MLS Cup 2014: Live Blog and Video

FIRST HALF START: 12:27 P.M. PT/3:27 P.M. ET

1′ – We’re underway in the first half half of MLS Cup 2014.

2′ – A little bit of a delay to begin proceedings due to all the streamers going down. I am now watching a stream of the game via delay…while hearing the action live. So here is Jaime Penedo to play this forward. Revs are offsides on that counter. Correction, a foul. A good chance there for Los Angeles’s Robbie Rogers, and the ensuing counter is snuffed out.

3′ – Here come the Revs with a cross, and that is cleared. Jermaine Jones directing traffic. Watch out for him today.

4′ – Crowd is alive for this one. Breakaway. Throw-in for the Galaxy and that’s cleared.

5′ – LA playing it safe, getting a feel for the organization of the Revs. Bobby Shuttleworth plays it forward.

6′ – Goal kick, Jaime Penedo. Not really threatened by Chris Tierney. One goal and two assists in six games for Tierney.

7′ – No pressure, no pressure. That’s what New England will playing on. The break. Closed down, and the New England midfield recover.

8′ – “MVKeane,” chant the partisans.

9′ – When the Revs are stretched, the Galaxy are dangerous. But the visitors get a break. Goal kick, Shuttleworth. Good work by the Revs captain, Jose Goncalves.

10′ – This will be another goal kick to Penedo.

11′ – Throw-in LA. Gyasi Zardes will play it back to Penedo.

12′ – Now that’s just a bad touch from Donovan.

13′ – You can see how much improved the Revs attack and midfield are with Jermaine Jones in the lineup.

14′ – Marcelo Sarvas is a bit shaken up, but is able to recover and get back into the shape of things. And he’ll feel that one tomorrow. Cop that.

15′ – Out for a Galaxy throw to Robbie Rogers. Should have done better.

16′ – Another throw to the home team. Swept aside.

17′ – Jaime Penedo is there to collect. Once again, on notice.

18′ – Another sweeping clearance, but that was more of a missed pass. Here’s a corner.

19′ – Over and out. This is a bend-but-don’t-break back line for the Revs. No pressure.

20′ – And here is another corner. Right in front of the Midnight Riders, taken short. No dice.

21′ – Okay, this might actually be a low-scoring affair. Another stop by the Revs.

22′ – Bobby Shuttleworth is standing on his head. Corner, LA. New England hold serve.

23′ -There’s a good sliding challenge from A.J. DeLaGarza on Charlie Davies. Transition is also stuffed.

24′ – Shuttleworth will play this forward. Vastly improved Revs side. Here’s Penedo.

25′ – That’s going to be a goal kick. Gyasi Zardes had the idea, but no one was there to receive the pass.

26′ – Could Andrew Farrell be one of the unsung heroes from this match?

27′ – Penedo will collect this one. It’s rainy in Boston, and that may warrant the hashtag #BlessTheRains.

28′ – Here’s Shuttleworth. A breakaway, and that is whiffed. Strong defensive effort so far from Farrell, Tierney and Goncalves.

29′ – One bad pass can make all the difference at this point.

30′ – Throw-in, Revs. And Gonzalez is forced to clear.

31′ – The call-and-response from the Riders, unique to matches at Gillette Stadium.

32′ – Los Angeles may have to  try something different. Bending shot from Robbie Keane, the LA captain,misses the top right corner.

33′ – Offsides, Robbie Keane. And he’s not going to win that argument.

34′ – So far, Bobby Shuttleworth has been impressing me with his tenacity. But he can’t do it alone.

35′ – If you’re just joining us, it’s a defensive standoff, and it’s scoreless.

36′ – Here come the Revs. Advantage played to New England.

37′ – The Revolution have been winning the possession battle these last several minutes, but have yet to crack the LA back line.

38′ – A slight delay before we get things going here.

39′ – The throw. A chance for Zardes. Misses wide right.

40′ – Memo to Gyasi, Plan B: the provider. Signed, the voice inside your head.

41′ – And this is going to be a corner to the Revs. Headed away and cleared.

42′   Signs are looking like this could be a scoreless first half.

43′ – I don’t think there will be a lot of stoppage time in this one.

44′  – Another clearance for the Revs. Yep, this will be scoreless.

45′ –  One minute of additional time.

45′ + 1′ –Yellow card 10 Landon Donovan
Los Angeles Galaxy

Halftime, then.

HALFTIME
Los Angeles Galaxy 0
New England Revolution 0

Team Statistics

Los Angeles Galaxy on left, New England Revolution on right

Make no mistake ab out it, this is a far-improved Revolution side from the last meeting. You can see how Jermaine Jones’s presence gives the Revs that extra spring in their step. They are more reactive to every pass, they get to the ball faster and are standing toe-to-toe with the Galaxy. When you don’t have pressure on you, that allows you to play with house money, and New England know that.

As for the Galaxy, the card to Landon Donovan is going to force Bruce Arena to rethink his strategy these next 45 minutes because his team runs the risk of going down a man for the tail end of this game. In accordance with the Laws of the Game, if regulations in a draw, we do 30 minutes of extra time, and if it’s still a draw, we go to penalties. Now, in the last two MLS Cup meeting, both matches were decided in extra time, but they have not gone to penalties.

SECOND HALF START: 1:29 P.M. PT/4:29 P.M. PT

46′ – Of course, in both of those ties, neither one ended in regulation. Perhaps this match will be different. The second half begins.

47′ – Here’s a chance for the Revs. Nope, that’s wide right. Goal kick, Jaime Penedo. Can he come up with a few stops.

48′ – Leonardo has yet to make a big mistake in the back. This is a golden opportunity for him to remain on the books next year.

49′ – Donovan gets clipped, but no card on Jose Goncalves.

50′ – Juninho with a sliding challenge on Jermaine Jones. Throw-in, New England.

51′ – Another solid clearance from LA. The break. And the collection by Shuttleworth.

52′ – GOAL! Los Angeles Galaxy 11 Gyasi Zardes
Gyasi Zardes takes off the welcome mat from all the big names in this contest. Hey now!

53′ – El Gyasinho is planning to make this the game of his life. Back to Donovan.

54′ – A.J. DeLaGarza. Somewhere in the back of his head, he knows his son is taking care of things. Who knows.

55′ – Lest we forget, Gyasi Zardes is also a father, too. A lot of the Galaxy players…are dads.

56′ – The crowd didn’t like that call, as DeLaGarza gets the “don’t argue.”

57′ – Substitution New England Revolution
IN 16 Daigo Kobayashi
OUT 6 Scott Caldwell

58′ – Time for a little…Eastern flavor…from the Beasts from the East.

59′ – Well, the Galaxy are not going to settle with a one-goal lead, and Zardes wants a brace. No one has been talking about Zardes and his skill set. So the goal was, in a way, a big coup.

60′ – It’s the hour mark, and the Galaxy are thinking press and pace. It’s still anyone’s MLS Cup to lift.

61′ – As for Jaime Penedo, he wants a shutout and will do whatever it takes to make it happen.

62′ – Tierney wins a free, taken quickly. This is trouble.

63′ – Yellow card 2 Andrew Farrell
New England Revolution

The youngster, Andrew Farrell, is the guilty party.

64′ – Stefan Ishizaki gives Chris Tierney the “don’t argue.”

65′ – Long ball for Teal Bunbury is too long. Goal, Jaime Penedo. Like I said, on notice.

66′ – Aside from solid organization in the back, hats off the the Revs for breaking up the short passing game LA is trying to establish.

67′ – Back come New England. Another through ball for LA is clogged. On the flip side, LA’s back line is also on notice.

68′ – The next delivery from LA results in another “return to touch line.” Shuttleworth collects.

69′ – Breakaway for Robbie Keane, and that is cleared. Shuttleworth wins that 1-v-1.

70′ – My goodness, if Bobby didn’t make that stop on Robbie, life would be really, really hard for NE. Goal kick, Penedo.

71′ – So if you’re joining us right now, LA are trying to build on a 1-0 lead.

72′ – Substitution New England Revolution
IN 7 Patrick Mullins
OUT 9 Charlie Davies

73′ – If Mullins was an Irish international, he would be called Paddy Mullins. Or Padraig Mullins. Just saying.

74′ – But now is time for desperate measures if you’re the visitors. DeLaGarza is getting a talking to from Mark Geiger.

75′ – Robbie Keane is offsides. No defender touched the ball. There, I explained it. Penedo is shaken up.

76′ – And so we might be seeing a few extra minutes added on, one or two extra. Penedo is up and plays it forward after Keano gets a breather on national-er, international television.

77′ – New England are cooking something up this minute. But the LA Galaxy midfield is there to sweep.

78′  – Meanwhile, LA’s short passing is foiled by, you guessed it, Bobby Shuttleworth.

79′ – GOAL! New England Revolution 8 Chris Tierney
That was a great sequence initiated by Patrick Mullins and now it’s a brand-new game.

80′ – Well, neither goalkeeper is going to acquit themselves today. The Midnight Riders are enjoying this, and we could be going to extra time again. LA concede a restart to New England.

81′ – And bodies are flying everywhere in the Galaxy’s attacking third.

82′ – This is going to be a grandstand finish if it ends in regulation. Goal kick, New England.

83′ – Yellow card 11 Gyasi Zardes
Los Angeles Galaxy

And Penedo will collect.

84′ – A missed pass on the left side, and that will be a throw to the Revs.

85′ – Here’s Jermaine Jones. Off the post. And the Revs still have possession. Heart-in-your-mouth stuff.

86′ – Lee Nguyen is down. He’s going to take his time getting up.

87′ – Back to Bobby Shuttleworth to play this forward. Too long. 27,000 in attendance, as expected.

88′ – Lee Nguyen has time to be a hero. But he needs to work quickly.

89′ – Jose Goncalves is doing what a captain should do.

90′ – Let’s see how many minutes of extra time will we get. Offsides, New England. And the boos.

Substitution New England Revolution
IN 12 Andy Dorman
OUT 24 Lee Nguyen

90′ + 1′ – Four minutes.

90′ + 2′ – Lee Nguyen exits to a standing ovation from the New England Supporters. Shuttleworth will see that go out.

90′ + 3′ – Advantage, Revs. That looked like the DOGSO rule right there.

90′ + 4′ – And that’s going to go out. Last chance here, and that will be regulation.

END OF REGULATION
Los Angeles Galaxy 1
New England Revolution 1