The playoff chase is heating up as Real Salt Lake enters the final five matches of the 2017 MLS regular season. With just three points separating RSL – currently in the eighth spot in the Western Conference – from fifth place, there is still plenty to play for.
Here is a look at who to watch this weekend and why it’s important for Real Salt Lake’s playoff hopes.
First: The standings
Vancouver Whitecaps FC – 13-9-5, 44 points
Portland Timbers – 12-9-8, 44 points
Seattle Sounders FC - 11-7-10, 43 points
Sporting Kansas City – 10-6-11, 41 points
Houston Dynamo – 10-9-8, 38 points
FC Dallas – 9-8-10, 37 points
San Jose Earthquakes – 10-12-6, 36 points
Real Salt Lake – 10-14-5, 35 points
Saturday
5 p.m. Columbus Crew SC at Vancouver Whitecaps FC (MLS Live)
The Whitecaps climbed to the top of the Western Conference with a midweek win against Minnesota on Wednesday. This week, they square off with a Columbus side that is unbeaten in the last five matches. Vancouver is unbeaten in the last four at home, though, and hasn’t lost to Columbus since the Whitecaps expansion season in 2011.
6 p.m. Seattle Sounders FC at FC Dallas (MLS Live)
Dallas has gone winless in the last eight matches while Seattle is unbeaten in the last 12 matches. There is nothing to indicate either of those streaks will come to an end on Saturday … except for the unpredictable nature of the league. Just when you think you’ve got it figured out, a team can have a season-defining victory to turn things around. Seattle lost Jordan Morris to injury and looked to lose Roman Torres to a red card, but the Independent Review Panel showed mercy to the Sounders and rescinded the late red card in a Saturday draw with the LA Galaxy.
6:30 p.m. New England Revolution at Sporting Kansas City (MLS Live)
New England is coming off of a pretty brutal loss, 7-0 against Atlanta on Wednesday. Bouncing back from that would be incredibly beneficial to the Revs and a slew of other Western Conference teams. After a nine-game unbeaten run, KC is just 1-2-1 in the last four matches. Sporting is one of just two teams that remains unbeaten at home this season, along with Toronto FC.
8:30 p.m. Houston Dynamo at San Jose Earthquakes (MLS Live)
These two teams are hovering around the playoff line and trending downward. Both teams have struggled to find the win column of late, with Houston going 1-2-1 in the last four and San Jose posting a 1-3-1 mark in its last five.
