Minnesota United came into Saturday's tilt against the Colorado Rapids in desperate need of a strong performance to get their season back on the right track following three straight losses. In the first half, it looked like they might just exorcise those demons as they leapt out to a 2-0 lead on the strength of a free kick goal from Emanuel Reynoso and a deft one-two goal from Hassani Dotson after the assist by Robin Lod. But in the second half, the Rapids grew into the game and took the Loons apart with three goals in a 25-minute span. The 3-2 loss dashed the Loons' hopes for some momentum heading into a double-game week back at Allianz Field.

Minnesota United began the game brightly, much as they did against Seattle Sounders in the season opener, which turned out to be just as bad a harbinger as you would think. The Loons kept up the high press that had eluded them in the last couple games and managed to swarm immediately on turnovers to win back possession. The approach kept the Rapids pinned in their own end in the game’s opening minutes.

A lot of that was due to the formation shift that saw an extra midfielder added into the fray. Putting Osvaldo Alonso next to Wil Trapp allowed Jan Gregus more freedom to range up the pitch and the three in front of him — Robin Lod, Emanuel Reynoso and Hassani Dotson — responded by making incisive runs in between the lines. Reynoso in particular came to life in the first half, especially on a free kick in the 17th minute from roughly 25 yards out. Standing over the ball, Reynoso curled it over the wall and just under the crossbar to beat goalkeeper William Yarbrough and give MNUFC the early lead at 1-0.

The visitors didn’t let up after that initial effort, with Reynoso finding Lod in stride as the Finn pushed into the box. With two defenders focusing on him, Lod sent a square pass to a charging Dotson who buried it to double the lead to 2-0. Through the rest of the first half, Minnesota stayed on the front foot, right up until stoppage time, at which point the Rapids poured everything forward in an effort to get back into the game. Minnesota’s defense stood tall, though, and the visitors went into the locker room with a solid lead.

The second half would tell a different story, though. By the 54th minute, the home side were growing into the game as Cole Bassett struck the post on a hard shot from close range and Kegan Rosenberry followed up with a blast from beyond the box that narrowly missed. Three minutes later, a Colorado corner kick led to a bevy of chances in front of goal that the Loons struggled to clear. Eventually, the ball found its way out to a waiting Kellyn Acosta, who blasted a volley that found the back of the net and pulled Colorado back into the game at 2-1.

From there, Minnesota were chasing the game, unable to retain possession or build meaningfully into an attack. They spent the next 40 or so minutes just trying to withstand the shelling but they could not keep it at bay. With the rain coming down hard in the 71st minute, Sam Vines sent in a long early cross that goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair knocked down, but couldn’t hold onto. Midfielder Cole Bassett — who came on for an inured Younes Namli earlier — was there to clean it up and pull the home side level at 2-2. Head Coach Adrian Heath tried to stop the bleeding with the addition of defender Brent Kallman in place of Reynoso in the 79th minute, but only moments later, a free kick by Jack Price on the right side of the pitch found the head of Danny Wilson in the box and the Rapids pulled ahead 3-2.

A quick shift of tactics saw Heath bring on forwards Juan Agudelo and Ramon Abila in a bid to eke out a late equalizer, but their efforts ultimately came to naught as Minnesota United lost their fourth straight game to start the season.

BELL BANK MAN OF THE MATCH

GOAL BREAKDOWN

• 17' | Emanuel Reynoso put the free kick just under the bar to beat William Yarbrough and put the Loons on top 0-1.
• 24' | Reynoso pings a quick pass to Lod on the run into the box. Lod tucks it between two defenders across the box and finds Dotson for the strike. 0-2
• 57' | Several chances for Colorado off the corner kick and eventually the ball is cleared as far as Kellyn Acosta, who simply drills the ball into the back of the net. 1-2
• 71' | Colorado have looked more and more dangerous in this second half and while St. Clair is there to stop the initial ball by Vines, Bassett is there to peg it in when St. Clair can't hang on. 2-2
• 82' | Jack Price's free kick finds Danny Wilson skying through the air and he buries it in the back of the net. 3-2

LINEUPS

UP NEXT

MINNESOTA UNITED FC vs. VANCOUVER WHITECAPS
Allianz Field | Saint Paul, Minnesota
05.12.2021 | MLS Week No. 5 | MLS Game No. 5
8:00 p.m. CT (The CW Twin Cities, MNUFC Radio on SKOR North)