All-Stars seek to protect perfect record against foreign clubs

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah -- So what if Major League Soccer's showcase night, just like other sports' All-Star events, is usually more sizzle than steak? It can still be fun.

Rio Tinto Stadium is the venue for Major League Soccer's 14th All-Star contest, this one against Everton (Wednesday, 9:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2/ESPN360.com), a club aspiring to heavyweight status in the venerable English Premier League. There's no David Beckham for the league All-Stars, but there is an increasingly ballyhooed MLS streak to discuss.

The Toffees are just now gaining altitude in preseason training, so the timing is typically imperfect for the heavy-legged All-Star opponents. After a tough week of workouts in Seattle, David Moyes' side opened its preseason schedule Sunday with a 1-0 loss in Canada to Argentina's famed River Plate (on a fantastic goal by Ariel Ortega).

Five storylines to follow

1. The streak: You'll hear it repeated a lot over the next few days, so get used to it: the MLS All-Stars are 5-0 in the current format, which pits the league's best and brightest against foreign clubs. Commissioner Don Garber's charges have previously handled Mexico's Chivas, Scotland's Celtic and three clubs from England: Fulham, Chelsea and West Ham.

All-Star manager Dominic Kinnear understands about the requisite All-Star approach. Still, the fiercely competitive Houston Dynamo manager doesn't want the league streak to peter out on his watch and admits that pressure is building as the perfect mark stretches on. "My plan is to prepare this team to play and to win and continue the great tradition of this All-Star team against some great teams around the world," he said.

2. The format: Yes, the MLS All-Stars' mark is perfect, but they have hardly been dominant in the series. It was especially tight against Chelsea three years ago at Toyota Park. Even last year, it took a late Dwayne De Rosario penalty kick for the MLS All-Stars to squeeze by EPL middleweight West Ham in Toronto.

Still, some reporters and bloggers seem bored and are starting a groundswell for a return to the old East-West format, or to a once-tried format of American MLS Stars versus Foreign MLS Stars. A total of 34 players participated in the last East-West format contest. The league's talent pool has surely improved since then, but it would be a big stretch even now to identify 34 truly worthy "All-Stars" in MLS.

MLS Primetime
Wednesday MLS All-Stars vs. Everton Rio Tinto Stadium, Sandy, Utah 9:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2/ESPN360.com

3. No Beckham: It sometimes seems like David Beckham has taken over domestic soccer; his specter is everywhere. And yet, he won't be at Rio Tinto on Wednesday.

On one hand, it seems unimaginable that world soccer's most illustrious icon isn't an MLS All-Star. On the other hand, his loan to AC Milan prevented Beckham from playing more than one MLS contest before selections were made. He could have been a commissioner's pick, a tool Garber has used before to add hometown heroes or trusty vets deserving of a victory lap. Whispers are that Real Salt Lake owner Dave Checketts even did a little lobbying for a Beckham appearance, the better to gin up the week's wow factor.

Still, no Beckham. Looks like MLS might be a little "over" the whole Beckham thing.

4. The grounds: MLS never misses a chance to show off its nifty, new stadiums, multimillion dollar metaphors for the sport's growth and ability to put down roots, literally and figuratively. Two years ago, the sparkling, new Dick's Sporting Goods Park outside Denver was among the stars of the show. Last year it was BMO Field in Toronto. Now it's Rio Tinto, a beautiful ground of 20,000 in suburban Sandy at the base of the Wasatch Mountains.

5. Tim Howard: Everton's goalkeeper and the United States' No. 1 may be something of a reluctant star, but he is a beloved figure among the Sam's Army brigade. He overcame Tourette syndrome to become a humble overachiever in MLS for New York earlier in the decade, left for storied Manchester United, elevated his career at Everton and is now firmly ensconced as one of the land's foremost soccer heroes.

Five matchups to watch

1. Landon Donovan vs. Howard: The U.S. national teammates are obviously familiar with each other. So they have exchanged some playful pokes through the press in the run-up to Wednesday's match.

Donovan was still a relative unknown for the San Jose Earthquakes back in 2001 when he struck for the first of his 92 (and counting) career MLS goals. Howard was in goal that day in his first year as a full time New York MetroStars starter.

"I think Richard Mulrooney played a long ball and I got behind their defense and I remember as I got closer to Timmy he kept backing up," Donovan said last week on a national teleconference. "I think he was trying to play mind games with me. ... It was probably more relief than joy, but it was a great moment."

Howard said he doesn't have much recollection of the goal but laughed about Donovan bringing it up. "I think he scored on me more than once, so it's not saying too much."

2. Moyes vs. Kinnear: OK, so it's really just a glorified friendly, and neither side will get too worked up over tactics and lineup selections and such. Still, these are two interesting figures.

On the Everton side, the highly respected Moyes arguably squeezes more from less like no other EPL manager. The Merseysiders are aiming for European play next season, and most voices back in England says it's not necessarily a bridge too far.

On the MLS side, Dominic Kinnear's future in domestic coaching sure looks bright. He just turned 42 on Sunday but he already has two MLS championships. His career winning percentage is best among all MLS managers with at least one year of experience. He is currently on 75 career wins, and only one other MLS manager, Dave Dir, reached that milepost at an earlier age.

3. Jo vs. Geoff Cameron: Everton's young Brazilian is competing with talented-but-brittle Louis Saha for striker duty as Everton attempts to push into a tonier EPL neighborhood this year. Cameron has been a revelation while pulling emergency center back duty for Houston, so it will be interesting to watch him against EPL-level talent.

4. Phil Neville vs. Cuauhtemoc Blanco: Blanco may not start, but he'll surely figure into the game at some point, given his ability and affinity for showmanship and the big stage. He showed it last year in an All-Star MVP night against West Ham, supplying a crafty goal and an assist.

5. Joleon Lescott vs. Freddie Ljungberg: Everton's top defender is the latest target of Manchester City's freewheeling, aggressive transfer bidding. It seems unlikely much will come of it, so expect to see him in Utah dealing with Seattle's livewire attacker, among others.

Steve Davis is a Dallas-based freelance writer who covers MLS for ESPNsoccernet. He also writes a blog, Dailysoccerfix.com, and can be reached at BigTexSoccer@yahoo.com.