WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: ST. LOUIS CITY SC
Welcome back to What You Need To Know, a match preview for Austin FC fans to check in on their next opponent.
Austin FC forward Myrto Uzuni. Photo courtesy of Chris Rodriguez (RDZ FLICKZ)
Opponent: St Louis City
Kick Off time: 4:39 PM US Central Time
Location: Q2 Stadium
History vs. Austin FC:
Austin FC is 1-1-4 (W-D-L) against St. Louis City all-time, including 0-1-2 at Q2.
Recent Matches:
St Louis has lost their last two matches in the league but had five points out of their previous three matches, including a win over the NE Revolution. They are currently in 14th place in the Western Conference. Their manager summed up their season in March by saying:
ST.Louis Head Coach Yoann Damet
Players to Watch:
Marcel Hartel
The German attacker has been the focus of the St Louis attack. He’s their only player with multiple goals in 2026 (3) after scoring 9 all of last season. However, he doesn’t have much help after the loss of Klauss in the offseason, which is why St Louis is averaging only a goal per match and is one of only four MLS sides with single-digit goals on the season.
Roman Bürki
When he first came to MLS, he was one of the best keepers in the league, but since St. Louis’ magical inaugural season, his underlying stats have continued to decline. His save % is down to 65% (per FBRef), and his Goals-Against Average has increased every season since 2023. For a team that struggles to score, Bürki needs to step up even more for them to get results.
Eduard Löwen
He is back after struggling with a hamstring injury and could make his first start of the season tonight. He makes a huge difference for them and their attack by providing extra finishing. The German scored a goal mid-week in their US Open Cup match win over the Chicago Fire.
Keys to the Match:
Goals Change Games
St Louis has only scored first once this season in MLS play, which was in their opener against Charlotte FC. They’ve consistently found themselves behind and unable to pull back, getting into matches. Austin is a team that tends to jump on teams early, and then the second goal determines the outcome. Against Houston, they capitalized and got the 2nd to essentially kill off the match. Unfortunately, too often Austin has gotten a goal to go up and been unable to extend their lead to give itself the buffer needed to get three points in a league where everyone is capable of scoring one goal.
The Run In
If you aren’t aware, MLS will be shutting down during the upcoming World Cup, which will result in Austin not playing matches for two months. This is the remaining schedule before the break and will essentially split the season in half (Austin will play 15 of their 34 matches before the break). As we all are aware, Austin is off to their worst start in club history and now faces a soft schedule with 3 of the next 5 being against the worst the West (Sporting KC and St Louis CITY), a San Diego team that is clearly this year’s “bad vibes” club, and at Minnesota, a place Austin has gotten good results recently. MLS is a long season, and with 3/5 of the league making the playoffs, it really only takes getting hot for a month or two to build up enough points to get into the tournament. If Austin is going to turn this season around, this run-in is where they can do it, hopefully separating themselves from the Wooden Spoon contenders instead of becoming one.
The Return
This week, we had a very welcome sight at St. David’s: Owen Wolff, Dani Pereira, and Brandon Vazquez going through full training. We were also treated to Vazquez sending “see you guys soon” on socials, which is hard to interpret as anything besides him playing a part in this match. There’s been some leeway amongst fans for the slow start due to injuries, and with both of them returning, it’s time for the team to get better results under its current manager.
Prediction:
Austin FC: 2
St Louis City: 1
WRITTEN BY SCOTT SPECHT
