At first I was skeptical about the new Leagues Cup format, but after watching as many of the group stage games as I possibly could, I do feel like they’re onto something with this.  Having strictly MLS vs. Liga MX matchups actually turned out to be pretty fun to watch and outside of the final match days, you felt like every game mattered.  Because only four teams made it out of each league to the knockout round, the amount of teams who were eliminated by the time their final game rolled around really hurt the quality of the games and the drama down the stretch.  Portland, Columbus, LAFC, NYRB, and RSL didn’t lose any of their three games in regulation, yet failed to qualify for the knockout round.  For me this seems a bit unfair.  I understand the two leagues are trying their absolute hardest to make sure there’s a MLS vs Liga MX final.  I get it, I really do, but I’m not sure controlling it this much is the way to go.  If it were up to me, I’d put through eight teams from each league and have the knockout begin with the round of 16.  The intra league matchups would stay for that round and let the rest of the games play out as they may.

The MLS teams really did have the better of the group stage.  23 wins, 16 draws and 15 losses (not counting the extra PK points) is pretty impressive, and now I understand the format change.  If it were a single table, six of the eight knockout teams would be from MLS.  Next year that could easily be the opposite.  Guaranteeing four teams from each league is a safeguard from getting rolled over in the group stage for sure, I just wish more teams would make the knockout.  Reward the league that has the better group stage.  Give them more chances to come out as the champion.  That’s what pitting the two leagues against each other in the group stage is really for.  Overall I thought the format was a welcomed change, and we’ll see what the knockout round has in store (I’ll give preview of those games in the coming week(s) or so).  Alright, back to MLS action!

Orlando City SC 4-1 Inter Miami CF

Orlando City continued their rise up the Eastern Conference table with a blowout victory over Messi-less Miami on Sunday.  The Lions didn’t waste any time getting started as Luis Muriel scored to put the home team ahead in the 2nd minute.  Martín Ojeda found his 13th assist of the season, second in MLS to San Diego’s Anders Dreyer.  Muriel’s seventh goal of the season finished off a lovely passage of play between he and Ojeda, setting the tone for the rest of the match.

Inter Miami wasted no time clawing back level as Yannick Bright scored the equalizer in the 5th minute.  Bright pounced on a clearance and scored his first MLS goal in style, burying a full volley from 18 yards out.  A back and forth first half was played at a frenetic pace and despite chances galore for both teams, the 1-1 scoreline would hold until half time.  Orlando City started the second half much like they did the first and Muriel bagged his brace just five minutes in.  The Columbian striker took advantage of a broken corner kick play and slotted his second past Inter Miami goalkeeper Oscar Ustari.  Ojeda scored Orlando City’s third of the match just before the hour mark, sneaking a near post finish past Ustari, one the Argentinian goalkeeper would surely want back.  Ustari made up for his mistake a couple minutes later when he sprawled out and robbed Ivan Angulo of a fourth for Orlando.  Inter Miami’s best chance to cut the deficit in half came in the 66th minute, when Luis Suarez saw OCSC goalkeeper Pedro Gallese off his line and went the for spectacular from half field.  A scrambling Gallese retreated towards his line and tipped Suarez’s effort over the bar, tumbling into his own net to prevent the goal.

Marco Pasalic would seal the deal for the Lions in the 88th minute when he found himself running behind enemy lines completely alone and in on a breakaway.  His original attempt was saved beautifully from Ustari, who came up big on multiple occasions for Miami on the day, but Pasalic would not be denied as he picked up the rebound, beat a retreating Miami defender and slotted his 11th goal of the season.  Orlando would keep their foot on the gas for the remainder of the game, which could have seen an even worse scoreline from Miami’s point of view.

This game had everything, and I mean EVERYTHING.  90 minutes of end to end action, chances, goals, confrontations, and a game played at an extremely fast pace was a joy to watch for Orlando City supporters.

Orlando continues to show they’ll be a force in the East down the stretch.  They jumped Columbus (who were off this weekend) for fourth place in the conference.  Orlando still has games against Columbus, Cincinnati, and two against Nashville in their final eight games.  If they are able to get a home playoff game, know they’ve earned it against the cream of the crop in the East, and they have all the makings of a team who can no doubt make a run to MLS Cup.

Inter Miami remain in sixth place in the loaded East, but still have three games in hand on most of the teams above them.  They’re still on pace to be near or at the top of the Supporter’s Shield standings, but they’re pretty much done playing against the teams above them.  Will the rest of the East beat each other up and see Miami emerge down the stretch?  Miami’s biggest concern (you guessed it) will be how long Lionel Messi will be inactive for.  Messi injured his hamstring during Leagues Cup and his return date is still up in the air.

Austin FC 2-2 Houston Dynamo FC

Houston Dynamo overcame a two goal deficit late in their Lone Star Derby match Saturday night in Austin to salvage a road point.  Austin FC seemed to be in total control at home with two goals from unlikely sources.  Verde captain Ilie Sanchez scored his first league goal of the season, finishing off his own rebound as he was left completely unmarked on a corner kick in the 31st minute.  Brazilian left back Guilherme Biro double Austin’s lead 10 minutes later when he headed home Osman Bukari’s cross.  The Ghanaian winger showed off some fancy feet in the box before narrowly keeping the ball in play, and sent a blind cross that somehow found the head of the unmarked Biro at the back post.  That lead would stand until the 80th minute when Jack McGlynn scored a penalty kick to cut the lead in half.  A lengthy review deemed Austin’s Robert Taylor to have committed a foul in the box, allowing McGlynn to step up and bury his fourth goal of the season.  He’d get his fifth of the season 10 minutes later just before the end of regulation time to draw the visitors level.  Lawrence Ennali’s cross found McGlynn at the top of the box, whose shot deflected off an Austin defender and past Brad Stuver, leveling the game at the death.

What a signing McGlynn has been for Houston.  The $2.1 million cash transfer from Philadelphia has been a spark plug in the Houston midfield.  At just 22 years of age, Houston could be looking at a huge return on that investment if the New York native continues to impress.

Houston remain in 12th place in the Western Conference, but sit with a game in hand and just four points off of San Jose for the final playoff spot.  They’ve got a tough schedule down the stretch, but upcoming games against San Jose, St. Louis, and Colorado could prove to be pivotal in their playoff hopes.

Austin FC dropped points from a winning position for just the second time all season.  They’ve drawn half of their games at Q2 Stadium this year, a place that the team hoped would be a fortress.  Austin currently sit in seventh place in the West with games in hand on most of the teams around them.  They’re still well in the hunt for home field advantage, and almost all of their 10 remaining matches are against teams that sit below them in the standings.  With half of those games at home, the Verde will hope they can hold serve at Q2 to propel them into the playoffs.

FC Cincinnati 0-1 Charlotte FC

FC Cincinnati welcomed Charlotte FC to TQL Stadium on Sunday with the top spot in the Eastern Conference within reach, but Kristijan Kahlina and Wilfried Zaha had other plans.  There really isn’t much to recap in this game, but I do have a few takeaways.

Is there a guy in the league who looks more dangerous than Evander right now?  Every time he’s got possession of the ball he looks like he could make anything happen.  He’s scored a few long range efforts recently so every time he stood over a free kick on Sunday it felt like Steph Curry pulling up from the logo.  Evander is playing so free and with so much confidence, he’s looking like the guy who could very well lead Cincinnati to the promised land.  Don’t look now but next week he’s headed back to Portland for an all time bad blood showdown.  He made no mistake sharing his feelings while trying to leave the Timbers, so his return should be testy to say the least.

Cincinnati really dominated the match throughout the first half, but Kahlina and the Charlotte defense were able to keep them off the scoresheet.  Perhaps the best chance of the half fell to Gerardo Valenzuela in the 40th minute, whose one touch effort in the box was saved brilliantly by the Charlotte goalkeeper.

Kahlina’s three first half saves were enough to keep the game deadlocked going into half time, but Kahlina didn’t have much more than the halftime break to rest.  Within the first five minutes of the second half, he was forced to come up with two more to keep the game level.  The game turned on its head in the 69th minute when Brian Anunga saw his marching orders after a really dangerous tackle on Charlotte’s Djibril Diani.  Referee Filip Dujic originally showed Anunga a yellow card, but after going to the monitor it was obvious the Cameroonian midfielder’s night had to be over.  It’s a reckless challenge, for sure.  I don’t think there’s any malice in it and I don’t see a stomping motion, but the studs are exposed and it catches Diani really high on his leg.  The Frenchman is lucky he didn’t come out of the tackle any worse off than he did.  There’s your turning point.  From then on, Charlotte dominated the possession and with five minutes to go before added time, they found the eventual winner.  A teasing cross from Kerwin Vargas was headed out by Miles Robinson, but Idan Toklomati was first to it.  He rose high to head the ball across to Zaha, who struck a full volley past FCC goalkeeper Roman Celentano.

Zaha’s seventh of the season would hold up as the game winner for the CLT, as they took a massive three points back to their Queen City.  The Crown sit in seventh place in the East at the moment, but could be anywhere from there to ninth in the next couple weeks, as NYCFC and Chicago make up their games in hand.  Charlotte return home for the next two against Real Salt Lake followed by a huge game versus playoff hopefuls New York Red Bulls.

FC Cincinnati remain in second place behind Philadelphia, but are staring down the barrel of Evander’s return to Portland this weekend.  It’s not often we get an East vs West matchup that draws such a storyline, so I’ll be interested to see how that unfolds.  FCC still control their own destiny, and will fancy their chances to make a run at the Supporter’s Shield.  Five of their last eight games are at TQL, and Philadelphia and Nashville are two of them.

We had a nomination for American Soccer Moment of The Year this week when Los Angeles councilwoman Heather Hutt said this at Son Heung-min’s introductory press conference:

I thought after Bastian Schweinsteiger's introductory press conference with the World Cup hopeful Chicago Fire, the people who are writing these speeches would have learned 🤦

It’s a hilarious moment, for sure. One I’m sure the councilwoman will regret, but let’s not overreact. Is it a glowing endorsement for American soccer? Of course not. Is it a fair microcosm of how American’s feel about soccer? Also, of course not. Let’s enjoy the comical moments as they come and dole out the embarrassment accordingly.