St. Louis CITY SC: Adjustments lock in win against Toronto FC
St. Louis CITY SC continues the march to claim all MLS expansion team records with a shutout of Toronto FC. They just added several more.
The same match strategy that got St. Louis CITY SC its previous shutout worked the same way in a 1-0 shutout of Toronto FC on the road. This is only the second time this season CITY head coach Bradley Carnell repeated a starting lineup.
The home team has fallen as low as it can in MLS Eastern Conference, save for last-place Inter Miami CF. Given that conference record, Toronto has enjoyed no chance against any competent game plan that a team of committed athletes executes.
The win keeps a three-point edge between first-place St. Louis and Seattle Sounders FC.
The team’s 12th MLS win ties for fifth-most for an expansion team – pulling even with Seattle, Orlando City, and Montreal. CITY remains undefeated when scoring first and is the only MLS team with at least five home wins and five road wins.
What’s more, CITY has accrued the most points – 38 – by an expansion team after 21 regular season matches in MLS history. They just went past the 37 points of the Chicago Fire in 1998.
The only score in the game represented another two firsts, when midfielder Aziel Jackson netted a pass from Akil Watts in the 50th minute. It was the first MLS goal and assist of Jackson’s and Watts’ careers, respectively.
Jackson and Watts started the last three matches for St. Louis and helped the team win each one of them. This victory means goalkeeper Roman Burki has his sixth clean sheet of the season and the 150th of his professional career.
While the scoreless first half might appear like St. Louis meant to just practice with Toronto, Carnell said that definitely wasn’t the case.
In the post-game meeting, he said the players had picked off several balls effectively during the first 45 minutes but then failed to get the transition moments they should have.
However, the players did follow one principle they discussed before the game. That principle is that good teams grind out results. Carnell acknowledged that Toronto played well enough in the first half to make things difficult for his squad.
Despite their low position in their conference, the players proved to be what Carnell called a tricky opponent. As a good team, however, St. Louis ground out a nil-nil score until halftime.
So CITY had to make adjustments.
Watts identified one of the adjustments that applied to him. As he opposed Toronto winger Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty, Watts said he gave him too much space in the first half. His second-half adjustment meant not letting the opponent touch the ball and forcing him back.
The adjustment worked.
Next. LA Galaxy made memories at the Rose Bow. dark
They corrected their issues. The result was complete domination in the second half. And a win.
However, as St. Louis CITY SC finishes out their matches for the rest of the season, they’ll have to find that score in the first half. The post-season depends on it.