LAFC acquire forward GonzƔlez from Braga
LAFC have addressed an area of need in the transfer market, announcing Saturday they've acquired forward Mario GonzƔlez from Portuguese top-flight side Braga. The deal, completed using Targeted Allocation Money (TAM), maintains the club's open Designated Player spot alongside forwards Carlos Vela and DƩnis Bouanga. The 27-year-old Spaniard brings a versatile presence to LAFC's attacking group, capable of playing centrally or out wide.
NYCFC transfer Pereira to Qatar's Al-Rayyan
New York City FC have transferred winger Gabriel Pereira to Qatari top-flight side Al-Rayyan SC. NYCFC maintain a sell-on fee and receive an undisclosed eight-figure transfer fee, making it among the clubās most lucrative outgoing moves. The 21-year-old Brazilian was NYCFCās leading scorer during the 2023 season, tallying six goals as they look to get above the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs line.
Sign up for The Daily Kickoff in your inbox! The Daily Kickoff is more than an article ā it can be delivered to your email account as well.
An Andre Blake penalty save! MontrƩal looking great, then not so great, then good again! A midwest showdown! And more on the way!
Letās talk it out.
What happened?: MontrĆ©al were cruising here until the very end thanks in part to an outstanding goal from Bryce Duke, who pulled the classic āget knocked over and stay on the ground until itās time to pop up and scoreā move. Full credit to Gabriel FernĆ”ndez for an excellent volley that got Pumas off the floor late. MontrĆ©al still ended up with two points, but they were agonizingly close to earning three and keeping Pumas off the board.
So, did we learn anything?: This MontrĆ©al group increasingly feels like the 2021 group that showed much promise before putting it together in 2022. Theyāre young, but have many pieces that seem to fit well and are actively improving over the course of the year. Outplaying one of Mexico's los cuatro grandes for 90 minutes is always a good sign, even if Pumas are a bit down as of late. Not saying theyāll be a Shield contender next year, but things seem to be trending in the right direction when MontrĆ©al have something close to their best XI.
What happened?: Incredibly little, but New York ended up with two points and the Revs ended up with one.
So, did we learn anything?: Nope.
What happened?: Xolos picked up a red card in the 19th minute and from there, it was classic Union. A penalty from Gazdag, a brace from Carranza, some saves from Blake, including a key PK denial early in the second half, yāall should know how this works at this point.
So, did we learn anything?: We did not and thatās as nice a compliment I think I can give the Union here.
What happened?: Whoooo boy RSL are on an elite heater right now. They rolled over Seattle here.
So, did we learn anything?: How I feel watching Seattle right now is the exact opposite of how I feel watching RSL. Everything is going right for RSL and zero things are going right for the Sounders. Itās totally possible it might be best for Seattle to just pack up shop for this competition and use the next few weeks to reset before starting the final stretch of the season. Nothing is clicking.Ā
Anyway, Iām Scrooge McDuck diving into all the non-existent money I made off the non-existent RSL stock I kept telling yāall to buy a few weeks ago. Iām fake rich and donāt want to hear from anyone not in my new fake tax bracket.
What happened?: Evander and Felipe Mora made the difference.
So, did we learn anything?: Thatās a nice win for Portland. We know they love a tournament. It would admittedly be a bit shocking to make a run in this one, but if you think about it for a bit it wouldnāt be that shocking. This is just kind of what they do.
Speaking of patterns, San Jose continues to be an awful road team. They have one win away from home on the season. They arenāt the only team in the West dealing with road woes, but theyāre definitely one of the best.
NYCFC vs. Atlas | 7 pm ET | Apple TV - Free, UniMas, FS1
WATCH ON: **MLS Season Pass**
Plusometer Score: 25/50
This was a Campeones Cup matchup last year. Itās lost a lot of juice since then. NYCFC havenāt been at their best and continue to reshape their roster during a very busy collection of transfer windows over the last year. Meanwhile, Atlas picked up one point per game over the course of the Apertura and Clausura last year.
FC Cincinnati vs. Sporting KC | 7:30 pm ET | Apple TV - Free
WATCH ON: **MLS Season Pass**
Plusometer Score: 28/50
SKC seem to be one of those teams that can play with anybody on their day. Those days donāt seem to happen on the road. They have one road win this year and they just so happen to be playing the leagueās (the worldās?) best home team. Cincy have one draw and a whole bunch of wins at home this year.
Columbus Crew vs. St. Louis CITY SC | 7:30 pm ET | Apple TV - MLS Season Pass
WATCH ON: **MLS Season Pass**
Plusometer Score: 43/50
MLSā most-possessiony team versus MLSā most not that team. Someone is playing right into the otherās hands here. My gut call is St. Louis will be more than happy to swarm the Crew as they build out of the back, but the Crew may have enough quality for that not to matter. Either way, weāve got two of the leagueās best teams with two of the leagueās most distinct styles going head to head. Itās an easy pick for game of the day.
Nashville SC vs. Colorado Rapids | 8:30 pm ET | Apple TV - Free
WATCH ON: **MLS Season Pass**
Plusometer Score: 19/50
As always, thereās a chance the game you least expect to entertain you is the one that goes off the rails. Anything can happen, right?
Puebla vs. Minnesota United | 9 pm ET | Apple TV - Free, UniMas, FS1
WATCH ON: **MLS Season Pass**
Plusometer Score: 23/50
The Loons are still learning how to cohabitate with Teemu Pukki and will likely view the next few games as a tune-up for an Audi MLS Cup Playoffs push over the post-Leagues Cup stretch of the season. Still, they have a lot of quality going forward and are very comfortable playing without the ball. They feel like a team that could quietly get hot in this competition.
- CF MontrƩal defeated Pumas in PKs amid an "amazing atmosphere" at Stade Saputo.
- Andre Blake came up huge (again) for Philly in their Leagues Cup win over Tijuana.
Good luck out there. Make things difficult for everyone else.