St. Louis CITY SC (5-0-0, 15 GF, 4 GA, WWWW) v. Minnesota United (2-0-2, 5 GF, 3 GA, WDWD) Saturday, April 1, 2023, 7:30 p.m. CDT CITYPARK AppleTV+ Season Pass Two contrasting teams, with no common opponents yet. Minnesota have a match in hand. They are 2-0-2, and both wins have come on the road. They opened in Frisco, and defeated FC Dallas 1-0. They returned home and after a bye week fought RBNY to a 1-1 draw. They went on the road to Commerce City and defeated Colorado 2-1. They returned home and had a 1-1 draw with Vancouver. Minnesota is consistent, and hasn't scored more than 2 goals or yielded more than 1. We commit fouls (78, highest in MLS), more than we suffer (1.39 FC/FS ratio), and Minnesota suffers more fouls than they commit (0.82 FC/FS ratio). On paper, we have the edge in several offensive and defensive categories. We could have a match featuring two experienced keepers, if Minnesota have Clint Irwin in goal again this week. Discuss.
PRO's Assignments for the match: St Louis CITY v. Minnesota United CITYPARK (7:30PM CT) REF: Jon Freemon AR1: Ian Anderson AR2: Meghan Mullen 4TH: Andrew Bigelow VAR: Luis Guardia AVAR: Fabio Tovar Freemon is a solid ref. He has excellent mechanics and is consistent. He isn't card-happy. He's averaged 4 YCs per match over the years, and has only issued 6 mustard-and-ketchups and 3 straight reds in 3 years.
Here's the latest player availability report on the MLS site: St. Louis CITY SC: OUT: Joakim Nilsson (knee) QUESTIONABLE: Rasmus Alm (knee) Minnesota United FC: OUT: Emanuel Reynoso (suspended) OUT: Bakaye Dibassy (thigh) OUT: Ryen Jiba (knee)
Here are the Starting XIs: St. Louis CITY SC Our Starting XI 🤌 #AllForCITY | #STLvMIN pic.twitter.com/enNPiWI8KG— St Louis CITY SC (@stlCITYsc) April 1, 2023 Minnesota United FC How we're lining up tonight: pic.twitter.com/LZZYZmRpRu— Minnesota United FC (@MNUFC) April 1, 2023
Hard fought match. The tackle that created the pen was unfortunate, but Minnesota already had the upper hand after the half. We seemed to have the lead boots on coming back out of the locker room. Minnesota played a whale of a match against us. We had a couple decent chances in stoppage, on the ball in from Klauss and the near header by Klauss. How CITY responds to this will be a good measure of where we are as a team. Onward.
Thought we were going to lose this won. With so much talk about Seattle in Seattle, this was a total trap match.
Colorado is another potential trap, too. Their defense is solid, and their lone scoring threat (Rubio) has been out. Six matches isn't enough for a solid feel for the team, but it's starting to show some strengths and some weaknesses. We don't look like a Wooden Spoon contender. We don't look like a Supporters Shield winner. That leaves a lot of middle where we could land. I still think that if we average anywhere between 1.00 and 1.25 PPG, it's a successful expansion season. That seems doable, and the high end of that range (42-43 points) might be a playoff spot with the nine-team playoffs. Anything over 1.25 PPG would be a fantastic season for any expansion team.
Quote: How CITY responds to this will be a good measure of where we are as a team Well said. Even though my dreams of an undefeated season are dashed, it’s not the end of the world. Highly competitive game, the Loons were tight and organized on defense. A poor decision (I love Hiebert but the play was already neutralized) separated the teams. I think the team will get better but other teams will copy the Loons tactics. Live and learn.