MLS 2018 Week 18

We've got a full weekend of games going this time, beginning on Friday with...

Minnesota United FC hosting FC Dallas. Jesse Gonzalez and Bobby Shuttleworth protect the nets. Michael Boxall of Minnesota had a yellow card for a handball in the eleventh minute. Matt Hedges of Dallas took a yellow card for his twenty-sixth minute foul. Dallas got going in the fifty-ninth minute with a Roland Lamah goal, via Santiago Mosquera. Dallas' Reggie Cannon received a yellow card for time wasting in the seventy-ninth minute. Mason Toye of Minnesota had a yellow card for an eighty-ninth minute foul. The final held at 1-0, with Lamah as the man of the match.

On Saturday, the Seattle Sounders FC welcome the Portland Timbers. Jeff Attinella faces a lesser foe in Bryan Meredith in goal. Portland dented the scoreboard in the forty-eighth minute with a Larrys Mabiala goal, via Diego Valeri. Seattle tied it on a Victor Rodriguez goal in the fifty-first minute, assisted by Nicolas Lodeiro. The Timbers retook the lead with a Samuel Armenteros goal, passed from Valeri in the fifty-seventh minute. The Sounders tied it again with a Chad Marshall goal in the sixty-eighth minute, coming off of Lodeiro. Portland pulled ahead with a Mabiala goal in the seventy-fourth minute, set up by Valeri. Nouhou of Seattle had a yellow card for an eighty-fifth minute foul. Zarek Valentin of the Timbers took a yellow card for a foul in the eighty-seventh minute. The Sounders saw yellow cards for Clint Dempsey in the eighty-ninth minute and Kim Kee-hee in the ninetieth minute, both for fouls. The final held at 3-2, with Valeri as the man of the match.

In the southeast, Atlanta United FC brings in Orlando City SC. Joe Bendik and Brad Guzan man the nets. Atlanta began in the third minute with a Josef Martinez goal, assisted by Julian Gressel. Will Johnson of Orlando City had a yellow card for a nineteenth minute foul. Atlanta added on in the fifty-fifth minute with a Miguel Almiron goal, passed from Martinez and Hector Villalba. Atlanta extended the lead as Ezequiel Barco scored in the fifty-seventh minute. Atlanta padded the lead as Almiron scored his second of the game in the seventy-eighth minute, thanks to Mikey Ambrose. This made it 4-0, the final, with Almiron as the man of the match.

Up in Canada, the Montral Impact host Sporting Kansas City. Tim Melia and Evan Bush are the gloved men. Ken Krolicki of Montreal had a yellow card for a nineteenth minute foul. The Impact saw a yellow card for time wasting by Chris Duvall in the forty-sixth minute. Montreal cracked the scoresheet in the fifty-fourth minute with an Ignacio Piatti goal. Kansas City saw yellow cards for Yohan Croizet in the sixty-eighth minute and Ike Opara in the sixty-ninth minute, both for fouls. The Impact added on with an Alejandro Silva penalty kick goal. This produced the 2-0 final score, with Piatti named man of the match.

Back stateside, the Columbus Crew SC welcome Real Salt Lake. Nick Rimando and Jon Kempin are the goalies. Columbus led off in the sixth minute with a Gyasi Zardes penalty kick goal. The Crew added on in the twenty-third minute with an Eduardo Sosa goal, via Pedro Santos and Harrison Afful. Salt Lake's Sunny had a yellow card for a foul in first half stoppage time. Kyle Beckerman of Real took a yellow card for a fifty-sixth minute foul. Sosa of Columbus received a yellow card for his sixty-sixth minute foul. Salt Lake got on the board with an Albert Rusnak goal in the seventy-fourth minute, passed from Joao Plata. Jefferson Savarino of Real took a yellow card for a foul in second half stoppage time. The game ended at 2-1 Crew, with Sosa the man of the match.

East to New England, where the Revolution bring in DC United. David Ousted and Matt Turner protect the nets. New England started in the eighteenth minute with a Cristian Penilla goal, via Krisztian Nemeth and Diego Fagundez. Antonio Mlinar Delamea took a yellow card for a foul in the twenty-seventh minute for the Revolution. Luis Caicedo of New England had a yellow card for a forty-first minute foul. DC's Yamil Asad tied it in the forty-third minute with a goal set up by Zoltan Stieber. New England retook the lead in first half stoppage time with a Teal Bunbury goal, coming off of Jalil Anibaba. DC tied it again on an Asad penalty kick goal in the seventy-third minute. DC's Darren Mattocks took a yellow card for dissent in the seventy-seventh minute, as did teammate Oniel Fisher a minute later. New England regained the lead on a Penilla penalty kick goal in the seventy-eighth minute. The Revolution won 3-2, with the man of the match being Penilla for his brace.

West to Chicago, where the Fire host New York City FC. Sean Johnson and Richard Sanchez are between the sticks. Chicago opened in the sixth minute with a Nemanja Nikolic goal, via Dax McCarty. Brandt Bronico of the Fire had a yellow card for a tenth minute foul. Alexander Ring of New York City took a yellow card for a twenty-eighth minute foul. New York City tied it in the thirty-sixth minute with an Ismael Tajouri-Shradi goal, set up by Maximiliano Moralez. New York City pulled ahead in the fortieth minute with a Jo Inge Berget goal, passed from Anton Tinnerholm and Tajouri-Shradi. Chicago retied it in the forty-seventh minute on an Aleksandar Katai goal, assisted by McCarty. The Fire pulled ahead on a Katai goal in the fifty-second minute, helped along by Elliot Collier. Chicago saw yellow cards for time wasting by Sanchez in the eighty-ninth minute and a stoppage time foul by Alan Gordon. The Fire won 3-2, with Katai as the man of the match for his winning brace.

Out in California, Los Angeles FC welcomes the Philadelphia Union. Andre Blake and Tyler Miller guard the woodwork. Los Angeles struck first in the twenty-fifth minute with an Adama Diomande goal, set up by Latif Blessing. Los Angeles saw a yellow card for a thirty-ninth minute Steven Beitashour foul. Los Angeles added on with a Diomande goal in the forty-third minute, guided in by Mark-Anthony Kaye and Benny Feilhaber. Philadelphia got on the board with a Fabrice-Jean Picault goal in the forty-fifth minute. Los Angeles replied with a Diomande goal in the fifty-fifth minute, completing his hat trick with the help of Blessing and Aaron Kovar. Los Angeles' Lee Nguyen took a yellow card for persistent infringement in the eighty-fifth minute. Los Angeles extended the lead as Blessing scored in stoppage time. The final was 4-1, with Diomande earning man of the match honors.

Saturday ends with the Cali Clasico, as the San Jose Earthquakes bring in the Los Angeles Galaxy. David Bingham faces his former teammate Andrew Tarbell in goal. Los Angeles was first to score in the first minute with a Zlatan Ibrahimovic goal, assisted by Chris Pontius. San Jose tied it on a Chris Wondolowski goal in the fifteenth minute. The Galaxy reclaimed the lead with a Romain Alessandrini goal in the twentieth minute. Los Angeles added on as Ibrahimovic scored in the twenty-fifth minute. The Earthquakes got one back in the thirty-ninth minute with a Valeri Qazaishvili goal. Jimmy Ockford of San Jose had a yellow card for his forty-eighth minute foul. The Earthquakes tied it on a Wondolowski penalty kick goal in the sixty-ninth minute. The Galaxy received yellow cards for fouls by Bradford Jamieson in the seventy-eighth minute, Alessandrini in the eighty-second minute, and Ibrahimovic in the ninetieth minute. The final held at 3-3, with Ibrahimovic being the man of the match.

On Sunday, Toronto FC hosts the New York Red Bulls. Luis Robles and Alexander Bono draw the starts in goal. New York drew first blood in the fourth minute with a Kemar Lawrence goal, via Aaron Long. Eriq Zavaleta of Toronto had a yellow card for a twenty-seventh minute foul. Tim Parker of the Red Bulls took a yellow card for his thirty-fifth minute foul. New York saw yellow cards for Tyler Adams' foul in the fifty-fourth minute and dissent by Marc Rzatkowski in the seventy-seventh minute. The final stayed at 1-0, with the man of the match being Robles for his eight-save clean sheet.

Finally, the Vancouver Whitecaps FC hosts the Colorado Rapids. Tim Howard and Brian Rowe play in goal. Colorado saw yellow cards for Jack Price's sixteenth minute foul and Edgar Castillo's foul in the thirty-third minute. The Rapids kicked off the scoring when Vancouver's Marcel de Jong committed an own goal in the forty-third minute. Colorado saw yellow cards for fouls by Danny Wilson in the forty-eighth minute, Johan Blomberg in the eightieth minute, and Deklan Wynne in the eighty-second minute. de Jong's bad day got worse for the Whitecaps when he took a yellow card for a foul in stoppage time. The final stood at 1-0, with Howard's ten-save clean sheet making him the man of the match.