How things stand: Major League Soccer

• by Soccer America , Sep 21, 2023

Four teams -- Orlando City, Philadelphia, Columbus and St. Louis City -- clinched berths in the 2023 playoffs.

The Crew clinched when it beat Chicago, 3-0, thanks to three goals by Cucho Hernandez in the first 23 minutes.

Both Philadelphia and St. Louis City clinched with ties, while Orlando City is through even though it lost.

They joined FC Cincinnati as the five teams that are assured of advancing to the 18-team playoffs.

FC Cincinnati extended its lead in the Eastern Conference and Supporters' Shield race it earned a 1-1 tie at CF Montreal on Luciano Acosta's penalty kick in the seventh minute of stoppage time.
 
The others winners on a full evening of MLS play -- 14 games on Wednesday -- were Inter Miami and FC Dallas.

Even though it lost Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba to injuries in the first half, Inter Miami beat Toronto FC, 4-0, and moved ahead of the New York Red Bulls into 13th place.

Only one of the five teams ahead of the Herons in the Eastern Conference playoff race when the day began won on Wednesday. FC Charlotte blew a 2-0 lead against Philadelphia, conceding the equalizer in the third minute of stoppage time.

In the Western Conference, FC Dallas climbed two spots, into ninth place, when it rallied for a 3-1 win at Real Salt Lake, getting two goals from Jesus Ferreira.

Minnesota United fell to 10th place, below the playoff line, when it blew a 3-1 lead against the LA Galaxy and lost 4-3. Late summer signing Bill Sharp scored the first three Galaxy goals to give him six goals in six games.



Results

Wednesday, September 20
FC Charlotte 2 Philadelphia 2. (Goals: Meram 55, Swiderski 61; Sullivan 70, Gazdag 90+3 pen. Att.: 28,584.)
Columbus 3 Chicago 0. (Goals: Hernandez 8 pen.,16, 23. Att.: 20,349.)
DC United 1 Atlanta United 1. (Goals: Lobjanidze 14; Pirani 80. Att.: 15,762.)
Inter Miami 4 Toronto FC 0. (Goals: Farías 45+3, Taylor 54, 87, Cremaschi 73. Att,: 19,659.)
CF Montreal 1 FC Cincinnati 1. (Goals: Opoku 53; Acosta 90+7 pen. Att.: 13,603.)
NYCFC 2 Orlando City 0. (Goals: Bakrar 37 pen., Talles Magno 68. Att.: 15,238.)
NY Red Bulls 1 Austin FC 1. (Goals: own goal 7; Driussi 44. Att.: 13,562.)
Houston 4 Vancouver 1. (Goals: Herrera 13, Dorsey 44, Franco 73, Ibrahim 84; own goal 90. Att.: 13,866.)
Sporting KC 0 Nashville SC 3. (Goals: Picault 29, Mukhtar 66, Maher 76. Att.: 16,825.)
St. Louis City 0 LAFC 0. (Att.: 22,423.)
Colorado 1 Seattle 2. (Goals: Bassett 60; Leo Chu 34, Rusnak 56. Att.: 12,548.)
Real Salt Lake 1 FC Dallas 3. (Goals: Arango 43; Arriola 56, Ferreira 62 pen., 71. Att.: 17,842.)
LA Galaxy 4 Minnesota United 3. (Goals: Sharp 16, 63, 71, Fagundez 82; Pukki 19, Hlongwane 41, 45+5. Att.: Att.: 16,120.)
Portland 2 San Jose 1. (Goals: Paredes 45+3, Evander 58; Hoppe 60. Att.: 21,518.)

Standings

Eastern Conference:
1. *FC Cincinnati (17-4-8, 29 games), 59 points
2. *Orlando City (14-7-8, 29 games), 50 points
3. *Columbus (14-9-6, 29 games), 48 points
4. *Philadelphia (14-8-6. 28 games), 48 points
5. New England (13-6-9, 28 games), 48 points
6. Atlanta United (12-8-10. 30 games), 46 points
7. Nashville SC (12-9-7, 28 games), 43 points
8. CF Montréal (11-14-4, 29 games), 37 points
9. D.C. United (9-12-9, 30 games), 36 points
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10. NYCFC (7-10-13, 30 games), 34 points
11. Chicago (8-12-9, 29 games), 33 points
12. Charlotte FC (7-9-12, 28 games), 33 points
13. Inter Miami (9-15-4, 28 games), 31 points
14. NY Red Bulls (7-12-10, 29 games), 31 points
15. Toronto FC (4-15-10. 29 games), 22 points
*Clinched playoff berth.

Western Conference:
1. *St. Louis City (15-10-5, 30 games) 50 points
2. Seattle (12-9-9, 30 games). 45 points
3. LAFC (12-9-8, 29 games), 44 points
4. Houston (12-10-7, 29 games), 43 points
5. Vancouver (11-9-8, 28 games), 41 points
6. Real Salt Lake (11-11-7, 29 games), 40 points
7. San Jose (10-10-10, 30 games), 40 points
8. Portland (10-11-9, 30 games), 39 points
9. FC Dallas (10-10-8, 28 games), 38 points
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10. Minnesota United (9-10-10, 29 games), 37 points
11. Sporting KC (9-13-8, 30 games), 35 points
12. Austin FC (9-13-7, 29 games), 34 points
13. LA Galaxy (8-11-9, 28 games), 33 points
14. Colorado (4-14-10, 28 games), 22 points

Schedule

Saturday, September 23
Atlanta United vs. CF Montreal Apple 7:30 PM
FC Cincinnati vs. Charlotte FC Apple 7:30 PM
DC United vs. NY Red Bulls Apple 7:30 PM
NYCFC vs. Toronto Apple 7:30 PM
Philadelphia vs. LAFC Apple 7:30 PM
Chicago vs. New England Apple 8:30 PM
FC Dallas vs. Columbus Apple 8:30 PM
Sporting Kansas City vs. Houston Apple 8:30 PM
Minnesota United vs. St. Louis City Apple 8:30 PM
Real Salt Lake vs. Vancouver Apple 9:30 PM
Portland vs. Colorado Apple 10:30 PM
San Jose vs. Nashville SC Apple 10:30 PM

Sunday, September 24
Orlando City vs. Inter Miami Apple/FS1/FOX Deportes 7:30 PM
Austin FC vs. LA Galaxy Apple/FS1/FOX Deportes 9:30 PM