CFU's Second Round Nearly Set

With one match remaining in the opening round of the Caribbean Football Union's Club Championship still to play, the field is nearly set for the Second Round of the event as two clubs from Trinidad, Puerto Rico and Haiti are set to face one another for a shot at the three berths into the 2011-12 CONCACAF Champions League.

Upsets for Trinidad in CFU?

Usually dominant in the opening games of the Caribbean Football Union Club Championship, the clubs from Trinidad got off to a slow start this week on the road. Defence Force opened with a 1-1 draw against the Dandy Town Hornets and Caledonia AIA were only able to register a 1-0 victory versus Newtown United.

In other action, Walking Boyz cruised to a 3-0 victory with two strikes in the first half on the road and the third four minutes into the second stanza against host Northern United. Poised to move on with a three-goal lead heading home, Walking Boyz would next face the deending CFU champion and three time CONCACAF Champions League participant Puerto Rico Islanders in the next round. The Islanders were the lone club seeded directly into Second Round. 

CFU Club Championship Kicking Off

While the CONCACAF Champions League semifinals remain a week away, the CFU Club Championship in the Caribbean kicks off with the First Round Thursday evening with a pair of matches featuring clubs from Trinidad.

Home Away From Home – The Debate

Word out of Chicago this week is that the Fire are looking at playing the US Open Cup qualifying match they are slated to host versus the MLS Cup champion Colorado Rapids in a home away from home. That would mean at least three teams will playing their designated home match outside of their normal home stadium with DC United playing yet again at the Maryland Soccerplex and the Portland Timbers at a site to be determined due to remaining PGE Park renovations.

This report, a recap of a meeting with Section 8 fan group members, said that the Fire has looked at playing the match at five different facilities in the region, three of which were a no-go and that the final two options appear to be Bradley University (Peoria) and North Central College (Naperville).

The fan site Hot Time in Old Town weighed in with its thoughts on the matter, though seemed undecided in the end if the decision was good or not. The writer Mark Rogers brought up many good points along the way about the priorities of the club and its relationship to the loyal fans.

Bigger Advantage: Hosting First or Second Leg?

Beyond the strategic factors revolving around the Away Goal tiebreaker, the advantage of having home field for the first or second leg in an aggregate score series is often debated. Fox Soccer Channel commentator and former MLS player Brian Dunseth takes a look at the theories on CONCACAF.com. With the added issues of significant travel and inconsistency among league schedule windows, the advantage of hosting a particular leg is different in CONCACAF though. What are your thoughts? Should CONCACAF use the model USL-1 model of giving the higher seed the option of which leg to host?

Saprissa Claims Semifinal Spot

Armando Alonso and Luis Diego Cordero each scored a goal to give Saprissa a 2-1 victory over Olimpia and make the Costa Rican side the last team to qualify for the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions League. The victory was the first in Honduras for a club from Costa Rica in the Champions League. The three previous matches were all losses with an aggregate tally of 10-1. Saprissa was previously bested in Honduras by Marathon twice -- 2-1 this tournament and 2-0 in 2008-09.   Full Report +

Monterrey Sweeps Toluca in Quarters

Neri Cardozo assured Monterrey of a trip to the CONCACAF Champions League semifinals, scoring in the 88th minute to give "Los Rayados" a 1-0 victory over Toluca on Wednesday and complete a 2-0 aggregate win. The win advances Monterrey to a 'battle of champions' showdown with league foe Cruz Azul. In the previous Apertura season, Cruz Azul finished first in points during the regular season while Monterrey, second in points, went on to win the postseason playoff championship.  Full Report +

RSL First MLS Team to Reach CCL Semis

Javier Morales set up the first goal and scored two of his own to lead Real Salt Lake to a 4-1 victory over the Columbus Crew on Tuesday and make it the first team from Major League Soccer to reach the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions League. Alvaro Saborio scored his seventh goal of the tournament to break the scoreless series as RSL also became the first MLS team to record five victories in a single tournament performance.  Full Report +

Cruz Azul Reaches CCL Semis Again

Cruz Azul moved within a step of a third straight trip to the title series of the CONCACAF Champions League, beating Santos 3-1 on Tuesday to complete a quarterfinal sweep despite playing the final 24 minutes with 10 men. It was the first loss at home for Santos Laguna in 10 CCL matches over the course of two entries into the tournament, previously playing 2008-09, with a home record of 9-0-0 and aggregate score of 37-7.    Full Report +

CCL Quarters Conclude This Week

The Quarterfinal Round of the CONCACAF Champions League resumes tonight with a pair of second leg matches featuring league foes squaring off against one another. In the first game at 8:00 pm ET (Telemundo), Mexican powers and regular CCL contenders Santos Laguna and Cruz Azul square off (preview) with Cruz Azul holding a 2-0 advantage from its home leg. It is followed at 10:00 pm ET (FSC) by the Major League Soccer showdown (preview) of the Columbus Crew visiting Real Salt Lake level after a scoreless draw in Ohio last Tuesday.

Great Real Salt Lake CCL Video Series

If you have not seen them, Real Salt Lake has been doing a fantastic series of video journals about their Quarterfinal series in the CONCACAF Champions League against the Columbus Crew. With the second leg tonight (tied 0-0) in Utah, the club released the fifth installment. There are some great segments with interviews discussing the importance of the tournament and what it means to those involved, especially Robbie Russell, who also discusses his stint playing in the UEFA Champions League during the third installment of the series. Here are the five vids to date on YouTube, starting from the most recent: