MLS: What's going on with Atlanta's $13M man, terrible Galaxy?

Orlando and New England broke each others’ streaks. When Orlando and New England lined up for kickoff on Saturday, they did so with impressive defensive records: Orlando hadn’t conceded a goal in its previous five MLS games and New England hadn’t conceded one in four. So all signs pointed to a dull 0-0 draw, but the teams had other plans. They played out a fantastically chaotic 3-3 draw in the Florida heat, with Orlando’s Martin Ojeda scoring three goals of his own before New England captain Carles Gil leveled things in the 85th minute. 

Goodbye defensive solidity, hello entertaining, heart-in-mouth soccer.

Miami stumbled…again. Minnesota United delivered one of the biggest shocks of the matchday Saturday by beating Miami 4-1 at home.

 “It’s a very special day for the club,” coach Eric Ramsay said after the win. “I hope the fans really enjoyed it, because obviously days like this don’t happen every week.”

It certainly seemed like they did. Fans packed 19,400-seat Allianz Field, providing an electric atmosphere. But as Miami fell farther behind the Loons, pink-shirted Messi fans made their exits. Will Miami’s new fandom stick around if its legends keep getting hammered by the likes of Robin Lod and Bongokuhle Hlongwane? Signs point to no — and that’s going to be a bitter pill for the team’s executives to swallow.

Philadelphia, Columbus, LAFC and Vancouver showed their championship mettle. Four clear MLS Cup contenders faced off over the weekend, with Philly and Columbus playing in the East and LAFC and Vancouver playing in the West. Both games wound up as riveting, high-quality 2-2 draws, and they showed why these teams are pulling away from the rest of the league.

The L.A. Galaxy somehow sink to a new low. Getting beat without conceding a shot is an immense, almost impossible feat. When the Galaxy managed that May 4 against Kansas City, there was a sense the team couldn’t possibly suffer a worse humiliation. Whoops. 

On Saturday, the Galaxy fell 7-0 to the New York Red Bulls, the team they beat in the MLS Cup in 2024. The result leaves the Galaxy (0-9-3) winless in 12 games. the worst start by a defending MLS champion.

As if that weren’t bad enough for the Galaxy, its run of fixtures in May looks fiendishly difficult. Its next five matches feature top opponents (Philly, San Diego, Real Salt Lake) and fierce rivals (LAFC, San Jose); it’s hard to see the Galaxy winning any of them. Will that first win elude them until June?

MLS will return to action on Wednesday (May 14) for a mid-week Matchday 13.