David Ruiz had a goal and assist on Josef Martínez’s go-ahead score before picking up a red card to help Inter Miami hold off the Eastern Conference-leading New England Revolution 2-1 on Saturday night.
Ruiz staked Inter Miami (5-6-0) to an early lead when he took a pass from Leonardo Campana and scored in the 6th minute. It was the first career goal for the 19-year-old rookie midfielder.
New England (7-2-3) thought it had scored the equalizer on a goal by 18-year-old midfielder Noel Buck in the 17th minute but it was disallowed because of an offside foul.
Instead, the Revolution had to wait until the 26th minute to pull even when Carles Gil took passes from Matt Polster and DeJuan Jones and scored his third goal of the season.
Inter Miami midfielder David Ruiz, left, grabs New England Revolution midfielder Carles Gil
Inter Miami head coach Phil Neville talks with forward Nicolás Stefanelli in the second half
Inter Miami took a 2-1 lead into halftime on a goal by Martínez in the 44th minute. Ruiz and DeAndre Yedlin had assists on Martínez’s league-high ninth netter of the season. Martinez entered play tied with Seattle’s Jordan Morris and San Jose’s Jeremy Ebobisse for the league lead.
Martínez has scored seven goals in nine career matches against the Revolution. Three of them came in the first meeting in 2017.
Ruiz forced Inter Miami to play a man down after he picked up a second yellow card in the 81st minute.
Djordje Petrovic had one save for New England. Drake Callender saved one shot for Inter Miami.
Inter Miami is the third team in league history to win three straight after losing six in a row. The 1997 Colorado Rapids won five straight following a six-match skid and New England had a three-match run in 2001.
Campana had a hat trick the last time the two teams met in April of 2022 — the only one allowed by the Revolution under coach Bruce Arena.
Inter Miami has a 3-2-0 record in the series.
Inter Miami travels to play Nashville SC on Wednesday. New England travels to play the Philadelphia Union on Saturday
New England Revolution coach Bruce Arena reacts after a goal was nullified in the first half
Charlotte FC 3, Atlanta United 1
Justin Meram scored two goals, Karol Swiderski added a penalty-kick score and Charlotte FC breezed to a 3-1 victory over Atlanta United on Saturday night.
Charlotte (4-5-3) took a 1-0 lead in the 18th minute on a goal by Meram. Ashley Westwood and Jaylin Lindsey picked up assists on Meram’s first goal since scoring in a 2-2 draw with the Colorado Rapids in July of last season while playing for Real Salt Lake.
Swiderski’s PK goal came in the 52nd minute following a red card on Atlanta United’s Andrew Gutman. Meram made it 3-0 when he took a pass from Kamil Józwiak and scored five minutes later.
Charlotte’s Kristijan Kahlina and Atlanta United’s Quentin Westberg both finished with one save. Charlotte evens the all-time series at 2-2-0 and avenges a 3-0 home loss to Atlanta United (5-4-3) earlier this season.
Atlanta United had an 11-6 advantage in shots, but Charlotte had a 4-2 edge in shots on target. Charlotte is 3-1-0 in its last four matches after posting just on victory in its first eight.
Atlanta United will host the Colorado Rapids on Wednesday. Charlotte returns home to host the Chicago Fire on Wednesday.
Justin Meram scored two goals in Charlotte’s routing of Atlanta United in a 3-1 away win
Seattle Sounders 1, Houston Dynamo 0
Paul Rothrock subbed in in the 83rd minute and scored the only goal of the match four minutes later to propel the Seattle Sounders to a 1-0 victory over the Houston Dynamo on Saturday night after inclement weather delayed the start of the match.
Rothrock replaced João Paulo and promptly found the net unassisted in his first appearance for Western Conference-leading Seattle (7-3-2). Rothrock got into two matches and played 33 minutes for Toronto FC last season in his only other MLS action.
Rothrock’s goal was the first allowed at home by Steve Clark and Houston (4-4-2) this season. The Dynamo were trying to become the first team to open a season with six straight shutouts at home.
The Sounders improve to 11-1-0 against Houston in the last 12 match-ups, including the playoffs. The New England Revolution’s 10-1-0 run against FC Dallas from 2004-09 is the only comparable streak of dominance in league history.
The Dynamo were forced to play a man down after Amine Bassi received a red card in the 21st minute. Houston lost another player in the 78th minute when Héctor Herrera was tagged with a red card.
Stefan Frei did not have to make a save in earning his league-leading seventh clean sheet of the season for Seattle. Clark had one save for the Dynamo. The Sounders improve to 3-1-1 in their last five road matches. The Dynamo entered play with a 6-1-2 record in their previous nine home matches.
Seattle returns home to host Austin FC on Wednesday. Dallas returns home to host the Vancouver Whitecaps on Wednesday.
Seattle Sounders’ Paul Rothrock celebrates with teammates after scoring against Houston
CF Montreal 2, Toronto FC 0
Lassi Lappalainen and Chinonso Offor scored second-half goals and CF Montreal shut out Toronto FC 2-0 on Saturday night in the Canadian Classique.
Montreal (5-6-0) becomes the first team in league history to win four straight after beginning a season with fewer than five points through the first seven matches. No other team had won even three straight.
Neither team scored until Lappalainen took a pass from George Campbell and found the net in the 53rd minute for his first goal of the season.
Offor pushed the lead to 2-0 with an unassisted goal in the 68th minute. Offor’s second goal this season came 12 minutes after Toronto’s Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty was sent off the field for a second yellow card.
Jonathan Sirois didn’t have to make a save to earn the clean sheet for Montreal. Sean Johnson had four saves for Toronto (2-4-6).
Toronto’s Richie Laryea works the ball in front of Montreal’s Mathieu Choiniere in the first half
Montreal outshot Toronto 14-2 with a 6-0 advantage in shots on goal. Montreal beat Toronto for a club-record fourth straight time at home and for the seventh time in the last nine match-ups.
Toronto falls to 0-6-3 in its last nine road matches and 4-26-10 in its last 40 away from home. Toronto’s last road win came in Charlotte in August of last season.
Montreal travels to play FC Cincinnati on Wednesday. Toronto returns home to host the New York Red Bulls on Wednesday.
Montreal players celebrate after a goal by Chinonso Offor against in the Canadian Classique
D.C. United 1, Nashville SC 1
Theodore Ku-Dipietro scored late in the second half to help D.C. United earn a 1-1 draw with Nashville SC on Saturday night.
Ku-Dipietro took passes from Kristian Fletcher and Mateusz Klich and scored in the 81st minute. It was Ku-Dipietro’s first goal since scoring in the season opener. Alex Muyl put Nashville (5-3-4) up 1-0 in the 73rd minute with his first goal of the season. It was unassisted.
DC United (4-5-3) was trying to win back-to-back matches at home for the first time since beating the New England Revolution and Houston Dynamo early last season.
Tyler Miller only had to make one save as DC United held reigning MVP Hany Mukhtar in check. Mukhtar entered play with six goals and three assists in his last six matches.
Joe Willis did not have a save for Nashville. The two teams combined for 15 shots with just three on target.
Nashville is 3-0-2 all-time versus DC United. DC United travels to play the Philadelphia Union on Wednesday. Nashville returns home to host Inter Miami on Wednesday.
Theodore Ku-Dipietro scored late in the second half to help D.C. United earn a 1-1 draw
Wayne Rooney’s D.C. United (4-5-3) lie in ninth place after Saturday’s 1-1 draw at home
Columbus Crew 2, Orlando City 2
Duncan McGuire scored in the second minute of stoppage time to rally Orlando City to a 2-2 draw with the Columbus Crew on Saturday night.
Neither team scored until Darlington Nagbe took passes from Alexandru Matan and Cucho Hernández and found the net in the 39th minute for his first goal of the season for Columbus (4-4-3).
The Crew took a 2-0 lead into halftime after Jacen Russell-Rowe scored in the second minute of stoppage time. Mohamed Farsi and Hernández had assists on Russell-Rowe’s second goal of the season.
Ercan Kara pulled Orlando City (4-4-3) within a goal just four minutes into the second half when he scored for a second time this season. Facundo Torres picked up an assist.
McGuire’s fourth goal of the season and his third in the last four matches was unassisted. Orlando City improves to 7-1-1 in its last nine match-ups with the Crew. Columbus saw a 10-match unbeaten streak at home end last week in a 2-1 loss to Inter Miami.
The Crew had advantages of 22-10 in shots and 7-3 in shots on goal. Pedro Gallese saved five shots for Orlando City. Patrick Schulte had one save for Columbus.
Orlando City returns home to host New York City FC on Wednesday. Columbus will host the LA Galaxy on Wednesday.
Columbus Crew forward Cucho Hernández kicks the ball during the second half vs. Orlando
Sporting Kansas City 3, Minnesota United 0
Dany Rosero and Dániel Sallói scored first-half goals and Sporting Kansas City rolled to a 3-0 victory over Minnesota United on Saturday night.
Rosero took a pass from Sallói and scored in the ninth minute to give Tim Melia the only goal he would need.
Melia finished with four saves to earn the clean sheet and help Sporting KC (2-7-3) notch its first home win of the season. Sporting KC beat the Seattle Sounders 2-1 on the road last week for its first victory of the season.
Sallói stretched the lead to 2-0 in the 22nd minute when he took passes from Rémi Walter and Alan Pulido and scored for a second time this season.
Gadi Kinda scored for the first time since Oct. 3, 2021, in a 4-2 victory over the Houston Dynamo, to complete the scoring in the 84th minute. Johnny Russell and Erik Thommy assisted on Kinda’s first goal since undergoing multiple knee surgeries and missing all of last season.
Sporting Kansas City forward Alan Pulido (9) dribbles the ball against Minnesota United
Dayne St. Clair had one save for Minnesota United (3-5-3), which lost its fourth straight match by one goal.
Sporting KC is 9-1-0 at home all-time versus Minnesota United, including all eight played at Children’s Mercy Park. Minnesota United scored three goals in its lone victory but just two in the other nine match-ups. Sporting KC has never gone winless through its first four home matches.
Minnesota United returns home to host the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday. Sporting KC travels to play Los Angeles FC on Wednesday.
Sporting KC is 9-1-0 at home all-time versus Minnesota United, as they celebrate a 10th win on Saturday
FC Dallas 1, Austin FC 0
Jesús Ferreira ended a scoreless match with a goal in the 89th minute to rally FC Dallas to a 1-0 victory over Austin FC on Saturday night.
Ferreira used an assist from Tsiki Ntsabeleng to find the net for a sixth time this season. Maarten Paes needed to make just one save to earn his second straight clean sheet and third of the season for Dallas (5-3-3).
Ferreira’s goal was his fifth in seven matches against Austin. It is the most goals scored by a single player against Austin and that’s after Ferreira was held scoreless in all three matches between the clubs last season.
Brad Stuver totaled two saves for Austin (2-5-4), which falls to 0-4-4 in its last eight contests, matching a club-record winless streak.
Austin beat Dallas in a Western Conference semifinal last season, but is 0-4-2 all-time against its instate rival in the regular season. Dallas improves to 2-4-7 all-time against teams from Texas. Dallas returns home to host the Vancouver Whitecaps on Wednesday. Austin travels to play the Seattle Sounders on Wednesday.
USMNT and FC Dallas’ Jesús Ferreira scored a goal right at the death (89th minute) vs. Austin
LAFC 3, Real Salt Lake 0
Los Angeles FC extended its dominance over Real Salt Lake with a 3-0 victory in Sandy, Utah, on Saturday night.
First half goals from Kwadwo Opoku and Denis Bouanga propelled LAFC to its fourth straight regular season road win and seventh consecutive victory overall in the series. They have won 11 of 12 regular-season matches against RSL dating back to their inaugural MLS season.
Los Angeles (6-1-3, 21 points) converted on three of the four shots it put on goals. Overall, they rank second among Western Conference teams in scoring with 20 goals through 10 matches.
Salt Lake (3-6-2, 11 points) posted clean sheets in its previous two matches but it has not scored a goal in its last three.
Five different players generated a shot on goal for RSL, but none were able to finish those chances. Rubio Rubin led the way, generating five total shots before halftime. All of his attempts were off-target or blocked.
First half goals from Kwadwo Opoku and Denis Bouanga propelled LAFC to its fourth away win
Los Angeles got on the board in the eighth minute with Opoku’s goal, which snapped Salt Lake’s streak of going 229 minutes without allowing a goal. Opoku settled a long through ball from Ilie Sanchez, beating a pair of RSL defenders to the punch, and blasted the ball into the top right corner after crossing into the box.
Bouanga doubled up LAFC’s lead in the 35th minute with his ninth goal of the season. Carlos Vela fed the ball to him outside the top of the box. Bouanga unleashed a rocket and buried a left-footed shot in the top right corner like Opoku did earlier in the half.
Mateusz Bogusz added an insurance goal by converting a penalty kick in the 87th minute. Salt Lake’s lone regular season win over Los Angeles came back in 2020.
Mateusz Bogusz scores on a penalty kick against Salt Lake’s Zac MacMath in the second half
Philadelphia Union 2, Colorado Rapids 1
Julian Carranza scored the go-ahead goal and the Philadelphia Union came from behind to down the Colorado Rapids 2-1 on Saturday night.
The Union (5-4-2) have won three straight and they’re undefeated in their last four league games.
The Rapids (2-4-6) still have yet to win a match at home this season, with three draws and two losses. It was Colorado’s first loss after going unbeaten in seven straight games.
The match was marked by a scuffle between the two teams in stoppage time. Colorado’s Braian Galvan and Philadelphia’s Jesus Bueno were each handed red cards and sent off.
Connor Ronan gave the Rapids a 1-0 lead when he converted on a penalty in the 38th minute after Diego Rubio was fouled in the box.
The Union (5-4-2) have won three straight and they’re undefeated in their last four games
Kai Wagner scored his first goal of the season in first-half stoppage time to tie the match going into the break. Carranza’s goal in the 51st minute gave Philadelphia the lead for good.
Philadelphia has lost just one of its last eight meetings with the Rapids. The Rapids were playing without attacking midfielder Max Alves, who was suspended by Major League Soccer in the wake of a Brazilian investigation into match fixing.
Philadelphia returns home to host D.C. United on Wednesday. Colorado travels to play Atlanta United on Wednesday.
Portland Timbers 3, Vancouver Whitecaps 1
Evander scored twice as the Portland Timbers defeated the visiting Vancouver Whitecaps 3-1 on Saturday night.
Franck Boli also scored for Portland (4-5-3, 15 points) and goalkeeper Aljaz Ivacic made five saves.
The only tally for the Whitecaps (3-3-5, 14 points) came on an own goal by Portland midway through the first half.
Yohei Takaoka made four saves for Vancouver, which had an eight-match unbeaten run (3-0-5) snapped.
Evander scored twice as the Portland Timbers to beat West Coast rivals Vancouver Whitecaps