There’s something in the air at Allianz Field right now, with your Loons turning in two comeback wins in a row in front of the home crowd, scoring three goals in each. This time, it was a bit of midweek madness against SKC, and it was defender Anthony Markanich’s goal in the 72nd minute that sparked the whole thing. 

It was a classic Markanich goal; stop me if you’ve heard this one before. When Joaquín Pereyra stepped up to take a corner kick deep in the second half, all eyes were inevitably on Markanich, whose knack for winning balls in the box is well known at this point. His run toward the front post saw him track the pass perfectly, getting the side of his head on the cross to guide it into the far side netting. From there, it was all Loons. 

All season long, Markanich’s ability to spread the field, find the perfect run at the perfect time, and finish with remarkable efficiency have made him one of the league’s most threatening goal-scoring defenders. His latest goal brought him up to nine league goals in 2026, equalling his 2025 tally and showing that the All-Star defender hasn’t slowed down at all in year two with the Black and Blue. He’ll be hoping to grab one more before the season ends to set a new standard, with two more opportunities coming his way before the regular season comes to an end. Congrats, Anthony, and well done!

TOTM 33:

F: Kristoffer Velde (POR), Dor Turgeman (NE), Liel Abada (CLT)

M: Antoine Griezmann (ORL), Ryan Gauld (VAN), Santiago Rodríguez (CLB), Carles Gil (NE)

D: Anthony Markanich (MIN), Lucas Halter (HOU), Mathías Laborda (VAN)

GK: Patrick Schulte (CLB)

Coach: Dean Smith (CLT)

Bench: Jonathan Bond (HOU), Maxwell Woledzi (NSH), Samuel Gidi (CIN), Jack Jasinski (SJ), Jonathan Bamba (CHI), David Da Costa (POR), Morgan Guilavogui (RSL), Josh Sargent (TOR), Idan Toklomati (CLT)