Champions League tests quintet; Real, Barça barnstorm the States

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Jaime Moreno & Co. needed PKs to advance, but D.C. United is headed back to the group stage of the CONCACAF Champions League. AP

Our weekly dose of Major League Soccer quick takes, plotlines to watch and Power Rankings.

A different type of depth

With the rash of international call-ups earlier this summer, Major League Soccer's managers had their hands full dealing with constantly shifting Starting XIs. Players are back from national-team duty, but the CONCACAF Champions League is just beginning, once again requiring participating clubs -- Houston, Columbus, D.C. United and New York (Toronto FC was eliminated on Tuesday) -- to manage minutes creatively. Of these teams, expect the Red Bulls, whose MLS season is essentially over, to field their best roster in the Champions League. Add Chicago's date Wednesday night in the SuperLiga final against Mexico's Tigres into the mix, and it's clear that the juggling job is never done (especially with such thin rosters).

Run from the Red Bull

After 21 matches, New York has 10 points from a 2-15-4 record. That's bad, but does the team have a chance to be historically terrible? In a word, yes. Juan Carlos Osorio's squad is pushing the 1999 MetroStars -- who managed just 15 points from seven wins (three via shootout) against 25 losses -- for worst of all time. A more recent contender is the '05 Chivas USA team that posted a 4-22-6 record (18 points). The next three RBNY matches come at home, which should help, although Osorio's boys face Chivas USA, a resurgent FC Dallas club and the Crew. Without a serious run of good form, this team is destined for the MLS annals of failure.

Barcelona, Real Madrid and matches that matter

Barcelona finishes up its U.S. tour on Wednesday night with a game in Seattle, where Sounders star Freddie Ljungberg will seek a minor measure of revenge after his Arsenal side fell to the Spanish giants in the '06 Champions League final. Elsewhere, Real Madrid becomes the latest European powerhouse to grace Major League Soccer with its presence, playing matches against TFC on Friday and D.C. on Sunday The biggest MLS tilt of the week takes place on Sunday when the Fire travel to Houston. With Columbus playing a winnable game against the Quakes at San Francisco's Candlestick Park on Saturday (the opening act for Barça vs. Chivas de Guadalajara), it's likely Chicago will need three points to keep pace with the Eastern Conference leaders. Additionally, the Los Angeles Galaxy fly across the country for a tilt with a New England side that's as healthy as it has been all season.

Week 21 Power Rankings   New Rank Previous Rank Team 1 1 Columbus Crew (8-3-9) Chad Marshall made up for Guillermo Barros Schelotto's absence and helped squad post a clean sheet in Colorado. 2 2 Houston Dynamo (10-5-5) A seven-goal shootout at Robertson Stadium vs. D.C. saw Brian Ching net two and Houston consolidate its lead in the Western. 3 3 Chicago Fire (8-3-8) Wilman Conde and Cuauhtémoc Blanco watched from the sideline, but Fire still scratched out a one-goal victory vs. RSL. 4 4 D.C. United (6-4-10) United showed heart as it nearly came back from three down in Houston, but fell short despite a brace from Luciano Emilio. 5 6 Los Angeles Galaxy (6-3-10) Hopefully L.A. won't resort to the David Beckham long ball -- a plan with little success vs. Barça -- as its main attacking strategy. 6 7 New England Revolution (6-5-6) Edgaras Jankauskas made his first MLS start count as he netted the game-tying goal in the 76th minute vs. Toronto. 7 5 Seattle Sounders FC (7-4-8) Sounders play a stinker once every month or so, and the 4-0 thud in San Jose followed suit. Sigi Schmid's club will be just fine. 8 9 Toronto FC (7-7-6) TFC, which went down to 10-men after Chad Barrett's second caution, couldn't hold a one-goal lead against the Revs. 9 8 Colorado Rapids (7-6-6) The Conor Casey-less Rapids once against struggled to score, despite out-shooting the Crew by a 3-to-1 margin. 10 11 Chivas USA (8-6-3) A result in Colorado will help the Goats start the second half of its season as they began the first. 11 14 FC Dallas (5-9-5) Kenny Cooper is off to Germany, but Jeff Cunningham became the ninth player in MLS history to score four goals in one match. 12 13 San Jose Earthquakes (4-10-5) With an impressive win in California, the Quakes won the Heritage Cup and Joe Cannon earned his first clean sheet of the season. 13 10 Real Salt Lake (6-8-5) Where has Robbie Findley gone? RSL sorely could use the offensive prowess he showed earlier in the year. 14 12 Kansas City Wizards (5-7-6) Can a coaching change help as general manager Peter Vermes steps in as the interim replacement for axed Curt Onalfo? 15 15 New York Red Bulls (2-15-4) On the bright side, Red Bulls technical director Jeff Agoos was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame.