Rock the Casbah

The Rapids head West to face the Clash/Earthquakes/Earthquakes 3.0. Early start on Saturday, a 2pm MDT kickoff on Altitude. As always the fans will be gathering at the British Bulldog downtown.

Here's the injury report:

OUT: GK Justin Hughes (L groin); DOUBTFUL: DF Mike Petke (R foot); PROBABLE: MF Christian Gomez (R leg)

My lineup prediction:

Bouna Time!
Ihemelu - Pablo - Erpen
LaBrocca
C.Gomez - Ballouchy
Cooke ------------- Clark
McManus - Casey

Barring injury or National Team callup Clavijo has not made any lineup changes after a win this season, and I expect that to continue. A nice change for the Rapids with a very short injury list this week. There should be plenty of options on the bench should we need them.

Critical Matchup: Casey & McManus vs. San Jose defense

Yeah, this is a repeat from last week, but once again we're facing a really bad offense and a middle of the road defense. I think that our back line and Bouna have figured things out so pitching a shutout is a distinct possibility. The key will be getting on the board, something we have problems doing on the road.

Keys To Look For:

• We have a chance for our first back to back wins this season, will the team out determined to grasp that opportunity, or will we sit back like we have after previous wins this season?


• Hey, I don't have to complain about the first half performance this week. Can we keep up playing from the opening whistle?


• What kind of shape is Christian Gomez in?


• Will Cummings or Casey, or maybe even Herculez, make a statement that they should be starting along side McManus?


• We're on the road, a place we don't play well. Can we shake off the jet lag and put a complete game together?

Prediction: 1-0 win. San Jose is still looking for a striker and Bouna leads the league in shutouts. We'll be looking for revenge for the loss at home and I think we'll be able to squeak by with a win.