The MLS preseason grind continued Wednesday before 2023 openers arrive on Feb. 25.
Nine teams were in action, highlighted by LA Galaxy and Vancouver Whitecaps FC earning lopsided results at the Coachella Valley Invitational in Indio, Calif. Atlanta United also met Liga MX side Cruz Azul at Mexico City's famed Estadio Azteca, settling for a draw.
CF Montréal 3, Florida International University 1
CF Montréal took a 3-1 victory in their scrimmage against NCAA outfit Florida International University in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Lassi Lappalainen, Romell Quioto and Rida Zouhir all found the scoresheet to pace the Canadian side, who also got a second-half penalty-kick save from goalkeeper Logan Ketterer. Zouhir's final goal was assisted by right back Aaron Herrera, a marquee offseason arrival from Real Salt Lake.
Goals
- 23' - MTL - Lassi Lappalainen
- 40' - MTL - Romell Quioto
- 80' - MTL - Rida Zouhir
Lineups
- MTL starting XI: Not available
Atlanta United 3, Cruz Azul 3
Atlanta United battled Liga MX side Cruz Azul to a lively 3-3 draw at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
Standout midfielder Thiago Almada scored the opener for the Five Stripes, while a second-half brace from Luiz Araujo accounted for the rest of the visitors' scoring. Araujo's brace erased a 2-1 deficit to give Atlanta a 3-2 lead, but they couldn't see matters out.
Goals
- 23' - ATL - Thiago Almada
- 44' - CRZ - Ignacio Rivero
- 48' - CRZ - (OG)
- 51' - ATL - Luiz Araujo
- 56' - ATL - Luiz Araujo
- 78' - CRZ - Jordan Silva
Lineups
- ATL starting XI: Brad Guzan - Miles Robinson, Juanjo Purata, Brooks Lennon, Andrew Gutman, Franco Ibarra, Matheus Rossetto, Caleb Wiley, Luiz Araújo, Thiago Almada, Machop Chol
Chicago Fire FC 4, Sacramento Republic FC 0
Chicago Fire FC beat Sacramento Republic FC, 4-0, to start their participation in the Arizona-based FC Tucson Desert Showcase.
A penalty kick from Swiss star Xherdan Shaqiri rounded out the scoring, while winger Chris Mueller donned the captain's armband against the USL Championship side.
Goals
- 17' - CHI - Carlos Terán
- 57' - CHI - Sergio Oregel Jr.
- 79' - CHI - Missael Rodríguez
- 86' - CHI - Xherdan Shaqiri (PK)
Lineups
- CHI starting XI: Spencer Richey - Carlos Terán, Wyatt Omsberg, Noah Egan, Charlie Ostrem, Federico Navarro, Jairo Torres, Alex Monis, Sergio Oregel Jr., Chris Mueller, Victor Bezerra
LA Galaxy 4, St. Louis CITY SC 1
The LA Galaxy rolled past expansion side St. Louis CITY SC, 4-1, at the Coachella Valley Invitational, scoring four unanswered goals after conceding a first-half opener.
Jared Stroud put St. Louis on top via an assist from Tomáš Ostrák, but Mark Delgado's equalizer opened the floodgates for LA after that. Efrain Alvarez's brace supplemented a crisp finish from forward Dejan Joveljic.
Goals
- 10' - STL - Jared Stroud
- 29' - LA - Mark Delgado
- 52' - LA - Dejan Jovelic
- 66' - LA - Efrain Alvarez (PK)
- 79' - LA - Efrain Alvarez
Lineups
- LA starting XI: Jonathan Klinsmann - Kelvin Leerdam, Martín Cáceres, Chris Mavinga, Chase Gasper - Mark Delgado, Gastón Brugman, Riqui Puig, Memo Rodríguez - Javier “Chicharito” Hernández, Dejan Joveljić
- STL starting XI: Roman Bürki - Jake Nerwinski, Tim Parker, Kyle Hiebert, John Nelson - Eduard Löwen, Miguel Perez, Tomáš Ostrák, Aziel Jackson, Jared Stroud - João Klauss
- STL second XI: Ben Lundt - Josh Yaro, Jon Bell, Akil Watts, Celio Pompeu - Njabulo Blom, Indiana Vassilev, Rasmus Alm, Isak Jensen - Niko Gioacchini, Samuel Adeniran
Sporting Kansas City 2, Real Salt Lake 2
A man-of-the-match performance from Sporting KC captain Johnny Russell helped his side earn a 2-2 draw against fellow Western Conference team Real Salt Lake when meeting in Phoenix, Ariz.
Russell's stunning free kick and assist on Willy Agada's second-half equalizer were the difference, negating an opener from RSL captain Damir Kreilach as the Croatian star returns from injury.
Goals
- 8' - SKC - Johnny Russell
- 19' - RSL - Damir Kreilach
- 43' - RSL - Tate Schmitt
- 54' - SKC - Willy Agada
Lineups
- SKC starting XI: John Pulskamp - Graham Zusi, Andreu Fontas, Robert Voloder, Tim Leibold - Roger Espinoza, Remi Walter, Jake Davis - Johnny Russell, Willy Agada, Daniel Salloi
- RSL starting XI: Not available
Vancouver Whitecaps FC 3, Toronto FC 0
A flurry of second-half goals sent Vancouver past Canadian rival Toronto at the Coachella Valley Invitational, as their 3-0 victory was highlighted by a brace from forward Cristian Dajome.
Toronto star forward Federico Bernardeschi missed a first-half penalty kick, which was denied by goalkeeper Isaac Boehmer.
Goals
- 67' - VAN - Cristian Dájome (PK)
- 75' - VAN - Javain Brown
- 77' - VAN - Cristian Dájome
Lineups
- VAN starting XI: Isaac Boehmer - Mathías Laborda, Ranko Veselinović, Tristan Blackmon, Ryan Raposo - Julian Gressel, Andrés Cubas, Alessandro Schöpf; Pedro Vite, Ryan Gauld; Brian White
- TOR starting XI: Sean Johnson - Raoul Petretta, Sigurd Rosted, Matt Hedges, Richie Laryea - Michael Bradley, Mark-Anthony Kaye, Victor Vazquez - Lorenzo Insigne, Jesus Jimenez, Federico Bernardeschi
- TOR second XI: Tomás Romero - Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty, Lukas MacNaughton, Shane O'Neill, Kobe Franklin - Alonso Coello Camarero, Markus Cimermancic, Kosi Thompson - Ayo Akinola, Jordan Perruzza, Hugo Mbongue
