Around the League: Matchday 3

Three match days - as MLS is calling them this year - into the season and narratives are starting to emerge as some teams are beating expectations - pretty much no one not working for the club thought St. Louis would be leading the Supporter’s Shield race - while others are falling short. To help catch you up, here’s a few things you might have missed.

CONCACAF Champions League: A Fully CONCACAF Competition

Five MLS teams are in CONCACAF Champions League competition, with every MLS club except Vancouver traveling south for away legs prior to return legs starting tonight. And some prime CONCACAF things happened. Austin FC lost by a stunning 3-0 against Haitian side Violette AC, who were playing in their first game in 289 days due to the issues in Haiti.  For those same reasons, the game was played in the Dominican Republic with an absolutely stunning tree, [vaguely reminiscent of the oak on Austin’s crest, behind one net][https://youtu.be/L9qr4Roo_rM?t=243].  Meanwhile, a dog - being as tenacious on the ball as a coach could ever ask for - interrupted the proceedings as the El Salvadorean side Alianza FC hosted the Philadelphia Union]

Oh - and Philly and Alianza tied 0-0, Vancouver beat Honduran side Real CD España 5-0, LAFC had a 3-0 victory over L.D. Alajuelense and Orlando City played Tigres to a 0-0 draw. But, really, it’s all about the dog.

FC Cincinnati silences Sounders

Last week, we featured the Sounders passing the ball around as if the other team wasn’t there. FC Cincinnati - who the Fire play this Saturday at Soldier Field - found the solution, beating them 1-0 off a goal from Brenner. Cincinnati, who held onto their lead despite going down to 10 men in the 83’, remains undefeated three matches into the season, and Seattle fell to 2-0-1.

St. Louis Remains Perfect

St. Louis CITY SC - whose capitalization makes the club name a pain to write (and, I’m assuming, read) is playing far ahead of relatively humble expectations, with many predicting the club to be in Wooden Spoon competition. Instead, the team beat Portland 2-1, and are the only team to have started the season with a perfect 3-0-0 record, giving them 9 points - already ⅓ of the way to the 27 that 2022 Spoon winners DC United managed in 34 games.  Once again, Jared Stroud scored the equalizer, and it’s likely that he will never have to buy a drink in St. Louis ever again...

Queen City: Masters of None

Meanwhile, Charlotte FC who finished 9th in the league last year (which would be good enough for a playoff spot under this year’s revised format) and many predicted to be in line for their first playoff berth lost their first three matches and looked pretty miserable as Atlanta ripped them apart in the first half, starting with this goal from US U-20 full back Caleb Wiley - who likely will be joining Fire GK Chris Brady in Indonesia for the U20 World Cup this May. Wiley notched two goals and an assist in what was a breakout game for the 18-year-old.