With the March international break in the rearview mirror, it’s time for Major League Soccer to take center stage once again. Sporting Kansas City headlines this weekend’s nationally televised slate, which includes three other compelling matchups in Week 5.
Friday: Toronto FC vs. Sporting KC – 6:30 p.m. CT (FS1, FOX Deportes)
On paper, it’s a Herculean task for Sporting Kansas City. Toronto FC will welcome a raucous crowd for its 2017 home opener at BMO Field, and a pretty good player named Sebastian Giovinco is poised to return from an injury that kept him out the last two weeks. But if series trends continue — Sporting KC is unbeaten in seven straight meetings and hasn’t lost at BMO Field since 2009 — the visitors will head back to the States with a satisfying result. This game features two of the league’s last four unbeaten teams.
Friday: Seattle Sounders FC vs. Atlanta United FC – 9 p.m. CT (FS1, FOX Deportes)
The defending MLS Cup champions host a red-hot Atlanta United outfit in a must-watch showdown at CenturyLink Field. Seattle striker Clint Dempsey caught fire with the U.S. MNT this week and will look to carry that form into league play, while Atlanta has exploded for 10 goals over its last two matches. One big drawback for the expansion club? They’ll be without star forward Josef Martinez, who is set to miss four to six weeks with a quad injury suffered during international duty with Venezuela.
Saturday: Columbus Crew SC vs. Orlando City SC – 3 p.m. CT (Facebook Live, UniMas)
Crew SC have rattled off two straight wins, including a scalp of the previously perfect Portland Timbers last weekend. Gregg Berhalter’s side will look to continue their uptick against an Orlando City outfit that has yet to drop points in 2017. Note that this game will be streamed on Facebook Live in English through Major League Soccer’s new partnership with Univision.
Sunday: Portland Timbers vs. New England Revolution – 8 p.m. CT (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes)
The weekend comes to a close with a fascinating interconference battle at Providence Park. Arguably no team is off to a better start than Portland, whose 12 goals through four games lead MLS. A front four of Fanendo Adi, Diego Valeri, Darlington Nagbe and Sebastian Blanco is as good as they come, but the Revolution — Juan Agudelo, Kei Kamara, Lee Nguyen, et al — boast plenty of firepower as well. There will be goals.
