Minnesota United came into their second home game of the season with several demons to exorcise. First there was their season opening loss on the road to the Seattle Sounders and then there was their home opening loss to Real Salt Lake. Facing expansion side Austin FC, the Loons were hoping to make some adjustments and get their season on the right track. But finding themselves down after just 17 minutes, the home side could never bully their way into the game and fell once again at Allianz Field.
MNUFC came out with a slightly different look than the last game, with Ramon Abila healthy enough to start up top and Osvaldo Alonso joining Wil Trapp in the midfield pivot. Hassani Dotson got the nod once again at the left wing as he did against Seattle. Alonso’s presence was felt immediately as he kept the middle of the park organized and Dotson as well provided quality out wide and especially down the stretch.
But early on, Minnesota couldn’t grab hold of the game as Austin stayed organized and looked to slice open the Loons’ defense whenever they committed too many men up the pitch. In the 17th minute, midfielder Jared Stroud found himself with acres of space down the wing. He bombed forward and sent in a perfectly weighted cross that was just out of defender Romain Metanire’s reach but right on the foot of midfielder Diego Fagundez who finished it cleanly for a 1-0 lead.
Falling behind early took some of the wind out of the home side’s sails and while they did their best to manufacture opportunities from the wings, it was all for naught. The energy ticked up late in the second half as 17-year-old Patrick Weah — the club’s second homegrown signing — found his way onto the pitch in the 81st minute. He then very nearly scored with his first touch for MNUFC as fellow rookie Justin McMaster floated a short cross into the box and Weah dove in front of defender Jhohan Romana to send a hard shot right at goalkeeper Brad Stuver.
The moment seemed to energize the side, with Metanire sending in a beautiful low through ball to forward Foster Langsdorf minutes later that only went awry when Langsdorf’s first touch let him down. An excellent save from Dayne St. Clair on Jon Gallagher and a fortunate bounce on a shot from Rodney Redes that found the post kept the game within reach through stoppage time, but Minnesota could not find the breakthrough. The Loons now find themselves pointless through three games for the first time in their MLS history.
ADRIAN HEATH ON THE GAME OPENING A LITTLE MORE IN THE ATTACKING THIRD AND WHAT CHANGED THAT
“I think the biggest thing, I said after the game, we’re certainly not controlling any part of the game for long enough periods. We certainly haven’t had enough of a threat in the attacking third. And that’s put everybody else under pressure in terms of, that one goal either way at the moment, is going to prove very costly for us. And, that proved again today. I can’t put my finger on it, why we can’t have as much control of the ball as we have in the past. That’s something that we’ll have to keep looking at and keep working hard and, hopefully, keep everybody fit and healthy, which will help us, and we’ll get better.”
HASSANI DOTSON ON SHOT OPPORTUNITIES (OPPORTUNITIES VS. BAD LUCK)
“I mean yeah you see these types of games start to go either way. I mean if we don’t concede in the first half, maybe we come out with a win. That’s just kinda how the game goes sometimes. I think you know we’re just missing just a little bit of sharpness, but like you said it’s a little bit unlucky but we know we can do better, so we’re not looking for any excuses.”
BELL BANK MAN OF THE MATCH
GOAL BREAKDOWN
- 17' | Stroud attacks down the right wing and his service into the box is just out of Metanire's reach but on target for Fagundez. 1-0
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COLORADO RAPIDS vs. MINNESOTA UNITED FC
Allianz Field | Saint Paul, Minnesota
05.08.2021 | MLS Week No. 4 | MLS Game No. 4
9:00 p.m. CT (The CW Twin Cities, MNUFC Radio on SKOR North)
