No matter how much confetti you provide the stadium with, you still just can’t claim the name “super clasico” and expect people not to be weary.

MLS needs to be careful about how they market league rivalries and understand that history and tradition (as well as auspicious play) must be established before they can start claiming the limelight enjoyed by seasoned fixtures, such as Barca vs. Madrid, River vs. Boca, and even America vs. Chivas (not to mention some of the other great European club rivalries).

Don’t get me wrong! Everybody loves to watch an intense rivalry, but it’s hard to swallow when allusions of grandeur are so blatantly thrown into the color commentary. No really savages, I am not just angry that Chivas USA lost! But Landon Donovan must have read my preview because he showed the “world class” form needed to break the stride of Chivas (luckily not much conference damage resulted in the loss).

Donovan started early in the 8th min. for the LA Galaxy as he finished off the easy scraps, left by the mix-up between Chivas’ center-back Claudio Suarez and the keeper, to provide the early pressure. He showed up again in the offensive 3rd in the 17th min. to play a one-two for Harmse to finish with a drive at the near post.

Chivas fought back a goal in the 2nd half as Suarez made amends for his early mishap by deflecting home a goal after a series of deflections in the LA penalty box; however, it was the Galaxy that finished off the game, as Donovan again spear headed the drive, exploding from midfield on the dribble and delivering a back post pass for super-sub, Cobi Jones to finish for LA’s 3rd goal.

And while the game was decent enough, MLS should hesitate on unveiling the “Super Clasico” again until it can deliver mesmerizing, pulsating action in front of frenzied, standing room only crowds, or just simply have commentary that steers clear from such hyperbole. 

This entry was posted on Monday, April 30th, 2007 at 4:45 am and is filed under Soccer World, USA. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.