If you are a fan of crucial, playoff-altering clashes, then Week 23 in Major League Soccer is just for you. 

Two games on Saturday will feature two teams in the top three of their respective conferences, while plenty of interconference games will take place in Eastern Conference parks. 

With the pressure building on each team in the league to deliver a result to stay in the playoff race, a few key players will be relied on to shut down some dangerous attacking threats. 

Some of those players will be tasked with stopping attackers, who just can't stop scoring at the moment. 

Continue reading on for the six key battles that will shape play in MLS this weekend. 

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The U.S. men's national team members at the 2014 FIFA World Cup have made more headlines over the last couple of months.

Defender Matt Besler and winger Graham Zusi signed designated player contracts with Sporting Kansas City, per MLSSoccer.com. These signings will keep the pair at the club through the next World Cup.

The details of the contracts were released by Brian Straus of Sports Illustrated. It signals that the top American stars are willing to stay in MLS long term despite interest from clubs overseas. 

Besler, Zusi and others are clearly very talented, as are many others involved with the USMNT.

Current players and past call-ups with the USMNT who also play in MLS will be featured in this slideshow. Those who don't make the cut are those who have already played abroad or are too old to make the jump. Five who could make an impact overseas will be highlighted in this piece.  

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Real Salt Lake will play a midseason friendly against Mexican side Club Tijuana on Tuesday, as they look to keep the squad's match rhythm on the right level in the hunt for Major League Soccer's Supporters' Shield.

Real chase the Seattle Sounders by two points in the Western Conference (although Seattle has two games in hand) and look like a safe bet to make the play-offs, but with several clubs making a push for the top five, the Royals will have to stay on their toes.

A friendly against Club Tijuana might do the trick. Xolos have completely missed their start in the Liga MX, but they still boast the quality to give the hosts a strong challenge.

Date: Tuesday, August 12

Time: 8 p.m. MT/10 p.m. ET

Venue: Rio Tinto Stadium

Preview

Tijuana need a break to shake things up—badly. Xolos have only secured two points in their first four matches and find themselves near the basement of the Liga MX standings, but this early in the season, that doesn't have to be a death sentence.

What Tijuana need most is a spark, something that gets the team started. The squad has looked uninspired in front of goal, and the lack of offence has largely negated several solid (if unspectacular) defensive outings.

Greg Garza has been one of the team's bright spots at left-back, and his strong performance against Morelia will have solidified his position as the only regular American starter in the Mexican squad.

The match against Morelia was a perfect illustration of Xolos' season so far: Dull and uninspired, and when the club got the chance to win the match, Cristian Pellerano did this, as shared by San Cadilla:

Real Salt Lake have had no such concerns. The Royals find themselves comfortably surviving the chase for the play-offs, and their big win 3-0 over D.C. United on Saturday was cause for celebration.

As reported by USA Today, stopper Nick Rimando recorded his 113th clean sheet in that match, passing Kevin Hartman to become sole owner of the MLS record. The veteran told MLS Soccer's Scott Pierce he was glad he got to clinch the record at home, while praising his teammates:

To hear those fans out there screaming my name with two minutes left made me a little nervous. But it's great to do it in front of the fans who stuck by me all my career here. I don't think any shutout is for myself. I have the name on the shutout but it's a committed effort from the team, so this is not only my record. My name is on it, but there are a lot of guys that should be getting credit for this.

RSL have (logically) looked much improved since some of the World Cup heroes returned to the squad, and they are unbeaten in their last five matches. Fielding your strongest XI and playing to the whistle in a mid-season friendly can be quite dangerous, however, and their motivation to win might not be as strong in this one.

The Royals are on the right track, improving on their way to the play-offs in a Western Conference that looks loaded with strong teams. Giving some of the key contributors a rest in a friendly like this seems like the smart thing to do, and it can only help a wider array of players build match rhythm.

Prediction

Tijuana are struggling, and some tactical alterations with an eye on the Liga MX could come into play on Tuesday. But the mental aspect of the game can be just as important, and a win against a leading team from MLS is just the boost Xolos so desperately need.

Motivation will play a key role in this match, with the hosts' primary objective still being the Supporters' Shield. Health will trump this result every single time; expect that factor to even out the gaps between both teams.

Final score: Real Salt Lake 1-1 Club Tijuana

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As the stretch run of play in Major League Soccer begins, there are plenty of players seizing their opportunities in front of goal. 

Although the lead of Golden Boot leader Bradley Wright-Phillips has yet to be threatened, players like Gyasi Zardes, Diego Valeri, Joao Plata and Sebastien Le Toux are all climbing up the list of top scorers in rapid fashion.

Some of those players are also making their mark on the MLS Player Power Rankings, as the top 10 once again saw a bit of a shake-up.

Continue reading on to see who the top-20 players in the league are after 22 weeks of play. 

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Following the league's all-star break, Major League Soccer was back in action this weekend with a full schedule.

With only a third of the season left to play, the intensity and importance of every match is becoming more and more amplified each week.

Here are five things we learned from this weekend's action.

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This weekend's slate of Major League Soccer matches did not provide the pop and pizzazz of recent weeks, but it did carve out its own unique niche in the 2014 season. 

Two major pieces of history were made in the span of 24 hours: Nick Rimando became the all-time shutout leader and Sigi Schmid became the first coach to reach 200 wins. 

Not everyone in the league had as good of a weekend as Rimando and Schmid, though, as once again some brutal defensive mistakes were made. 

Continue reading on for the complete list of winners and losers from the most recent weekend of play in MLS. 

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The play in Major League Soccer this weekend was focused on one league legend in pursuit of a record. 

After searching for the all-time shutout record all season, Nick Rimando earned it in a dominant win by Real Salt Lake over D.C. United. 

The performances by two of Rimando's teammates were good enough to join the keeper in the latest edition of the MLS Team of the Week. 

Due to plenty of solid center back showings, and some less than stellar fullback performances, the team is set up in a 3-4-1-2 formation to bring in an extra midfielder and central defender. 

Continue reading on to see who fit into the best XI from this weekend's MLS play. 

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It was 2005, and just seven games into his second stint of European football, Landon Donovan wanted to come back home. Naturally, Major League Soccer clubs tripped over themselves jockeying for position to land the prized U.S. star—ultimately with the Los Angeles Galaxy obtaining his rights. 

Few could have fathomed back then what impact Donovan's return to the MLS has had nearly a decade later. 

Donovan announced his retirement at the end of the 2014 season on his Facebook page Thursday. The MLS has turned from a struggling project to a must-watch product for any American soccer fan in his time playing, and that's no coincidence.

When the greatest American player to step on a pitch made his MLS debut, it was a high-flying three-year loan spell with the San Jose Earthquakes. Donovan racked up domestic player of the year awards each season. As he returned from his loan back to Bayer Leverkusen, he figured to be an impact player as a 23-year-old budding star.

And for MLS fans, he was as good as gone. Owned by a German club, courted by English clubs and coming off being named the best young player at the 2002 World Cup, Donovan's skill simply surpassed the domestic league.

But that didn't matter to him. He just wanted to play in the States, and his quick return to America resulted in a period of MLS prosperity that laid the foundation for today.

His return was somewhat stalemated thereafter by the departure of two other U.S. soccer standouts—goalkeeper Tim Howard to Manchester United and Clint Dempsey to Fulham. But as Donovan stayed put while winning MLS Cups with the Galaxy, the league continued to grow.

In 2007, the designated player rule was passed—allowing clubs to sign players for as much as they wanted without it impacting the league's tiny salary cap.

That's when things took off, allowing for lucrative deals for David Beckham, Thierry Henry and eventually Robbie Keane and Tim Cahill. 

Of course, we've seen this summer how much the designated player rule can change things as New York City FC have signed Frank Lampard and David Villa without playing a match. Orlando City did the same, acquiring former world standout Kaka for their 2015 debut season. 

Players like Beckham and Henry certainly set the stage for this MLS retirement plan. But if Donovan doesn't return in 2005 and reignite the league's aspirations, does the designated player rule even take effect? 

Perhaps the most important domino effects of Donovan's thriving in the MLS lies in noticeable decisions from his former U.S. men's national team teammates. Dempsey, the new U.S. captain, shockingly returned to the MLS from Fulham, and Michael Bradley followed suit in a $10 million deal to leave Roma. 

Both of these deals happened shortly before the 2014 World Cup, and it's safe to say America's impressive—and unsurprisingly dramatic—performance didn't do anything to oust the flames of excitement around the sport in the U.S. 

Few American players are talented enough to play top-flight European football overseas, but the ones who are have desired to play in the MLS despite it. When Donovan did it, it was unconventional and uncanny. Now, it's a trend that is saving the MLS and allowing it to thrive.

ESPN's Arash Markazi noted the end of an era, but we're not entering one without a promising future:

Players like Henry, Keane, Cahill and Beckham have shown European players that finishing their careers in America isn't a bad move. And there's no doubting how huge that is for the league's popularity.

But someone needed to show America's home-born stars that it can pay dividends to stay and play at home, rather than in leagues that some of them are more than capable of competing in. Donovan did that and then some. 

After his goal in a 2-1 win over Bayern Munich in the MLS All-Star Game, Donovan's career totals now lead the league in every facet, per ESPN's Paul Carr:

The USMNT is the lifeblood of American soccer passion, and having those players whom many in the nation grew attached to playing domestically is by far the best thing for the MLS. 

As Donovan closes the book on his footballing career, it's apparent that no player or person made a bigger impact on that trend than him. 

Donovan will be missed sorely, not just in the MLS but across the entire scope of American soccer. However, all you will need to remember about him and his impact is the sight of today's U.S. stars carrying the MLS into a bright future. 

Follow Bleacher Report Breaking News writer Steven Cook on Twitter.

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The Chicago Fire may not have as many titles as the LA Galaxy or the star power of the New York Red Bulls, but the proud midwestern franchise boasts some of the toughest players in Major League Soccer history.

The Fire burst onto the scene in 1998 by winning the MLS Cup and U.S. Open Cup and enjoyed a great deal of early success, winning the 2003 MLS Supporters' Shield and three more U.S. Open Cups in 2000, 2003 and 2006.

Those first years solidified Chicago's identity as a hard-nosed, technically sound squad not afraid to go toe-to-toe with any other team.

And from that personality came a wealth of talented players. Listing the five best to ever suit up for the Fire is no easy task, but I will give it a shot. Please feel free to respond in the comments with your own best of the best.

The Criteria

The top five is an exclusive club. Any player who makes the cut had to not only demonstrate excellence on the field—statistically and otherwise—but also exemplify what it means to wear the badge.

And in that spirit, the rankings only pertain to accomplishments in Chicago. Brian McBride, for instance, may have had a prolific career, but his glory days lie with the Columbus Crew and Fulham, so he didn't crack the upper echelon.

These are my picks for the best Chicago Fire players of all time.

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Make no mistake about it, the major talking points heading into the latest weekend of play in Major League Soccer are focused solely on off-the-field news items. 

Between Landon Donovan's retirement announcement, the details of the botched Mix Diskerud transfer to Columbus and Pep Guardiola's handshake denial at the MLS All-Star Game Wednesday night, fans of the league have plenty to talk about right now. 

The list of watercooler topics could easily grow this weekend if some statements are made by certain teams. 

Before the first ball is kicked this weekend at the StubHub Center, here are six bold predictions for the full slate of league matches to be played over the next three days. 

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