It was a gorgeous fall afternoon at Allianz Field, and the Loons had quite the challenge ahead of them as they took on the league’s hottest team. St. Louis CITY, who on Matchday 30 set the league record for unbeaten matches across all competitions at 21, took to the pitch in Minnesota in a match that would see them either extend that streak to 22 or have it shattered by an underdog Black and Blue side.
And boy, did our boys deliver.
Things got off to a very discouraging start for Minnesota, as striker Rafael Navarro started off the scoring in the 4th minute to put CITY up one. Simon Becher made a speedy run up the center to shoot, which Drake Callender deflected, but Navarro was ready to slam in the rebound from the left, bringing his goal count to eight in his few months with St. Louis.
Six minutes later, Cherrion Valerius struggled to keep up with Navarro’s sprint up the left flank. Valerius’ attempted slide failed, leaving Navarro to approach the goal and draw defender Jefferson Diaz while Morris Duggan was occupied with Becher in front of goal. Wil Trapp started falling back to assist, but wasn’t quite quick enough to outpace former Loon Sang Bin Jeong, who swept it into the bottom right to double the lead. (He didn’t celebrate, because he’s classy like that.)
For a team struggling to break out of a long winless streak, two early goals felt almost decisive, an all-too-familiar signal of an unfavorable result. But there were still 80 minutes to turn things around.
In the 14th minute, Roman Bürki sent Kelvin Yeboah’s shot bouncing off the crossbar with the barest brush of his fingertips. Two minutes later, the Black and Blue had another golden opportunity with a Diaz run that set Hlongwane up for a shot. His ball was deflected by Timo Baumgartl, but Hlongwane rebounded and tried to get the ball over to Yeboah. Becher was there with a header block at the very last second to keep the Loons off the board.
It was a rough half for the Loons, but undeniably full of action and admittedly fun to watch. St. Louis’ high-possession, aggressive playstyle brought out some serious guts in the Black and Blue, and the game got physical before long — AZ Jackson picked up a yellow card in the 24th minute for a foul on Fallou Fall, and two minutes later, CITY’s Miguel Perez went in the book for a foul on Bongokuhle Hlongwane.
One of the most exciting and infuriating moments in the first half came in the 45th minute, when a Valerius long throw bounced around the box with Triantis, Yeboah, Valerius, and González all stepping up to try and get the Loons on the board before Bürki held the ball right on the line.
The boys came out of the locker room with a chip on their shoulder, and in the 49th minute, they made the magic happen. Yeboah put on the wheels on the right and used his fancy footwork to get around Fallou Fall, crossing it to a waiting AZ Jackson, who didn’t hesitate to slam it right past Bürki in close quarters for his first Loons goal with a chorus of horns blaring in the background. (Shoutout brass section.)
A trio of corners in the 58th, 59th, and 67th minutes, all serviced by Jackson, saw even more chaos-in-the-box sequences that had everyone on the edge of their seats with attempts from Triantis and some very determined footwork from Diaz. The Loons were really putting on the attacking pressure in the back half of the match, with the full squad pressing relentlessly in an attempt to even the score.
The equalizer finally came when Mauricio González, outmaneuvering a duo of St. Louis defenders in the left corner, sent a key pass to an unmarked Yeboah in the box. He took the extra touch, staying cool and collected before sending it past Bürki and extending his club single-season scoring record.
With 20 minutes remaining in regulation, Marcus Caldeira subbed in for González, and immediately took a shot on goal that forced another save from Bürki. Jackson took another shot in the 75th to force Bürki’s fifth save of the match. St. Louis was getting nervous.
Callender made a pair of absolutely crucial moves of his own in the 75th, when both Navarro and Joyner tried to take back the lead in close quarters but couldn’t get past the Loons keeper. With everything on the line, Callender locked down the net for a double save and thwarted CITY’s attempts at a late lead.
Having more than paid his dues, Man of the Match AZ Jackson made way in the 79th minute for midfielder Joaquín Pereyra, the resident playmaker and club leader in assists working his way back up to fitness. After a few Minnesota runs wielded no results, play shifted back to St. Louis’ attacking third, with some very tense moments saved only by Diaz and Duggan’s key clearances.
Pereyra turned a St. Louis attempt into a glorious Minnesota counter in the 86th minute, sending a long pass up to Caldeira for a sprint up the pitch. With the clock ticking down and Minnesota in danger of yet another winless 2-2 game, it was now or never.
Caldeira chose now.
He outmaneuvered Daniel Edelman and three other St. Louis defenders converging on his run, shooting from just inside the box to give the Loons the lead. He jumped into the Wonderwall in celebration, as an Allianz Field that hasn’t celebrated a regular-season win in 182 days absolutely exploded.
CITY was determined to hold onto their unbeaten streak in five minutes of stoppage time, and Minnesota was determined to shatter it. An altercation on the far side of the pitch ended in a yellow for Diaz and a nail-biting free kick by Rafael Santos, which Callender truly rose to the occasion to save as the clock ticked down. The Loons proceeded to defend a series of dangerous set pieces, and then welcomed captain Michael Boxall to the pitch for his 500th appearance for club and country to finish out this groundbreaking game.
And finish it out they did. The whistle blew on a 3-2 scoreline, and the long-missed notes of Wonderwall filled the stadium for one of Allianz Field’s happiest days in recent memory. This is why we always come back to the beautiful game — the lows are low, but the highs are so, so high.
Minnesota still has a steep hill to climb if they want to secure a spot in the playoffs, but now ignited by fending off one of the best teams in the league, they’ve got more hope than they’ve had in a long while.
