Three

May 22, 2023

Houston Dynamo Ibrahim Aliya battles St. Louis SC Jake Nerwinski for control of the ball in the first half at City Park in St. Louis on Saturday, June 3, 2023.

Home-field advantage has long been a truism in sports. St. Louis CITY SC currently boasts a 6-2 record in eight home MLS matches so far. CITY has scored 22 goals and conceded six goals in those eight matches. The latest victory came Saturday in a 3-0 win against the Houston Dynamo.

As midfielder Njabulo Blom put it, "We aren't going to let anyone disrespect us on our home field."

Head coach Bradley Carnell believes the supporters at CITYPARK contribute to CITY's success on the pitch. "The fans just bring another notch and we have it really good here in St. Louis," he said. "The fans have taken this on and run with it. We're so proud of the fans, we’re so proud of the energy."

A Chippy First Half

Indiana Vassilev drew the first penalty after being fouled by Houston's Chase Gasper. "[Vassilev]'s got an exceptional ability to get his body between the man and the ball," Carnell said. "[Vassilev] shields the ball really well. And if players try and force that, then it's a foul."

CITY's Eduard Löwen stepped up and scored the penalty. "When you score that early in the game, you have more confidence.

You have just more freedom," Löwen said.

Houston continued to battle throughout the first half despite going down a goal early in the match. Both teams managed to generate dangerous opportunities with emotions coming to a boil during first half stoppage time as

Blom and Houston's Adalberto Carrasquilla shoved each other. That prompted players on both sides to step in creating a major altercation that challenged referee Joseph Dickerson to maintain control of the match.

Houston's Iván Franco appeared to put his arm around the neck of CITY's Nicholas Gioacchini. Gioacchini fell down and Dickerson handed Franco a red card. But Dickerson reversed Franco's red card after further review with the Video Assistant Referee.

Carnell prepares his players for difficult moments like this. "We test their resilience in training, and we try and replicate certain moments where it's tough," Carnell said. "The biggest thing is to keep the emotions in check."

A Nervy Second Half

Houston's José Artur de Lima Junior fouled Gioacchini about 40 yards away from Houston's goal in the 50th minute. Set-piece specialist Löwen stood over the ball and delivered a pinpoint cross to 6’3" Lucas Bartlett at the back post.

Bartlett recognized his best option would be to head the ball to a teammate rather than at the goal. Bartlett's header made its way to Tomás Ostrák who put CITY up 2-0.

Ostrák has been in and out of the starting 11 for CITY throughout the season.

Even so, he has racked up two goals and two assists in 15 appearances so far this season. "Every game I feel better and better. I feel really good," Ostrák said. "I can't wait for the next games, and I hope that I can improve and score more goals for the team."

Houston substituted Héctor Herrera into the match in the 60th minute. Herrera's introduction provided a much needed spark to Houston's attack as the Dynamo proceeded to generate dangerous opportunities.

Carnell adjusted accordingly as he substituted Aziel Jackson and Rasmus Alm in the 65th minute.

Desperation and frustration began to kick in for Houston in the final moments. Jackson chased down a pass in Houston's box in the 81st minute. Houston's Daniel Steres attempted to use his shoulder to bully Jackson off the ball. Steres mistimed his challenge and put a shoulder into Jackson's back. Referee Joseph Dickerson proceeded to award CITY its second penalty of the match.

Löwen is CITY's designated penalty taker. But Löwen decided to hand the penalty to Gioacchini after some deliberation. "I wanted to do something good for my teammate. [Gioacchini] wanted to score. As a striker, you always want to score," Löwen said.

Carnell believes trust is integral to CITY's identity. "I support my players to make decisions on and off the field in the best manner that they feel at that point in time," Carnell said. Löwen's faith in Gioacchini paid off as Gioacchini scored to seal the victory for CITY.

The performance could’ve been better, but CITY continues to find a way to win tight matches. "We just stick to our guns and our principles and make sure that we are on the front foot and trying to create a bit of havoc and a bit of chaos," Carnell said. "But it needs to be controlled, and I think we are getting better at controlling certain moments."

Building Momentum

Winning at home is a sign of a good team in MLS. Three straight victories at CITYPARK mark a shift in momentum. "We always want to give our best because we want to perform very well for everything the fans in the city are doing for us," Löwen said.

CITY travels to Frisco, Texas to take on FC Dallas on Wednesday. The two teams originally faced off on May 6, but the match was suspended in the 50th minute due to inclement weather.

Per MLS policy, the match will resume at the 50th minute mark with "the same players who were last on the field with the same substitutes available (with exceptions for injured or unavailable players)."

Captain Roman Bürki is confident in CITY's ability to continue its winning streak in Frisco. "We are going down with a good feeling. And we know it's 40 minutes to play. So I think we will try to put everything on the field there because we want these three points," he said.

Carnell appreciates CITY's recent form, but recognizes there's still a long way to go. "It's all not done yet. We know that we've done great things, but we have to continue to be hungry and keep on this mentality."

Julian Trejo, a sophomore at Washington University in St. Louis, is a native of Arkansas, and a former goalkeeper for several state championship teams. His work is supported by the River City Journalism Fund.

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