Three matches you must watch in MLS this weekend 📺 | OneFootball

We are well and truly at the business end of the MLS season, and the matches are laced with implication.

Here are a few of the clashes you simply can not miss this weekend.

New York Red Bulls vs NYCFC

Few rivalries in MLS deliver the raw energy of the Hudson River Derby, but this edition between the New York Red Bulls and NYCFC feels especially charged.

For the Red Bulls, the stakes are clear: their streak of 15 consecutive playoff appearances is on the line. As head coach Sandro Schwarz bluntly put it this week, “It’s a playoff game for us.”

If the Red Bulls are to keep their season alive, they’ll need goals from Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, whose finishing and physical presence have been vital, and inspiration from Emil Forsberg, the Swedish playmaker has set the tone creatively this season.

NYCFC, by contrast, arrive with playoff security and the chance to twist the knife. Alonso Martínez, if fit, offers the speed and movement to unsettle the Red Bulls’ back line, while Kevin O’Toole, a former Red Bulls youth player, has become a reliable cog in NYCFC’s setup,  a subplot that adds intrigue to an already heated contest.

For the hosts, it’s a battle for survival; for the visitors, it’s a chance to crash their rival’s party. That tension will make this derby feel like a playoff clash before the postseason even begins.

FC Cincinnati vs Orlando City

Sunday Night Soccer has quickly become MLS’s marquee slot, and this weekend’s feature — Cincinnati against Orlando City — carries a good share of the gravitas the league envisioned when it built the primetime stage.

Cincinnati has leaned all season on Evander, a constant threat in attack and a sure contender for MLS MVP.

Orlando bring their own spark in Martín Ojeda, however, a forward with the creativity and finishing ability to compete with the best in the league. His knack for decisive moments makes him a natural counterweight to Evander, and the duel between the two playmakers could define the evening.

Heading into Sunday's showdown, the two sides are separated by just seven points, but chasers Orlando have a crucial game in hand.

Seattle Sounders vs Vancouver Whitecaps

This weekend’s Cascadia clash between the Seattle Sounders and Vancouver Whitecaps is shaping up to be one of the most compelling fixtures on the MLS slate.

Vancouver head into Lumen Field sitting second in the Western Conference, with a chance to lock down their eighth Cascadia Cup and strengthen their push for a top-four seed.

Seattle, meanwhile, are still searching for consistency, and head coach Brian Schmetzer has challenged his squad to deliver a “complete” performance with playoff positioning at stake.

The key battles on the pitch should be just as intriguing. For the Sounders, Georgi Minoungou has emerged as a player capable of changing games with decisive attacking moments, while Vancouver will look to the set-piece creativity of their midfield pack to unlock a tough Seattle defense.

With local rivalry pride, playoff implications, and the unpredictability that always seems to come with Cascadia derbies, this matchup promises to deliver plenty of drama right through to the final whistle.

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