Soccer <\/p>\n
A bunch of weird stuff happened because teams rotated heavily during a double game week, and it\u2019s not totally clear how much you can read into literally any result. It was truly a week unlike any other.<\/p>\n
As always: The Power Rankings are voted on by, give or take, 15 people associated with MLSsoccer.com. The author does not decide the rankings, but he does get a little rush out of moving your team in particular down a few spots when he can.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n It was a given before the year started that this Earthquakes<\/a> side would put together the single best 10-game start in MLS history. Everyone looked at this roster and their offseason and unanimously agreed they would win at least nine of their first 10 matches. It seemed clear at the time that they\u2019d be out here putting up underlying numbers on par and even better than “underlying numbers juggernaut,” 2019 LAFC<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n It feels weird even to explain all this to you when you knew it would happen anyway. You looked at their 5-1 win<\/a> over Austin<\/a> on Wednesday and their 3-2 win at St. Louis<\/a> on Saturday, shrugged, and asked a friend to wake you up when something interesting happened.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) April 26, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Vancouver<\/a> are very good at soccer.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) April 26, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n They didn\u2019t have a midweek match, but after beating Colorado<\/a> over the weekend, they\u2019re one win away from matching San Jose\u2019s historic 9W-1L-0D start.<\/p>\n For what it’s worth, the underlying numbers like the Whitecaps even more than the Earthquakes, and the Earthquakes are putting up what would be all-time numbers.<\/p>\n Those two teams play on May 9. Mark your calendars.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The best team in the Eastern Conference just kept rolling over the weekend. Sam Surridge<\/a> returned from injury to give Nashville<\/a> a 3-1 and a 4-2 lead over Charlotte<\/a>. He\u2019s back just in time for Nashville\u2019s massive Concacaf Championship Cup<\/a> semifinal series with LIGA MX’s Tigres.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n LAFC somewhat found their footing over the weekend.<\/p>\n They initially followed up last week\u2019s 4-1 thumping from San Jose with a 0-0 draw<\/a> against Colorado. But they got back on track again with a\u00a0David Mart\u00ednez<\/a> golazo, which delivered a no-nonsense 1-0 win against Minnesota<\/a> despite resting Son Heung-Min<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) April 25, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n It\u2019s much-needed momentum before LAFC host back-to-back LIGA MX champions Toluca on Wednesday for Leg 1 of their Concacaf Champions Cup semifinal series. They\u2019ll need to be at their very best to take down the tournament favorites.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Seattle<\/a> went up 2-0 early on FC Dallas<\/a> and clung to a relatively comfortable lead the rest of the way. With all of the excellent starts in the Western Conference, they\u2019ve been a bit underdiscussed. But that win made it 19 points in just eight matches. That\u2019s 2.38 points per game, the fourth-best mark in the league.\u00a0<\/p>\n They\u2019re a very good side. Again. Same as nearly every single year of their existence.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n You, dear reader, have as many wins as Inter Miami<\/a> at Nu Stadium.<\/p>\n The Herons produced an impressive road showing against Real Salt Lake<\/a> midweek before needing a late equalizer from Germ\u00e1n Berterame<\/a> at home to draw New England<\/a>. They\u2019re still looking for their first win at their new home. And they\u2019re looking for a lot more wins in general. They\u2019ve only lost once, but they haven\u2019t consistently earned three points this season.<\/p>\n If Berterame continues like this, the defending MLS Cup presented by Audi champions should start finding a few more wins. He\u2019s either scored or assisted a goal in each of the last five matches.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Hugo Cuypers<\/a> has scored in six-straight matches, and the Fire<\/a> are rolling. A 5-0 win over Sporting KC<\/a> isn’t as crazy as it sounds, but Chicago have now earned 13 points over their last five matches, and Cuypers has eight goals on the season.<\/p>\n It seems like the offseason hype around Chicago is starting to pay off. They\u2019re third in the East, just two points behind Inter Miami with a game in hand.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Tough week for one of the league\u2019s youngest teams. They couldn\u2019t keep up with Inter Miami on Wednesday and then stumbled against a beatable Galaxy<\/a> side on Saturday. RSL had just one loss coming into last week. Now, we get to see how they respond amid adversity.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The Revs are competent. Probably no more, probably no less. They\u2019re just a solid team that\u2019s going to keep putting in solid performances and earning solid results.<\/p>\n Matt Turner<\/a> is stopping shots at an elite level, the pieces seem to fit and Carles Gil<\/a> is still Carles Gil. They earned four points last week after visiting Atlanta<\/a> and Inter Miami. They\u2019ve earned 16 points through their first nine matches and are sitting fourth in the East.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n James Rodr\u00edguez<\/a> looked genuinely effective in his first MLS start on Saturday, and the Loons earned a 1-0 win<\/a> over FC Dallas on Wednesday.<\/p>\n Yeah, they only got three points from the week, but that\u2019s a pretty solid pair of data points for a team that\u2019s won four of their last five.<\/p>\n Minnesota have quietly found a groove. And James\u2019 performance on Saturday is reason to be even more bullish on this side. At least for the next few games.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u00a1Que cerca se qued\u00f3 James Rodr\u00edguez!<\/p>\n Disparo desde fuera del \u00e1rea del colombiano que estuvo a poco de convertirse en el gol del empate de @MNUFC<\/a>. pic.twitter.com\/VONUsnWLTr<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u2014 MLS Espa\u00f1ol (@MLSes) April 25, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Dallas are suddenly winless in their last four, and last week featured one-goal losses to both Minnesota and Seattle. Petar Musa<\/a> and Logan Farrington<\/a> didn\u2019t play in Seattle due to injuries. After a strong start, this team is in a slump.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Just one point for Colorado after their toughest three-game stretch of the season. They followed their loss against Inter Miami with a 0-0 draw<\/a> at LAFC and a 3-1 loss at Vancouver. It could have been far, far worse. They\u2019re putting in admirable performances.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Charlotte allowed eight goals across two games last week. One of those two being against Nashville is understandable. The other being Orlando<\/a>? Not as much.<\/p>\n It’s best to move on quickly.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n NYCFC<\/a> became the latest New York team to fall to CF Montr\u00e9al<\/a> over the weekend. No worries, that happens (apparently). But that does make them winless in their last six games.<\/p>\n They showed some life in a wild 4-4 draw<\/a> against Cincy<\/a> on Wednesday, but allowing two stoppage-time goals is a good way to cancel out any positives that might have been taken away.<\/p>\n Even with\u00a0Nicol\u00e1s Fern\u00e1ndez Mercau<\/a>\u00a0up to eight goals on the year as an out-of-position striker, NYCFC are struggling.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n FC Cincinnati finally have some momentum. It started in stoppage time midweek when they erased a 4-2 deficit to NYCFC with two late goals. They built on that with a straightforward 2-0 win over Red Bull New York<\/a> on Saturday, despite missing every typical starter at center back. K\u00e9vin Denkey<\/a> bagged a brace in both matches.<\/p>\n That\u2019s not a season-saving week by any means, but it is a step in the right direction. They needed that heading into a challenging four-game stretch against Chicago, Charlotte, Miami and San Diego<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n As a neutral, bless Toronto<\/a> for refusing to be normal.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \n \n