A Tip of the Cap to the CCL Forgottens

For the past few weeks, there has been a lot of talk about Major League Soccer finally taking the CCL tournament seriously. And I think it is also safe to say that Mexican clubs who had not started taking it more seriously (even though the country has produced all the champions) will do so in the future out of fear of losing to MLS.

But in my opinion the forgotten individuals who deserve credit for the fantastic series we saw the past two weeks are those responsible for the stunning success of the Puerto Rico Islanders and Montreal Impact in previous years. These two clubs played a crucial part in the story leading up to this enthralling moment for three reasons.

The Beginning and the End

On successive nights fans across North America were treated to games representing the beginning and the end of three CONCACAF Champions League series. Major League Soccer continued its US Open Cup qualification tournament Tuesday and the Nutrilite Canadian Championship kicked off Wednesday to determine future CCL participants while the CCL itself crowned its third champion late Wednesday night.

CFU Championship continues, NCC nears

With the First Leg of the CONCACAF Champions League right around the corner, the Caribbean Football Union’s club championship tournament is a quarter of the way toward completing the field for the Final Four in Trinidad. In addition, the Nutrilite Canadian Championship is only a week away from the opening legs of the Semifinal contests. The two events account for four berths in the 2011-12 edition of the CCL.

Not having a home field proved fateful the second time around for USL Pro’s River Plate Puerto Rico as the club’s gallant attempt to play twice away from home in Guyana resulted in a narrow exit. They drew Alpha United in a scoreless affair in the opening leg April 15 and came up short in their attempt to rally in the second. Scoreless at halftime, things fell apart quickly with a red card eight minutes into the second, followed by a penalty and a second goal within five minutes. They fought back to close the gap to one twice, but the second goal in the 90^th proved too late as they fell 3-2.

CONCACAF History at the Door for RSL

There were some anxious moments Tuesday night in Costa Rica as Real Salt Lake of Major League Soccer finished up its CONCACAF Champions League Semifinal series against Saprissa, winning 3-2 on aggregate despite a 2-1 loss on the road in the second leg.

A stunning 19 yard Luis Cordero strike just under the bar moments into the second half from the hosts rose the stakes, but Jamison Olave hit a blistering side-volley to give RSL a commanding edge with the away goal tiebreaker that left Alonso Solis’ late penalty for the host inconsequential in the series.  Full game reports: MLS [+] - SBI [+]

The result furthered the Utah club’s historic campaign representing MLS after previously being the league’s first to win a group as well as advance to the semifinals in the Champions League format of CONCACAF’s club championship.

Further success, against either remaining semifinalists Monterrey or Cruz Azul, will now eclipse anything previously achieved by their league counterparts despite previous CONCACAF titles claimed by DC United and the Los Angeles Galaxy.

CCL Semifinals Conclude This Week

Perhaps 'Final Four' is a fitting theme for the week as March Madness comes to a conclusion Monday and Tuesday evening in the men’s and women’s basketball tournaments while the CONCACAF Champions League completes the Semifinal stage with its second leg matches Tuesday and Wednesday south of the border.

On Tuesday, Real Salt Lake defends a 2-0 series lead in Costa Rica against powerhouse Saprissa followed by Wednesday’s all-Mexican showdown in which two-time CCL finalist Cruz Azul hosts Monterrey, which leads the series 2-1. Tuesday's tilt will air at 10 pm ET on Fox Soccer Channel with Wednesday's airing at 8 pm ET. The RSL-Saprissa series winner will host the second leg of the Championship series set for April 19 & 26.