Chelsea 0, MLS XI 1 (f.t.)

(for one night at least, Chicago Is Jamie-town! Moreno and his MLS mates celebrate the explosion of Rob Stone’s collection of back issues of The Coolest Retard)

…because nothing says scintillating entertainment quite like Dave O’Brien calling a soccer match in primetime.

Full credit (for a change) to Craig Killborn-yackalike Eric Wynalda, who when asked at halftime what an MLS victory over the Premiership champs would mean, merely smirked and said “it means we’re gonna have to open the checkbook.”

Even that would be a stretch.  If the Devil Rays thumped the Yankees during Spring Training, it’s pretty unlikely that anyone would characterize the win as a credibility boost for Tampa Bay.  And I’ve seen Chelsea lose a friendly to clearly inferior competition before — the summer after QPR were relegated, for instance.

OK, humbugmania aside, Abramovich’s Zillionaires didn’t play like they were phoning it in for the final 20 minutes, and Canadian international Dwayne De Rosario is more than deserving of the airtime he’ll get around the globe for his expertly taken 70th minute strike. If it wasn’t World Class, it was at least North American class.

Post-match, John Terry sniffed that the grass at the Toyota Center might’ve been “a little long”. Short of Jose Mourinho himself refusing to give the opposition credit for a game well played (talk about missed chances, ESPN should’ve had Mourinho miked up all match) there’s probably no greater testament that this was a decent showing for the MLS, and a genuine public relations coup compared to last year’s debacle at the Bernabeu.