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The MLS Playoff chase is well underway, and the 9 matches on September 15 will hold valuable points.
As approximately 7 games remain in the regular season for most teams in MLS, we can expect a wild finish with a surprise or two to come.
The Western Conference features 8 clubs fighting for the 6 playoff berths, as all of them are within 11 points of each other. With 21 potential points from the remaining games, we could see a complete flip in the standings come October 28 when the regular season ends.
The Eastern Conference has the NY Red Bulls and Atlanta United pulling away from the pack with 55 & 54 points atop the table. NYCFC was neck-and-neck with the two until their recent run of results of 0 - 3 - 2 the last 5 outings. NYCFC has also played 29 games, which only leaves them with 5 remaining fixtures in the regular season.
Of course, you can open the MLS standings yourself and see what position all the rest of the teams are, so I really came here to discuss the 9 games on deck this weekend (home team on left as it should be).
Colorado Rapids vs Atlanta United - 15:30 ET
Philadelphia Union vs Montreal Impact - 19:30 ET
Toronto FC vs Los Angeles Galaxy - 19:30 ET
FC Dallas vs Columbus Crew - 20:00 ET
Houston Dynamo vs Portland Timbers - 20:30 ET
Real Salt Lake vs Minnesota - 21:30 ET
Vancouver Whitecaps vs Seattle Sounders - 22:00 ET
Los Angeles FC vs New England Revolution - 22:30 ET
San Jose Earthquakes vs Sporting Kansas City - 22:30 ET
So let's start at the top of the docket with the match featuring struggling Colorado, who gets the lovely assignment of hosting Atlanta. The Rapids have won 6 games all season long, and are coming off an absolute thrashing at the hands of Real Salt Lake. RSL found the back of Colorado's net 6 times, and played the entire second half up 2 men.
As a result, both Adjei-Boateng and Niki Jackson will be suspended courtesy their two red cards from that outing. Could it help that Colorado has had two weeks off to recover and regroup?
That answer is no, because it hasn't gotten better at any point of the entire MLS 2018 campaign. When you can't score, and oh boy, can Colorado simply not score, things just don't fix themselves. We have seen it all too often this year, and Atlanta is coming off a loss of their own to DC United last time out.
Josef Martinez was fresh off breaking the all-time single-season MLS scoring record before their match with DC United on September 2. As you may or may not have heard, DC United has caught fire since the addition of Wayne Rooney. It has had such an influence on the team, that I wrote an article about his presence on the pitch called 'The Rooney Effect'.
It wasn't hard to think of why I needed to get that out there, because Mr. Rooney still has plenty left to play for. DC United just earned another 3 points last night vs Minnesota, and that brings them just two points from the sixth position in the Eastern Conference. The top 6 teams from each conference move on the post-season, so the battle is on!
Anyway, the lines being offered surrounding the Colorado Atlanta match are just not user-friendly. The Over 3 is juiced at 1.75, and Atlanta are road favorites at 1.75 as well. I am not a fan of any play over -120, so I have to leave that match alone.
Moving on, I am seeing Portland listed at +0.5 handicap, and the line is set at 1.90 at most sites. I think Portland and Coach Gio can finally put some of their road issues to sleep here, because Houston is a complete mess. I am hoping the Timbers can either grab a point from the draw or win outright to help us cash that +0.5 handicap ticket.
I will hand out a third play and get you all out of here.
Seattle and Vancouver continue the Cascadia rivalry this weekend, and the line setters set that total at 2.5. The problem is, we see another juiced up line at -135, so I am suggesting an alternative. Move that to a straight 3 on the total to go Over, because I see 2.25 at most major sites, and that is delightful. We would obviously need the three goals to come to cash that Over 2.5 anyway, so I would rather Push/Void my Over 3 at 2.25, and hope for a fourth goal.
I am not one to shy away from putting a play that can push on the board, to avoid juice/vig. As I have said for years now, I do not work for Tropicana, so you can squeeze your own juice! Yes, I have fun with write-ups whenever I get the chance to be creative and a little outlandish. After 20+ years of posting analysis on the internet, it can get stale when you just watch someone post numbers and stats.
So there you have a couple of plays to take advantage of from MLS on September 15. There will be two other matches on the following Sunday, and then we have about a month left to go until the playoffs.
