It was a superb evening of action in MLS. We had surprise blowouts, streaks broken, and plenty of superb goals to write home about.
Here is what went down across all the matches on Saturday.
What happened
📸 Chris Jones-Imagn Images
Advertisement
In the early matches, after Toronto and Minnesota played out a dull goalless draw, the New England Revolution compounded Atlanta United’s early misery with a narrow win in Georgia.
As we move into the eastern evening window, the headlines were grabbed emphatically by USMNT striker Brian White, who bagged four goals in Vancouver’s dominant win over Austin at BC Place.
Meanwhile, Charlotte and NYCFC picked up narrow wins over Montréal and Philadelphia respectively, while Cincinnati remained in contention in the Eastern Conference with win at D.C. United.
In the later matches, Nashville needed a stoppage-time penalty, but found a way past Real Salt Lake to remain in good stead to the start the season. B.J. Callaghan’s side had lost two straight coming into the night but have taken a major step in righting the ship.
Advertisement
In perhaps the standout performance during the late evening, Colorado put a dent in San Diego’s superb start to the season, downing the MLS newcomers in front of a packed house in Commerce City.
On the flip-side of the form chart, the Seattle Sounders broke their slump with a massive win in Dallas. Brian Schmetzer’s side had failed to win in four straight matches before securing the points Saturday evening.
Over on the west coast, the woeful MLS Cup champions LA Galaxy continued their horrid start to the season after a home stalemate with Houston. The Galaxy were down to 10 men for the majority of the match after Mathias Jørgensen was sent off in the first-half.
Advertisement
And finally, LAFC bagged a late win over California rivals San Jose Earthquakes to send some positive vibes through Los Angeles a few days after their Concacaf Champions Cup exit at the hands of Inter Miami.
Player of the night
📸 Anne-Marie Sorvin-Imagn Images
There was simply no other choice. Brian White put in perhaps the best performance we’ll see from a striker all season, scoring four as the Whitecaps thrashed Austin.
Stat of the night
Diego Fagundez’s performances the last few years may have gone under the radar, but the stats show how good he has been in MLS.
What this means
With their dominant win over Austin, Vancouver remain atop the Supporters Shield standings and look well deserving of their perch. The Canadian club have won six of their opening eight games, and don’t look like slowing down any time soon.
Advertisement
Meanwhile in the Eastern Conference, Cincinnati and Charlotte both picked up one-goal wins to remain tied atop the the table, but high-flying Inter Miami and Columbus Crew could leapfrog both with wins on Sunday.
What comes next
We have another exciting day of MLS action on Sunday with three more matches. Most notably, the Crew will look to remain unbeaten to start the season with a tough road showdown with St. Louis City.
