Weekly MLS Winners and Losers: David Da Costa Boosts Timbers’ Survival Rate
Welcome to a new feature from Sports Illustrated that analyzes the biggest winners and losers from the past week’s Major League Soccer action as the 2026 playoffs grow increasingly close.
With the league’s Nov. 7th Decision Day looming, the week's play was bound to feature plenty of nervy finales and unpredictable results. It did not disappoint.
D.C. United, Atlanta United, Austin FC and San Diego FC saw their playoff dreams go up in flames after suffering midweek defeats, and Toronto FC and both New York-based teams suffered elimination at the weekend. Various players stole the show with top-notch individual performances, whereas others came up short when their teams needed them most.
Here are the week’s biggest winners and losers in MLS.
Winners
Columbus Crew
Two months ago, Columbus Crew were staring down the barrel of one of the worst seasons in club history. They sat bottom of the Eastern Conference, struggling to recover from losing key players like Darlington Nagbe, Max Arfsten and Diego Rossi. Henrik Rydström had failed to replace iconic manager Wilfried Nancy, and his interim replacement Laurent Courtois wasn't faring much better.
After losing seven of eight in all competitions, Columbus found themselves nine points adrift of the playoff spots with nine matches remaining. Since then, they've won eight out of 10, the sole exceptions being a 3–2 defeat in Orlando on Oct. 10 and a penalty shootout defeat to St. Louis CITY in the U.S. Open Cup final on Oct. 21.
Columbus responded in stellar fashion by demolishing Toronto 4–2 just days later, before pulling off an upset 2–0 win in Dallas midweek. A 3-0 shellacking of D.C United on Saturday punched the team’s postseason ticket. Courtois has resurrected Columbus from the dead and steered them to a fourth consecutive playoff appearance, and he'll be seeking to make it six MLS wins in a row at Chicago on Saturday. If he can keep this momentum into the postseason, Columbus will have no other choice but to make him their permanent manager.
David Da Costa
Portland Timbers midfielder David Da Costa came up big this week.
After the Timbers broke the deadlock on Wednesday at St. Louis CITY, Da Costa doubled the visitors’ advantage. It was sensational stuff from the Portuguese playmaker, leaving captain Timo Baumgartl in his dust with a ruthless change of direction, before burying the bal into the bottom corner.
Portland would make it three goals in 10 minutes against St. Louis after the restart as the ex-Lens man teed up Kristoffer Velde's second goal, securing an eventual 3–2 win.
It was more of the same on Sunday night against Houston Dynamo, with Da Costa wriggling out of pressure and playing a one-two with Vincent Janssen before rifling the ball into the top bins. And when the Dynamo halved the deficit in the second half, Da Costa quickly stepped up by assisting Janssen's goal to seal the 3–1 victory. A loss or draw would have almost certainly spelled elimination from playoff contention.
The Timbers now control their own destiny and will guarantee their spot in the wild card match with a victory; however, if they slip up, there are a number of hungry contenders who are chomping at the bit to replace them in the playoffs. They need to take care of business against Austin, and in order to do so, they’ll need Da Costa to continue at his brilliant best.
Minnesota United
It wasn't long ago that Minnesota United looked dead and buried. After losing all five of their matches in September and drawing the next two, it seemed that Minnesota were destined to miss the playoffs for just the second time in eight seasons.
But Minnesota have breathed new life into their playoff hopes with a remarkable revival. They overturned a two-goal deficit to beat St. Louis CITY 3–2 last month, securing their first home victory since April. Success has continued to flow ever since, seeing the Loons storm back to a 3–1 victory against Sporting Kansas City on Wednesday and demolish LAFC 3–1 on the road Sunday.
Cameron Knowles’s side will be looking to beat San Jose at home next week; however, sitting 12th in the West, even a victory won't guarantee a playoff berth. Minnesota will also need favorable results from Dallas, Austin and both Los Angeles clubs to climb into the wild-card positions.
Can the Loons pull off a Decision Day miracle, or will their resurgence prove too little, too late?
Losers
Allan Saint-Maximin
One year ago, Charlotte FC were cruising to a 2–0 victory against Philadelphia Union when goalscorer Wilfried Zaha was sent off in the dying moments following an altercation with Jesús Bueno. His indiscipline deprived Charlotte of a crucial attacking weapon for their playoff opener against New York City FC, who eventually prevailed in three games.
Now, history threatens to repeat itself in the Queen City. Allan Saint-Maximin looked set to be one of the weekend's biggest winners after scoring a sensational solo goal against Orlando City. While his subsequent penalty was saved, fellow former Premier League star Abdoulaye Doucouré converted the rebound to put Charlotte 3–0 ahead. With just minutes remaining, it was shaping up to be the perfect afternoon.
Instead, Saint-Maximin quickly turned from hero to villain after making an obscene gesture toward Orlando's Wilder Cartagena that earned him a straight red card. The Frenchman will now miss at least Charlotte's Decision Day showdown against Inter Miami, with further disciplinary action possible. With Charlotte needing a victory and a Columbus win/draw in order to leapfrog the Fire into fourth place, Saint-Maximin's moment of madness could hardly have come at a worse time.
St. Louis CITY
St. Louis CITY’s U.S. Open Cup victory now seems like a distant memory, as late stage fatigue starts to take its toll. A 3–0 thrashing at Real Salt Lake last week was followed by a 3–2 defeat to Portland Timbers on Wednesday, before San Diego FC piled on the misery on Halloween, securing a 1–0 win.
Manager Yoann Damet has masterminded one of the most remarkable turnarounds in MLS this season, but the wheels are threatening to come off. With St. Louis chasing their first-ever playoff victory, Damet must find a way to arrest the slide and restore his players’ confidence ahead of their Decision Day trip to Houston, a potential preview of their opening postseason matchup.
