded to net the fourth goal. 

Donovan made RSL's defending look amateur to complete his hat-trick in the 72nd minute. With the attention on Keane, Donovan looped right around Kyle Beckerman and Chris Schuler in order to get open and finish. 

Donovan left the match in the 83rd minute to a standing ovation. LA Galaxy insider Adam Serrano gave us a glimpse of the scene as he exited: 

By making such a major statement against one of the league's best sides, the Galaxy proved they can be the most complete team in the league when at their best. Say what you want about the Seattle Sounders, who could face the Galaxy in the Western Conference Final with a win over FC Dallas on Monday, but the Galaxy are a wonderfully skilled machine when firing on all cylinders. 

Donovan and Keane get all the credit, but the midfield machine powered by Juninho and Sarvas controls the pace of the game. The duo silenced the impact of Beckerman and Morales throughout Sunday's win.

The duo is also capable of shutting down Seattle's midfield muscle Osvaldo Alonso, who is seen as the best defensive midfielder in the league, in the next round. Alonso's role with Seattle is similar to the ones of Juninho and Sarvas. All three players earn possession for their respective sides in order to start up the attack. 

If the Galaxy pairing contains Alonso like they did Beckerman and Morales, it may be a long series for the Sounders against the established four-time MLS Cup champion. 

Even when the Galaxy shuffle their parts they are effective. DeLaGarza usually sets up next to Gonzalez at center-back, but he was shifted out to the right in order to create more chances, and to quiet Joao Plata. The diminutive Ecuadorian striker did not record a single shot in the defeat. 

LA saw DeLaGarza star at right-back, and the Galaxy experienced no drop-off in production from Leonardo at center-back. When Leonardo left the match with an injury, Tommy Meyer made the same impact next to Gonzalez.

Not only did the Galaxy look like the best team left in the playoffs Sunday, they made Arena look like the best manager remaining. With a deadly combination like that, we could easily see them lift the MLS Cup on December 7. 

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90. 

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Entering the second leg of the Western Conference semifinal between Real Salt Lake and the Los Angeles Galaxy, many observed that the Galaxy would go as far as Landon Donovan and Robbie Keane could take them.

The two veterans answered the call, scoring four of the Galaxy's five goals in a 5-0 aggregate victory for Los Angeles at the StubHub Center on Sunday evening.

The postseason is the time most coaches ask their star players to shoulder a larger burden in order to propel the team forward. Fox Soccer's Kyle McCarthy noted that throughout the early stages of the MLS Cup playoffs, many of the biggest stars have accepted the added responsibility:

Donovan, who's retiring at the end of the season, was brilliant on the night, notching a hat-trick and hammering Real Salt Lake on the counter-attack. His performance led many, including soccer writer Richard Whittall, to question if Donovan is making the right decision to step away from the game:

ESPN's Bob Ley countered that the 32-year-old could be leaving at the perfect time, before his skills diminish to a larger extent:

Sunday's match is merely another entry in a legendary MLS career.

The Galaxy also get a measure of revenge, having lost to Real Salt Lake in the conference semis last season. That early exit was a major disappointment after the Galaxy brought home back-to-back MLS Cups in 2011 and 2012.

Before the match, Keane commented that despite the matchup being the same, the circumstances were much different than last year's meeting.

"We're certainly in better position than last year in terms of the players that we have this year," he said, per Adam Serrano of LAGalaxy.com. "We have more experienced players and the players that we had last year are a year old and a year better. In terms of that, we're good with the experience that we have."

After a tense first leg in Sandy, Utah, the Galaxy felt much more comfortable on their home pitch, and that was evident in the opening minutes of the match.

Donovan wasted little time breaking the deadlock, scoring on a header in the 10th minute after a perfectly placed cross from A.J. DeLaGarza. The Salt Lake defense was spread thin by the width of the Galaxy attack, leaving Donovan unmarked and all alone in the box.

Matthew Tomaszewicz of MLS' March to the Match podcast commended L.A. for the way in which it used the full width of the pitch to maximum effect:

The goal also snapped Real Salt Lake's 400-plus-minute clean sheet streak:

Keane doubled the Galaxy lead just 10 minutes later. Donovan slid a nice pass across goal that the L.A. striker poked home from close range.

The Galaxy took their 2-0 advantage into the second half. Many expected Real Salt Lake to be much improved in the second 45. The club has plenty of playoff experience, and the halftime break gave manager Jeff Cassar time to regroup his players and change his plan of attack.

Whatever changes Cassar made were undone in the 54th minute. This time it was Keane setting up Donovan with a perfectly weighted through ball that sent Donovan one-on-one with RSL goalkeeper Nick Rimando. Donovan rounded Rimando and finished with a left-footed shot into the open goal.

Even down 2-0, Real Salt Lake were still in the match. They have more than enough talent to make up that kind of gap over a half of soccer. However, with the Galaxy's third goal, the outcome was all but decided.

Marcelo Sarvas made it 4-0 in the 63rd minute, and then Donovan finished off his hat-trick in the 72nd minute before getting subbed off in the 83rd. As you'd expect, the all-time leading goalscorer in MLS history received a massive ovation as he left the pitch, per Serrano:

For Cassar, who's in his first year as Real Salt Lake manager, Sunday will be a humbling experience, but MLSSoccer.com's Matthew Doyle thinks he'll come out stronger as a result:

The system is certainly in place for RSL to make a quick rebound next season, but the sting from this loss will linger for some time.

The Galaxy will play the winner of the other Western Conference semifinal between FC Dallas and the Seattle Sounders. The two clubs meet on Monday night at CenturyLink Field in Seattle having drawn 1-1 in Frisco, Texas.

While the Sounders are the top seed in the Western Conference and won the 2014 Supporters' Shield, the Galaxy may have become the team to beat on the back of Sunday's win.

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The New England Revolution have advanced to the Eastern Conference final after defeating the Columbus Crew 7-3 on aggregate. The Revolution will face the New York Red Bulls in the next round.

Both New York and New England are flying high at the moment, which makes this a matchup between two “teams of destiny” that are very motivated to silence their critics.

The Red Bulls have been in terrific form recently, which has resulted in their first conference final appearance since 2008. New York has lost just twice since October 4, and one of those defeats was to D.C. United in the second leg of their semifinal, which ended up as a meaningless result.

However, New England has been equally, if not, more impressive. The Revolution won 10 of their final 14 matches after losing their previous eight. MVP candidate Lee Nguyen has led the charge with 18 goals and five assists in 32 appearances.

Nguyen has continued his impressive 2014 in the playoffs. He scored twice in the semifinals against the Crew, and has been a standout on one of the most entertaining teams in MLS.

The Red Bulls are no slouch, though. The likes of Thierry Henry and Peguy Luyindula have contributed to their playoff efforts whenever Golden Boot winner Bradley Wright-Phillips is kept in check.

The New York defense has also been a surprise so far. Mike Petke’s side conceded 50 goals in the regular season, which is the joint-highest amount for any playoff team.

The playoffs have been a different story. The Red Bulls have allowed three goals in three matches, conceding just 10 shots in that span. Their regular-season total in the latter category was 171, or just over five per game, so New York has been restricting its opponents’ chances.

Containing New England will be a much more difficult task, especially when Charlie Davies, Teal Bunbury and Kelyn Rowe are all contributing on the attack with Nguyen.

The Revs defense has been solid all year but had troubles against the Red Bulls during the regular season. New England lost 2-0 in their first meeting before falling to New York again the second time around.

It will be a stern test for New England as it guns for the MLS Cup. The addition of Jermaine Jones has given the Revs an extra boost in the playoffs, so the team has significantly improved since the two games against New York.

This will be a very interesting game. Both holding-midfield partnerships are solid, the defenses have been decent, and the offensive firepower is the strength of both teams.

One of these hot teams will be playing in MLS Cup in a few weeks. Very few people expected New England to make this sort of an impact, and New York is the big-market team that’s hoping to exorcise the demons of the last few playoff campaigns. It will be a fascinating conference final.

Stats via MLSsoccer.com unless otherwise noted. 

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The New England Revolution easily qualified for the MLS Eastern Conference final, beating Columbus Crew 3-1 at Gillette Stadium on Sunday to advance 7-3 on aggregate.

The Revolution will face the New York City Red Bulls, who knocked out DC United on Saturday.    

Fans expecting New England to just sit back and defend their lead were quickly reminded that simply isn't their style, with Kelyn Rowe taking a shot on goal within 30 seconds of the opening whistle.

Needing at least three goals to advance to the Eastern Conference final, Columbus predictably committed men forward in an attempt to score an early goal. With Federico Higuain not playing, the onus fell on the creative midfielders to make the difference, with Justin Meram looking lively early.

New England quickly took control of the midfield proceedings, however, and Jermaine Jones in particular seemed to be in excellent form. While possession remained with the Crew, there were no openings to be found early.

Inside MLS saw the same thing:

Columbus had their first chance after a deflected shot fell into the path of Jairo Arrieta, who was beaten to the ball by Revolution goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth, knocking it into Arrieta and out of play.

Lee Nguyen was unusually quiet, with Jones seeing most of the ball in the centre of the pitch for the hosts. Columbus continued attacking with numbers, but lots of sloppy passing and touches saw most possessions in interesting territory go to waste.

Nguyen started growing into the match, impacting the midfield with minimal touches. Goal's Ives Galarcep is happy the potential MVP has finally been called up to the national team:

Arrieta had a fantastic chance to open the score for the visitors, reacting to a cross that caught the defenders by surprise. The forward turned and shot without looking at the goal, and Shuttleworth was able to fling his body to the floor fast enough to punch the ball away.

MLS analyst Matthew Doyle thought Arrieta should have done better with the chance:

Columbus then upped the tempo, and Arrieta had another opportunity minutes later, scuffing his shot from six yards out. The Crew were desperate for a goal in the final minutes of the first half, and as is so often the case, the score fell on the other end of the pitch.

A swift counter move saw Steve Clark leave his line and almost miss the ball. In the confusion that followed, the ball was fired in to Nguyen, who put it in the back of the net with a great first-time finish.

Sport Illustrated's Grant Wahl was sure that was the end of the tie:

A dreadful defensive miscue should have made it 2-0 minutes later, but Charlie Davies inexplicably fired his shot straight at Clark, with the rest of the goal wide open.

Arrieta was once again denied by Shuttleworth in stoppage time before the official called for half-time. That final save was perhaps his best of all, via the league's official Twitter feed:

Columbus crumbled early in the second half, leading to several good chances for the hosts. Teal Bunbury and Nguyen both could have made it 2-0 inside the first five minutes, as this match was as good as over.

The goal eventually came just minutes later. Another quick counter saw Nguyen service Jose Goncalves beautifully, and the forward's odd touch had just enough to squeeze between the post and Clark.

Matthew Doyle was impressed with how the attacker kept himself onside:

The hosts' celebrations were interrupted when Shuttleworth remained motionless on the pitch after unintentional contact with Ethan Finlay. Both teams calmed down after some shoving, and the stopper eventually got up and was able to continue.

The official decided Finlay's contact was no accident, however, showing the young forward the straight red card. KICKTV did not agree whatsoever:

The card brought some bite back to the Crew, and Tony Tchani finally got the visitors on the board with a header in the 69th minute.

Former Revolution star Michael Parkhurst was involved in a clash with Davies, resulting in the Columbus defender's leg bending in an awkward direction. The crowd held its breath, but the former hometown favourite was able to make it off the pitch on his own strength.

Jay Heaps started taking off some of his top players with an eye on the Eastern Conference final and the pace of the match dropped drastically, the hosts happy to just play out the remaining minutes.

Bunbury added a goal of his own, with the Revolution moving up to a monstrous 7-3 lead on aggregate. Columbus lost a second player to a red card after Meram stepped on Kevin Alston's ankle, meaning the Crew will have two players suspended for the season opener.

With a two-man advantage, the Revolution easily held on for the win, as shared by the club's official Twitter feed:

Captain and scorer Goncalves thanked the fans for their fantastic support:

New England will travel to the Red Bulls Arena for the first leg of the Eastern Conference final on Sunday, November 23. While their opponents lost on Saturday, the Revolution will go into the tie coming off back-to-back thrashings of the Crew, playing organised and focused defence and opportunistic offence.

Nguyen keeps adding to his MVP credentials, and with the relentless Jones playing alongside him, the visitors will have the dynamic movement in midfield to keep the ball away from Red Bulls' prolific strikers. 

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The New York Red Bulls have never been able to do it. The MetroStars could not do it either. With a franchise cursed for nearly 20 years, what makes this season different?

With Saturday's 2-1 loss at D.C. United, the Red Bulls advanced to the Conference finals for the first time since 2008. In all likelihood, this sets the Red Bulls up for a showdown with the New England Revolution in the MLS final four. 

That means with three positive results, the Red Bulls could take home the MLS title for the first time in the history of the club. Though the franchise's history in the playoffs is less than stellar (to put it kindly), there is a different feel with this group; this year's New York Red Bulls can win the MLS Cup.

Though New York had a rough first half of the season, in the second half of the season and the playoffs, four things have emerged that suggest the Red Bulls can go all the way.

Tactical Change

In New York's first 25 regular season matches, the club only managed three clean sheets. The Red Bulls were not—and are not—a spectacular defensive team. But the team's defensive record up to that point was acceptable.

In the Red Bulls' 26th regular-season match, manager Mike Petke sent his team out in a different formation to the one he had used previously.

Gone was the 4-4-2 that carried the team to the Supporters' Shield in 2013. Rather, against 2013's MLS champions, Sporting KC, Petke's men lined up in a 4-2-3-1. 

On September 6, Eric Alexander and Dax McCarty lined up as holding central midfielders behind an attacking-midfield three of Lloyd Sam on the right, Peguy Luyindula in the middle, and Thierry Henry on the left. The Red Bulls won 2-1. 

Petke has only altered that central-midfield pairing once since its introduction, which resulted in a 4-0 loss at LA Galaxy.

The numbers since that change speak for themselves. Prior to the second leg against DC United, Matt Doyle at MLSSoccer.com wrote:

In the 10 games (including two playoff games) these two guys have played together in central midfield, New York have scored 20 goals and allowed 10.

In the other 26 games this season, they've scored 39 and allowed 40. This team has become significantly more dangerous in attack, but it's in defense where they've made the real difference. 

McCarty explained the success of the tactical change to Brian Lewis at the New York Post:

When Eric came in and tactically we said our main job is just to protect the back four and make sure we’re solid defensively, the whole team thrived off of that. The attacking players said now we have a little bit more defensive cover, so we can go and be more dangerous going forward. And the defense said we can take more risks because we have two guys that we know will be in front of us.

This midfield will give the Red Bulls the best chance to succeed against New England, a team that has a terrifying midfield trio of its own: Lee Nguyen, Jermaine Jones, and Scott Caldwell.

The Red Bulls will need McCarty and Alexander to hold their own against these three. New York has superior wingers and a more successful striker than the Revolution, but if Alexander and McCarty cannot keep the team in the match, it will not matter.

Depth

At every position on the pitch, the Red Bulls have the ability to cover for injury or suspension.

Of course, that is not to say that the club has a replacement for Henry or Jamison Olave—arguably the team's two most important players—in terms of ability. But at essentially every other position, the Red Bulls have the necessary cover. Even the loss of Henry or Olave would not be absolutely devastating. 

Take the case of Roy Miller, who will have to sit out the first leg of the Conference finals. Ambroise Oyongo, who started 11 matches for New York in the regular season, figures to fill in for the Costa Rican, without setting the team back.

Across the pitch, this is the case. Saturday's bench, consisting of Ryan Meara, Armando, Connor Lade, Chris Duvall, Oyongo, Tim Cahill, and Ruben Bover, is filled with players who have proven themselves to be useful contributors at the MLS level. 

Meara and Lade have been out of the picture often this season, but both had tremendous rookie seasons, and Lade has recently worked himself back into Petke's good graces.

Armando and Duvall have both been starters at times this season, and though they have since been replaced, they are still both respectable backups. 

Tim Cahill, last season's club MVP, has had a down year but still represents a threat in the air offensively and is a hard worker defensively.

Peguy Luyindula

The 35-year-old Frenchman has been a frustrating player at times during his two-year tenure with the Red Bulls. Luyindula is New York's best playmaker, excepting Henry, and he picked up seven assists in 863 minutes of action in the 2013 season. 

But when the team played in the 4-4-2, Petke faced one of two issues when using Luyindula. If deployed as a striker, his woeful finishing ability quickly became apparent—Luyindula scored only one goal last season, which came from a penalty given to him by Henry at the end of a blowout victory. 

Henry and the Red Bulls hoped that goal would give the misfiring Frenchman some confidence. He did not score again during the regular season or playoffs.

Because of Luyindula's scoring troubles, and in an attempt to get the most out of him as a playmaker, Petke sometimes shifted him to a role in the center of midfield. While his role as a deep-lying midfielder suited his playmaking abilities, the role asked too much of Luyindula defensively. 

With the shift to the 4-2-3-1, though, Luyindula has found a perfect home, playing in the center of the three-man attacking midfield. 

The former PSG player did well in that role during the regular season, but he has launched to new heights in the postseason. 

The Red Bulls have scored five goals during the playoffs, and Luyindula has factored in all of them. Against Sporting KC, he came off the bench and provided the secondary assist for both the equalizer and match-winning goal.

Petke rewarded that performance by handing Luyindula a start against D.C. In the first half, Luyindula shielded a defender from a pass on its way to Bradley Wright-Phillips, leading to New York's first goal. In the second half, Luyindula slotted home a crucial second goal after finding himself one on one with the 'keeper.

In the second leg against DC, Luyindula scored the crucial away goal, directing home a cross from Henry. 

Franco Panizo reported that Petke said of Luyindula:

He’s not doing anything different than he’s done throughout the two years here. ... He wasn’t always a starter and he wasn’t happy about that, which he shouldn’t [be], but now we’re all, including him, getting the rewards of what he’s doing.

One can appreciate Petke's sentiment, but the fact of the matter is that Luyindula would not have scored either of the goals he has notched this postseason last season. Without those goals, the Red Bulls' season would be over.

But Luyindula did score, and he is playing with more confidence than ever.

Attitude

Historically, the Red Bulls have folded in the playoffs. Last season, it was an Olave red card and a foolish giveaway by Ibrahim Sekagya that doomed the club against San Jose.

Two years ago, it was encroachment on a Kenny Cooper penalty kick and a Rafa Marquez red card. 

In 2010, it was a complete breakdown against San Jose Earthquakes in front of the home crowd after a tremendous performance in San Jose.

This year, it could so easily have happened again. But it did not.

In the play-in match against Sporting KC, former iterations of New York Red Bulls would have folded when Dom Dwyer put KC in front despite New York being the better team through the first 50 minutes. Instead, Petke made some crucial substitutions and the Red Bulls kept their heads up. 

When Wright-Phillips equalized in the 77th minute, it was no less than New York deserved. When he struck again in the 90th minute, the comeback was complete.

Similarly, the Red Bulls could have folded after D.C.—the better team in the first half of the second leg—closed the deficit to one.

Instead, New York stuck to their game plan: do not sit too deep, play defense first and convert when the chances come on the counter.

It worked to perfection.

The Red Bulls will now feel that they've proven to the league and to themselves that they can deal with adversity.

Others

There are a few other, notable reasons for the Red Bulls to feel like they can go all the way this year:

The Red Bulls/Metrostars franchise and its fans have spent nearly 20 years waiting for a team that could bring a title home. This year's team, though not perfect, is clicking tactically, has depth, has Peguy Luyindula on fire and perhaps for the first time ever has the right attitude in the postseason.

The Red Bulls can do it. They can win the MLS Cup.

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