Below is a selection of the notable performances and moments from the 12 matches played thus far on the 15th matchday of the 2023 MLS season, Saturday, May 27.
Matchday 15 concludes with a pair of matches today, as Sporting Kansas City welcomes the Portland Timbers to Children’s Mercy Park (3 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass / FOX) and Nashville SC plays host to the Columbus Crew (8:30 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass / FS1).
FC Cincinnati Continues Record-Setting Start
Entering Matchday 15 atop the Supporters’ Shield, FC Cincinnati did not loosen their grip on the league’s pole position, defeating the Colorado Rapids, 1-0, behind a 33rd-minute strike from Dominique Badji.Â
Cincinnati leads the Supporters’ Shield standings by seven points as of Saturday evening with 33 points (10-1-3) and became just the fifth team in MLS history to reach 33 points in 14 or fewer matches. The other four teams to accomplish the feat – 1998 LA Galaxy, 2000 Sporting Kansas City, 2001 Miami Fusion, and the 2010 LA Galaxy – all won the Supporters’ Shield in their respective seasons.
St. Louis CITY SC Makes More Expansion History with 3-1 Victory
Playing in front of a raucous home crowd at CITYPARK, St. Louis CITY SC won their second consecutive match with a 3-1 victory over Vancouver Whitecaps FC, including a sensational free-kick score from Eduard Löwen (Watch Here) and a game-sealing goal from 18-year-old Miguel Perez in the 94th minute (Watch Here). It was the first-career goal for Perez, who graduated from local St. Louis high school, Pattonville High School, on Thursday, May 25.Â
With their victory, St. Louis CITY SC reached 25 points (8-4-1) in their 13th game, becoming the fastest expansion team in MLS history to reach 25 points in their debut season. The previous mark was held by the 1998 Chicago Fire (14 games).
Zardes Reaches 100-Goal Milestone
In his 11th MLS season and with his fourth different MLS squad, Austin FC forward Gyasi Zardes scored his 100th career regular-season goal, becoming the 13th player in league history to reach the century milestone. Zardes has scored in three consecutive matches for Austin FC.
The 31-year-old is one of three active players to reach 100 career regular-season goals, joining Chicago’s Kei Kamara (143) and Inter Miami’s Josef MartĂnez (101), the latter of whom reached the milestone on Matchday 11 of the 2023 season.
Carranza & Gazdag Power Philadelphia to 3-1 Victory Over NYCFC
The dynamic Philadelphia Union duo of Julián Carranza and Dániel Gazdag have been powering one of the league’s best offenses since the start of the 2022 MLS season, and the pair of peak performers once again made their mark in a 3-1 victory over NYCFC on Matchday 15.
Carranza, who has four goals in his last four matches, recorded his first multi-goal match of the 2023 season with a brace against NYCFC and now has 21 goals and 12 assists since the start of the 2022 season. Carranza is one of just four MLS players with at least 20 goals and 10 assists since the start of 2022, joining 2022 MLS MVP Hany Mukhtar (31 goals, 17 assists), Brandon Vazquez (21 goals, 10 assists), and teammate Dániel Gazdag (29 goals, 17 assists).
Joining Carranza in the scoring for Philadelphia was Gazdag, who converted a penalty kick in the 53rd minute to give the Union a 3-1 lead. Gazdag has converted each of his first 14 penalty-kick attempts in MLS play, which is the second-longest streak to begin a career in league history, behind only Nico Lodeiro (18 consecutive, 2017-2022).Â
Saturday night marked the 11th time since the start of the 2022 season – and the second consecutive match – that Carranza and Gazdag have scored in the same game, the most in MLS over the span. The next-closest pairing also resides in Philadelphia (seven, Gazdag and Mikael Uhre).
Youthful Stars Shine Across Major League Soccer on Matchday 15
Major League Soccer has the youngest player pool of the top men’s North American sports leagues at 26 years, 129 days old (as of April 20), and the league's youthful infusion was on full display on Matchday 15.Â
Six players under the age of 21 years old scored goals on Saturday night – Noel Buck (New England Revolution), Georgios Koutsias (Chicago Fire), Tyler Wolff (Atlanta United), Kosi Thompson (Toronto FC), Deandre Kerr (Toronto FC), and Miguel Perez (St. Louis CITY SC) – which is tied for the most on a single day in MLS history. The previous record was set on October 9, 2022, with goals scored by Dylan Borrero, Cade Cowell, Kristian Fletcher, Bode Davis Hidalgo, Elias Manoel, and Alex Monis.
