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Whew! What a night of action that was. Goals galore, the Supporters’ Shield was settled and plenty of teams made their moves for a spot in the postseason. Let’s talk it out.
COLUMBUS CREW - 2 | INTER MIAMI CF - 3
D. Rossi (46’), C. Hernández (61’ PK), R. Camacho (Red Card, 63’) | L. Messi (45’, 45+5’), L. Suárez (48’)
Bravo, Inter Miami. Bravo.
This game lived up to the hype and then some. I mean, it really had it all. Let’s start with the GOAT. In a game with so much importance, it was only right that Lionel Messi played a starring role with two goals, including a beautiful free kick from 27 yards to give the Herons a 2-0 halftime lead.
If you expected Columbus to just go silently into the night, however, you haven’t been tuned in this season. Trailing 3-2 in the 84th minute, the Crew were given a penalty kick. Cucho stepped up with a chance to ruin the festivities for the Herons, but Drake Callendar player the hero, producing a sensational PK save to preserve the lead and clinch the Shield for Miami—truly incredible cinema.
Back to Messi for a moment. He’s now up to 17g/15a in just 17 games. Is he back to being the frontrunner for the Landon Donovan MLS MVP?
ATLANTA UNITED - 1 | CF MONTRÉAL - 2
D. Rios (45+3’) | J. Martínez (43’, 76’)
A true playoff six-pointer. Two squads sitting just outside the Wild Card spots in the East with all to play for. And what a homecoming it was for former Atlanta legend Josef Martínez, who continued his white-hot form, firing home both of Montréal’s goals to give him five goals in his last three games.
This was a massive win for Montréal. Like their star striker, they’re also in white-hot form, unbeaten in five with four wins. They’ve quietly climbed up the East and now sit in eighth, with a three-point gap. For Atlanta, time is running out. They’re not officially eliminated, but it’s going to take something truly special to grab the final Wild Card spot in the East.
CHARLOTTE FC - 4 | CHICAGO FIRE FC - 3
K. Swiderski (8’, 45+1’), J. Urso (30’), L. Abada (58’) | F. Herbers (25’), K. Acosta (67’), T. Barlow (90+3’)
It wasn’t always pretty, but Charlotte got the job done against the Fire and secured their place in the Audi 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs.
Charlotte’s DP quality showed through in the win as Karol Swiderski bagged a brace and added an assist, Liel Abada scored and Pep Biel added a pair of assists. The scoreline got a bit tight at the end, but all in all, a very good night to be a fan of the Crown.
NEW YORK CITY FC - 3 | FC CINCINNATI - 2
M. Ilenic (16’), A. Martínez (65’), S. Rodríguez (75’ PK) | L. Acosta (69’ PK), C. Baird (90+6’)
Questions were certainly being asked about New York City entering the home stretch of the MLS season. They’ve more than answered the call as of late, with back-to-back wins over some of the Eastern Conference’s best. Alonso Martínez could make a case for the hottest forward in the league right now, as he scored his 15th goal of the campaign.
Cincy will rue the missed opportunity to gain ground on Columbus, and with the Crew having a game in hand, are more than likely going to have to resign to a third-place finish in the East.
ORLANDO CITY SC - 2 | PHILADELPHIA UNION - 1
F. Torres (57’), D. McGuire (64’) | Q. Sullivan (72’)
The good times keep on rolling for Orlando, as they pick up their fifth win in six league games. The Lions’ attack has been firing on all cylinders lately, and it is refreshing to watch. It seems like any combination of attackers can pick the lock for Oscar Pareja’s side. And congratulations to Facundo Torres, who became Orlando’s all-time leading goalscorer.
For Philly, this loss is by no means detrimental, but it is definitely a missed opportunity to climb above a reeling Toronto for the final Wild Card spot in the East. They will have some work to do over the final two matches against Cincinnati and Columbus to close the season.
TORONTO FC - 1 | NEW YORK RED BULLS - 4
P. Owusu (66’ PK), F. Bernardeschi (Red Card, 75’) | E. Forsberg (27’ PK), J. Tolkin (48’), L. Morgan (69’ PK), E. Manoel (88’)
What a difference a matchday makes.
Things were looking bleak for New York after the Red Bulls were run off their home pitch last Saturday by their crosstown rivals and hadn’t won a match since July 20. They can put that in the rearview for now after cruising to a big win over Toronto. More importantly, DP midfielder Emil Forsberg is back on the field and among the goalscorers, boosting the squad’s confidence heading into the playoffs.
Toronto are in serious trouble. They’re level on points with Philadelphia and D.C. for the final Wild Card spot in the East, but only have one more game to play, as opposed to everyone else’s two. Oh, and that game… it’s against an Inter Miami side looking to break a points record.
HOUSTON DYNAMO FC - 2 | NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION - 1
E. Ponce (50’), E. Sviatchenko (68’) | C. Gil (54’ PK)
The Dynamo keep pace with the rest of the pack in the middle of the Western Conference playoff race, sitting just outside a top-four spot. There has been much discussion about Ezequiel Ponce and if he will be able to carry Houston’s attack. Well, he continues to produce up top and will continue to be relied upon down the stretch. He and Coco Carrasquilla are a duo to keep an eye on.
NASHVILLE SC - 3 | D.C. UNITED - 4
Muyl (6’, 62’), H. Mukhtar (45’) | L. Bartlett (24’), C. Benteke (76’), G. Pirani (90+4’, 90+7’)
Nashville looked to have this one locked up, leading 3-1 with just less than 15 minutes to play. Then the unthinkable happened. D.C. scored three goals, including a 90+ minute brace by Gabriel Pirani to stun the crowd at GEODIS Park. The incredible result vaulted the Black & Red into a tie with Toronto and the Union with 37 points, keeping their playoff hopes very much alive. Oh, and Christian Benteke scored again in this one. That’s 22 goals on the season for him. I’d say the Golden Boot is more or less his at this stage.
Conversely, it’s a back-breaker for Nashville and a result that was effectively the nail in the coffin for their season. One minute, squarely in the playoff hunt, the next… all the way down in 13th.
COLORADO RAPIDS - 1 | LA GALAXY - 3
C. Ronan (45’) | G. Pec (50’), R. Puig (58’, 90+1’)
As the very knowledgeable Sam Jones mentioned in yesterday’s Daily Kickoff, Colorado really really needed this win to have a shot at hosting in Round One. They did not get it. Coupled with other results throughout the night and the Rapids dropped from fourth to sixth. Yikes.
Meanwhile, the Galaxy did what they had to do to keep their grip on the top spot in the West. As they so often are, the duo of Riqui Puig (2g) and Gabriel Pec (1g/2a) made the difference for LA.
REAL SALT LAKE - 0 | MINNESOTA UNITED FC - 0
As you can tell by the scoreline… not much to report from this game. But, the result did secure Minnesota’s place in the Playoffs. And it was enough to keep RSL in the top four in the Western Conference, so there is that.
LAFC - 1 | ST. LOUIS CITY SC - 0
D. Bouanga (45+1’)
LAFC did what they had to do to keep pace with their LA rivals atop the Western Conference. Also, Denis Bouanga did what he had to do to keep pace with Benteke atop the Golden Boot leaderboard. Other than that, it was business as usual for the Black & Gold, who’ve regained their form with three straight wins, including the title-clinching US Open Cup Final against Sporting KC last week.
PORTLAND TIMBERS - 0 | AUSTIN FC - 1
D. Pereira (42’)
Uh oh, Portland…
That was not how it was supposed to go. All the Timbers needed was a win to officially lock up their place in the Audi 2024 MLS Playoffs, and they laid an egg.
All credit has to go to Brad Stuver though, who was fantastic in keeping a clean sheet. Portland wasn’t shy about testing the Austin goalkeeper, peppering him with 11 shots on target, and racking up 2.4 xG, but nothing got through. Austin on the other hand: one shot, one goal. That’s all they needed.
Amazingly, that win keeps the Verde alive in the playoff race. These two teams are the last two that have yet to clinch or be eliminated in the West, so it’s safe to say this was a massive win for Austin.
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES - 3 | FC DALLAS - 2
H. López (13', 79'), J. Ebobisse (83') | A. Velasco (41') S. Ibeagha (90')
This one didn’t have any implications, but it was far from a snoozer. It was a fun watch and went back and forth all night. There have been very few positives to take from this season for the Earthquakes, but this is one of them. It was a hard-fought home win. They’re still destined for the Wooden Spoon, though.
VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC - 0 | SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC - 3
F. Picault (Red Card, 88') | G. Minoungou (14'), A. Rusnák (65' PK), P. Rothrock (67')
Last night couldn’t have gone much better for Seattle. With a comprehensive 3-0 victory over their Cascadian rivals, the Sounders jumped all the way up to third in the West. They’ve been in some of the best form in the league as of late with four wins and a draw over their last five matches.
Vancouver finished the day right where they started, in seventh on 47 points. But the gap between them and the Wild Card places is shrinking with Minnesota now just one point back. The good news: they face the Loons next and have a game in hand, so three points would go a long way to locking up a spot in Round One.
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