St. Louis CITY SC lacked belief in San Diego | Notebook.

St. Louis took on San Diego Sunday night with hope that the progress the side experienced in week one could be replicated against an SDFC that has been a buzzsaw through the first month of the season. 

That test was handicapped by the sudden loss of Marcel Hartel, who returned home to be with his wife as they anticipate the birth of their second child, the actual important things in life. 

Unfortunately, that meant the loss of the engine that gave St. Louis the upper hand, albeit unrealized, against Charlotte on opening day. 

To his credit, 20-year-old Miguel Perez stepped into the starting XI for the first time since 2023 and was a Simon Becher miss on the doorstep away from grabbing an assist in the 23rd minute… but that’s getting ahead of the story. 

San Diego put St. Louis under pressure.

Yoann Damet’s side looked cagey through the opening minutes, but it wasn’t until SDFC easily relieved the pressure of the counterpress in the third minute that CITY SC’s belief cratered. 

The sequence starts with St. Louis retaining possession through the centerbacks, but Chris Durkin’s attempt to pass through to Perez is slightly out of reach. Perez battled with Christopher McVey, but McVey was able to turn out of it just as Raphael Santos arrived to double-team. Santos vacated his spot on the wing, which allowed Jeppe Tverskov to relieve the pressure through Anders Dryer. Dryer’s initial pass centrally was cut off by Daniel Edelman, but the ball deflected back into Tverskov, who easily flicked on Onni Valakari, and then it was off to the races. 

It’s hard to pin that break down on any individual player. Multiple defenders vacated their zone to pressure the ball carrier, but the problem was less in the players running to help and more in the inability to win the duel. Everyone pressed high in anticipation of winning the battle, but when Tverskov cleared the danger, it was 5 on 4 in the rush with Dryer as the trailing runner. 

If you were to nitpick that sequence, Timo Baumgartl stepped up to Valikari, but Wallem stays too deep, leaving Ingvartsen both wide open and onside... a complete breakdown.

It was the first punch in the mouth to Yoann Damet’s side on the road this season, and the team took too long to respond, seeming gun-shy following the initial goal. 

“The way we came out lacked a little bit of belief in ourselves, a little bit of energy as well.” Damet reflected. “That was the message at halftime and the message at the end, I think we gave them a little too much respect, playing away and playing a good team. I think there was a little bit of that. I think we needed to be a little bit more physical, a little bit more feisty in those moments and stand our ground.”

Following the goal, St. Louis simply couldn’t find the outlet to keep possession and relieve the pressure. Perez and Sangbin weren’t connected in the dual ten role, and when San Diego did play out through Duran Faree, the few moments of chaos caused by the initial press were let down by easy outlets further down the pitch. 

To put it simply, it’s hard to relieve pressure when your midfield four-man box is full of direct players who can’t take a defender out of the play with a dribble or a pass. 

"I didn't think their press was like a big key in turning the ball over." Damet said of the disjointed buildup.

"I thought we forced the play and didn't use the weak side enough. I thought at times, we tried to accelerate when maybe the time was to keep the ball and to just get set in the opposition half. So again, I didn't see anything tonight that I didn't expect going into the game, in terms of the way they pressed. It's just little decisions here and there that affect the build up."

If there is a positive to take out of the first half, it’s that the back three unit did a good job of staying composed as San Diego put them under pressure. The recoveries and interceptions from Orozco and Polvara cut out some dangerous moments and kept a San Diego attack to just 0.86 expected goals despite looking like they would steamroll St. Louis all night long. 

The problems from the 45 minutes roared back to start the second half until Damet subbed Cedric Célio Pompeu, Brendan McSorely, and Cedric Teuchert on for Perez, Sangbin, and Becher.

If Damet had a time machine – and for some reason wasted it on an away match in March instead of punching baby Hitler or whatever it is you usually do with these things – he would want to make these changes earlier. 

Suddenly, St. Louis had two players on the pitch with Teuchert and Pompeu who could take defenders out of the play and make decisions with the ball that allowed CITY SC to retain possession.

The problem: they were still disconnected from McSorely up top.

The final 30 minutes were an improvement on the first 60 minutes. St. Louis finally won more duels than San Diego, 66%, and even had more touches in San Diego’s box… but the damage had already been done, and the attack ultimately wasn’t dangerous enough to grab a consolation goal.

The Lessons:

If last week’s play wasn’t proof of Marcel Hartel’s importance, then this match should have cemented him as the talisman with the current state of the roster.

Cedric Teuchert’s stock rose in this performance but the obvious caveat is, Can he play more than 30 minutes?

If so, there’s no reason why he should not be in the starting lineup next to Hartel next weekend.

In 26 minutes, Teuchert had 15 touches, created a good scoring chance by himself, and showed a willingness to drop back into the pocket to receive the ball after either Edelman or Durkin recovered possession. 

“I think it's a really good system for me.” Teuchert admitted post match, “The coach wants to play a lot of football connections between the guys, and I think I fit pretty good in the system, between the lines, going to the dribble, so I think it's a really good fit for me as a player. Now I just need some minutes, the game fitness, and then the rest will come.”

A match like this highlights the work Corey Wray has to do in the summer. Another DP midfielder is more important than a striker at this point, and it’s plain to see in the way Tsverskov can play San Diego out of pressure.

Looking ahead, Seattle is another tough test in St. Louis’s grueling early season schedule. However, the Sounders haven’t looked their usual selves through two matches, losing 2-1 at RSL this weekend. Only four teams have won on the road through the first two weeks of MLS play, can St. Louis get back to what worked in week one? And can they actually convert on those chances back at Energizer park. 

Help on that front is on the way in Sergio Córdova, but he can not join the team until his visa is approved. However, if Simon Becher can’t find the back of the net, despite the good goals added numbers, then the opportunity to run with the starting job is there. Córdova might even give Becher the opportunity to come off the bench and reprise a role where he historically has had his best scoring numbers. 

San Diego’s continued success is a tough pill to swallow for a fanbase that just endured two seasons of St. Louis squandering their expansion team advantage, but losses like this are needed for a group that is embarking on a journey of complete reorganization. 

Speaking of:

A new era for St. Louis CITY2.

St. Louis CITY2 reached the end of an era following last season’s shocking playoff loss. Such is the nature of a reserve side that had to evolve out of another two year post-collegiate player cycle and a new Front Office that set its sights on aligning the Academy pathway. Miggy Perez and Mykhi Joyner have graduated to the first team, while Caden Glover and Tyson Pearce are likely to split time between first team and second team training environments (with both currently recovering from preseason injuries). 

At least Saturday’s 4-0 win over SKC was a familiar sight. 

CITY2 will still be an opportunity for first teamers to stay sharp as evidenced in Kyle Hiebert’s spot start on Saturday, but this year’s group also featured four academy graduates in the starting XI, and four more off the bench – including Evan Carlock who had to play a tough role following the injury to Owen Jorgensen in the third minute. 

Jorgensen’s injury is unfortunate, the 16 year old has become a bit of a USYNT regular and is in the plans for St. Louis CITY SC. The injury came when as he tangled up with an SKC2 attacker and landed awkwardly with his arm trapped behind him. The young defender had to be carted off the pitch. Luckily, despite the trip to the hospital, Jorgensen will make a recovery. 

Carlock came on, moving Riley Lynch to CB, and quickly scored his first in MLS NEXT Pro.

It was a good showing for the young crew, and a good first match for Jack Wagoner who is returning to CITY2 after 3 seasons at Indiana.

Wagoner and Carlock stood out, along with Alex Jundt, Palmer Ault, Riley Lynch, and Patrick McDonald, it’s a group that David Critchley seemed excited to return to, even after his first team experience last season. 

Critchley, to his benefit is taking this opportunity to prove that he can do the job if he gets another opportunity.

“I learned a lot as a coach, a leader, as a manager. I will want that opportunity again, but the best way I can do it is be here and work hard, and the right people will see that.”

Fans may be surprised to see the NEXT Pro side line up similar to the first team’s 3-4-2-1 after experiencing Critchley’s 4-2-3-1 last season. For Critchley, he sees the formation as a means to an end, his principles haven’t changed, and he feels the way Corey Wray and Yoann Damet want the club to play falls in line with his own philosophy of hard, principled play and confidence on the ball.

“You saw it last week in Charlotte,” he continued. “I think it’s very important that the NEXT Pro team takes some of those ideas and builds it into this team.”

CITY2 returns to play next Sunday against MNUFC2 at Energizer.