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Benny Feilhaber continues to play like one of the best midfielders in MLS. His fourth minute goal was his sixth of the season, another career high. His assist on Dom Dwyer's goal in the 34th minute was his 10th in league play and 14th across all competitions, again another career high.
Sporting KC has played 18 games so far this season and Feilhaber has a chance to not only tie, but shatter the club record for assists in a season across all competitions, which is 18.
All this and when I asked Juergen Klinsmann what it was Feilhaber had to do to get called into the national team, all he could say was there were other players ahead of him. Since he didn't answer the question I asked, it probably just means there isn't a good one.
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Dwyer is slowly turning into the shark in front of goal that most of us know and love. His 34th minute tally against Montreal is his sixth goal in his last five matches cross all competitions.
It also marks the seventh goal he's scored against Montreal in the last two seasons. How impressive is that? It ties him with his hero (and the inspiration behind his uniform number) Thierry Henry for most goals against Montreal. When he was asked why he has so much success against the Impact after the game, he said, "Maybe I just love scoring against Canadian teams."
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Something that Peter Vermes mentioned during the postgame press conference kind of struck a chord with me. He said that one thing that's really driving him crazy right now is the special treatment that Designated Players seem to get from the referees in this league, as opposed to everyone else that's not making that kind of money.
He specifically mentioned Dwyer and how he gets manhandled every game and yet doesn't get the calls. When asked about that in the locker room and whether his aggressive style worked against him, he said it probably did. He said that if you try to stay on your feet and play through, you should be more likely to get the call when you do, in fact, go down.
I agree with both of them. As Vermes said, the player with the ball should be the one the refs are looking to protect, regardless of his paycheck. It's one of those inconsistencies that are really making him crazy and I don't blame him. I can't blame him not because he coaches the local team, but it's because he's right. Just because you're a DP doesn't mean you should get wrapped in bubble wrap so you don't get hurt, while everyone else is on their own.
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On a side note about officials, I'm about to become one. I have registered with the states of Missouri and Kansas to officiate high school boys and girls soccer (boys in the fall, girls in the spring). I now have the date, time and location of my first experience on a soccer field as the man in the middle, but I'm not sure I want to let that many people know this information. I'm not sure I want to have a bunch of people show up to watch me make a fool of myself (hopefully, I won't, but...).
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Up next for the club is yet another elimination match at home against the Houston Dynamo. The quarterfinals of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup kick off on Tuesday, July 21, at 7:30 p.m. The winner will host Real Salt Lake in the semifinals on the 11th or 12th of August.
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