Oh, we have a problem.
Both FC Cincinnati and Columbus Crew came into this weekend feeling a little more motivated — Cincinnati lost two straight games, losing their Supporters' Shield lead to Miami in the process; the Crew lost their first points in six games to Charlotte in midweek and then lost to an Eastern Conference rival — but neither were quite their former selves on Saturday.
Let's start with the Orange and Blue of the Hell is Real Derby, who came into their final league match of the month in a tough spot, with a string of injuries and absences at centre-back, Alvas Powell and head coach Pat Noonan out due to red card suspensions, and Luca Orellano and Lucho Acosta not 100% fit as evidenced by their absence from the starting line-up.
In that sense, it's no surprise that they lost 3-1 to the New York Red Bulls, who haven't lost a single game at home this year (Stand up, Harrison!). But still, Cincinnati's second-half performance was a bit concerning. After New York dominated the game for 45 minutes, Cincinnati brought in the one-two punch of Orellano and Acosta. You'd think that would be a shock for Cincinnati. After all, Cincinnati hasn't won a game since 2021, when Acosta hasn't played (yippee). But it played out the same way.
Sure, Acosta had his moments, but Cincinnati was completely outplayed. The Red Bulls' two goals were a microcosm of the game. Cincinnati lost the first ball in the box, then reacted late to miss the second. Kyle Duncan's goal was special, but those two chances were isolated incidents. The Red Bulls had more shots on goal, more chances, and 0.8 more expected goals than their opponents in the second half. As an aside, I'd also like to thank New York's 19-year-old defensive midfielder Ronald Donkor. He's been great since Frankie Amaya left.
Assistant coach Dom Kinnear was upbeat after the game, citing the team's success so far this season, and rightly so, but the coaching staff and front office need to figure out how to stop the bleeding and stay calm during the league's hiatus.
Now, as for the Black and Gold side… I have no idea what happened this weekend in Atlanta. The Crew just didn't look like the Crew. In a 2-1 loss, they conceded two goals from set pieces and looked very vulnerable in defensive transitions. It felt like a fluke. Let me explain.
Stian Gregersen scored two goals in the game, 20% of his career total. He's not a set-piece maestro, and Atlanta isn't a great set-piece team either. Before the game, they were 27th in the league in set-piece goals scored, according to WhoScored, but the Crew was in the top 10 in set-piece defense.
Atlanta are also not exactly a counter-attacking team, especially without Thiago Almada. They were last in the league in counter-attack goals scored at the weekend, while Crew were last in goals conceded from counter-attacks. Unless WhoScored's stats are horribly wrong, this performance is a big one. Shrugging emoji.
The timing of the break couldn't have been better for both teams.
LAFC wins in Seattle
Saturday's matchup between LAFC and the Seattle Sounders was, to me, the most intriguing game of the week. Los Angeles had dropped points in two straight home games and Seattle was riding a five-game winning streak. LA head coach Steve Cherundolo snuffed out that intrigue right before our eyes, leading the team to a 3-0 victory in a one-sided, lethargic game.
Soap operatios aside, Cherundolo won the tactical battle here. He organized his team in a 3-4-2-1, operating as a back five, scoring a couple of goals in the first half and dropping back to bunker. Cherundolo knew his front line of Denis Bouanga and Mateusz Bogusz were good enough to score a goal or two, and he knew Seattle operated better with space behind and in front of the backline.
“Of course it's great to win 3-0,” Cherundolo said after the match. “It was great to see the effort from the players, the tactical discipline and some big plays from some players tonight. Hugo [Lloris] He did a lot for us, scoring counter attacks, having consecutive possessions of the ball and looking dangerous every time we went forward.”
Seattle coach Brian Schmetzer likely didn't expect Cherndulo's tactical changes. His creative players, Albert Rusnak and Pedro de la Vega, struggled to get passes in the middle in the first half, and the Sounders had no answer for the defensive approach of Los Angeles Football Club. He made some key changes at halftime, dropping de la Vega, who likes to get as many touches on the ball, to allow his team to play more direct, and bringing on Paul Rothrock, who is much better at fighting in the box.
As a result, Seattle looked better in the second half but couldn't create any clear-cut chances until Bouanga sealed the game with his second goal. Seattle may have won the xG battle 2.36 to 1.82, but the 2.17 of Seattle's goals came after LAFC was already leading by three. That's a problem in itself, and so is their overall finishing. Seattle needs better options going forward. Raul Ruidiaz is no longer a DP-caliber player, and their third-best option, Rothrock, just doesn't cut it in this league. I think Schmetzer knows that.
“I told the players: 'This is a good reset,'” Schmetzer said after the game. “We're not there yet. We all need to work harder. That performance wasn't good enough.”
It's no surprise that Seattle has 0 wins, 5 losses and 5 draws against the top six teams in the Western Conference. They just don't have the talent to beat the best teams in MLS. Seattle has some flexibility in their roster during the summer transfer window and they need to take advantage of it.
Seven-goal battle in Vancouver
The Houston Dynamo and Vancouver Whitecaps played one of the most entertaining matches of the game. The match was back and forth and intense right to the end. Cherundolo, this is how the beautiful game is played.
Houston won the game 4-3, snapping Vancouver's five-game winless streak, but I think there's something to be gained from both teams. That may be more evident for the Dynamo. With the win, they leapfrogged the cascading duo of Seattle and Portland into sixth place in the West. And they got there without looking particularly positive.
Sure, they scored four goals, but two of those were stunning shots from Griffin Dorsey (especially the winner) and the other was a missile from Brad Smith. The Dynamo snatched victory from under the Whitecaps' noses in the second half despite being down more than two goals in the xG battle. This is obviously unsustainable, but manager Ben Olsen will surely be pleased with the fact that his team got a win before the club's new attacking players made any changes to the team.
Olsen seemed almost speechless during the post-match press conference, but as far as Ben Olsen's post-match reaction goes, it was a pretty positive one.
Club-record signing Ezequiel Ponce made his debut this weekend, but Under-22 initiative winger Lawrence Enari was not included in the match squad, so there is reason to believe this team will be much better when the league resumes.
There are definitely positives for Vancouver amid the disappointment, and I think the biggest one is they were able to score three goals without Brian White and Ryan Gauld.
This team has been made or broken all season by the power of their white-and-gold duo. Since April, over 82% of Vancouver's goals have involved one (or both) of that duo as either the scorer or primary assist. When both players are on form, they're great, when they're not, they're not so great.
MLS veteran Fa'fa Picaud was on fire for the Whitecaps on Saturday with two goals and one assist. Having him as a solid third option in attack would mean a lot for Vancouver going forward. But pray to the soccer gods, Vancouver folks, invest in your team. With a DP attacker to complement the gold and white, this team could make it to the playoff semifinals for the first time in club history. Go for it.
