Kick Off: Friday night lights in LA, Carlos Bocanegra calls time on career and a big change in Sacramento

News  |  Videos  |  Schedule & Stats  |  Clubs  |  Fantasy  |  Shop Forward To A Friend Kick Off: Friday night lights in LA, Carlos Bocanegra calls time on career and a big change in Sacramento Here are the top 15 stories everyone's talking about this morning: 1.  EXTENDING OR ENDING A STREAK? The LA Galaxy host the Colorado Rapids in Friday night’s game (10:30 pm ET, NBCSN in the US, MLS LIVE in Canada) with the Galaxy looking to extend their winning streak and the Rapids hoping to avoid yet another defeat. However, there will likely be one notable absence from the Galaxy’s lineup. 2. GARBER & GULATI MLS Commissioner Don Garber and US Soccer Federation President Sunil Gulati took the time to speak at the Bloomberg Business Summit on Thursday, where they discussed a range of topics including promotion/relegation, league expansion and building on the World Cup. The Commissioner also expanded on some of the topics after the talk . Oh, and speaking of World Cups, the FIFA Ethics Committee has finished their investigation into the bidding process. What happens next is anyone's guess. 3. KINGS OF THE REPUBLIC The Sacramento Republic saw a change in ownership on Thursday, with Kevin Nagle, a part owner of the NBA’s Sacramento Kings, purchasing a controlling interest in the club. It's a move that Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson called “a big win for Republic FC and our efforts to secure an MLS franchise.” 4. BECKHAM’S NEW LOCATION? After seeing his previous locations rejected, has David Beckham found another potential site for his Miami-based soccer specific stadium? 5. TURNING IT AROUND As Chivas USA attempt to turn things around both on and off the field, the club travels to Ohio on Sunday to take on the Columbus Crew (3 pm ET, Unimas in the US, MLS LIVE in Canada). Could this game also mark the return of Bernardo Añor for the home side? 6. BOCANEGRA CALLS TIME Fans at Crew stadium will get another chance to honor a departing US national team hero on Sunday after Carlos Bocanegra announced he will be retiring at the end of the season. See what the former US captain had to say about his own career then check out some of the defender's greatest moments. 7. BUILDING THE FUTURE As Houston's ACL absentees continue to grow, it seems players from both the city's soccer franchises are helping each other through their recoveries. The Dynamo host the Montreal Impact on Saturday (8:30 pm ET, MLS LIVE) with the Canadian side announcing not only a new training facility and a change to their management structure, but also a brand new USL PRO team, FC Montreal, that will take the field in 2015. 8. CAN UNION MAKE THINGS WORSE FOR TFC? Toronto FC and the Philadelphia Union play the second of their back-to-back encounters this weekend (Saturday, 2 pm ET, Univision Deportes), and while Maurice Edu is looking forward to his return to Toronto, the Union star is hoping to heap even more playoff pressure on the Canadian side. 9. NO CONSISTENCY While Sporting Kansas City may have lost three games in a row, things look worse for the New York Red Bulls after falling out of the playoff spots. The Red Bulls need a good run now to climb back in but, as Thierry Henry notes ahead of the two side's meeting on Saturday (7:30 pm ET, NBCSN in the US, MLS LIVE in Canada), “consistency hasn’t been something we have dealt with pretty well here”. 10. PLAYING FOR PLACES Real Salt Lake and FC Dallas are set to battle it out for playoff position on Saturday (10 pm ET, MLS LIVE, Free stream of the week on MLSsoccer.com). RSL could soon be welcoming back Alvaro Saborio, while FCD coach Oscar Pareja doesn’t believe his side will be signing any more players this season. 11. OPTIONS UPFRONT? D.C. United will definitely be without Chris Rolfe for their trip to the Vancouver Whitecaps (Saturday, 10 pm ET, TSN in Canada, MLS LIVE in the US) after the midfielder was ruled out for six weeks with a broken arm. With the Whitecaps seemingly lacking an outlet upfront, could the Canadian side be looking to add a new forward? 12. IS VILLAFANA BACK IN? While the San Jose Earthquakes' new stadium is coming along nicely, they'll be away this weekend for a game against the Portland Timbers (Sunday, 4:45 pm ET, ESPN2 in the US, MLS LIVE in Canada). Absences dictated a change against the Whitecaps, but can Jorge Villafaña work his way back into the Timbers starting lineup on a long-term basis? 13. GOING THE FULL 90 The New England Revolution climbed firmly back into the playoff places midweek and Jermaine Jones will look to go the full 90 minutes when they take on the Chicago Fire (Sunday, 7 pm ET, MLS LIVE). Chicago, who of course missed out on Jones, have scheduled a mystery press conference for 2 pm ET today. 14. EL TRI BEGIN LIFE POST WC Saturday marks Mexico’s first game since the World Cup when they take on Chile, another team that impressed at that tournament, in the new Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara (10 m ET, ESPN3). Both teams will be looking to put World Cup heartbreak behind them, so which team has the edge going forward? 15. IDENTIFY YOURSELF If you think about some of the most famous soccer teams in the world, many are renowned for a particular style of play. A number of MLS clubs have already achieved this goal themselves but is there still a long way to go? MLSsoccer.com Musts MLS Insider: Get to know Bradley Wright-Phillips MLS 101: What is the Red Line? ExtraTime Radio: Is Sebatien Le Toux’s fitness down to a flat bicycle tire?