Fantastic play cannot save NYCFC as team lets St. Louis City steal a point | OneFootball

The four-game homestand finally came to a close on Saturday night when New York City FC played St. Louis City SC in Major League Soccer for the first time since 2024.  This was also the Pigeons’ first match at Citi Field this season, and the team wanted to wash away the loss to Inter Miami CF before the rain arrived. They were close, but a late goal by the opposition led to a 1-1 draw.

Interestingly, the two Australians, Aiden O’Neill and Kai Trewin, both started despite having the most travel due to the international break.  Both players played in Australia on Tuesday, so it would have made sense if Pascal Jansen switched at least one of them out. However, the head coach went with the same Starting XI as the Miami loss.

Additionally, NYCFC brought in a solid and loud crowd to Queens, and the fans were instrumental to the environment on the night.  It would have been nicer if there were more supporters, but it is also still Passover and Easter weekend.  Sometimes, the holidays can impact attendance.

But the Boys in Blue were not influenced by the weekend, and the international break did not hurt their momentum.  Yes, they lost the last match and tied this one, but NYCFC continued to play well.  More importantly, they have been able to adjust to the different teams, as they did against St. Louis. Of course, the visitors found a way to steal a point, too.

NYCFC plays well in the draw

Entering the game, it was known that this would be the battle of two technical teams.  NYCFC was arguably better for most of the game, with multiple players using their skills to outplay their opponents, even when defending.

One aspect of the home team’s play that was evident throughout the game, especially in the first half, was the ability to bully the ball off St. Louis players.  Pressuring and working with one or two other teammates forced poor passes or led St. Louis players to lose the ball while trying to maneuver beyond them.  That is not to say that NYCFC did not give the ball away either.

There was a scary moment early in the first half when Trewin gave up the ball near the box.  Thankfully, Thiago Martins stepped in and was able to intercept.  The Brazilian was vital in the defense, like always, and he was all over the defensive third to regain possession for his team.

It was a little shocking that NYCFC did not score early on, let alone in the first 45 minutes.  They had six shots, but the attacking sequences made it feel like the Queens team was constantly on the prowl for a goal.  Nevertheless, that first goal did not occur until the beginning of the second half.

About five minutes after the resumption of play, Maxi Moralez found Hannes Wolf in the box, and slotted the ball to him.  The winger took a few quick steps, dancing his way through the St. Louis defenders toward the right side of the goal, and kicked the ball on an angle to send it into the bottom-left corner.  The way Wolf scored looked like he was dancing on a Broadway stage, elegantly and with precision.

Notably, the visitors slowly emerged into the match in the second half, becoming more threatening and spending more time in NYCFC’s half than they did earlier in the fixture.  Equalizer chances were mostly dampened by the Pigeons’ defensive work.  They made life extremely difficult through their blocks and their intervention in plays.  Plus, some of St. Louis’ shots were just plain awful.

NYCFC was being a little risky, though. They allowed their opponents to grow into the game.  There were also some missed opportunities, like when Agustín Ojeda had one player to deal with on a great run in the attacking half.  Yet, he was closed down and could not let off a shot.  Ojeda also almost gave Moralez a perfect shooting chance in the box, but the pass needed a little less power.

In the end, the inability to score a second goal hurt NYCFC.  With just a few minutes to go in stoppage time, St. Louis finally scored the goal they desperately craved.  Brendan McSorley scored a header that bounced into the goal to make this a 1-1 game.  Hence, the fantastic play could not save the home team.