Canada reach Copa América quarterfinals with Chile draw
Canada have reached the 2024 Copa América quarterfinals after playing to a 0-0 draw with Chile in Saturday's Group A finale. The scoreless result at Orlando City SC’s Inter&Co Stadium, combined with Argentina's 2-0 win over Peru, clinched second place for Les Rouges, who will face the winner of Group B on July 5.
The LAs set the stage for an all-time hyped meeting, Atlanta won in an all-time memorable way and Inter Miami kept powering along without their all-time great players. Let’s talk it out.
Hahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahhahahahhahahahahahahahahahhaahhahahahahahahahahahahahhaaahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahai…I mean…hahahahahahhahahahahhahahahahahahahaahahahahahahaahaha
Gimme…gimme a second herehahahahahahahahahahahahaha
Don’t let the Crew get hot.
New England’s four-game winning streak came to definitive close as Columbus ran circles around the Revs in Foxborough. New England had an early moment, but the Crew were in total contol from there as five different scorers found the net. Columbus are officially in the top four in the East and you should expect them to stay there the rest of the season.
Oh, and by the way, they’re 11 points back of Inter Miami with three games in hand. They’re not entirely out of the Shield race.
Speaking of…
The formula seems pretty simple at this point. Just let Ian Fray score the opener off a set piece and then get a moment of magic from someone else. At that point, why would you even need… what’s his name again?
The Herons have won all three matches since the Copa América absences began. What else do you even say at this point? They’re getting the job done in their toughest stretch of the year and there’s no reason to think they’re going to slow down. They just win and win and win…
Mateusz Bogusz, playing as a winger in this one, picked up a hat trick as LAFC cruised to a win over a top-four team in their conference. It really didn’t feel close. We keep telling y’all they’re the best team in the league right now and they keep giving us more reasons to pat ourselves on the back. They cruised to their eighth win in nine games here to set up an all-timer of a matchup with…
The Galaxy had no trouble dismissing any potential Cali Clásico voodoo. They rolled against the last-place Quakes and kept pace with LAFC at the very top of the Western Conference standings. LAFC have the tiebreak right now, but both teams are on 40 points. Just in time for a July 4 El Tráfico at the Rose Bowl. You couldn’t have scripted it better.
Ok…Ok…I’m good now.
The funniest ending you will ever see to anything. Jamal Thiaré lurked behind Toronto goalkeeper Luka Gavran as he prepared to boot the ball away at what would have been full time and then pounced on it when Gavran inexplicably rolled the ball out in front of him without a care in the world. Thiaré scored and Atlanta United broke a seven-match home winless streak going back to March 31.
Absolutely none of the rest of it is worth talking about. You won’t see anything like it for a long, long time.
Evander and Santiago Moreno erased a 2-0 first-half deficit, and then, in his probable last game with Portland, Dairon Asprilla found Jonathan Rodríguez for a stoppage-time winner. The Timbers, somehow, someway, are all the way up to fifth in the Western Conference. I don’t know exactly how we got here, but it has a ton to do with Evander and Rodríguez living up to their DP tags. Evander has nine goals and 11 assists while Rodríguez has nine goals and four assists. They’ve been outstanding and a key reason why the Timbers have been able to cover up some of their more noticeable flaws defensively.
Minnesota have lost four in a row and are suddenly all the way down to seventh in the standings. The West always pulls you back to the center.
Luca Orellano continued a star-making season with his fifth goal of the year and Cincy’s makeshift backline held on for a clean sheet in a 1-0 win. Orellano has been as good as anyone could have possibly hoped this year and is doing it now from the right side of CIncy’s setup. It’s a change that’s allowed him to cut in on his left foot a little more often. It’s how he scored last night and how he nearly scored a couple of more times. The Garys made a lot of great signings this offseason and Orellano is by far the best.
By the way, Dallas put up 1.9 xG, but just couldn’t find the net. Cincy’s defense didn’t put on a masterclass. But it got the job done. For now.
Josef Martínez skied for a vintage header to get Montréal up off the mat, but they’d still need late goals from Dominic Iankov and Ruan to seal the deal on a big home win. It’s the first win for Montréal in four games and it’s enough to send them up to 10th place in the East, ahead of Orlando City and Philly. They’ve caught some bad breaks this year, but they’re getting healthier and are setting themselves up to push for a playoff spot. Considering their situation this season, it could be much worse.
It could not be much worse for Philadelphia. It’s been shockingly bad. The Union are averaging 1.00 point per game now. They can’t defend and they can’t see out games. The answers aren’t coming and changes aren’t going to happen immediately. There’s a long road ahead.
D.C. United nearly flipped the script after picking up an early red card, but Cam Harper found a late equalizer to give the Red Bulls a somewhat disappointing home point. The good news though is they’re still a top-four team in the East and Lewis Morgan is already back from Euros. Their job the rest of the way is to hold onto the fourth-place spot with their life. Keeping up with the Miamis, Cincys and Crews of the world doesn’t seem like it’s in the cards.
Ibrahim Aliyu broke through Charlotte’s stout defense early and that’s all Houston needed. This felt like one of those games where The Crown could have really used an extra DP or two in attack.
Tim Leibold got a timely deflection and Stephen Afrifa got on the end of a lovely Johnny Russell assist to give Sporing KC a much needed 2-0 win. It’s just their third win since March 17.
Austin are officially below the playoff line again. The bad underlying numbers are turning into bad results.
Seattle earned two second-half penalties and Albert Rusnak put them away in a win against the Fire that was probably more difficult than they would have hoped. Maybe more importantly, DP attacker Pedro de la Vega made a 14-minute cameo appearance in this one. It’s the second time he’s been on the field since March 2. Seattle are technically in ninth place, but also technically just three points out of fourth place because this is just how the West works.
Brian White’s hat trick—highlighted by a hilariously unintentional backheeled lob—led the way for the ‘Caps as they overcame an early 2-0 deficit to earn a 4-3, MLS After Dark special of a win. The ‘Caps are in the midst of the West’s dog pile again and St. Louis are now nine points out of ninth place.
Minnesota United transfer Eriksson to Swedish club: Minnesota United FC have transferred center back Victor Eriksson to Swedish top-flight side Hammarby IF. The 23-year-old defender joined Minnesota in January, though made just four appearances (two starts) at the first-team level.
Austin FC sign Farkarlun from MLS NEXT Pro: Austin FC have signed winger Jimmy Farkarlun from MLS NEXT Pro affiliate Austin FC II to a one-year contract with options for 2025 and 2026, Selected 31st overall in the 2024 MLS SuperDraft presented by adidas, Farkarlun has also signed a loan agreement with Austin FC II, allowing him to play in both MLS and MLS NEXT Pro matches for the rest of 2024
- Mateusz Bogusz is heating up for LAFC ahead of El Tráfico.
- A Jordi Alba golazo kept Inter Miami rolling.
- Thiago Almada got a goal in a wild Atlanta United win that may have been his last.
- Canada made a Copa América statement.
Good luck out there. Never let them know where you’re coming from.
