🔬 The Debrief from an abbreviated but thoroughly dramatic MLS weekend | OneFootball

Week in and week out, Major League Soccer delivers. With six matches on an abbreviated schedule, here is what you need to know about all the drama from Saturday’s slate of games.

What happened

Sep 7, 2024; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; FC Dallas midfielder Asier Illarramendi (14) and Vancouver Whitecaps FC midfielder Sebastian Berhalter (16) battle for the ball in the second half at BC Place. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-Imagn Images

Two major shocks occurred in the Eastern and Western Conferences, respectfully, as giants Columbus and LAFC both stumbled.

The 10-man Crew were thumped 4-0 by Seattle Sounders as Sean Zawadzki was forced to go in the net following goalkeeper Abraham Romero’s straight red card.

Meanwhile, a short-handed LAFC side failed to close in on rivals LA Galaxy at the top after a 0-0 draw against Houston Dynamo.

Christian Benteke became the outright Golden Boot leader after propelling D.C. United to a 2-1 win over Chicago Fire. Then, in the other three fixtures, all the teams split points.

New England and St. Louis finished 2-2 after a back-and-forth affair, Julian Hall rallied at the death to help New York Red Bulls draw Sporting KC 1-1 and the late show saw the Whitecaps end 0-0 against FC Dallas.

Then after the final whistles, Revolution boss Caleb Porter and Crew manager Wilfried Nancy let their opinions fly regarding Saturday’s results.

We’ll see what happens after the shock outbursts!

Stat of the night

Hall was Mr. Clutch for NYRB despite not being a legal adult. What were you doing at 16?

Player of the night

An easy choice, this honour goes to Albert Rusnák of Seattle Sounders. After the Crew placed an outfield player in the net, the midfield recorded his first hat-trick.

He is the third MLS star to finally have hit such a feat after playing 200 games or more, joining Kei Kamara (279) and Mike Magee (226).

What this means

Aug 24, 2024; Portland, Oregon, USA; St. Louis CITY SC defender Henry Kessler (5) looks on during the first half against the Portland Timbers at Providence Park. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

Looking at the Eastern Conference, the Crew missed an opportunity to put pressure on second-place FC Cincinnati. Inter Miami maintains a 10-point lead over Nancy’s men.

Meanwhile, NYRB (fourth) sit in the middle of the playoff pack and ninth-place D.C. United are closing in on the top half. The Revolution (12th) can still consider themselves in the mix for a playoff spot, only five points back with two games in hand.

Chicago Fire currently sit second from the bottom, ahead of Nashville.

In the Western Conference, LAFC sit four points behind the Galaxy, but they have two games in hand. The fifth-placed Sounders earned three huge points in their Crew upset to step closer to securing a playoff spot.

Just under Seattle are Vancouver (sixth) and Houston (seventh), both still in the mix for the post-season but not quite secure, while FC Dallas (10th) are on the outside looking in.

Further down the table are Sporting KC and second-last St. Louis, who appear eight points off a playoff spot.

What comes next?

The MLS action continues with a staggering 13 games scheduled on 14 September. We will once again have all the action for you. Stay tuned!

Feature image credit: Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images