MLS roundup: Lionel Messi returns but can’t rescue Inter Miami as Robert Lewandowski scores twice on Chicago Fire home debut

Late in the second half, the moment came for Lionel Messi. The Crew had defended him well for most of his 40-plus-minutes cameo off the bench, barely allowing the Argentine a yard of space. And then, with the game deadlocked at 2-2 in second half stoppage time, they switched off. Messi had a few yards, and time to measure up a shot. He studied the angles, lifted his weaker right foot... and lashed the ball well over the bar.

It was a slightly underwhelming end to what might have been a glorious return for the Miami star, who came off the bench against the Crew on Saturday night. Miami were admittedly disappointing on the day. Luis Suarez scored a lovely goal. Noah Allen added another. But an own goal from a shaky Casemiro, followed by Brais Méndez’s late free-kick equalizer, showed that this team still has plenty of frailties.

Usually, Messi is able to fix these things - or at least mask them. But against the Crew, he could not. A disappointing one for the GOAT...

This was really the marquee matchup of the week. LAFC and Vancouver are first and second in the Western Conference, and quite comfortably the most complete teams, too. The Whitecaps really haven't missed a beat since making MLS Cup final last year, and even if they will have to contend with the loss of Sebastian Berhalter, will still be a Cup contender. LAFC, meanwhile, have hit a rich vein of form, largely thanks to the fact that Son Heung-Min is back among the goals.

Saturday's game was hardly a classic. LAFC bunkered in a bit. Vancouver worked the ball around, created a lot of half-chances, but never really managed a clear one. There was always a sense that LAFC could hit on the break. And they did just that. The Denis Bouanga-Son partnership delivered - giving Son his fourth consecutive game with a goal. Vancouver picked up a deserved equalizer late on, with Thomas Muller bagging from the penalty spot.

And that was about it. The stat sheet suggested Vancouver dominated. The eye test proved LAFC simply defended pretty well. Should this be a Western Conference final - it probably should - then there might be a bit more back-and-forth.

Wagner seemed a smart acquisition for the Union, just six months after they let him go to Birmingham City. Sure, Philadelphia are a side that likes to build from within. But going after such a crucial player who knows the club and was the all-time leader in assists for the club made sense. And, in fairness, it's not like the already-struggling Union could get any worse.

Few could have predicted how significant the turnaround would be, though. To be fair, there's a bit of everything involved. Ryan Richter has allowed the team to play with a bit more freedom. Cavan Sullivan is a regular. His brother, Quinn, is finding form after a long injury. Milan Iloski has now scored in a club-record six consecutive MLS matches.

But Wagner's sweet, sweet left foot has been the architect of many a goal. Such was the case Saturday night. Philadelphia, quite inexplicably, went down 2-0 to a 10-man Atlanta United. But they battled back and scored twice in second-half stoppage time for a 3-2 win. Wagner assisted all two of the three goals. That's three wins in three, with a not-so-new face leading the charge.

Are we still thinking about Hugo Cuypers, then? Surely, the writing was on the wall when Chicago signed Robert Lewandowski. It didn't matter that Cuypers had 13 goals in 11 games for the Fire before the World Cup. Sometimes good footballers are just very good. And so, the Fire signed Lewandowski, and fairly swiftly shuffled Cuypers off to Monterrey.

It was a rough couple of fixtures for Lewandowski, who failed to score as Chicago dropped tough road games at NYCFC and Inter Miami. But home soil treated him far more kindly Saturday night. He bagged twice in his first home fixture - both classy striker's finishes - to lift Chicago to a hard-earned win over Charlotte.

Perhaps more important, though, was the fact that it was all so efficient. Lewandowski didn't require loads of chances. He didn't even need to be on the ball that much. Sure, he linked play and made the right pass. But he is not a striker who demands the football. Instead, he's an immensely efficient player - which served Gregg Berhalter's side immensely well.

A word for CF Montreal, who have really struggled this year. It's not that this is a particularly bad team. Yes, they're near the basement of the Eastern Conference. Yes, they have plenty of struggles defensively. They're just a bit flat. There's not loads to be excited about here. That's a shame, because Montreal fans are passionate. They love this team.

And on Saturday, they gave them a slice of magic. Some pretty shoddy defending saw them go down 2-0 to the New England Revolution. From there, it might have been a blowout. The Revs were humming. Montreal weren't creating much. Then, Brayan Vera - who has scored just six goals during nearly four full years in MLS - bashed one in from 40 yards. Prince Owusu followed that with a tidy finish. And Montreal secured a scrappy 2-2 draw against a good team.

It must be a bit frustrating for coach Philippe Eullaffroy to know that his side can produce football of this level. Consistency is hard to come by. Still, this was a good night for a team that doesn't have too many of them.

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