MLS is back with a bang! After a good chunk of the teams rested their legs in the last few weeks of Leagues Cup play, they came back with fresh legs and plenty of goals to show for it. Here is what went down around the grounds in MLS Saturday evening.
What happened
In the marquee matchup of the evening, Inter Miami got their revenge on Eastern Conference chasers FC Cincinnati thanks to two Luis Suárez goals in the opening seven minutes, potentially blowing the doors off of the Supporters Shield race.
Elsewhere in the early kickoffs, the goals were flowing. FC Dallas picked up their first away win of the season, downing D.C. United in a seven-goal thriller in the district. Meanwhile, New England and debutant Luca Langoni put five past a sorry Montréal side north of the border.
The result of the evening came from New York, as Chicago came roaring back with two late goals to stun an otherwise dominant NYCFC, bagging a stoppage-time equalizer from the penalty-spot to nab an unlikely point.
From one New York team to another, the Red Bulls earned a point in Charlotte as Dean Smith’s side welcomed their summer signings to the pitch. Charlotte could have closed to within a point of New York with a win on the night, but the shared points sees the Red Bulls hold onto their lead in fourth place.
In the hotly-contested Western Conference, Seattle earned a vital victory away to Minnesota on a night when Jordan Morris became the second all-time leading goalscorer in Sounders history.
Houston‘s bid for an automatic qualification to the MLS Cup Playoffs took a hit as Toronto came to down and stole a victory in a game the Dynamo largely dominated. Sticking with inter-conference showdowns, Sporting Kansas City picked up a big three points against Orlando City at home to move to within seven points of a playoff spot.
There was plenty of drama in the final two games of the night. In Los Angeles, Marco Reus announced himself on the MLS scene with a goal and an assist in his debut to see the Galaxy over the line against Atlanta United.
Finally, there was utter chaos in the Pacific Northwest as the 10-men of the Timbers fought back in the 100th minute of the match to snatch a 4-4 draw against St. Louis City.
Full time and it’s a bizarre 4-4 draw.
A game both clubs will be disappointed in, especially after #allforcity held 2 separate 2 goal leads.
That being said, Portland had 3.39 xGoT and – defensively – it just has to…