Rivalry Week presented by Continental Tire ended on a high note, especially as Real Salt Lake striker Cristian Arango and Toronto FC winger Federico Bernardeschi found their shooting boots.
Arango had 2g/1a in RSL's thrilling 5-3 win over the Colorado Rapids in the Rocky Mountain Cup, further making his case for Landon Donovan MLS MVP honors. Meanwhile, Bernardeschi produced his first MLS hat trick in Toronto's 5-1 rout of CF Montréal – the Reds' biggest-ever margin of victory over their Canadian Classique rival.
Nick Cushing's New York City FC squad has won six of their last seven games, the latest being Saturday's 2-1 win over the New York Red Bulls. Hannes Wolf produced 1g/1a to help the hosts reclaim Hudson River Derby bragging rights.
Luciano Acosta (1g/2a) took over FC Cincinnati's 3-1 win over St. Louis CITY SC, his eighth-straight match with a goal contribution. Dániel Gazdag (2g/0a) paced the Philadelphia Union's 3-0 win at the New England Revolution, scoring alongside Julián Carranza in the same match for the 16th time in regular-season play (most by any pair of teammates in MLS history).
Dani Pereira (0g/2a) was immense in Austin FC's 3-2 win over Sporting Kansas City, helping keep Q2 Stadium a fortress. Robin Lod (1g/1a) was a game-changer off the bench, sparking Minnesota United FC's 2-1 comeback victory vs. the Portland Timbers.
The backline has three no-nonsense center backs: Erik Sviatchenko (Houston Dynamo FC), Rudy Camacho (Columbus Crew) and Wilder Cartagena (Orlando City SC). Houston settled for a 1-1 draw vs. FC Dallas in the Texas Derby, Columbus snagged a 3-1 win at Chicago Fire FC, and Orlando earned a late 1-0 win at the San Jose Earthquakes.
Lastly, Kristijan Kahlina made five saves as Charlotte FC earned their fourth-straight shutout – this time a 0-0 result vs. LA Galaxy.
Team of the Matchday (3-4-3, left to right): Kristijan Kahlina (CLT) - Erik Sviatchenko (HOU), Rudy Camacho (CLB), Wilder Cartagena (ORL) - Luciano Acosta (CIN), Dániel Gazdag (PHI), Dani Pereira (ATX), Robin Lod (MIN) - Hannes Wolf (NYC), Cristian Arango (RSL), Federico Bernardeschi (TOR)
Coach: Nick Cushing (NYC)
Bench: Maarten Paes (DAL), Tayvon Gray (NYC), Deybi Flores (TOR), Bartosz Slisz (ATL), Andrés Gómez (RSL), Jáder Obrian (ATX), Ryan Gauld (VAN), Leonardo Campana (MIA), Jack Lynn (ORL)
Audi Goals Drive Progress
MLS Academies have been identified as one of the most important resources for building on-field talent in North America. Through the Audi Goals Drive Progress initiative, Audi has committed $1 million per season in an effort to advance academies league-wide, and to drive progress for the sport. For every goal scored in the regular season, Audi will contribute $200 into the Audi Goals Drive Progress fund to directly support each MLS Club Youth Academy.
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