We've reached the final week of the Major League Soccer regular season! The seven playoff teams in the East are set, but there are still two spots yet to be clinched in the West, and four teams still in the running: Portland, Dallas, San Jose and Colorado.
But let's start at the top, with LAFC. They've already clinched the Supporters' Shield, but with a win at home over Colorado on Sunday, they'll establish a new MLS single-season record with 72 points. That should provide some motivation.
Carlos Vela also still has something to shoot for personally. With one more goal, he'll set a new MLS record for goals in a regular season with 32, breaking Josef Martinez's mark of 31 from last year. LAFC have actually been underwhelming of late, with only one win in their past seven games, but five of the other six results were draws. And Vela has scored in eight consecutive matches, including a goal and seven shots in their 1-1 draw at Minnesota this past weekend. He'll be my Tier 1 forward and captain this week.
I must admit, it's a very tough choice between Vela and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who scored his 29th goal of the season in the LA Galaxy's 4-3 loss to Vancouver on Sunday. Ibrahimovic has been even better than Vela of late - he's scored in eight of his past nine games, including a hat trick and three braces. The Galaxy are currently fourth in the West, still trying to secure a home game in the first round of the playoffs, and will play at already-eliminated Houston this weekend.
I'm sure Ibrahimovic would love to snatch the Golden Boot away from Vela on the final weekend, and set a new league record as well. And I wouldn't be surprised if that actually happens. But the fact that Vela is also tied for fifth in the league in assists with 10, and is fifth in chances created with 92, nudges him in front for me. He's got three more assists than Ibrahimovic and 49 more chances created.
Timbers x 2
Portland are currently in sixth place in the West, and still have work to do. They're one point ahead of Dallas, two points ahead of San Jose, and will host San Jose on the final day of the season. Either team would clinch a playoff spot with a win.
Diego Valeri was kept on the bench for Portland's 2-2 draw at Sporting Kansas City on Sunday due to calf tightness, but if he starts against San Jose he'll be my Tier 1 midfielder. Valeri has eight goals and eight assists, and leads the league in chances created with 127, which is 22 more than any other player. He's also on penalties for the Timbers.
And teammate Sebastian Blanco will be my Tier 3 midfielder. Blanco scored his fifth goal of the season against Sporting Kansas City, and had four shots and four chances created in that game. He also has 10 assists this season, is sixth in the league in shots with 101, and is 10th in chances created with 78.
San Jose's Valeri Qazaishvili had been my go-to Tier 2 midfielder in recent weeks, and he's still fourth in the league in shots with 109. But Vako has now gone nine straight games without scoring, and has taken only three shots in the past three games combined. San Jose have lost five games in a row, scoring only three goals in the process, and they'll certainly be underdogs at Portland.
Instead, I'm turning to Daniel Royer as my Tier 2 midfielder. Royer was quiet in the Red Bulls' scoreless draw with D.C. this past weekend, but he'd scored in each of the previous two games. He has 11 goals and seven assists, and is tied for 14th in the league in shots with 83. And Royer's on penalties for the Red Bulls, too.
The Red Bulls are currently fifth in the East, one point behind D.C., and still have a chance of overtaking them and earning a first-round home game. They're away this week, but at already-eliminated Montreal, who have conceded 60 goals, second-most in the conference.
Other picks
Gustavo Bou, New England Revolution (Tier 2 forward): The Revs clinched the final playoff spot in the East with their 2-0 win over conference leaders NYCFC on Sunday, and Bou scored one of the goals. It was his ninth of the season in 13 appearances, and he's averaging 4.90 shots per 90 minutes; only Vela (5.22) and Ibrahimovic (5.14) are averaging more among players with double-digit appearances. New England wrap up the regular season at Atlanta, and hopefully they'll want to maintain their momentum going into the postseason.
Reto Ziegler, Dallas (Tier 1 defender): Dallas are seventh in the West, and can clinch a playoff spot with a win at home over already-eliminated Sporting Kansas City. Ziegler is fifth in the league in passes completed, and tops among defenders, averaging 56.4 per game. And he's on penalties for Dallas.
Miles Robinson, Atlanta (Tier 2 defender): Robinson is 11th in the league in passes completed, and fourth among defenders, averaging 49.9 per game. Atlanta, currently second in the East but level on points with Philadelphia, will be hosting New England, as mentioned above. And Atlanta are fourth in the league in possession percentage (55.7), while New England are third-from-bottom (45.0), which could lead to a big passing total for Robinson.
Bill Hamid, D.C. (Goalkeeper): Hamid is second in the league in clean sheets with 13, one fewer than Atlanta's Brad Guzan. That includes four clean sheets in a row, and he's also third in the league in saves with 126. The icing on the cake? D.C., still trying to lock down a home game in the first round of the playoffs, will be at home against last-place Cincinnati, who have scored only 31 goals this season, six fewer than any other team in the league.