Soccer <\/p>\n
Matchday 4 is in the books.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
What did we learn? Did the games confirm what we already knew or change the complexion of the league?<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s dive into some key takeaways from another weekend of MLS action.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
It\u2019s been quite the week for Petar Musa<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n The 28-year-old earned a call-up<\/a> to Croatia\u2019s March camp and<\/em> bagged a hat trick for FC Dallas<\/a> in their 3-3 draw<\/a> with San Diego FC<\/a> on Saturday night.<\/p>\n \u201cPetar is the best nine I\u2019ve ever coached, by far,\u201d head coach Eric Quill said postgame after recounting Musa\u2019s game-tying goal that came at the death against San Diego.<\/p>\n For a coach in Quill, who helped develop US men\u2019s national team<\/a> and PSV striker Ricardo Pepi, that\u2019s no small claim. But it is a reasonable one.<\/p>\n With five goals already this year, Musa is tied atop the Golden Boot presented by Audi race alongside\u00a0Vancouver Whitecaps FC<\/a>\u2019s Brian White<\/a>.\u00a0Musa is, quite simply, a complete striker. His movement off the ball is top-tier, as is his ability to anticipate plays one beat faster than opposing center backs.<\/p>\n Both of those skills were on full display for Saturday\u2019s equalizer:<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n PETAR MUSA HAT-TRICK! \ud83c\udfa9@fcdallas<\/a> have equalized in stoppage time! pic.twitter.com\/SPjAHq7GM3<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) March 15, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n On the ball, Musa is an underrated distributor, the kind that can help a defense-first FC Dallas team unlock opposing defenses in their relatively brief spells of possession.\u00a0<\/p>\n With a versatile skillset and consistent production in front of goal (only Lionel Messi<\/a>, Denis Bouanga<\/a>, and Sam Surridge<\/a> have scored more regular-season goals since the Croatian arrived in MLS), Musa is soaring right now. Don\u2019t be surprised to see him soar even higher at the 2026 FIFA World Cup<\/a> this summer.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n With their 2-1 victory<\/a> at the LA Galaxy<\/a> on Saturday, Sporting Kansas City<\/a> secured the first win of the Raphael Wicky era. The roster rebuild still rages on \u2013 and will continue to do so for another few transfer windows \u2013 but some of the club\u2019s building blocks stood out in Carson over the weekend.<\/p>\n Most notable, perhaps, was the performance of new midfielder Lasse Berg Johnsen<\/a>. The 26-year-old, who appeared twice for Norway in World Cup qualifying last year, made his Sporting KC debut after joining from Swedish giants Malm\u00f6.<\/p>\n Playing as the deepest midfielder in Wicky\u2019s quite fluid 4-3-3 setup, Berg Johnsen helped Kansas City control spells of the game with possession and was composed defensively. Along the way, the newcomer scored what would turn out to be the game-winning goal via a precise strike from just outside the box:<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Lasse Berg Johnsen scores in his MLS debut! @SportingKC<\/a> double their lead! pic.twitter.com\/Q55mh0UPsI<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) March 15, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n With Berg Johnsen and Manu Garc\u00eda<\/a>, now in his second season with Sporting KC, there\u2019s a quality midfield developing. With the Norwegian\u2019s steady hand in front of the center backs and the Spaniard\u2019s incisive ball progression slightly higher upfield, it\u2019s easy to see new president of soccer operations and general manager David Lee and Wicky building the team around those two and striker Dejan Jovelji\u0107<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Slowly but surely, progress is visible for SKC.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Coming into the weekend, Atlanta United<\/a> hadn\u2019t won a home game in MLS play since August 2025.\u00a0<\/p>\n Thanks to Saturday\u2019s 3-1 win<\/a> over the Philadelphia Union<\/a>, that streak is now broken. Along with it, record-breaking signing Emmanuel Latte Lath<\/a>\u2019s goal drought came to an end against the Union.<\/p>\n The Ivorian striker showed off some of his patented quickness to sneak in behind Philadelphia\u2019s backline and beat\u00a0Andre Blake<\/a>:<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) March 14, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n It wasn\u2019t just Latte Lath who stepped up for Atlanta, though. It was Miguel Almir\u00f3n<\/a>, who was consistently dangerous from the left wing. It was the third member of the team\u2019s Designated Player trio, Alexey Miranchuk<\/a>, too. After scoring against the Union, Miranchuk now has three goals in the team\u2019s last two games.<\/p>\n There\u2019s still work for Tata Martino and his players to do, of course. It\u2019s fair to have some questions about this team\u2019s goalkeeping, as Lucas Hoyos<\/a> regularly comes off his line. The defensive aggression shown by the center backs and Tristan Muyumba<\/a> as the No. 6 still leaves something to be desired. And there are concerns about a lack of depth and variety in the attack.\u00a0<\/p>\n Regardless, Atlanta United\u2019s key pillars are starting to play like they\u2019re exactly that. That\u2019s huge for the Five Stripes.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n When Alonso Mart\u00ednez<\/a> went down with a knee injury<\/a> late last year, a clear priority in the transfer market emerged for New York City FC<\/a>: find a striker for 2026. Even after a deal to sign Moussa Sylla from Schalke fell through<\/a>, maybe things are less urgent for NYCFC up top than many would have thought.<\/p>\n Through the first four games of the season, the Cityzens are one of only five teams still undefeated. More than that, they saw their pair of makeshift strikers \u2013 Nicol\u00e1s Fern\u00e1ndez Mercau<\/a>, who started the match as the No. 9, and Talles Magno<\/a>, who came off the bench \u2013 score all three goals in Saturday’s 3-1 win<\/a> over the Colorado Rapids<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Fern\u00e1ndez Mercau managed the opener after NYCFC’s high press forced a turnover close to the goal and bagged his brace-clinching strike on a clever free kick. Magno, for his part, didn\u2019t waste time scoring off the bench after making a slipped run into the box that\u00a0Maxi Moralez<\/a> met with a perfect through ball:<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Talles Magno with the nightcap for @newyorkcityfc<\/a>! pic.twitter.com\/rnBPftUhAz<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) March 15, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n With an organized press, no real drop-off from Justin Haak<\/a> to Kai Trewin<\/a> in the middle of the backline, and a group of clever, fluid attackers, NYCFC look like a team that needs to be taken very seriously.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Let\u2019s get something straight: the Sounders<\/a> were fortunate to escape San Jose<\/a> with a win on Sunday Night Soccer presented by Continental Tire. After\u00a0Paul Rothrock<\/a> scored the only goal in a 1-0 victory<\/a> for Seattle, the visitors endured a ton<\/em> of pressure from the Earthquakes\u2019 attack en route to being outshot 25-7.<\/p>\n But with Andrew Thomas<\/a> standing on his head in between the posts to prevent a heavily rotated lineup from losing on the road, it\u2019s right to give credit to Seattle\u2019s impressive depth. Thomas himself is a good example of that depth: the 27-year-old is in the midst of his first season as Brian Schmetzer\u2019s starting goalkeeper after spending years as a backup. Center back Antino Lopez<\/a>, with the first team on a short-term contract from MLS NEXT Pro<\/a> side Tacoma Defiance, made a heroic clearance<\/a> to preserve the narrow victory.<\/p>\n That Schmetzer could rotate so comfortably in the midst of a two-legged Concacaf Champions Cup<\/a> battle with Vancouver Whitecaps FC<\/a> is a testament to Seattle\u2019s best-in-class player development pipeline, one that ranges from the academy to the second team in MLS NEXT Pro to the first team.\u00a0<\/p>\n With a win over the weekend and a three-goal lead heading into the second leg against the \u2018Caps, life is good for the Sounders.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n
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