For years, Major League Soccer has seen more parity than most other first divisions you’ll find anywhere in the world. But do close playoff races and the lack of super-teams make for a larger fan base?

“I have no idea what happened,” Reo-Coker said. “No explanation. I'm not going to make up no lies, no nothing. Today, we got taught a lesson. They were the better team than us. They've got a system they play. We struggled with their system."

The Brazilian’s conversion from the spot was a relief given he’d missed a pile of opportunities, especially in the first half. On the play, Camilo slotted the ball into the bottom left corner as Nick Rimando dived to the right side.

The Montreal Impact came to visit Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah, hoping to slay a dragon. It was somewhat of a David versus Goliath affair, and the probability of its first ever MLS win was unlikely. But, the visitors did a lot to frustrate their more experienced opponent and the effort nearly worked — yet, the home side came out with a 1-0 win.

And if there is a group of Canadian fans who want to see Real Salt Lake return to the form it showed in the early part of the season — when it looked two steps better than anyone else in the league, including the Los Angeles Galaxy — they would have been overjoyed by Saturday night’s performance.

The significance of Toronto FC’s 6-2 home loss to the Philadelphia Union can’t be ignored. Through five coaches and three GMs/directors of soccer/technical directors, TFC fans have heard of long-term plans, rebuilding processes and the continuing pleas to fans for patience. Philadelphia was a raw expansion franchise last season. It has played a third of its schedule in year two of its existence, and it’s in first place in the East. You could make the argument that the Union is at a better point now than TFC has been any time in its history. When the Union faced TFC — on TFC's home turf — it was men vs. boys.

Major League Soccer has announced that it has moved the Philadelphia Union-Real Salt Lake match originally scheduled for April 23 to Sept. 3. Of course, the move was made to ensure RSL had a full seven days between its two legs of the CONCACAF Champions League Final against Monterrey.

Jamison Olave is known as one of the meanest, toughest central defenders in Major League Soccer. But the Real Salt Lake anchor guaranteed that his club would be the first MLS side to go to the CONCACAF Champions League final with a thumping volley off a scrambled corner kick to give RSL the precious road goal it needed to get by Costa Rican giants, Saprissa.

On a brisk but tolerable night at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah, Real Salt Lake was able to show what many had expected out of it coming into this CONCACAF Champions League Quarter-final matchup against the Columbus Crew. Its 4-1 victory showed the dominance over their opponent that many had expected given the relative stability of the two lineups.

The announced attendance was officially 4,665 but the few brave souls that turned out to Crew Stadium for the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal numbered less than that.