Winners and losers of MLS Week 1: Lionel Messi’s worrying lack of professionalism; Michael Bradley’s Red Bulls impress

Denis Bounaga didn't seem to care who was marking him Saturday night. He simply dribbled around whoever it was. Ian Fray played victim first, bamboozled by the Gabonese forward's blur of tricks and flicks. He was hooked at half time, and then former Racing Club full back Facundo Mura had his turn at getting cooked by one of MLS's best forwards. 

By the end of it all, Bouanga was the standout player on a pitch full of stars. He scored one, assisted another, and might've had a second had a simply hilarious and admittedly accidental block from Maxi Falcon not diverted his attempt into the grateful arms of Miami's goalie Dayne St. Clair. 

LAFC manager Marc Dos Santos promised that Bouanga and Son Heung-Min would be a switchable front duo this season. And that wasn't quite true Saturday night. Bouanga stayed on the left. Son sort of buzzed around but was mostly a central presence. These things will take time. But two goal contributions in a 3-0 battering of their most apparent MLS Cup rivals - in a game where they're still figuring it out - isn't a bad start whatsoever. 

Turns out title defenses aren't all that easy, eh Leo? To be clear, Messi was by no means bad for Miami Saturday night. He still did a lot of exciting things with the ball, enjoyed some delightful moments, and played some simply absurd passes. It is, admittedly, a little painful at times to see this footballer, who is, so, so much better than everyone else on the pitch, play with teammates who are quite clearly a level below him. Indeed, for Messi, the goals and assists will come. 

Rather, the issue was about what happened off the pitch. Whether Messi followed the officials all the way into their refereeing room is up for debate. MLS denies any wrongdoing. But that's not really the point here. The issue is, the video doesn't paint Messi in the best light and there has be a reason why Luis Suarez was holding him back from wherever he was trying to get into. 

Whether or not he was trying to find officials, Messi was clearly frustrated by the refereeing throughout the match - which was caught by Apple TV. Yet, while the refereeing wasn't perfect, it certainly wasn't egregious, either. Instead, it all painted the picture of the best player in the league being mightily frustrated with the result - and directing his anger elsewhere. Messi will probably win MVP. He might score four next week - just out of spite. Still, this was a moment that lacked professionalism from the best to ever do it. 

Six months ago, Michael Bradley was coaching in MLS Next Pro and playing some really good football with a good group of kids. Reserve soccer is a bit of an indication of what the top level looks like, but until you get to MLS proper, nothing is really guaranteed. Throw in the fact that Bradley is a first-time head coach and younger than a few guys still kicking a ball in the league, and Saturday night was a real test of his quality.

And Bradley took risks here. Designated Player striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting was left on the bench. He started a teenager up front in Julian Hall. His defensive midfielder, Adri Mehmeti, won't turn 17 until April. The result should have been a shaky showing against a more experienced Orlando City side. What he got instead was an emphatic win. 

The Red Bulls were a handy mix of chaotic and controlled, incisive with the ball, and simply desperate to win it back when they didn't have it. The former USMNT captain told GOALthat his RBNY team will look different from the classic Red Bull system style of old this year. The truth in that is up for debate. Geggenpressing isn't going anywhere. But they were certainly far more composed on the ball than many a team in this league. A 2-1 win seems good, and the soccer was highly watchable. 

This is a young coach, with a young squad, playing a fresh style. The early results, though, make for fine reading. Stay tuned. 

This is going to be a weird MLS season (yes, moreso than usual). The World Cup has, in some way, disrupted every soccer league worldwide. In North America, there will be a break during the competition (duh). That's a sensible no-brainer, but it will also mess with the cadence of the schedule. The point is, injuries are going to happen. 

What wasn't fully expected, though, were two stars picking up near-identical injuries early on in two separate fixtures. Evander was the first to go. He knew immediately, clutching the back of his hamstring after what looked like a pretty innocuous run. He walked off just fine, but wasn't risked for the remainder of the contest. 

Then, 24 hours later, Seattle's Jordan Morris did pretty much the same thing - only this time it was quad, not hamstring - and was also removed from the game. Whether the moves were precautionary or not isn't quite clear. Seattle head coach Brian Schmetzer said Morris will need a scan. Evander's injury was described as "tightness", but he, too, will need further testing. Both teams managed results, too. Cincinnati beat Atlanta (more on that later), and Seattle saw off Colorado. Still, both sides count on those players. Any absences will no doubt have an impact. 

What was funnier: D.C. United having the Sugarhill Gang perform during their game or the fact that they managed to beat the reigning Supporters' Shield holders, 1-0, with their former striker scoring the only goal? Our money is on Rapper's Delight echoing around Audi Field, but Tai Baribo bagging and celebrating like an absolute madman is a good laugh, too. 

Ok, so D.C. United might struggle this year. Sure, they have retooled, spent a bit of cash, and got themselves a forward who will guarantee 15-20 goals. But they are also pretty poor defensively and lacking in depth. A playoff appearance would seem to be an immense surprise. Yet this was a lot of fun! 

The Black and Red scored a pretty good goal, kept a clean sheet, and saw the Union get a pretty hilarious red card for, on first viewing, not very much (seriously, who gets sent off for dissent these days?). Bradley Carnell explained that there were some 'verbal pleasantries exchanged' between his main man and the referee, but that really isn't the point here. 

Instead, the night belonged to D.C., who will take an early-season win and clean sheet against a team they hadn't beaten in their last 11 matches. 

Tata Martino admitted before the season that second acts don't always work. And how can he follow up to what he did before? Martino was an Atlanta legend who brought the expansion franchise unexpected success when he joined the club before the 2017 season. His return after five-plus years away is going to be tricky. This Atlanta was among the worst teams in the league last year. They haven't recruited heavily. Martino, in effect, is left to take a bunch of very good, underperforming pieces and make them all fit together in a functional way. 

After "functional way" put this: Yet it was all a little more of the same in a 2-0 loss to Cincinnati. Atlanta had all of the right pieces on the pitch, but lacked quality at both ends. Emmanuel Latte Lath tried to make runs and get into scoring positions, but the right ball was never quite there. At the other end, they were worryingly easy to hit in transition. Conceding off a corner late on won't make Martino happy, either. Yet, overall, Martino's return will probably still work in some form. The East is loaded, but Atlanta is good enough to make it happen. Still, the early signs weren't great