St. Louis, MO– It’s a preview of the US Open Cup semifinal as the Colorado Rapids (6-1-9, 11th West) travel to Missouri to face St. Louis City (6-4-6, 8th West). It was a controversial and frustrating night for the Rapids the last time these two teams met, with Rob Holding seeing red and a 1-0 loss for Colorado. The Rapids haven’t had to wait long to get their shot at revenge, with Colorado only playing four MLS matches in between. The most recent of those matches was a last-gasp win for the Rapids. They will hope it won’t have to come down to the last second in the second meeting between these two sides. Let’s take a look at the matchup.
When: Saturday, July 25th @ 6:30 p.m. MST
Where: Energizer Park
TV/Streaming: Apple TV
Late Heroics by Newcomer Loïc Williams
It was a cagey affair when San Diego FC came to DICK’s Sporting Goods Park. Chances were at a premium; attacking was often replaced with possession. Both teams are built on possession, dominating the ball. Both teams tried to accomplish this, and while the Rapids ended with more possession, it wasn’t by much (52%-48%). This match showcased the problems with a possession-based system; while there was some good interplay to get out of pressure, both teams struggled to create anything.
The game looked destined to end scoreless with both teams failing to create much in front of net. But with about a minute left in the game, an unlikely hero saved the day. Debutant Loïc Williams got on the end of a Paxten Aaronson cross. He redirected the ball and barely sneaked it past San Deogo keeper CJ Dos Santos as it bounced so slowly off the post and in. In his first appearance and start for the Rapids, Williams snatched all three points for the home side.
It was the third time that Colorado found the back of the net in the match, with Georgi Minoungou and Dante Sealy both having goals ruled out due to offside. Both were the right call. The Rapids also had to avoid almost giving up a late penalty after head referee Chris Penso went to the monitor for a potential foul in the 87th minute. After looking for a while, Penso came back and said there wasn’t a foul. It was close. It feels like the right call, but on another day, the Rapids could have lost twice at home back-to-back, conceding three penalties.
While there are worrying signs about expected goals and chances created and the lack of attack, the alarm bells should be anything but on. This game was meant to be exactly like this. The style in which San Diego plays forced the Rapids to either play as they did or change their identity. That was a game of two teams playing their style. The result is expected.
Lineup Prediction:
Hansen / Cannon, Herrington, Holding, M. Navarro / Frederick, Ojediran / Yapi, Aaronson, Minoungou / R. Navarro (c)
There is not much change between the last two availability reports. Miguel Navarro and Wayne Frederick are no longer suspended. They will most likely make their way into the starting lineup. Miguel Navarro, due to necessity, as he is the only available natural left back. Wayne Frederick due to rotation.
Rotation is to be expected with a quick turnaround like this one. Colorado lost some depth during the World Cup break, and didn’t really replace what they had lost. Ian Murphy was the one loss that got replaced by Loïc Williams, but there isn’t a like-for-like replacement for Alexis Manyoma or Connor Ronan. The lack of depth comes into games like this, but with how Wells likes to go from game to game, it might not matter as much.
Another interesting side note is Lucas Herrington. He didn’t get the start on Wednesday, and it definitely wasn’t due to a lack of talent. He did eventually make it into the match, but Colorado could be keeping him on ice for a potential transfer. If that isn’t the case, it’s an interesting discussion on who should start along the back line. The Rapids, all of a sudden, potentially have four starting-caliber center backs. Depth is always good, but knowing the best combination will be key for Wells.
St. Louis Turnaround
St. Louis City had a start to the year similar to their rivals Sporting KC. SKC are on a historically bad pace, and St. Louis was right there with them. But, as of late, they have picked up steam and are one of the hottest teams in the league right now. They have jumped the Rapids and climbed all the way up to 8th place in the West. They are undefeated in their last six games, with five of those being wins.
While the US Open Cup semifinal between these two sides is all the way in September, both matchups will be very different from the one we saw at DICK’s just a few months ago. St. Louis had an almost perfect smash-and-grab win against Colorado in the reverse fixture, turning almost no attacking production into a Route One-style goal, and keeping the Rapids attack at bay for the entirety of the match. Expect a much better style of soccer from the hosts in this matchup and in September.
Colorado will have to play much, much better in St. Louis than they did at home to get anything out of this game. The attack struggled against San Diego on Wednesday. It will have to get going against St. Louis.
Prediction: The Rapids do the reverse and smash and grab their way to a crucial road win. Colorado wins 1-0.
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Eamon Shaw 
Brian Jennings 