What We Learned: Columbus remain elite, Jack McGlynn ignites Houston | MLSSoccer.com

We’re still in the discovery phase of the MLS season. Just shy of the two-month mark, teams are discovering themselves – which means we’re uncovering new things about them in real time, too.

Today, we’re examining the latest slate of MLS matches to explore some of the most interesting things we’ve learned so far this year.

Let’s dive in.

When the Crew helped Cucho Hernández move to Real Betis in LaLiga for a reported eight-figure fee, they lost one of the best attackers this league has ever seen. Cucho helped lead them to MLS Cup 2023 and Leagues Cup 2024 glory. He greased the wheels of Wilfried Nancy’s system in the final third, turning field position into chance creation.

When Cucho departed in early February, Columbus’ results were supposed to dip, at least until a replacement arrived in the transfer market. But that, uh, hasn’t happened.

Through the first seven games of 2025, the Crew are one of only two undefeated teams in MLS, along with Inter Miami CF. They sit third in the league in points per game and are currently playing at a better points-per-game pace (2.14) than last year (1.94) when they finished second in the Supporters’ Shield race. Columbus’ 2-1 win over CF Montréal on Saturday was just the latest positive result for the Cucho-less Crew.

It’s not that the Crew are getting lucky, either. They’re constantly creating better chances than the ones they’re giving up: according to FBref, Columbus sit inside MLS’s top third in non-penalty xG differential per 90 minutes. Even with an attacking lineup headlined by Diego Rossi and Jacen Russell-Rowe, Nancy’s team has way more than stayed afloat.

Now, I want to be clear: the Crew still miss Cucho. The reason they’ve been so successful isn’t because of their dynamic final third play – they’re 13th in MLS in non-penalty xG. Last season? They were third in that metric. But where the attack has dipped, Columbus’ defensive work has impressed, to the tune of the fourth-best non-penalty xG allowed tally in the league.

Helped by a soft schedule out of the gates (outside of Concacaf Champions Cup play), the Crew have stacked points early. Will they keep thriving in a post-Cucho world? I bet the answer is ‘yes.’ Will they keep up this level of form? It’s not likely. Still, this team has maintained a huge chunk of what’s made them so special since Nancy arrived, and that’s a great sign.

There wasn’t a single offseason move that made more sense than the Houston Dynamo trading for Jack McGlynn.

After years of playing in Philadelphia’s energy drink style that didn’t suit his finesse-heavy, on-ball sensibilities, McGlynn made his way to one of the most possession-oriented teams in MLS. Since arriving in Houston, McGlynn has finally had the chance to show off his clever left-footed distribution for a side that wants to build with the ball. And with three goal contributions through his first six starts for Ben Olsen? It’s safe to say the trade is paying off for both the 21-year-old and his new squad.

In his first five Dynamo appearances, McGlynn was tasked with playing as part of Olsen’s double pivot at the center of their 3-2-5 attacking structure. In a 1-0 win over LAFC on Saturday, he played as the right-sided No. 10 in that shape and still made a major impact. On top of scoring the game’s only goal, McGlynn notched his second-best xA tally of the season.

Toss in the idea that the former Union midfielder is one of the absolute premier set-piece artists on this side of the Atlantic and you have a high-impact player. McGlynn is leading Houston in goals added, according to American Soccer Analysis, and has the makings of a cornerstone piece in Texas.

I’ve been impressed by the early signs coming out of Chicago this season. A winter roster overhaul has helped this team take a big step forward. Plus, Gregg Berhalter has clearly communicated tactical instructions to his players that are reducing the number of unforced errors and positional redundancies that defined the Fire under some of their previous managers.

To make it out of that stretch with a solid-to-good set of results, the Fire would be helped by focusing on their defensive rotations. Playing in Berhalter’s 4-3-3 defensive block, teams have begun to spot the weak points in their structure. Namely, the space on the far side, just behind and outside Chicago’s midfield trio.

Let me show you what I’m getting at.

Keep an eye on Rominigue Kouamé here, the Fire’s right-sided central midfielder, who has midfielders Kellyn Acosta and Sergio Oregel to his left. As Kouamé moves towards the ball, the Red Bulls almost immediately find the gap and send the ball right past him, eliminating Chicago’s entire midfield from the play:

You’d better believe Inter Miami will attack that space around the Fire midfield with more precision than the Red Bulls. If teams hit that gap against Chicago over the next six weeks, the Fire could end up hurting.

Look, let’s be honest: Sporting Kansas City’s 2-0 win over St. Louis CITY SC didn’t feature a wildly different-looking SKC squad. Sure, Kerry Zavagnin was in charge on the sidelines after taking over for Peter Vermes earlier in the week. But, as Zavagnin himself has publicly acknowledged, chopping and changing SKC following Vermes’ exit will take time – and more than a few training sessions.

Still, if there was a positive for Sporting (outside of the obvious “we just won our first game of the season over a team we despise to kick off a new era on the right foot”), it was the impact of their two new Designated Players.

Perhaps the biggest reason why Vermes’ exit surprised me was that Sporting KC’s ownership had just spent nearly eight figures on Dejan Joveljić and Manu García. Joveljić, a proven quality striker in MLS, and García, a promising No. 10 from overseas, were signed to help elevate Vermes’ attack. While I’m not attempting to argue that Vermes got too short of a leash in Kansas City after years of struggle, the legendary manager only had six regular-season games to work with his shiny new toys.

Zavagnin got a chance to do so over the weekend, and the two DPs proved a chunk of their worth for the game’s opener.

— Sporting Kansas City (@SportingKC) April 6, 2025

With García operating between the lines, drawing a center back out of position, and feeding Joveljić, and Joveljić running into the vacated space and finishing, it doesn’t take much to imagine SKC’s brass dreaming up a goal like this over the offseason. They got it on Saturday, with a win arriving less than a half hour later.

Sporting Kansas City can march to a new era, provided they get more moments like that one from their big-money stars.

If conceding six goals in a single game doesn’t convince you that there are probably some defensive screws to tighten, I’m not sure what will.

D.C. United fell 6-1 to the San Jose Earthquakes on Sunday, in a game that got out of hand early. Troy Lesesne’s squad was in a three-goal hole by the 20th minute, effectively ending their hopes for a road result. In total, D.C. allowed a whopping 3.2 xG on the day. This was the second time that the Black-and-Red had allowed 3.0 xG or more this season, doing so back on March 22 in a 4-1 road loss to Orlando.

No team has allowed more actual goals than D.C. this season and only three have allowed more non-penalty xG per 90 minutes. It’s been tough, folks.

And it’s not just one issue. New goalkeeper Kim Joon-Hong has more goals than expected (1.7) than any other shot-stopper with seven starts this season. Before the responsibility even shifts to the 21-year-old, D.C. are allowing their opposition high-quality shots. D.C. are 29th in MLS in opposing shot quality, at 0.13 non-penalty xG per shot. On a player level, Matti Peltola hasn’t impressed as half of the double pivot and Kye Rowles is yet to find his footing at center back.

Until their defensive foundation takes a big leap, it’s hard to picture D.C. as an Audi MLS Cup Playoffs team in the Eastern Conference. This team has work to do.