On the road all day tomorrow so Week 10 arrives a day early with a surprise at the top. Trujillo has been the anchor for Chivas USA so far and deserves to be number one this week. Montero returns with a vengeance as does Keller despite a disappointing result vs. Colorado.Barca/Man U tomorrow!


1. Mariano Trujillo (Chivas USA)

Trujillo continues to be the Goats most consistent performer, this week adding a little offensive firepower to the regular mix. He rarely gets beaten and this weekend was no different as he ably shut down the hottest striker in the league right now, Josh Wolff. Chivas fans are wondering how they got so lucky with this pick-up.

2. Fredy Montero (Seattle)

Not quite a return to the top but Montero made some noise this weekend with a goal and assist vs. Colorado. The Colombian also earned his first call-up to the national team for upcoming CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers. Not bad for the topsy-turvy last month or so he has endured. All of this was done without Alonso (who left injured in the 2nd minute) and Ljungberg feeding and creating space for him.

3. Kasey Keller (Seattle)

Keller still can produce some real highlights and against Colorado his age didn't show. His save vs. Conor Casey was nothing short of amazing. Keller still easily holds the honor of best keeper in the league and I don't know many that would disagree with calling him MVP of the season so far.

4. Alvaro Sanchez (FC Dallas)


It's the Costa Rican midfielder's first time on the list after making the switch to FC Dallas around a month ago. Hyndman entered both Sanchez and Anthony Wallace sometime after Marcelo Saragosa was sent off and they both made Los Angeles work for a point, thanks once again to Donovan Ricketts great play in-net.

5. Jeremy Hall (New York)

I'll echo Ives' sentiment on Hall. His showing vs. Chicago was top-notch. The rookie minimized the impact of Chicago's Marco Pappa all game, shutting him down with the poise of a veteran defender. He made several runs forward as well that rarely led to anything but his ability to get behind the defense - if properly fed - could prove to be one way for the Red Bulls to stay dangerous in the offensive end.

6. Donovan Ricketts (Los Angeles)


Both of the best players on the Galaxy continue to include name Donovan. Ricketts preserved yet another tie on at least three occasions vs. FC Dallas but unfortunately, there's not much he can do on the offensive end to make sure the Galaxy stop wasting those points.

7. Eduardo Lillingston (Chivas USA)

He gets scrappier every game but as a striker, it's how you have to be (especially if you lack the skills of say...Thierry Henry). Lillingston grabbed his fourth goal to tie things up in Kansas City and keep Chivas momentum intact. What's more reemarkable is that Lillingston does a lot of his dirty work coming off the bench.

8. Andrew Hainault (Houston)

The young Canadian continues to play well in the Dynamo's back four. This week he dealt with an anemic San Jose offense alongside Bobby Boswell, who has got to be the best American defender in Major League Soccer right now (Wilman Conde might take the cake of best overall). Will Hainault's job filling in for the injured Eddie Robinson make Dominic Kinnear think twice when Eddie returns?

9. Sam Cronin (Toronto FC)


Cronin has been phenomenal for Toronto all-season and, out of all of 2009's rookies, he has probably received the least credit. The holding midfielder is now attracting interest on the international scene, kind of like Maurice Edu his rookie season in Toronto, but it'll take a little more than a third of a season to justify it.

10. Stefan Frei (Toronto FC)

It was quieter for Frei this weekend vs. New England but not until the Revs got on the board first thanks to a well-placed Shalrie Joseph header. The rookie keeper managed well the rest of the game, however, as the Reds offense took control and grabbed a 3-1 win. Minute 56, a low Pat Phelan drive required a decent save and, as is becoming the norm for Frei, he handled it perfectly.

Scoring goes 10 pts. for first spot, 9 pts. for second spot, 8 pts. for third spot, etc.

OVERALL [pts/wk]

1. Jhon Kennedy Hurtado (Seattle - 38 pts.) [9-0-0-7-0-5-9-0-8-0]
2. Donovan Ricketts (Los Angeles - 31 pts.)
3. Steve Zakuani (Seattle - 30 pts.)
4. Chris Pontius Soccer News Topics (DC United - 28 pts.)
Freddie Ljungberg (Seattle - 28 pts.)
Freddy Montero (Seattle - 28 pts.)
5. Kasey Keller (Seattle - 25 pts.)
6. Stefan Frei (Toronto FC - 23 pts.)
7. Mariano Trujillo (Chivas USA - 22 pts.)
Eduardo Lillingston (Chivas USA - 22 pts.)
8. Emmanuel Osei (New England - 19 pts.)
9. Osvaldo Alonso (Seattle - 16 pts.)
Brad Knighton (New England - 16 pts.)
10. Rodney Wallace (DC United - 15 pts.)
11. Alfredo Pacheco (Red Bull New York - 14 pts.)
Sam Cronin (Toronto FC - 14 pts.)
12. Andrew Hainault (Houston - 13 pts.)
13. Dejan Jakovic (DC United - 12 pts.)
14. Pablo Vitti (Toronto FC - 10 pts.)
Albert Celades (New York - 10 pts.)
Matt Besler (Kansas City - 10 pts.)
15. Kevin Alston (New England - 9 pts.)
Bobby Convey Soccer News Topi(San Jose - 9 pts.)
Gerson Mayen (Chivas USA - 9 pts.)
Santiago Hirsig (Kansas City - 9 pts.)
16. Cam Weaver (San Jose - 8 pts.)
Sebastian Le Toux (Seattle - 8 pts.)
David Ferreira (FC Dallas - 8 pts.)
17. Omar Gonzalez (Los Angeles - 7 pts.)
Jeremy Hall (New York - 7 pts.)
18. Gregg Berhalter (Los Angeles - 6 pts.)
19. Pablo Campos (San Jose - 5 pts.)
Darrius Barnes (New England - 5 pts.)
20. Bojan Stepanovic (Chivas USA - 4 pts.)
Stephane Assengue (New England - 4 pts.)
21. Luis Miguel Escalada (Real Salt Lake - 2 pts.)
Milos Kocic (DC United - 2 pts.)
Carlos Johnson (New York - 2 pts.)
22. Alec Dufty (New York - 1 pt.)
Kyle Reynish (Real Salt Lake - 1 pt.)

Which Newcomer has surprised you the most this season? Who are most disappointed with? I'd go with Cam Weaver/Bobby Convey over in San Jose. What will wake the Earthquakes up?