St. Louis City SC posted its’ first victory of 2025 with a 3-0 win over the defending MLS Cup Champion Los Angeles Galaxy on Saturday night. It wasn’t a perfect performance, but it’s a sign of progress for Olof Mellberg’s men as they continue to build City 2.0.
So what did we learn in the win?
1. “That’s why he’s [Bürki] the best goalkeeper in the league.” – Cedric Teuchert. The St. Louis keeper posted eight saves and earned dual honors as both the Man of the Match Day and a member of the Team of the Match Day as announced by MLS on Monday. It was his first real test of the season as he was forced into multiple saves en route to his 3rd straight clean sheet to start the season and the 18th of his MLS career. He recorded a PSxG (Post Shot Expected Goals) of 1.9; which means that he prevented an expected 1.9 goals based on the quality of shots Galaxy had in the match. Saturday’s performance was a reminder that the 2023 MLS Goalkeeper of the Year still has it and that he’s a great security blanket to have when the defense has an off night. If you need another reminder, take a look at the chart. Bürki ranks in the 90th percentile of keepers in terms of PSxG / SOT (Post Shot Expected Goals per Shot on Target) and PSxG minus GA (Post Shot Expected Goals minus Goals Allowed), reflective of just how good the St. Louis captain is as a pure shot stopper.
2. Speaking of the defense, it wasn’t a bad performance; but it was the shakiest of the season. Los Angeles, even as a depleted side, found multiple opportunities to test Bürki. They conceded a total of 23 shots and allowed the highest xGA (Expected Goals Against) 1.8 so far this season. Gabriel Pec, Marco Reus, Christian Ramirez and Gabriel Chaves each generated dangerous opportunities that were either missed or saved by Bürki. The openness was pointed out by Mellberg at the half and again during the postgame press conference. While it wasn’t perfect; the collective unit still deserves some praise. They helped keep another clean sheet and while the number of shots was high, the xG per shot was not at just under .08. For more on how good the City defense has been to start the season, check out John Love’s piece as he took a deep dive into the numbers.
3. Kyle Hiebert: ball playing center back? Despite not being known for it, he was one of City’s best defenders on the ball on Saturday. He was credited with an assist, the first of his career, for his part in the build up to Simon Becher’s goal. Hiebert was also nearly perfect in total passing. He recorded the longest passing and progressive passing distances among defenders and was the 3rd highest in carries. On the defensive side, he also led the team in total clearances with 6 on the night. It was arguably his best performance in City colors and may have been enough to keep his spot in the starting XI against Seattle.
4. Marcel Hartel is putting the league on notice. St. Louis’ first $2M+ player has lived up to both the price and designated player tag since arriving last summer. He was 2nd in the match in shot creating actions (SCA) with 6 and netted his first goal of the campaign. Through the first three games, Hartel is 5th in MLS in SCA with 15 and is 20th in SCA per 90 with a mark of 5.09. FBRef credits him with 9 goal contributions in just 12 matches since joining the club, which ranks him in the 99th percentile in terms of non penalty goals for players with at least 1,075 minutes over the last year. Over that same timespan he ranks in the 99th percentile for assists, the 96th for shot creating actions and the 95th for expected assists. Playing centrally in Mellberg’s system should keep him in an impactful spot moving forward so we may just be seeing hints of what Hartel can do for this team.
5. Edu Löwen was quietly fantastic. While he was going unnoticed by most, the German midfielder was one of City’s most effective and progressive players. Löwen was 2nd in progressive passing distance, led the team in total passing distance and registered an 86% mark for pass completion. He seems to be thriving in a deeper lying role where he is able to distribute from just in front of the back line and help spring St. Louis counter attacks.
6. The offense finally found the net. Surprise, scoring is fun! Who would have thought? Seriously, though. Mellberg was confident goals would come and three different players were able to put the ball into the back of the net. Cedric Teuchert, Marcel Hartel and Becher were each able to find the net and generated half of St. Louis’ 2.0 xG in the game. While he didn’t end up on the score sheet, don’t discount the role of João Klauss either; his hold up play was a big part of the offensive game plan. Klauss made runs that cleared space for Teuchert and others in the first half and he played a role in the build up to the second goal as he played a bit of one touch soccer with Hartel. If this quartet of attackers can stay in scoring form, City may be in great shape as the season continues.
The defense bent but didn’t break and the offense finally found its’ stride as City took all three points in LA. The result should be seen as progress when it comes to building Mellberg’s City 2.0 as the team has found stability in defense and continues working to hit full speed offensively. The victory should also provide a boost the club as it struggled away from home in 2024 giving the team some positive momentum heading into this weekend’s tilt with Seattle at Energizer Park.
Taking his passion for soccer and St. Louis to the next level, Jeremy aims to provide analytical coverage of all this St. Louis City SC.
