Soccer <\/p>\n
The 2026 FIFA World Cup<\/a> looms closer with every passing hour, and boy, could you tell around MLS Matchday 12.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n From established superstars honing their expertise to up-and-comers making a final push for a spot on their country\u2019s roster, the palpable urgency around this summer\u2019s massive tournament added to the ongoing hunt for points and momentum to make an explosive mix.<\/p>\n We\u2019ll start with Exhibit A, a Saturday matinee on the shores of Lake Ontario.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) May 11, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n A GOAT hits The 6ix<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWhen they express themselves, they open any defense, any game situation. We\u2019re talking about people who are cracks, cracks, cracks.\u201d<\/p>\n Those were the words<\/a> of Inter Miami<\/a> interim head coach Guillermo Hoyos \u2013 using one of the highest compliments a footballer can receive in the Spanish language \u2013 after Argentine pals Lionel Messi<\/a>\u00a0and Rodrigo De Paul<\/a> each nabbed one goal and two assists to wow a BMO Field-record crowd of 44,828<\/a> in the Herons\u2019 4-2 thumping<\/a> of Toronto FC<\/a> on Saturday afternoon.<\/p>\n Miami\u2019s successful journey north of the border was also marked by yet another record for Messi, who became the fastest player in MLS history<\/a> \u2013 by far \u2013 to reach 100 regular-season goal contributions. Now on 59g\/41a, the GOAT did so in a mere 64 matches. And while it might be painful for TFC fans to hear, there\u2019s something poetic about the fact that the previous mark was held by Reds legend Sebastian Giovinco (95 matches).<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n A Rose City romp<\/strong><\/p>\n Speaking of 6ix\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n The scoring has not been particularly plentiful for the\u00a0Portland Timbers<\/a> in 2026. The Green & Gold rank near the bottom of MLS in terms of expected goals and have only scored more than three goals once all season, a\u00a03-2 opening-day win<\/a> over Columbus<\/a>.<\/p>\n So yeah, of course we, uhh, all saw it coming when they absolutely destroyed Sporting Kansas City<\/a>, 6-0<\/a>, at Providence Park, racing out to a 4-0 lead before half an hour had elapsed, their mercurial young Venezuelan striker Kevin Kelsy<\/a> leading the way with 2g\/2a.\u00a0<\/p>\n It\u2019s Portland\u2019s largest-ever<\/a> margin of victory, their first clean sheet of the season and, rather remarkably, they recorded a 100% conversion rate with six goals from six shots on target.<\/p>\n \u201cWe’re nowhere near the level that I believe we can be at. I think we saw a team that dropped their ego and played as a team,\u201d said head coach Phil Neville, who then upped the ante quite a bit by calling his side\u2019s performance in last week\u2019s loss<\/a> at Real Salt Lake<\/a> \u201ca disgrace,\u201d and adding that he was \u201csuper proud of the performance, and I’ve told them I want a nine-point week and nothing less than that.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s no small ask, considering the Timbers must now make a cross-continent trip to Qu\u00e9bec to face CF Montr\u00e9al<\/a> on Wednesday, then make another long flight down to Miami to face Lionel Messi and the defending MLS Cup presented by Audi champs next weekend.<\/p>\n As for SKC\u2026 what can we say? The rebuilding Midwesterners sit last in the overall table with a league-worst -24 goal differential and have still won only one game across all competitions.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Revs rocking and rolling<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s time for us to talk about the New England Revolution<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n With Saturday\u2019s dramatic 2-1 comeback win<\/a> \u2013 their third such result in their last five games \u2013 over luckless\u00a0Philadelphia<\/a>, the Revs are now a perfect 6W-0L-0D at Gillette Stadium, which sets a new club record for best-ever home start<\/a>.<\/p>\n Like so many others over the past several years, this was an occasion illuminated by star Spanish playmaker Carles Gil<\/a>, who scored one goal and assisted on the other. Afterwards, head coach Marko Mitrovi\u0107 understandably sang his praises, remarking that \u201ca player who has his quality can change the game at any given moment, any given game.\u201d<\/p>\n We\u2019ll admit, New England have flown under the radar, and haven\u2019t quite earned the shine they deserve in previous editions of this column, due in no small part to their relatively modest strength of schedule so far. But they\u2019re now all the way up to second in the Eastern Conference, which makes Wednesday\u2019s visit from Nashville SC<\/a> a top-of-the-table clash.<\/p>\n Mark your calendars.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Wolf trick in the Bronx<\/strong><\/p>\n Hannes Wolf<\/a> had himself quite a Sunday afternoon at sunny Yankee Stadium. The Austrian winger grabbed his first career hat trick to pace New York City FC<\/a> past the Columbus Crew, 3-0<\/a>, and surge past them in the standings, all the way up to seventh place in the Eastern Conference.<\/p>\n This was a much-needed win, snapping the Pigeons\u2019 seven-game league winless skid and assuaging concerns after the goals dried up over the past few weeks. In this case, the goals originated mainly in the so-called \u2018Man City zones,\u2019 the key channels along either side of the opponents\u2019 penalty box where NYCFC\u2019s sibling club in England have done so much damage over the past decade under manager Pep Guardiola.<\/p>\n Wolf and the Pigeons simply eviscerated the Crew with cutbacks from those areas.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was one of these days where you just are in the right positions, and sometimes you come into a flow,\u201d said Wolf afterwards. \u201cWhen you don’t win, obviously it’s getting tougher and tougher, so it was important to get our heads together and now to start this new stretch well.”<\/p>\n The Crew only have to wait 10 days for a chance at revenge, when these two will face off again in the US Open Cup<\/a> quarterfinals on May 20, this time at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field in Columbus.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The weekend concluded with a Sunday Night Soccer presented by Continental doubleheader, and both Minnesota<\/a> vs.\u00a0Austin<\/a> and LAFC<\/a> vs.\u00a0Houston<\/a> treated us to some surprises with a splash of star power.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Up at Allianz Field, Austin FC were closing in on their first away win of the season via a Myrto Uzuni<\/a> penalty kick. Then James Rodr\u00edguez<\/a> happened.<\/p>\n The Colombian icon came off the bench to serve up two gorgeous deliveries for the first and second assists of his Loons stint \u2013 which may or may not prove to be a brief one, based on his postgame interview<\/a> with Apple TV sideline reporter Antonella Gonz\u00e1lez, where he said he\u2019ll depart to join the Colombia national team for pre-World Cup\u00a0prep on May 17 \u2013 and, by the way, poured cold water all over rumors that he\u2019ll retire after this summer\u2019s big tournament.<\/p>\n \u201cThe only person who will truly know how long I want to keep playing is me,\u201d he said in Spanish. \u201cAnd when the time comes, I believe I will announce it well in advance. However, I think I still have a couple more years left in me.\u201d<\/p>\n James\u2019 short-term deal with MNUFC runs out soon, though there is an option to extend it through season\u2019s end. Could he have played more, and contributed more, for the Twin Cities side? Perhaps we\u2019ll never know for sure.<\/p>\n In any case, the 2-1 advantage he carved out for the home side turned into a\u00a02-2 final<\/a> thanks to a late equalizer from a ghost of Loons past: Christian Ram\u00edrez<\/a>, who declined to celebrate against the club whose fans still adore him.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Out in Los Angeles, Houston Dynamo livewire Mateusz Bogusz<\/a> followed suit when he, too, scored against his former team, LAFC, in a 4-1 thrashing<\/a> highlighted by two trademark bangers from US men\u2019s national team<\/a> World Cup hopeful Jack McGlynn<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n We\u2019ll cut LAFC some slack, considering the distance and intensity of their midweek trip to Toluca for an unhappy Concacaf Champions Cup<\/a> semifinal second leg. Still, history shows the CCC hangover is a very real thing, and as it is, the Black & Gold have won just two of their nine matches over the past month.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Red Bull New York\u2019<\/a>s youngsters snapped a lengthy league winless skid of their own with an impressive 3-1 smash-and-grab win<\/a> at Chicago<\/a>, a result that raises some troubling questions about the Fire.<\/p>\n For the moment, however, let\u2019s focus on the upside, which in this case was undoubtedly this postage-stamp strike from\u00a0Jorge Ruvalcaba<\/a>:<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Jorge Ruvalcaba with a banger right before half. \u2604\ufe0f@NewYorkRedBulls<\/a> strike first in Chicago. pic.twitter.com\/fT0kbphlqa<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) May 9, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Exes doing damage to their former homes was a theme this weekend.<\/p>\n Surging\u00a0D.C. United<\/a> thought they were cruising to a head-turner of an away win over Nashville, only for a Silvan Hefti<\/a> red card to open the door for the Coyotes to snatch a last-ditch 2-2 draw<\/a> via two late goals from substitute Warren Madrigal<\/a>, both of them engineered in part by D.C. alum Andy Najar<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Warren Madrigal, take a bow!@NashvilleSC<\/a> pull level \ud83d\udc4a pic.twitter.com\/YJStGbtIpr<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) May 10, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n A 1-0 win<\/a> in Colorado<\/a> was sweet relief for St. Louis CITY SC<\/a>, who finally earned their first league win since March via Sang Bin Jeong<\/a>\u2019s breakaway. And given how much scrutiny STL striker Simon Becher<\/a> has been under amid some\u2026 let\u2019s just say spotty output in front of goal, it was nice to see him apply the key touch to set his teammate loose.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) May 10, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\nSunday Night stunners<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
Around the grounds<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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