Soccer <\/p>\n
What a week in MLS. Inter Miami<\/a> pulled out a late win, St. Louis<\/a> kept a clean sheet and Vancouver<\/a> earned three points alongside an impressive Concacaf Champions Cup<\/a> result. It was truly a week unlike any other.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n As always: The Power Rankings are voted on by around 15 people associated with MLSsoccer.com. If you have problems, please email Po*********************<\/span>@*******<\/span>er.com<\/span>. It\u2019s definitely not going to forward anything you send into my editor’s inbox.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n As always: \u201cOther teams are just teams. They\u2019re smarter than you, they\u2019re luckier than you and whatever you think is going to happen, the exact reverse opposite is going to happen.\u201d They can, in fact, keep getting away with it.<\/p>\n Inter Miami went down early to Atlanta<\/a> on Sunday and wound up with a 2-1 win after a When Playing It Out Of The Back Goes Wrong and the world\u2019s gentlest-headed winner from Faf\u00e0 Picault<\/a>. That\u2019s 10 points from four games despite getting a red card in three of them and trailing in two of them. They\u2019re not going to stop racking up points.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Previous: 2-1 win at ATL<\/a> | Next: Bye<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n No one has had a more impressive start to the season. After losing DP midfielder Stuart Armstrong and parting ways with their head coach this offseason, expectations weren\u2019t high heading into 2025. But the \u2018Caps are thriving.<\/p>\n Despite missing playmaker Ryan Gauld<\/a> to injury, Vancouver pulled off one of the biggest Concacaf Champions Cup series wins in MLS history last week when they eliminated CF Monterrey. It feels like Rayados have jettisoned roughly 235 MLS teams in that competition over the years, but the \u2018Caps made it look relatively easy. It\u2019s their best result in club history, and they followed it up with a 1-0 win at FC Dallas<\/a> on Saturday. That\u2019s four wins in four MLS games.<\/p>\n While other teams are faltering due to CCC fatigue, Vancouver have just kept going. Jesper S\u00f8rensen\u2019s been in charge for about a month’s worth of games and has already helped produce an all-time great run for the club. It\u2019s time to talk to your friends and family about the elite Vancouver Whitecaps.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The previously-perfect Union<\/a> hosted Nashville<\/a> and got a bucket of cold water dumped on their scalding hot start. The 3-1 loss marks the first time in four games they\u2019ve failed to score multiple goals.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n We always knew the Crew<\/a>\u2019s ceiling would be limited without Cucho or a Cucho-esque replacement at striker. We got a taste of that during their Round of 16 CCC loss to LAFC. Still, they\u2019re a Wilfried Nancy-led Columbus side. They put the fear of God into LAFC<\/a> for a moment and followed that up with a 1-1 draw at San Diego<\/a>. They\u2019ve earned eight points through four games and now don\u2019t have CCC games to slow them down.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Four games in and they\u2019re sitting second in the Western Conference. None of it seems like a fluke, either.<\/p>\n Per American Soccer Analysis, San Diego are second in the league in (ultra-small sample size, your mileage may vary) expected goal differential and they\u2019re certainly passing the eye test. They were the better side against the Crew in a 1-1 draw over the weekend.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n They\u2019ve been up against Seattle<\/a>, Atlanta, Miami and FC Cincinnati<\/a> to start the season and, after their 2-0 win over Cincy on Saturday, they\u2019ve earned seven points. Just imagine where the hype would be if they had capitalized on Miami\u2019s red card last week. Still, seven from four there is an excellent run. The early-season projections of Charlotte<\/a> as a potential top-four side in the East feel justified right now.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n LAFC nearly found themselves in a full-blown existential crisis on Tuesday night when Columbus turned a 3-0 Concacaf Champions Cup deficit into a 3-2 deficit in one half. But LAFC held on and finally shrugged off the Crew, progressing into the quarterfinals. They didn\u2019t carry that momentum into MLS play over the weekend, but they won\u2019t care. They finally beat the boss battle they\u2019d been stuck on since December 2023.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n You have scored exactly as many goals as anyone else has on St. Louis this season. They pushed their clean-sheet streak to four with a 1-0 win over Seattle. The Olof Mellberg era is off to a conservative and effective start.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Well\u2026 for about 67 minutes it looked like the Loons<\/a> were well on their way to their third straight win. But 13 minutes later, a 3-0 lead over Sporting KC<\/a> evaporated. That\u2019s not ideal, to say the least, but it\u2019s hard to be too worried when Tani Oluwaseyi<\/a> is out here picking up a brace and Hassani Dotson<\/a> is out here doing this:<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Zack Steffen<\/a> is in the middle of a complete turnaround. After posting bottom-of-the-barrel shot-stopping numbers in 2024, early statistical returns and the eye test look great for the USMNT goalkeeper in 2025. He made 12 saves in Colorado<\/a>\u2019s 2-1 win at San Jose<\/a> this weekend. The Rapids haven\u2019t been great (or remotely good) defensively this year, but Steffen has stepped up to rescue them.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Nothing has been easy for Cincy this year. They\u2019ve crashed out of CCC, have just six points from four games and lost Miles Robinson<\/a> to an injury early in their 2-0 loss at Charlotte. There\u2019s nothing to panic about, but these early-season moments make you wonder about their ceiling.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Uhhhh\u2026 uh-oh.<\/p>\n The Sounders seemed like a sure bet before the season. A few weeks in and the ceiling is dropping. Paul Arriola<\/a> is likely out for the year after tearing his ACL, Pedro de la Vega<\/a> is already injured, Jordan Morris<\/a> is hurt as well, they\u2019re out of CCC and they\u2019re sitting 10th in the West after their 1-0 loss at St. Louis over the weekend. The high of that 5-2 win over a rotated LAFC side went away with warp speed.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n NYCFC<\/a> are a late Inter Miami equalizer away from sitting on nine points in four games. Instead, they\u2019ll have to settle for seven after rolling past New England<\/a> in a 2-1 win on Saturday. Alonso Mart\u00ednez<\/a> made it three goals in four starts.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) March 16, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Nashville aren’t just starting to be fun \u2013 they\u2019re starting to get results. They followed up last week\u2019s 2-0 win over Portland<\/a> with an even more impressive 3-1 win at red-hot Philadelphia. The vibes are as good in the Music City as they\u2019ve been in a long time.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n It\u2019s not entirely clear what to think of a Red Bulls<\/a> side that doesn\u2019t really press well and enjoys spending time on the ball. They kept 57% possession against Orlando<\/a> last weekend and 60% against Atlanta the weekend prior. It\u2019s\u2026 weird. And it\u2019s resulted in two straight draws after playing Orlando to a 2-2 stalemate. They have five points through their first four games.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Yes, Orlando dropped two separate leads in last weekend’s 2-2 draw at the Red Bulls. But there’s great news: new DP winger Marco Pa\u0161ali\u0107<\/a> is up to three goals and an assist through his first four games. He\u2019s looked like a capable Facundo Torres replacement so far.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Four games in and it\u2019s clear there\u2019s still a lot of work to do in Atlanta. There\u2019s a lack of chemistry in attack and the issues with giveaways and mental lapses that have plagued this side for years are still there.<\/p>\n Case in point, part one: Saba Lobjanidze<\/a> making a goal-saving tackle on\u2026 Emmanuel Latte Lath<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Case in point, part two: A terrible giveaway on Miami\u2019s first goal and a comically slow header finding the back of the net on Miami\u2019s later winner.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n San Jose peppered Colorado with shots on target, but could only get one past Zack Steffen in a 2-1 loss to the Rapids. The bright side is they\u2019re creating chances and Chicho Arango<\/a> has snapped a months-long scoring drought. He\u2019s got two goals in four starts for his new team.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n TO THE FLOW CHART\u2026<\/p>\n I can see it \u2192 Oh, no \u2192 Oh, yikes, no \u2192 Well, maybe \u2192 Nope \u2192 But let\u2019s just\u2026 \u2192 Oh, ok immediate no on that \u2192 But what if they tweak this \u2192 This looks better! \u2192 OH NO. THEY GOT ME AGAIN \u2192 No. \u2192 I\u2019m not falling for that \u2192 No, forever. \u2192 Offseason \u2192 I can see it.<\/em><\/p>\n Four games in and we\u2019re still hanging around the first \u201cI can see it.\u201d They picked up their second road win in a row by taking down Toronto<\/a>, 2-1. They\u2019ve earned seven points through four games. Yeah, those seven points came against D.C. United<\/a>, Dallas and Toronto and, yeah, they\u2019re second to last in the league in expected goals allowed so far per American Soccer Analysis. But, still\u2026 like\u2026 I can see it!<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Who needs all those expensive attackers when you have a solid defense and Guilherme Biro<\/a>? Biro scored the winner (and Austin<\/a>\u2019s second goal of the season) as Los Verdes earned a 1-0 win at LAFC. That\u2019s four 1-0 games to start the season. Two of them have gone Austin\u2019s way.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Diego Luna<\/a> is outstanding. He delivered an opening-minute assist and redirected a go-ahead goal just before stoppage time of RSL<\/a>\u2019s 2-1 win over Houston<\/a>. The 2024 MLS Young Player of the Year is a constant threat.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Diego Luna has become the type of No. 10 RSL fans (and #USMNT<\/a> fans) have been dreaming of.<\/p>\n I can’t wait to watch him in the Nations League. pic.twitter.com\/EsLmB9Ch8W<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u2014 Matthew Doyle (@MattDoyle76) March 16, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Nothing is clicking for Dallas. Vancouver handed them their second-straight home loss on Saturday to make it three games without a win. It\u2019s not how they envisioned following up their blown lead against Chicago last week.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n D.C. generated plenty of chances against CF Montr\u00e9al<\/a> and couldn\u2019t find a breakthrough in a 0-0 draw. Still, they\u2019re undefeated through four games. The competition hasn\u2019t been stiff, but undefeated is undefeated.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Is this\u2026 progress? The reigning MLS Cup champs earned their first point of the season in a 1-1 draw at Portland, thanks to Christian Ram\u00edrez<\/a>‘s smash-and-grab strike. They also reached the CCC quarterfinals with a comeback result against Costa Rica’s Herediano.<\/p>\n Maybe, just maybe, the Galaxy<\/a> are turning a corner.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Portland are 12th in the way-early Western Conference standings after failing to hold onto a 1-0 lead against an LA Galaxy side coming off midweek CCC action. I’m skeptical that things will improve soon.<\/p>\n Also, here’s what Timbers fans are talking about from last weekend:<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n No penalty was given here for Portland in stoppage time pic.twitter.com\/dFrGw9vs62<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) March 16, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Any points are good points on a seven-game road trip to start the year. That includes a 0-0 draw against D.C. they were lucky to hold onto.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n It\u2019s not great that they went down 3-0 in the first place, but Sporting KC delivered the comeback of the season on Saturday night. But\u2026 uh\u2026 an incredible comeback to earn a point doesn\u2019t feel quite so good when it\u2019s a draw that breaks a 10-game losing streak. They still haven\u2019t won a game in a long, long time.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n
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