Sunday, November 23, 2008

MLS Cup Final: Columbus Crew v New York Red Bulls




We are less than an hour away from the 2008 MLS Cup Final between the Columbus Crew and the New York Red Bulls. Both teams will be making their first appearances in the MLS Championship but only one will prevail today.

The two teams paved their road to the championship game under completely different circumstances. The Crew were the top-seeded team in the East and ran over the Kansas City Wizards before finishing a come-from-behind victory against the Chicago Fire. Meanwhile in the West, the New York Red Bulls stunned the defending champion Houston Dynamo before blanking Real Salt Lake at the Rio Tinto Stadium.

Expect two South American stars to play big roles in determining who comes out on top tonight. Crew's Guillermo Barros Schelotto, who was named 2008 MLS MVP earlier this week, has played a huge role in Sigi Schmid's team.

But if anyone has been just as important to their team's playoff success, it's been Red Bulls striker Juan Pablo Angel. The former Aston Villa forward constantly draws attention away from defenders allowing for his teammates to find space in the attack. Such has been evident by Dane Richards emergence during the Red Bulls dream playoff run.

One could argue that even with the star-studded Colombian on their roster, the Crew are clearly more talented, but Juan Carlos Osorio's Red Bulls have managed to up-end more talented teams before and the team that sneaked its way into the playoffs may have it in them to do it one more time.

With both teams one step away from MLS history, who will rise to the occasion and be crowned MLS Champion? The answer to that question starts at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC and Telefutura.

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