Inter Miami 2, NYCFC 3

(Morgan 27′, 38′) — (Mitrita 4′, 43′; Tinnerholm 35′)

Defending was optional in the first half of this bout at Inter Miami CF Stadium, but it wound up hurting the home side the most.

New York City FC took three separate leads and got a brace from Alexandru Mitrita en route to a 3-2 road victory over Inter Miami. Lewis Morgan twice put the expansion side back on level terms with strong finishes, but Mitrita’s deflected effort in the 43rd minute stood as the winner.

Mitrita also scored the opener, netting in the fourth minute via a flicked finish from in close following a cross from Alexander Ring. Morgan, however, tied proceedings in the 27th minute with an authoritative finish.

NYCFC reclaimed the lead eight minutes later. Anton Tinnerholm slotted home with relative ease from outside the penalty area, but Morgan equalized for Inter Miami again with a 38th-minute blast to the top right corner of the net.

The scoring was not done, though. NYCFC found the decisive goal shortly before halftime, clearing a corner kick and hitting on a lightning-quick counter that eventually ended with a deflected finish from Mitrita.

Inter Miami had chances to pull level after halftime, but a late Julian Carranza goal was disallowed after Video Review for offside. Gonzalo Higuain also hit a close-range header off the mark in the 51st minute.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Alexandru Mitria. The diminutive NYCFC attacker bagged a first-half brace, giving his team an early lead with a solid finish from close before coming up with the winner via a bit of good fortune.

MOMENT OF THE MATCH

Counter Punch. After giving up two leads in the opening stanza, NYCFC took the lead for good when it hit back on the break and got the deflected winner from Mitrita just before halftime.

MATCH TO FORGET

A.J DeLaGarza. The veteran made his Inter Miami debut in this one, but it was one to forget. The right back was well out of position on the early opener, and misstepped as NYCFC started to counter on the game’s decisive play in the 43rd minute.

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Minnesota United 2, FC Cincinnati 0

(Kamara 16′, Molino 68′)

Minnesota United used goals in each half to end its four match winless run, downing FC Cincinnati 2-0 at home.

Kei Camara put the Loons in front in the 16th minute, scoring from the penalty spot after VAR ruled in favor of the spot kick. Mathieu Deplagne brought down Chase Gasper in the box and Kamara made it 1-0 with his second goal for the club.

Kevin Molino iced the home victory in the 68th minute, finishing off Emanuel Reynoso’s pass from a tight angle.

Dayne St. Clair made a trio of saves in goal to preserve the clean sheet for the Loons.

Man of the Match

Reynoso was a lively piece of the Loons attack, registering one assist and winning seven duels. The winger also created the most chances in the match with seven.

Moment of the Match

Molino’s goal iced the win for the Loons, subduing FC Cincinnati to its eighth loss of the season.

Match to Forget

Yuya Kubo was invisible on the night, failing to register a single shot or key pass as Cincinnati slumped to another goal-less defeat.

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FC Dallas 2, Crew 2

(Barrios 38′, Ziegler 53′) – (Mokhtar 47′, Santos 62′)

The Columbus Crew hit back twice at FC Dallas to remain top of the Eastern Conference on goal differential.

Youness Mokhtar and Pedro Santos each scored second-half goals to give the Crew a 2-2 draw with FC Dallas.

Michael Barrios opened the scoring for FC Dallas in the 38th minute, heading home Fafa Picault’s cross to give the hosts a lead.

The Crew did better in the second-half, with Mokhtar equalizing in the 46th minute. Pedro Santos connected with Mokhtar, and the midfielder roofed a shot past Jimmy Maurer to tie things up.

Reto Ziegler’s penalty kick in the 52nd minute swing momentum back in favor of Dallas, but the Crew hit back again for a point. Gyasi Zardes set up Santos, whom also roofed a shot past Maurer, keeping the Crew in first place in the East.

Man of the Match

Santos scored the tying goal for the Crew, but also set up Columbus’ first goal in a thrilling affair in Frisco.

Moment of the Match

FC Dallas made the most of its PK opportunity, but the Crew did not lie down. Santos tied things up and most importantly kept the Crew in front of TFC for the lead in the East.

Match to Forget

Dallas wingers’ were sensational in the match, but striker Franco Jara was quiet despite playing 90 minutes. Jara recorded one shot on goal, but was held in check for most of the night.

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Sounders 3, Whitecaps 1 (Final)

(Paulo 46′, Godoy (OG) 53′, Ruidiaz 58′) – (Montero 65′)

The Sounders recorded their fourth win in five matches, re-establishing their three-point lead atop the Western Conference with a comfortable win against the visiting Whitecaps at CenturyLink Field.

After a goal-less first half, the Sounders needed just 54 seconds in the second half to open the scoring, with Joao Paulo hitting a low shot from 23 yards out to make it 1-0.

The Sounders found a second goal just seven minutes later when a whipped-in cross from Cristian Roldan hit off Erik Godoy

Raul Ruidiaz made it 3-0 five minutes later when a Sounders corner kick hit off Jordan Morris’ back and fell to a wide-open Ruidiaz, who headed home the insurance goal.

Fredy Montero pulled one back via a penalty kick off a controversial foul call on Yeimar Gomez Andrade, but 3-1 was as close as the Whitecaps were able to get.

The Sounders return to action on Wednesday with a home match against Real Salt Lake, while the Whitecaps travel to San Jose on Wednesday.

Man of the Match

Joao Paulo’s goal set the tone for a strong second half and Paulo helped the Sounders control the flow of the match with a game-high 80 completed passes.

Moment of the Match

The Paulo goal came a minute into the second half and took the air out of Vancouver’s sails.

Match to Forget

Janio Bikel was already having a terrible match before his second yellow card ended his night early for the Whitecaps.

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Earthquakes 2, Galaxy 1

(Lopez 42′, Rios 82′) – (Lletget 4′)

The San Jose Earthquakes have put out the dumpster fire, and are suddenly a team on the brink of a playoff push.

Andy Rios converted an 82nd-minute penalty to help give the Earthquakes their second straight win, and a vital win against arch-rival LA Galaxy at Avaya Stadium on Saturday night.

The Galaxy opened the scoring with a fourth-minute finish from Sebastian Lletget, who pounced on a Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez shot off the post.

The Galaxy looked like it just might be their night when David Bingham stepped up to deny former teammate Chris Wondolowski from the penalty spot. A handball call against Nick Depuy set up the MLS all-time leading scorer from the spot, but Bingham guessed correctly and dove to his left to swat away the low Wondolowski attempt.

Bingham denied Wondolowski again in the 26th minute with a diving save to keep the Earthquakes off the board.

The Earthquakes equalized just before halftime courtesy of a stunning strike from Marcos Lopez, who collected a long cross from Nick Lima and unleashed a left-footed blast from 12 yards out.

The Galaxy defense let the visitors down once again in the 82nd minute when Rolf Feltscher fouled Shea Salinas inside the penalty area. Andy Rios replaced Wondolowski as San Jose’s penalty taker and beat Bingham.

The victory moves the Earthquakes into ninth place in the West, just one point behind Real Salt Lake for the final playoff berth. The Earthquakes play host to Vancouver on Wednesday, while the Galaxy will look to climb out of last place in the West with a win at home against Portland on Wednesday.

Man of the Match

Miguel Lopez changed the game with his wonder strike just before halftime.

Moment of the Match

The Lopez Golazo is the easy call for this one.

Match to Forget

Rolf Feltscher had been having a solid match, but his blunder to give up the game-winning penalty will leave him feeling sick.