Sure, the first team is on break (aside from our World Cup warriors), but Allianz Field isn’t. MNUFC2 is taking the show down to the cities this weekend for their matchup against St. Louis CITY2, their second time playing under Saint Paul’s major league lights and their third time taking on CITY2 in 2026. This comes on the back of a particularly challenging run for the second team.
The Loons have earned two points from their first two games against St. Louis this year, with both coming from the 0-0 draw and subsequent shootout win in Rochester back in early May. That result saw a marked improvement from their first meeting of the season, a 0-3 loss in St. Louis in just the second game of the year. Should that trend continue, your Twos could be in store for three points of their own, and after playing three of the Western Conference’s top five teams in their last five games, the Boys in Black and Blue should be feeling up to the challenge.
Though they’ve split the difference with their last five results (2 wins, 2 losses, 1 draw), your Twos have managed to find the back of the net in each of those five, including an electric four-goal performance against SKC on June 8. Leading scorer Marcus Caldeira has brought his tally up to seven on the season, but several consistent role players have stepped up to get on the scoresheet, with Luciano Pechota the most recent to score his first of the season.
This weekend’s visitors currently sit in third place in the Western Conference, with 29 points to their name and an eight-point lead on MNUFC2. They’ve recently hit their toughest run of the season, though, suffering their first two losses of 2026 in back-to-back matches against Houston and Austin. Since then, a pair of draws and a lone win against North Texas SC have seen them struggle to get back to their best, making this weekend’s match an intriguing battle of form.
Noblesville, Indiana native Palmer Ault has impressed in his MLS NEXT Pro debut season for St. Louis, scoring seven goals and adding five assists to put his contribution tally just above Caldeira’s. The two of them will be looking to add to their totals to keep pace with the league’s most productive attackers. Both sides have an established core of players filling the team sheet behind their prolific forwards, as six different Loons have already played more than 1,000 minutes in 2026 (Caldeira, Pechota, Darius Randell, Sam Vigilante, Nick Dang, and Anderson Farris).
Kickoff is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. CT at Allianz Field, with Season Ticket Member Get-Together festivities livening up the afternoon even more. There’s still plenty of time to snag a ticket to this special match, so grab yours before they’re gone!
