Credit: Jeremy Olson - ISIPhotos.com
Week 14 of the MLS season started with Montreal losing 6-1 at home to Toronto. Toronto went up from a Tyrese Spicer goal in the 14th. Montreal’s Koel Waterman saw red in the 21st. Federico Bernardeschi doubled the Toronto lead in the 30th and Ola Brynhildsen scored in the 33rd. Giaciomo Vrioni pulled a goal back for Montreal in the 64th, but Bernardeschi scored again for Toronto in the 55th. Theo Corbeanu added Toronto goals in the 66th and a minute into stoppage time.
“The red card affected the game but we lost 6-1 not 2-1,” Montreal coach Marco Donadel said. “So we continued to make some mistakes during the management of the 10v11 and it probably happened in the worst game possible.”
NYCFC shutout the Red Bulls 2-0 at home, taking the lead from an Alonso Martinez goal in the 13th. Maxi Moralez doubled the NYCFC lead in the 50th minute.
“If you look at the first-half, I think we should’ve already scored two or three goals, but that’s somewhat of a habit of ours so far this season – missing chances,” NYCFC coach Pascal Jansen said. “So, I’m happy with the second goal, because it also gave us a bit of rest. But my team was very determined to keep a clean sheet as well, so I’m happy with both.”
Columbus drew 1-1 at home with FC Cincinnati after falling behind to a Kevin Denkey goal in the 6th. The Crew’s Diego Rossi equalized from the penalty spot in the 54th minute.
“What I’ll say is I’m proud of the way the guys represented the club on a night where we were second best,” Cincinnati coach Pat Noonan said. “They suffered a lot, certainly more so in the second half, despite long stretches in the first half as well, but they showed good character on a night where we really, really struggled to make the right decisions in transition, make the right decisions or have the right composure to just try to play and they punished us. And that’s a hard-fought point, but I think we’re fortunate to walk off the field with a point.”
Philadelphia won 1-0 at Atlanta, with Tai Baribo converting a penalty in the 59th minute. “We had some big chances, but we, as a group, need to find a way to put the ball in the back of the net,” Atlanta defender Matt Edwards said. “Just keep going. Keep being resilient. Find a way to win. I think that’s what we’re lacking right now.”
Chicago beat Charlotte 4-1 on the road, going ahead from a Jonathan Bamba goal in the 42nd. Brian Gutierrez doubled the lead in the 60th and Philip Zinckernagel made it 3-0 Fire in the 63rd. Patrick Agyemang pulled a goal back for Charlotte in the 70th, but Gutierrez converted a Chicago penalty in the 79th minute.
“For us it was about doing the hard stuff,” Chicago coach Gregg Berhalter said. “You know, the first half to me was a really strong first half because we were able to keep control of the game, get the lead and go into halftime 1-0, and that was an important factor.”
New England drew 0-0 at home with San Jose. Both teams finished with one shot on goal. “I think the biggest thing is the team is really tight and guys love playing for each other,” New England midfielder Mark-Anthony Kaye said. “We knew maybe it was going to be a tough schedule with so many games. We have a deep team. We have a bunch of guys who are ready to step in. I’m just happy that these last four games have gone so well. It’s just showing you that this is a full team effort and guys need to step up. They do their job, so I’m happy for the team tonight.”
Austin drew 0-0 at home with Vancouver, putting four shots on goal to the Whitecaps’ two.
Minnesota shutout St Louis 3-0 at home, with Tani Oluwaseyi opening the scoring in the 33rd. Joaquin Pereyra doubled the St Louis lead in the 62nd and Julian Gressel finished off the scoring in the 78th minute.
“We have another two home games now this week,” Gressel said. “That’s going to be really exciting to play here, and then obviously a couple tough ones on the road before the big break in June. So, we want to keep this rolling. We want to keep collecting points and be in a really good spot when June comes around.”
Nashville drew 0-0 at home with DC United, putting five shots on goal to one for DC.
Houston won 2-0 at FC Dallas, going ahead from a Jack McGlynn goal in the 64th. Griffin Dorsey doubled the Dyamo lead in the 81st minute.
Colorado shutout Real Salt Lake 1-0 at home, with Djordje Mihailovic scoring in the 70th minute. “I think there was a lot said after the game Wednesday,” Mihailovic said. “We knew that it was a tough performance Wednesday, but we also knew that in three days’ time, to tonight, that this is the most important game of the year for us, for the locker room, for the fans, for the club. And we spoke about how, no matter what happened the past three weeks, this game can be a turning point. You know, flip the page, like I said, and that’s exactly what it is.”
Portland drew 1-1 at home with Seattle after falling behind to an Albert Rusnak goal in the 30th. Santiago Moreno equalized for the Timbers in the 36th minute.
The Saturday schedule ended with San Diego drawing 0-0 at home with Sporting Kansas City. San Diego put four shots on goal to one for Sporting KC. “All in all, a complete performance in terms of attitude, intention and determination,” Sporting KC interim coach Kerry Zavagnin said. “And when I say complete performance, I of course mean on the defensive side of the ball. On the attacking side, we’re still working to be the best version of us.”
On Sunday, Orlando City won 3-0 at Inter Miami. Luis Muriel put Orlando up in the 43rd, Marco Pasalic doubled the lead in the 53rd, and Dagur Thorhallsson finished off the goals four minutes into stoppage time.
“It’s clear that we must all pull through together, because the team has shown, especially at the start of the season, that it has what it takes,” Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano said. “Players always try to give their best, with mistakes and strengths, and we’ll have to continue trying to get the best out of each of the players to get through this period.”
Week 14 ended in Carson, where the LA Galaxy drew 2-2 at home with LAFC. Marco Reus put the Galaxy up in the 6th with Denis Bouanga equalizing for LAFC in the 13th. Nathan Ordaz scored for LAFC in the 50th and Reus equalized for the Galaxy in the 87th minute.
Quotes courtesy of MLS team press releases.
Photo by Jeremy Olson – ISIPhotos.com
