What a couple of weeks in MLS.
Chicago Fire FC played a game that involved a team scoring seven goals, Atlanta United were unable to win on the road, and Anders Dreyer put on a show. It was truly a week unlike any other.
As always: The Power Rankings are voted on by, give or take, 15 people associated with MLSSoccer.com and are not the rankings of a lone wolf blogger. The author does get a little rush when the voting moves your team down a few spots, though.
Even after an impressive 3-0 post-CCC Final win over Seattle the week before, the 'Caps are no longer on top of the Supporters’ Shield standings after a 2-1 loss at Columbus last weekend. That’s extremely understandable considering their injuries to key players and the fact that making it to the Concacaf Champions Cup final has cratered teams in the past.
Their blistering early-season pace might be slowing, but don’t let that distract you from how insane that pace actually was and how good this team still is.
Previous: 2-1 loss at CLB | Next: 6/25 vs. SD
Folks, your new Supporters’ Shield leaders.
That’s 21-year-old Markus Anderson scoring his first MLS goal to give the Union a late win over Charlotte. These guys are relentless and keep finding ways to win.
When they moved on from Jim Curtin this offseason, Ernst Tanner made a bet that returning to a more high-intensity, high-pressing game model would pay off during the regular season. So far, he’s been right.
Previous: 2-1 win vs. CLT | Next: 6/25 at CHI
Anders Dreyer is the best player in MLS. He’s up to eight goals and nine assists (only one of those is a secondary assist) and leads the league in goal contributions. That’s not a fluke. Per FBref, he paces MLS with 14.1 non-penalty expected goals plus expected assists. The next closest player, Lionel Messi, is at 12.2.
He’s creating and finding quality chances at an elite level. Although sometimes it’s fun to avoid worrying about what your xG is going to be and just pull up from deep.
Dreyer added another goal later on as San Diego rolled to an impressive 4-2 win in Minnesota. They’re second in the West and just two points behind Vancouver.
Previous: 4-2 win at MIN | Next: 6/25 at VAN
Nashville haven’t lost since April 19. They earned a 2-0 win over Chicago last weekend, extending an 11-game unbeaten run that began with a 7-2 win over that same Chicago side. Hany Mukhtar has eight goals and seven assists now, by the way. He’s already matched his goal total from last season.
It helps that Sam Surridge is playing at the same level. Surridge has 12 goals and three assists. Nashville’s DPs are thriving.
Previous: 2-0 win at CHI | Next: 6/25 at NE
They got a 3-1 win over Sporting KC before heading off to the Club World Cup. They couldn’t pull off a result against Chelsea in game one, but still have a real chance to get out of their group if they can deal with Tunisia’s ES Tunis and upset Brazilian superpower, Flamengo.
Maybe new DP Javairô Dilrosun can help? LAFC used the pre-Club World Cup window to sign Dilrosun on loan from Club América (and end DP Cengiz Ünder’s loan) and they have him through at least July 24. They can purchase the 26-year-old attacker outright if they choose to activate his option.
Previous: Bye | Next: 6/29 vs. VAN
Miami’s Club World Cup run started with the best game of the season from goalkeeper Óscar Ustari. His first-half penalty save kept things scoreless and the Herons held on to a 0-0 draw against Egyptian giants, Al Ahly. Miami nearly pulled out a 1-0 win late, but Messi’s inch-perfect curler was pushed away.
They’ll need a few more inch-perfect curlers as they go up against Porto and Palmeiras over the next week.
Previous: Bye | Next: 6/28 vs. ATL
The Crew came out on top in a battle of teams that finished second in the Concacaf Champions Cup the last couple of seasons. Both teams were missing multiple starters due to international duty, so it’s tough to take too much away.
Would you be at all surprised to see a full-strength rematch further down the road with a trophy on the line?
Previous: 2-1 win vs. VAN | Next: 6/25 vs. ATL
Orlando needed to get back on track defensively after allowing three goals to Atlanta and Chicago in back-to-back games. They regrouped after a bye week to keep a clean sheet against Colorado in a 1-0 win on the road. They’re sitting fifth in the East and are one of five MLS teams with a double-digit goal differential.
Previous: 1-0 win at COL | Next: 6/25 at STL
The Loons couldn’t handle Anders Dreyer and San Diego FC, who put four past them in a loss that highlighted some of the potential drawbacks of their low-block-oriented game model – mainly that they give a player like Dreyer and an elite attacking side like San Diego a whole lot of opportunities to remind everyone how good they are.
Previous: 4-2 loss vs. SD | Next: 6/25 vs. HOU
Kévin Denkey is the real deal. The 24-year-old (and briefly MLS’ record transfer fee holder) scored his 11th goal of the season in FC Cincinnati’s 1-0 win at New England. The Garys needed that one. They were winless in four games prior.
Previous: 1-0 win at NE | Next: 6/25 at MTL
Seattle took a 3-0 beating from a depleted Vancouver side a couple of weeks ago as they prepared to deal with the Group of Death at the Club World Cup. They came up short in a respectable 2-1 showing against Copa Libertadores champion Botafogo on Sunday.
Next up: Atlético Madrid and then UEFA Champions League winner Paris Saint-Germain.
Previous: Bye | Next: 6/28 vs. ATX
New York City FC capitalized on a gift from Atlanta United and took off running from there. They cruised to a 4-0 home win that featured a brace from Hannes Wolf. He’s up to eight goals and three assists now on the season. It sure seems like NYCFC have found someone to rely on who's not Alonso Martínez.
Previous: 4-0 win vs. ATL | Next: 6/28 at MTL
The bad news: Reports are that DP Jonathan Rodríguez will be out for the rest of the season after undergoing knee surgery.
The good news: The Timbers have earned seven points in their last three games and should have had nine. They gave up a late equalizer to San Jose, but they’ve quietly worked their way up to fourth in the West. Portland are one of nine MLS teams to reach the 30-point mark this season.
Previous: 1-1 draw vs. SJ | Next: 6/28 at TOR
The Red Bulls only put one of their 13 shots on target in a 2-1 loss in Austin. That defeat ended a three-game winning streak. They’ll get a weekend off to think about it before a potential get-right game against Toronto next Wednesday.
Previous: 2-1 loss at ATX | Next: 6/25 at TOR
You could feel Chicago getting out some frustration a couple of weeks ago when they pummeled D.C. United, 7-1, in D.C. I’m going to guess they’re the first team in MLS history (soccer history?) to win a game where they score seven goals and lose a game where they allow seven goals in the same season.
They couldn’t keep that momentum, though. The same Nashville side that beat them, 7-2, earlier this year beat them 2-0 last weekend. On a related note: Chicago have scored and allowed 66 total goals this year. That’s the highest mark in the league.
Previous: 2-0 loss vs. NSH | Next: 6/25 vs. PHI
The Revs couldn’t find the net and a nine-game unbeaten run that began after a 1-0 loss to FC Cincinnati ended with a 1-0 loss to FC Cincinnati. That nine-game run pulled them out of the bottom of the East and on the edge of a playoff spot.
Previous: 1-0 loss vs. CIN | Next: 6/25 vs. NSH
Preston Judd scored a Wondo goal in stoppage time to give the Quakes a draw at Providence Park. That goal gave them a point and kept them from losing for just the second time in 10 games. For as chaotic as they’ve been at times this year, the results have become relatively consistent.
This sure seems like a playoff team.
Previous: 1-1 draw at POR | Next: 6/25 at DAL
Despite a goal from Wilfried Zaha, a 90+8’ winner for Philadelphia sent Charlotte home empty-handed in a 2-1 loss. After entering the year with a ton of expectations, Charlotte are below the playoff line on points per game.
Previous: 2-1 loss at PHI | Next: 6/25 at SKC
Brandon Vazquez scored the equalizer (for the wrong team) and then delivered the closer for Austin in a 2-1 win over the Red Bulls. Sometimes you’ve just gotta get one to get you going, right?
Austin as a whole may be starting to get going, too. They beat Colorado, 2-0, the week before. That’s back-to-back wins and, even more importantly, back-to-back games with more than one goal. That doubled their season total.
Previous: 2-1 win vs. RBNY | Next: 6/28 at SEA
Dallas put four past Sporting KC in a 4-2 win. They’ve been far from perfect this year, but they’ve worked their way up to ninth place in the West on points per game. It seems like they’ve been slowly but surely trending in the right direction for a while now.
Previous: 4-2 win at SKC | Next: 6/25 vs. SJ
You’d think a team from Canada might struggle with Hell in the Shell, but CF Montréal and Prince Owusu shrugged off the heat and beat the Dynamo 3-1 in Houston. That’s back-to-back 3-1 losses at home for the Dynamo.
It’s bad enough on its own, but, man, against Sporting KC and Montréal?
Previous: 3-1 loss vs. MTL | Next: 6/25 at MIN
That’s three straight losses for the Rapids after falling 2-0 to Austin a couple of weeks ago and 1-0 to Orlando City on Saturday. They’ve lost six of their last eight and are below the playoff line on points per game. They’re also set to miss Zack Steffen for 4-6 weeks due to a knee injury. Things could be going better.
Previous: 1-0 loss vs. ORL | Next: 6/25 vs. LA
They spent the last couple of weeks losing 3-1 to LAFC and 4-2 to FC Dallas. It could have been a better two weeks.
Previous: 4-2 loss vs. DAL | Next: 6/25 vs. CLT
Another game, another critical defensive mistake that gifts the opponent a goal. Brooks Lennon’s misplayed backpass opened the floodgates in the Bronx as Atlanta fell 4-0 to NYCFC.
Previous: 4-0 loss at NYC | Next: 6/25 at CLB
Despite missing Diego Luna to national team duty, Real Salt Lake found a way to win their first game since April 26. Johnny Russell scored his first goal with his new team and 18-year-old Zavier Gozo scored his second goal with his only team in a 2-0 win over D.C. United.
Previous: 2-0 win vs. DC | Next: 6/28 at SKC
Previous: 3-3 draw vs. LA | Next: 6/25 vs. ORL
Toronto didn’t play last weekend. They won’t play this weekend either. They actually haven’t played all of June. By the time they play again, it will have been 25 days between matches.
Previous: Bye | Next: 6/25 vs. RBNY
D.C. had a tough time on their road trip to visit RSL. They were outplayed from the jump in a 2-0 loss. That was still somehow much better than their 7-1 home loss to Chicago the weekend prior, though. Only the Galaxy have allowed more goals this season.
Previous: 2-0 loss at RSL | Next: 6/28 vs. NSH
Owusu scored once and then scored again two minutes later to give Montréal a lead they didn’t relinquish in Houston. They’ve got two wins on the season now.
Previous: 3-1 win at HOU | Next: 6/25 vs. CIN
They at least started to find some joy in attack. They’re still on the struggle bus defensively, though. They earned a road draw in St. Louis.
Previous: 3-3 draw at STL | Next: 6/25 at COL
