Los Angeles Galaxy thrashed the New England Revolution 5-1, while both sides had a man sent off on a dramatic night in California.
Galaxy benefited from a strong start in front of their own supporters as Robbie Keane broke the deadlock in the 10th minute with a curled effort from the edge of the box which left Bobby Shuttleworth helpless.
The lead was doubled just eight minutes later when Gyasi Zardes collected a through-ball from Keane before drilling home from a tight angle.
AJ Soares received the first of two red cards shown in the first half when the New England midfielder chopped down Juninho with a late tackle.
However, the numerical advantage did not last long for the Galaxy as the hosts were dealt a blow when Dan Gargan brought down Teal Bunbury to deny the visitors a clear goalscoring opportunity.
Lee Ngyugen stepped up to calmly convert from 12 yards out, and give the Revolution a lifeline heading into the break.
Los Angeles restored their two-goal lead just three minutes into the second half through Zardes, who lost his marker to tap home an inviting cross from the influential Keane.
The home side survived a brief spell of pressure from New England on the hour mark before extending their lead once again in the 75th minute when Stefan Ishizaki's free kick from 30 yards out clipped the wall on its way to beating Shuttleworth.
Keane completed the scoring three minutes later when he capitalised on a poor pass to round Shuttleworth and tap the ball into an empty net for his second goal on an excellent evening for the Galaxy.
Callum Mulvihill
