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There is a slew of action again this weekend, including the FA Cup semi-finals, the NWSL Challenge Cup quarterfinals, and ongoing MLS action. Let’s jump into it with a quick look at the matches this weekend, beginning with a loaded Friday slate.
Friday
Real Salt Lake v Minnesota United - 10:30p on ESPN
Justen Glad and Corey Baird will probably take the field for Real Salt Lake, but highlighting this match is really just an excuse to mention the national treasure that is Kyle Beckerman. RSL opened their tournament with a 2-0 win over the Colorado Rapids. On Friday, they will be playing Western Conference-leading Minnesota United, who defeated Sporting Kansas City 2-1 in their opener. U-23s Mason Toye and Hassani Dotson both started for Minnesota their last time out.
Other Notes:
- D.C. United and the New England Revolution meet at 8p on ESPN. United had an improbable come from behind 2-2 draw, despite being down two goals and a man for the entirety of the second half, while the Revolution defeated Montreal 1-0.
- Sporting Kansas City and the Colorado Rapids will also be playing at 8p, on ESPN2. SKC lost their opener to Minnesota, and Colorado also lost, so the two teams will be looking to avoiding being at the bottom of the pile.
Looking through the paywall:
- A pair of NWSL Challenge Cup quarterfinals as the North Carolina Courage meet Portland Thorns FC at 12:30p on CBS All Access while the Houston Dash play Utah Royals FC at 10p, also on CBS All Access.
Saturday
Los Angeles Football Club v LA Galaxy - 10:30p on ESPN
We get El Tráfico without any of the traffic as LAFC and the Galaxy meet late Saturday night in an empty stadium thousands of miles from Los Angeles. There were goals galore in LAFC’s 3-3 draw with the Houston Dynamo. Meanwhile, from a United States Men’s National Team perspective, things were considerably more interesting with Perry Kitchen, Sacha Kljestan, and Sebastian Lletget all starting along with 17-year-old Cameron Dunbar for the Galaxy. The Galaxy lost their match 2-1 to the Portland Timbers.
Other Notes:
- The Portland Timbers and Houston Dynamo will face off at 8p on ESPN. Jeremy Ebobisse started and scored a goal in Portland’s 2-1 win over the Galaxy, while Memo Rodriguez was a surprise two goal scorer in Houston’s draw with LAFC.
Looking through the paywall:
- Another pair of quarterfinals as the Washington Spirit and Sky Blue FC meet at 12:30p followed by the OL Reign and Chicago Red Stars at 10p, all on CBS All Access
Sunday
Seattle Sounders v Vancouver Whitecaps - 10:30p on FS1
Cristian Roldan started and went the full 90 in Seattle’s 2-1 loss to the Chicago Fire on Tuesday. It was the team’s second match of the tournament, and Jordan Morris came on at the half as a planned substitute, with manager Brian Schmetzer hoping to take advantage of tired legs. Morris did pick up an assist, but overall the strategy does not seem to have worked out, as the team lost and has just one point through their first two matches. The match will be Vancouver’s second of the tournament, as teams backing out has played a little chaos with the schedules. Vancouver lost on Wednesday 4-3 to San Jose.
Other Notes:
- The Chicago Fire and San Jose Earthquakes will play at 8p on Fox Deportes and TUDN. Nick Lima and Jackson Yueill both started, while the ageless Chris Wondolowski came off the bench and picked up a goal.
Looking through the paywall:
- Christian Pulisic and Chelsea face a hot Manchester United at 1p on ESPN+ in FA Cup semifinal action. Things have been a little dicier recently for Chelsea, who squeaked out a 1-0 win over Norwich City midweek.