It always grinds my gears how people complain about diving and theatrics. It's part of the game. If you want noble intentions, you have to be thrilled with this nice bunch of stand up players we have right now. I'll take a little more rough around the edges and some more dark arts, and some more points, thank you very much. I loved the shithousery from Becher early on in the season (the good ol days when we had 8 points from 4 games). Give me more of that, give me more of Gio. Give me more of Stroud winding people up. Hell give me more of Parker. We sure do have a bunch of nice players now.
One stat to ponder. CITY's 2025 record against the nine teams in Western Conference playoff spots is currently 3-10-4, 17 GF, 31 GA, 13 Points, 0.76 PPG. CITY has one match remaining, and it is against the RSL, current 9th place playoff team in the West. RSL plays at Seattle on Saturday and may not be a playoff team after that match. (Depending on other matches, they could lose and still hold the 9th spot.)
Kind of a catch 22 in playing them. If we beat them, they won't be a playoff team and it doesn't help our record against playoff teams. If we lose, they are a playoff team and it hurts our record against playoff teams. And one of those wins came against a Seattle team that was the walking dead at the beginning of the season.
Tom Bogert posted this. I mention it just in case some team somewhere may need, say, a Sporting Director who understands the MLS.
I posted this before the San Jose game, and it looks like I was right. We have gotten 6 points so far, and if you listen to Matt Baker and Flyover Footy, he seems to be very much in the Critchley camp. The only argument that moves me toward Critchley is that the players seem to very much back him, but as we have discussed above, how many of them are coming back anyway? I am not in the Critchley camp. The recent run of form has been built on picking up points against mediocre opposition. We need to clean house, front office, coaching staff and players. If we hire Critchley, it tells me we are ok with just trying to be the best of the mediocre. I really want more.
I think both Hackworth and Critchley have done fantastic jobs working with CITY's younger players. That isn't a small thing and it isn't a lesser job than working with the senior roster team. It's the future of the whole organization. They need to be rewarded financially and need to stay in those roles. The MLS isn't second-tier or third-tier Euro soccer. It's a fast, physical, increasingly multinational league. MLS teams win if they are built for speed, agility, attacking soccer, and physical strength and can outscore their opponents. The Euro lower tiers are a game that centers on technical soccer, defense, and the ability to prevent the other team from scoring. They seem content to settle for one on the road and try to build a fortress at home, with nil-nils common. It's been 78 matches (and counting) since the last MLS nil-nil. CITY needs to be rebuilt for an MLS-ready offense. This roster isn't close.
I know that Critch and Hack have won a lot of MLSNP games, but surely the main point of that team is to promote players into the first team. How many CITY2 players have established themselves in the 1st team? Is Celio really the only one (and does he count)? Miggy flamed out, Klein never stuck. Reid can't hold down a spot. Zalinsky has already been loaned out. Orozco fell off the map. Glover is nowhere to be found. Joyner is obviously the best chance, but he is far from established. McSorley? Antwi? I know we are young as an organization, but we haven't seen the fruits of the academy program yet.
Here is the MLS schedule for Off-Season Roster Events. Mark these dates on your calendar: November 26: Option decisions and bona-fide offers December 10: Start of free agency and the MLS-College Showcase December 11: Close of waiver period and first stage of Re-Entry Draft December 17: second stage of Re-Entry Draft December 18: SuperDraft mid-January: Training camps begin February 7-14: Coachella Valley Invitational
How will history remember the Akil Watts Era? #AllForCITY (from @BilyeuCharlie tweet) pic.twitter.com/8o0s7pU0vv— Tom Franklin (@SoccerZombieSTL) October 20, 2025 Tweet essentially says that it might be the end of the Akil Watts era in St. Louis.
So here is my list (keep or dump; Green is correct, Red is wrong): Roman Burki (contract expires with no option) - Keep at all costs (as long as you can keep him on a TAM deal) Ben Lundt (contract expires with no option) - Keep (at all costs if you lose Burki). He is a starter at many MLS teams, if you can keep both, that's great work, if you lose Burki, he is a must keep. Joao Klauss (option for 2026) - Keep - With his contract moving to a TAM deal, there is a lot of work to be done on this roster, he is serviceable as a TAM player. Chris Durkin (option for 2026) - Dump - He comes off his U22 designation which means we will have to absorb the full salary cap impact of his $520k salary. He's just not worth it. Henry Kessler (option for 2026) - Keep - He was red hot to start the season before his injury. Other more pressing areas of need. Rasmus Alm (option for 2026) - Dump - Just can't stay healthy, and not worth the international spot. Alfredo Morales (option for 2026) - Keep - Serviceable MLS midfielder, who makes the 2nd least amount of money on the senior roster (only Becher makes less). We can't get rid of everyone. Conrad Wallem (Expiring loan with purchase option) - Dump - He has been one of our best players, but my understanding is the purchase option would take him to DP status, and he's not that. Josh Yaro (option for 2026) - Dump - We are looking at having Kessler, Fall, Baumgartl, and Hiebert on the senior roster, we don't need a 31 year old supplemental roster center back. Miguel Perez (option for 2026) - Dump - First homegrown player to make it to the first team, but unable to make the jump to the first team. Jayden Reid (option for 2026) - Keep - Dramatically fallen out of favor, but for a supplemental roster, left footed left back, he does a job. Akil Watts (option for 2026) - Keep - Versatile enough with decent experience now. Joey Zalinsky (option for 2026) - Keep and loan out - Burst on the scene, but still needs more experience, send him back to Indy11. Christian Olivares (option for 2026) - Keep - if you lose one of Burki and Lundt, it's an easy decision, if you keep both of them, this doesn't hurt you as your 3rd choice GK. Michael Wentzel (option for 2026) - Keep - Decent depth option at the CB position. Cedric Teuchert (contract expires in June 2026) - Dump - Get something for him while you can, it hasn't worked out. Jake Girdwood-Reich (contract through 2027 with option for 2028) - Dump - he is taking up a U22 spot and hasn't panned out. Tomas Totland (contract through 2026 with option for 2027) - Keep - what Critchley has done to him has been criminal.
Just a few thoughts in progress, and nothing written in stone here. One of the issues is that CITY will be making stay-or-go decisions before having a sporting director and new head coach. That will saddle the new coach with a team that may not be able to be reworked to compete. The stubborn insistence that "the system" must be kept is going to cost the team another lost season. Some of the players are in the *shrug* zone, and whether they should stay or go may depend on the new coach, but again the decision will be made before there is a new coach. This is where the cart-before-the-horse hurts. Simon Becher, Kyle Hiebert, Celio Pompeu, Timo Baumgartl are bubble players. In the right system, we should keep them. In the wrong system, where do they fit? Brendan McSorley is a no-brainer to keep. He's the best thing that happened this season. Eduard Lowen is in a special situation, and he may want to return to Europe for medical care for his wife. There are things much more important than soccer, and his family is one of them. Caden Glover is a mystery. He has the skills, but needs to play to get to the next level. Fallou Fall is here, for better or for worse. The next coach needs to make him his top project. When he doesn't go on walkabouts, he is a force on the back line. He seems lost on the assignment at times, and that's on the coaching. Tyson Pearce was parked in the off-roster spot. He needs to move up to the first team. He's ready. I keep saying this, but I think he may prove to be the best of our young guys. His skill and poise under pressure with the ball at his feet is already first-team level. Then next coach needs to work closely with guys who are knocking on the door. Seth Antwi, Gabriel Mikina, and Emil Jaaskalainen are 25, 24, and 24, respectively, so this next year is decision time for their future. A couple more young guys sure are making noise with CITY 2, and the next coach needs to have them on his radar for first-team experience. Ryan Dugan shows some real skills in front of the opposing net, and Colin Welsh is coming along very well in net and could easily move to the #3 slot if we lose Lundt and move Olivares into his slot.
There are a total of 17 @stlCITYsc players whose contracts are now up.After remarks following the CITY2 match and having been left off the roster for that match, options will almost assuredly not be picked up for at least 2 of them: Akil Watts and Jay Reid. Akil Watts had…— Matt Baker (@MattBakerSTL) October 20, 2025 Looks like Reid is out too.
Justin Horneker confirms this, as well. I'm not a fan of giving up this quickly on Watts and Reid IF that means CITY intends to keep more expensive and older players who are clearly underperforming (like Durkin and Teuchert).
Tom Bogert reports that Burki WILL be a DP under his new contract. Read that in the context of Matt Baker's quote from yesterday: Note the phrase ". . . They showed me . . . who they're trying to bring in . . ." If Burki knows something about the inbound players, and that persuaded him to stay, then maybe there is something important on the horizon. If it's just wishful thinking, ugh.
Matt Doyle had some interesting thoughts on CITY's situation. He wrote this a few days before CITY announced Burki's extension.
So here is my list (keep or dump; Green is correct, Red is wrong, yellow is limbo): Roman Burki (contract expires with no option) - Keep at all costs (as long as you can keep him on a TAM deal) Ben Lundt (contract expires with no option) - Keep (at all costs if you lose Burki). He is a starter at many MLS teams, if you can keep both, that's great work, if you lose Burki, he is a must keep. Joao Klauss (option for 2026) - Keep - With his contract moving to a TAM deal, there is a lot of work to be done on this roster, he is serviceable as a TAM player. Chris Durkin (option for 2026) - Dump - He comes off his U22 designation which means we will have to absorb the full salary cap impact of his $520k salary. He's just not worth it. Henry Kessler (option for 2026) - Keep - He was red hot to start the season before his injury. Other more pressing areas of need. Rasmus Alm (option for 2026) - Dump - Just can't stay healthy, and not worth the international spot. Alfredo Morales (option for 2026) - Keep - Serviceable MLS midfielder, who makes the 2nd least amount of money on the senior roster (only Becher makes less). We can't get rid of everyone. Conrad Wallem (Expiring loan with purchase option) - Dump - He has been one of our best players, but my understanding is the purchase option would take him to DP status, and he's not that. Josh Yaro (option for 2026) - Dump - We are looking at having Kessler, Fall, Baumgartl, and Hiebert on the senior roster, we don't need a 31 year old supplemental roster center back. Miguel Perez (option for 2026) - Dump - First homegrown player to make it to the first team, but unable to make the jump to the first team. Jayden Reid (option for 2026) - Keep - Dramatically fallen out of favor, but for a supplemental roster, left footed left back, he does a job. Akil Watts (option for 2026) - Keep - Versatile enough with decent experience now. Joey Zalinsky (option for 2026) - Keep and loan out - Burst on the scene, but still needs more experience, send him back to Indy11. Christian Olivares (option for 2026) - Keep - if you lose one of Burki and Lundt, it's an easy decision, if you keep both of them, this doesn't hurt you as your 3rd choice GK. Michael Wentzel (option for 2026) - Keep - Decent depth option at the CB position. Cedric Teuchert (contract expires in June 2026) - Dump - Get something for him while you can, it hasn't worked out. Jake Girdwood-Reich (contract through 2027 with option for 2028) - Dump - he is taking up a U22 spot and hasn't panned out. Tomas Totland (contract through 2026 with option for 2027) - Keep - what Critchley has done to him has been criminal. 5 right, 5 wrong for me so far, based on the news that came out today. No real surprises one way or the other, as @fortcollins mentioned previously, so many of the players fall the "meh" category, that it really is a crapshoot for most of them. The biggest surprise is that these decisions are being made prior to a SD being names. Does that indicate Hackworth is getting the role?
Just some stream of consciousness thoughts here. Some of the "keep" decisions may be because they are in trade talks about them and need them under contract. The transfer deadline is a ways off. Alm and Pidro free up international slots. Klauss was DP because of the transfer fee, and will become a TAM player. That suggests to me that Teuchert is on the trade block right now. Durkin may be on the trade block or may be in a holding pattern for this season because signing a wanted incoming player (international?) is still iffy and somebody who kind of knows the system is better than the other options. It's encouraging to see that there are talks with Minnesota about keeping Padelford. I wonder if either Teuchert/Durkin are part of a possible trade with Minnesota? Things get interesting if we can't keep Wallem. Unless there is a big signing for an incoming player, there would be an opening for Tyson Pearce to move a notch up the depth chart onto the first team roster. Picking up the option on McSorley had to be one of the easiest decisions they made.
A leader on and off the pitch 🫡We have re-signed defender Josh Yaro to a one-year contract through 2026 with a club option for 2027.🗞️ https://t.co/wVSQY4xPsg pic.twitter.com/4xCiJeekFZ— St Louis CITY SC (@stlCITYsc) November 13, 2025 This is a disaster of a move, and is rightfully being panned across all social media platforms. I understand Yaro might be a "locker room guy" and great in the community, blah, blah, blah. You know what is great in the community? F***ing wins! Those are great in the community and Yaro not only doesn't bring wins, he brings losses. This is professional sports. Yaro is 31 next week, no future upside, disastrous past in the first team. #WrayOut
Signing Josh Yaro to an extension makes sense if it is for the purpose of making a trade. The year-end roster decisions included this statement: The loan agreements for Conrad Wallem (SK Slavia Prague) and Devin Padelford (Minnesota United) expire on Dec. 31, 2025 but the club is in conversations with their parent clubs about potential returns. If Josh Yaro is part of the discussions with Minnesota, he needed to be signed again. Devin Padelford's loan agreement runs through December 31, Minnesota is still alive in the playoffs and plays on November 24, the option decisions for free agency are due November 26, and Josh would be a free agent on December 10. Without signing him, that could leave only effectively one day to work a trade. If that isn't the situation, uhhhhh . . . yeah.
You are way more optimistic than I am. There is no way Minnesota is going to trade Padelford for a package including Yaro. They would just want the money. We would probably have to pay them extra money to take Yaro (I'm being serious). Yaro is going to be on the roster opening day, and we are going to be shit for years to come. Just gonna run it back I guess.