Below is a selection of the notable performances and moments from the 11 matches played on the 36th matchday of the 2023 MLS season, Wednesday, October 4.
Wild Wednesday in the West: Five Teams Clinch Berths to Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs
Five Western Conference clubs entered Matchday 36 with a chance to clinch an Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs berth, and all five walked away Wednesday evening accomplishing that feat. Due to a combination of results, Houston Dynamo FC, LAFC, Real Salt Lake, Seattle Sounders FC, and Vancouver Whitecaps FC all solidified their spot in the postseason. The five clubs join No. 1 seed St. Louis CITY SC to make up six of the nine Western Conference playoff spots.
After missing the postseason for the first time in club history in 2022, Seattle has returned to the dance and qualified for the playoffs for the 14th time in team history – an expansion club record. Meanwhile in Houston, head coach Ben Olsen has snapped one of the longest active postseason droughts as the Dynamo will return to the Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2017. Finally, Real Salt Lake and Vancouver Whitecaps FC both head to the playoffs thanks to the success of their third-year head coaches, Pablo Mastroeni and Vanni Sartini, respectively.
Bouanga Erupts For First-Half Hat Trick
LAFC entered Matchday 36 having failed to score in three consecutive matches, but that streak quickly ended at the hands of star forward Dénis Bouanga. Bouanga became the first player in club history to record a first-half hat trick with three goals in the opening 45 minutes in the victory over Minnesota United FC.
With the hat trick, the Gabonese international moved atop the MLS Golden Boot presented by Audi standings with 17 goals, which also ranks as the second-most in a season in club history.
Behind Bouanga’s three-goal performance, LAFC cruised to a 5-1 victory over the Loons, which also clinched the club’s berth in the Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs. By punching their ticket, LAFC is just the fifth expansion club to make the postseason in five of their first six seasons. Next on the horizon? A chance to become just the fourth team in league history to win consecutive MLS Cups, and the first since the LA Galaxy in 2011-12.
Philadelphia’s Big Three Powers 3-2 Victory Over Atlanta
The talented Union trio of Julián Carranza, Dániel Gazdag, and Mikael Uhre once again proved tremendous for Philadelphia, as all three players scored in the first half of the club’s 3-2 victory over Atlanta United at Subaru Park.
The Union scored three goals in the final nine minutes of the first half, beginning with an incredible overhead strike from Gazdag in the 39th minute (Watch Here). For Gazdag, the goal was the 40th of his Union career and he became the second player in MLS to score 40 or more goals since the start of the 2021 season, joining Nashville SC’s Hany Mukhtar (54 goals).
Uhre added his ninth goal of the season just two minutes later, as a streaking Carranza found the Danish striker just outside of the 18-yard box. Two touches later, Uhre fired a strong right-footed shot past a diving ‘keeper for a 2-0 advantage (Watch Here). Carranza found the back of the net himself in the third minute of first-half added time, as a pass from Gazdag connected with the sliding Argentine in the box for a 3-0 lead (Watch Here).
Świderski Scores Brace to Keep Charlotte’s Playoff Hopes Alive
With his club fighting to stay alive in the quest for their first ever playoff berth, Charlotte FC forward Karol Świderski netted a pair of penalty-kick goals and added an assist in the club’s 3-0 victory over Toronto FC. With the win, Charlotte (36 points, 8-11-12) moved to within two points of the ninth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with three games remaining on their schedule.
Świderski, who scored 10 goals in Charlotte’s debut season in 2022, netted his 10th and 11th goals of the 2023 season tonight, becoming the 10th player in MLS history to score at least 10 goals in each of an expansion team’s first two seasons.
Offensive Fireworks Power Fire to Crucial 4-1 Victory
After a scoreless first half, Chicago Fire FC, led by braces from Xherdan Shaqiri and Maren Haile-Selassie, scored four goals and picked up three critical points in their 4-1 victory over Inter Miami CF in front of a club record 62,124 fans at Soldier Field.
Coming on as a substitute in the 55th minute, Haile-Selassie made his impact immediately felt, scoring in the 62nd and 66th minutes to give the Fire a two-goal advantage midway through the second half. Haile-Selassie became only the fourth player in Fire history to enter the game as a substitute and score a brace, and the first since Maicon Santos on April 7, 2013.
