Chris Pontius and Hamdi Salihi scored second-half goals, and D.C. United beat Toronto FC, 2-0, on Saturday in Toronto, relegating the Reds to the worst start in MLS history at 0-8-0.
Toronto broke the record of 0-7-0 set by Kansas City in 1999. The league record for the longest overall losing streak is 12 by the New York-New Jersey MetroStars in 1999.
“We can’t go on like this. I can’t go on like this,” Toronto forward Ryan Johnson said. “It’s eating me up inside. I can’t handle it any more. ... It’s embarrassing, I think. It’s embarrassing that the fans come to watch us and we’re just playing so defensive.
Pontius curled a left-footer past the diving Milos Kocic in the 55th minute, and Salihi scored in the 75th after Toronto failed to clear a corner kick. D.C. United improved to 5-3-3.
“We’re walking on eggshells,” Toronto midfielder Julian de Guzman said. “Once they crack, everything just falls apart. I don’t think that should be happening. Especially at home when you have your fans behind you.”
Red Bulls 1, at Galaxy 0: Joel Lindpere scored to help New York win its first game since scoring star Thierry Henry suffered a strained hamstring, beating Los Angeles.
Lindpere, wearing the captain’s band in place of Henry, scored in the 19th minute, and the Red Bulls (5-3-1) held on against Los Angeles (3-5-1), which knocked them out of the playoffs last season en route to the title.
At Whitecaps 2, Earthquakes 1: Second-half substitute Eric Hassli scored in the final minute of added time to give Vancouver (5-2-3) a comeback victory over San Jose (7-2-1).
After taking a pass from Davide Chiumiento, Hassli fired in a shot off goalkeeper Jon Busch’s hand and inside the far post for his first MLS goal since August.
Chris Wondolowski scored his MLS-leading 11th goal for the Earthquakes.
Impact 2, at Sporting K.C. 0: Felipe Martins scored in the 30th minute, Patrice Bernier converted a penalty kick in the 63rd, to lead expansion Montreal (3-5-2) past Sporting Kansas City (7-2-0).
The Impact won consecutive games for the first time to extend its unbeaten streak to three. Donovan Ricketts made six saves, three in the first 27 minutes, for his second straight shutout.
At Real Salt Lake 2, Revolution 1: Alvaro Saborio scored twice and RSL (7-3-1) ran its unbeaten streak against New England (3-6-0) to five games.
Saborio broke a tie at 1 in the 55th minute. Morales booted a free kick over a three-man defensive wall and sent a cross that Saborio headed into the net.
At Timbers 0, Crew 0: Portland goalkeeper Troy Perkins knocked Josh William’s header over the bar in the 66th minute to keep Columbus at bay in a scoreless draw.
Both teams, struggling with injuries for the match, have just two wins apiece. The Timbers (2-5-2) are last in the Western Conference, while the Crew (2-4-2) is ninth, just ahead of winless Toronto, in the East.
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