Nashville hit another gear, Vancouver bounce back & more from Matchday 22 | OneFootball

By Charles Boehm

Routs, stunners and barnburners – Matchday 22 served up all sorts of drama, some of it prompting notable movement in the standings as well.

From superstar surprises in Florida to some explosive blowouts on the West Coast, the goals and plotlines rolled in thick and fast over the weekend.

Let’s sift through the milestones and moments that rang out the loudest, starting with a ferocious late rally in Music City.

Nashville SC

A memorable Nashville night

It was, in the words of my superb colleague Jaime Uribarri, like something out of a movie.

League-leading Nashville SC were up against it at GEODIS Park as injury time arrived in their clash with the Columbus Crew, who’d painstakingly battled back from a halftime deficit to seize a 2-1 lead, looking like the world’s best 14th-place team in the process. NSC’s first home loss of the season was looming, a setback that would surely represent an opening for Inter Miami CF and Vancouver Whitecaps FC, their nearest pursuers in the Supporters’ Shield race.

Then they went and did this.

We’re accustomed to magic like that from Hany Mukhtar, Sam Surridge and Cristian Espinoza. This time it was the Coyotes’ fullbacks who stepped up, Reed Baker-Whiting and Andy Nájar scoring improbable last-gasp goals to snatch a 3-2 victory from the jaws of defeat, keep NSC on pace for the Shield, home-field advantage throughout the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs and a historic single-season points total (79) to boot.

With 49 points to date, Nashville are now 10 clear of Miami, and even with a game in hand, it’ll take an unreal surge from the ‘Caps (40 points) to make the Shield run-in a contest.

Vancouver Whitecaps FC

‘Caps: back???

Speaking of Vancouver, the reigning Western Conference champs have been limping through a dog-days swoon lately.

With just two wins in 10 games across all competitions since MLS's FIFA World Cup pause, the most recent a frustrating midweek home loss to Houston that dislodged them from first place in the West, the ‘Caps have clearly missed Middlesbrough-bound midfield linchpin Sebastian Berhalter, and struggled to find attacking rhythm in the injury-imposed absence of target man Brian White.

Perhaps Saturday’s 5-0 trouncing of FC Dallas will turn out to be their ‘get right’ game.

The British Columbians were magisterial, even when allowing for the fact FCD had rotated their lineup significantly after a Wednesday trip to Real Salt Lake before their trek to the Pacific Northwest.

We’ll cut Eric Quill’s side some slack considering they’re still fifth in the table and haven’t played a home match at under-renovation Toyota Stadium since the last time their last meeting with Vancouver way back in mid-May. The North Texans are surely eager to reopen the place on Labor Day Weekend.

WATCH: Vancouver Whitecaps surge back atop the West

Philadelphia Union

Cavan strikes again; USMNT ahoy?

It’s quite possible no one in MLS has drawn more attention over the past month than Cavan Sullivan, the Philadelphia Union wunderkind who’s leveling up into a true difference-maker before our eyes.

After the Independent Review Panel rescinded the red card he picked up on Wednesday in a chaotic tussle involving his brother Quinn and several Inter Miami players, the 16-year-old homegrown sniffed out Philly’s equalizer in a  1-1 draw at Austin FC to keep the DOOP squad unbeaten in league play since the World Cup (4W-0L-2D).

That’s Cavan’s sixth goal contribution in Philly’s last five games, and it brings his season total to 5g/11a in 25 games across all competitions. Can the teenage attacker pilot the Union to a place in the playoffs this fall? Will Mauricio Pochettino reward his performances with a call-up to the US men’s national team next month? We can’t wait to find out.

Toronto FC

Toronto stun Messi and Miami

For sheer shock value, Toronto FC’s 2-1 upset of Inter Miami at Nu Stadium is the result of the weekend.

A sharp left-footed strike from club-record signing Josh Sargent and a tidy Derrick Etienne Jr. finish after some sloppy Herons defending propelled the Reds into the catbird seat, and even a trademark Lionel Messi tally wasn’t enough as the defending MLS Cup presented by Audi champions suddenly find themselves mired in a slump.

The Herons are now winless in their last four, and have banked just one victory in seven matches across a busy August – with one fixture still to play this month. They look tired, even with the injection of Brazilian star Casemiro, and those familiar defensive bugaboos are back, as indicated by just one solitary clean sheet since the World Cup break.

TFC, for their part, are on the up. This was their first-ever win at IMCF, and they’ve now taken eight points from a possible 12 over their past four to climb to the doorstep of the playoff places in the East table, despite showpiece summer reinforcement Niklas Dorsch being sidelined by a facial fracture just three games into his Reds career.

“Incredible diligence and awareness and effort,” said head coach Robin Fraser postgame. “The conditions were quite miserable, quite hot, extremely humid, and guys just dug in, so I’m really proud of the effort.”

WATCH: Josh Sargent, Toronto FC STUN Inter Miami

Orlando City

Grizi x 2

Toronto remain below the playoff line in large part because Orlando City have finally, after many difficult months at the start of the season, clambered above it. The Lions’ 2-1 win over Real Salt Lake pushes them into ninth place, a nose ahead of TFC and D.C. United thanks to the wins tiebreaker, and yet again they have Antoine Griezmann to thank.

OCSC’s French icon bagged a dramatic second-half brace at Inter.co Stadium, his first multi-goal outing since moving Stateside, to power the Lions’ comeback after RSL struck early, yet perhaps sat back too early and too often in the Florida humidity.

"It's mandatory for us to enjoy Griezmann,” said interim coach Martín Perelman. “We are lucky in the moment that he is here with us. He's one of the best players in the history of this sport. We have the privilege to see him – it’s just about enjoying him … and he is enjoying as well, I think.”

As good as Grizi was, Daryl Dike, Justin Ellis and Tyrese Spicer were impactful off the bench, hinting at the growing spectrum of options at Perelman’s disposal. Beware these Cardiac Cats.

WATCH: Antoine Griezmann first MLS BRACE powers Orlando City

St. Louis CITY SC

Mixed emotions in St. Louis

In strict results terms, St. Louis CITY SC are soaring like never before. The Midwesterners knocked off the red-hot Houston Dynamo, 2-1, in a tenacious tussle at Energizer Park on Saturday, extending their unbeaten run to 12 matches as they keep marching up the West standings, paced by surging striker Simon Becher.

The mood in the stadium was more complicated than you might think, though. Because this game also turned out to be the unofficial goodbye to beloved midfielder Eduard Löwen, who is reportedly set to be traded to the San Jose Earthquakes after he and the club were unable to sort out a contract renewal to keep him in CITY magenta for the long term.

Assuming the deal gets done, he’s the second STL star to depart this summer after Marcel Hartel, which simultaneously underlines how impressive their current form really is AND raises questions about letting go of two key contributors who’d connected profoundly with the fanbase – particularly Löwen.

Did STL do right by the player, or allow a community hero to walk away?

HIGHLIGHTS: St. Louis CITY vs. Houston Dynamo FC | August 22, 2026

Minnesota United FC

Must-see moment: Pereyra’s rabona

Acquiring Löwen looks a savvy move by the aforementioned Earthquakes, who need all the help they can get as their rip-roaring 9W-1L-0D start to the campaign has become a distant memory, thanks to the brutal 1W-7L-3D skid that followed.

The Quakes have turned mighty leaky of late, conceding a jaw-dropping 18 goals in their six games since the World Cup pause, five of them losses, the most recent Saturday’s 5-1 shellacking at home by a Minnesota United side who’d won just once across all competitions since May 3.

Whatever your perspective on all that, however, do NOT, under any circumstances, miss the insane rabona by Joaquín Pereyra that burst open the floodgates at PayPal Park, where a literal toddler showed more life on the pitch than the home side. San Jose boss Bruce Arena has urgent questions to address, to say the least.

Around the grounds

Robert Lewandowski drew a crowd – one of the biggest of Red Bull New York’s season, in fact – to Sports Illustrated Stadium for Chicago Fire FC’s visit. By the looks of it, many of them were fellow Poles eager to get a glimpse of one of the finest players their nation has ever produced. 

They had to wait a bit, with ‘Lewy’ coming off the bench as head coach Gregg Berhalter sought to give him and a few other regulars some rest ahead of Tuesday’s Leagues Cup quarterfinal clash with LIGA MX giants CF Monterrey. In the end, the Fire claimed a 1-1 road draw that extends their unbeaten streak to seven games.

HIGHLIGHTS: Red Bull New York vs. Chicago Fire FC | August 22, 2026

The matchday concluded with an Atlanta United-Sporting Kansas City Sunday Night Soccer presented by Continental Tire clash that could justifiably be framed as a six-pointer in the race to avoid the Wooden Spoon, the unofficial, fan-created annual prize for the league’s last-place team.

Both sides have some semblance of hope in the air, though, considering they’re making big-money moves to upgrade their struggling squads.

Eventual 2-1 winners ATLUTD introduced their new signing Swiss international Breel Embolo to the Mercedes-Benz Stadium faithful on Sunday, while SKC just welcomed Brazilian winger André Luiz. Both are said to have cost upwards of $18 million apiece.

WATCH: Vintage Almirón guides surging Atlanta United