Playoff soccer returns tomorrow
Round One continues Friday night with Charlotte FC hosting Orlando City SC at 7:30 pm ET (MLS Season Pass) and Colorado Rapids welcoming LA Galaxy at 9:30 pm ET (MLS Season Pass). Check out the full playoff schedule here.
Timbers legend Chara returns for 2025
The Portland Timbers have signed midfielder Diego Chara to a contract extension through 2025 with an option for 2026. With this new deal, Portland's captain and longest-serving player will return for a 15th season.
Orellano wins Goal of the Year
FC Cincinnati's Luca Orellano has won 2024 AT&T MLS Goal of the Year honors for a spectacular golazo in their 4-1 rout of CF Montréal on Aug. 31 (Matchday 30).
Paes wins Save of the Year
FC Dallas goalkeeper Maarten Paes has won 2024 MLS Save of the Year, earning the accolade for a double-save in their May 29 (Matchday 17) visit to LA Galaxy.
Some teams will need more to go their way than others if they want to force a Game 3 in their Round One Best-of-3 Series. Here’s what has to go right for each team on the brink.
CHARLOTTE FORCE GAME 3 AGAINST ORLANDO…
If losing Pep Biel actually works out for the best (or at least doesn’t matter)
Charlotte DP attacker Pep Biel was red-carded in stoppage time of their 2-0 loss at Orlando in Game 1. The Crown were outclassed, and losing a DP heading into Game 2 isn’t typically a formula for turning things around. But what if it works out for the best? Someone has to step into Charlotte’s front four in place of Biel.
That’s either Kerwin Vargas (6g/1a in 34 matches) or Patrick Agyemang (10g/5a in 32 matches). It’s most likely Vargas, but it doesn’t seem like a huge leap to think Agyemang and Karol Swiderksi could find a way to cohabitate for 60 minutes or so in a must-win game. It would at least be something different for Orlando to try and handle. We’re at the point where it feels like Charlotte need to throw a changeup of some kind.
Either way, Vargas or Agyemang will provide something different from what Biel had in Game 1. Maybe Orlando will have trouble adjusting. Charlotte better hope they do anyway.
If not, everything lies on Swiderski’s ability to change the game regardless of personnel. He’s been great since returning – 6g/2a in 11 matches – and Charlotte will lean on him to save the season.
COLORADO FORCE GAME 3 AGAINST LA…
If… uh… everything has to go right at this point, but we’ll say “If they find a second wind”
The Rapids got absolutely waxed in Game 1. Their 5-0 loss at LA put them on the edge of elimination and has pretty much everyone thinking it’s inevitable. It honestly seems like the only way they have a chance at winning this series is by going back in time and somehow stopping their third-place run in Leagues Cup. They’ve looked totally gassed ever since, especially defensively.
Colorado need a sudden boost of energy to go blow for blow with the Galaxy. I’m not sure how or why that comes. MLS happens, though.
NEW YORK CITY FORCE GAME 3 AGAINST CINCINNATI…
If home-field advantage is extremely advantageous
The Galaxy had the most lopsided scoreline of the Game 1s, but the biggest beatdown might have come in Cincinnati. Yeah, it only finished 1-0. It could have been so, so much worse. Cincy put up 3.9 xG on 22 shots compared to just 0.4 xG on six shots for NYCFC. Even at 1-0, they were never truly in this one.
They’re going back to New York City now, though. And, as always, NYCFC’s home-field advantage is one of the most effective in the league. Only Inter Miami won more home games this year in the Eastern Conference. NYCFC won six more games at home than on the road, the biggest disparity in the conference. Citi Field will have to make a heckuva difference to turn this series around, but it could happen.
ATLANTA FORCE GAME 3 AGAINST MIAMI…
If they wake up feeling refreshed after a nap
As impressive as it was to watch Atlanta make a game out of last Friday’s meeting, it could have easily ended 6-1 (not 2-1). It took a heroic performance from Brad Guzan to keep things from completely unraveling. That’s totally understandable from Atlanta, though. They were playing their third must-win road game in six days. No one is coming out of that clean against Inter Miami.
They’ve had a week to recover now. It doesn’t suddenly make them more talented than Inter Miami and it doesn’t mean they’ll win. It just means they can get their legs back under them and get a boost from a crowd that will probably climb toward 70,000 fans. If they’re going to pull off an upset, that will go a long way towards inducing some weirdness.
They basically need 110% effort and a whole lot of breaks. And remember: This team seems to be at their best against Miami for whatever reason. It’s not impossible.
RSL FORCE GAME 3 AGAINST MINNESOTA…
If any of their stars get up off the deck
Have we mentioned that it’s been around four months since Chicho Arango scored a goal? That seems impossible considering he finished the season with 17 goals. Yet here we are. Still waiting. He didn’t come through in Game 1. Neither did anyone else on RSL. And a 0-0 draw went Minnesota’s way in penalties.
It’s as basic as it gets, but you have to score to win. RSL aren’t getting that from Arango and they didn’t get that from Diego Luna, Diogo Gonçalves or anyone else in Game 1. As understandable as it was, transferring out Andrés Goméz continues to feel season-defining for this team.
COLUMBUS FORCE GAME 3 AGAINST NEW YORK…
If they find a way around RBNY’s tactics in Game 1
The consensus after the Red Bulls’ stunning Game 1 upset win is…
- Missing Diego Rossi is a big deal
- New York had an outstanding game plan
- New York executed it perfectly
Rossi should be back in Game 2 and New York won’t surprise anyone. Therefore, the question is how replicable is Game 1’s result now that Columbus have had time to adjust?
The gut call here… not all that replicable. The Crew have earned their rep and so have the Red Bulls. Basically, Columbus just need to look like themselves and they’ll be fine. There’s always a chance the Red Bulls have something else up their sleeve. Then again, their setup in Game 1 – effectively pressing the Crew’s buildup, retreating into a compact shell in their own third and finding counter-attacking moments via Emil Forsberg and Lewis Morgan – worked so well that they may just consider running it back and see what happens. You’d typically expect the Crew to find a way around that, but everything seems on the table after Game 1.
HOUSTON FORCE GAME 3 AGAINST SEATTLE…
If literally anyone scores
One goal will probably do it, to be honest. The problem is they’ll have to find a way to score without Coco Carrasquilla, who picked up a red card in Game 1. They… uh… probably aren’t going to find a way to score.
If they do, they should feel pretty good. It’s just one goal. How hard can it be, right?*
(*very hard.)
VANCOUVER FORCE GAME 3 AGAINST LAFC….
If the same team that beat Portland shows up
Vancouver played their best game of the year in their 5-0 Wild Card win over Portland. They weren’t nearly as effective in Game 1 against LAFC. They have to play their absolute best game of the year (again) if they want to survive. There aren’t many folks expecting that to happen.
- Joe Lowery ranked every team’s chance at forcing a Game 3 in Round One.
- Matt Doyle shared what he learned from Round One.
Good luck out there. Spooky season is upon us.
