Below is a selection of the notable performances and moments from the 13 matches played on the 33rd matchday of the 2024 MLS regular season on Wednesday, September 18.
Evander Stars in Portland’s Goal-Scoring Frenzy
Few games are played by the Portland Timbers where star midfielder Evander doesn’t stand out as one of the best players on the field, and his performance on Matchday 33, which saw him score twice and assist the first of Portland’s four goals, was no different.
The Brazilian playmaker hit a pinpoint cross for Jonathan Rodríguez who got on the end of it with a diving header (WATCH HERE), which extended Evander’s current streak of games with a goal contribution to 10 and surpassed the previous Timbers record of nine held by club legend Diego Valeri. Evander ended the night tied with Luciano Acosta for the league-lead in assists at 18, and he leads all of MLS in total contributions with 32.
With Evander’s brace and both Rodríguez and Felipe Mora getting on the scoresheet, the Timbers became the first club in league history to have three different players score at least 14 goals each during a single regular season. Only Inter Miami CF (67 goals, 81 assists) have scored more goals and created more assists than the Timbers (60 goals, 72 assists) ahead of Matchday 34.
The Timbers travel to Real Salt Lake on Saturday, September 21 (9:30 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass on Apple TV) looking to climb up the Western Conference and secure direct qualification to the Audi 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs Round One Best-of-3 Series.
Philly Run Rampant in Playoff Push
With two games in four days, it will be a crucial one for clubs as they increase their push to the Audi 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs, and the Philadelphia Union have already taken advantage of it. The Union traveled to face New York City FC and left Yankee Stadium with a resounding 5-1 victory that featured five different goal scorers.
Philadelphia’s balanced goal scoring was led by star midfielder Dániel Gazdag, who scored his 15th strike of the season in the 32nd minute to put the Union up 3-0. The Hungarian international became the first player in club history to score at least 15 goals in multiple seasons after previously doing so in 2022 when he scored 22 times.
One of the players with an assist was defender Kai Wagner, who whipped in a corner kick that was headed home by Jakob Glesnes for the fourth goal of the match. With his assist, Wagner tied Sébastien Le Toux (50) for the most regular-season assists in club history – a remarkable feat for a defender in MLS.
The win propelled Philadelphia inside the playoff line to the No. 9 seed and they will look to continue their strong push on Sunday in a key clash against D.C. United (6:15 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass on Apple TV / FS1).
50+ Yard Goal, a Goalkeeper Assist, and Another RSL Win
One of the most exciting teams in MLS this season has been Real Salt Lake, whose matches have been highly entertaining, including those at America First Field. Matchday 33 was no different for the Claret and Cobalt, as they defeated FC Dallas 3-2 to inch closer to an Audi 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs spot. With the victory, Salt Lake will control their playoff destiny on Saturday against the Portland Timbers to punch their ticket.
The highlight of the match came in the 24th minute as Anderson Julio received a ball and dribbled just past the midfield line before chipping the Dallas goalkeeper from 57.49 yards away (Watch Here). It marked another goal from 55+ yards in MLS this season and also featured an assist from Salt Lake goalkeeper Gavin Beavers. At 19 years and 142 days, Beavers became the youngest goalkeeper in MLS history to record an assist in a regular season match.
Julio scored the game-winning goal in the 62nd minute of the match, which featured a first MLS assist for new U22 Initiative signing Dominik Marczuk. Marczuk, the 2023-24 Polish Ekstraklasa Young Player of the Season, made his first career start, had two key passes and added the game-winning assist. Marczuk proves to be a pivotal figure in the club’s attack as they look to make a run at MLS Cup presented by Audi.
Pulido Brace Powers Kansas City at Home
The Colorado Rapids entered Matchday 33 looking to book an Audi 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs berth, but Sporting Kansas City had other ideas at Children’s Mercy Park, dominating in a 4-1 victory. It marked the first time since June 10, 2023, that Kansas City had scored at least four goals in a match, and they improved to 2-1-1 since Leagues Cup 2024.
Kansas City's win was led by forward Alan Pulido, who scored the opening two goals of the match, including the game-winning strike in the 49th minute. For Pulido, it was his seventh career multi-goal game in the regular season, becoming just the fifth player in club history to achieve this feat and trailing only Dom Dwyer (10) and Vitalis Takawira (8) for the club record.
With the victory, SKC staved off postseason elimination and will look to carry that momentum over the next seven days in MLS action and in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final on Wednesday, September 25 at BMO Field (10:30 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass on Apple TV). If Kansas City wins the 109th US Open Cup Final, it would mark their fifth Open Cup victory in club history.
Gil, Miller Record Historic Assists in Revs Draw
The New England Revolution came out of the gates flying on Wednesday night, scoring twice in the first half with former Landon Donovan MLS MVP Carles Gil recording two assists and 16-year-old Homegrown defender Peyton Miller providing his first career assist for the Revolution.
Gil, who had a hand in both Revolution goals, tied Steve Ralston (73) for the most regular season assists in club history after setting up Homegrown midfielder Esmir Bajraktarevic’s goal in the 35th minute (WATCH HERE). Gil matched the record in 42 fewer regular season appearances than Ralston (197) as the Spaniard has played 155 games for the club since 2019.
In just his fourth start for the club in regular season action, Miller recorded the first assist of his young MLS career after receiving an incisive pass from Gil before dribbling to Bobby Wood for the finishing touch (WATCH HERE). At 16 years and 315 days old, Miller is the eighth-youngest player to record an assist in MLS history and the second-youngest player to do so for the Revolution after Diego Fagúndez (16 years and 223 days old in 2011).
The Revs return to action on Saturday, September 21 when they hit the road to Charlotte FC (4 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass on Apple TV) as they hope to continue their late push for a playoff position.
