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City SC’s 0-0 Tie Is a Big Win, as St. Louis Clinches a Playoff Spot | St. Louis Metro News | St. Louis

Published

2 years ago

September 22, 2023

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click to enlarge COURTESY CITY SC Fleet feet helped City SC obtain a draw against reigning MLS Cup champions Los Angeles FC.

This story was produced in partnership with the River City Journalism Fund.

No Major League Soccer experts predicted expansion team St. Louis City SC to make the Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs. But City SC became the first Western Conference team to clinch a spot in the playoffs after a 0-0 draw against Los Angeles FC (the reigning MLS Cup Champions) at Citypark on Wednesday, September 20.

“It’s a testament to what a great year that we’ve had,” vice-captain Tim Parker said in a post-match press conference. “This is kind of the end of the year where you want to start to play your best stuff.”

The two teams first met on July 12 in Los Angeles, a match LAFC won 3-0. Interestingly, only three players (Roman Bürki, Njabulo Blom, and Indiana Vassilev) started both matches for City. Both teams entered the Wednesday night match with healthy rosters and fielded strong lineups in front of a sold-out Citypark.

The intensity of the match and atmosphere at Citypark will prove valuable for City as the postseason nears. “I think this is what a tight playoff game could look like down the stretch,” head coach Bradley Carnell said.

A Tactical Battle

LAFC is one of the best teams in MLS and Carnell responded accordingly by fielding City’s strongest starting XI. Carnell deployed a diamond 4-4-2 formation with midfielder Njabulo Blom playing as “the six” — the holding midfielder in front of the defense.

Midfielders Eduard Löwen and Vassilev played as “eights” in front of Blom. A midfield “eight” is a box-to-box midfielder who attacks and defends. Löwen and Vassilev occupied the half spaces in the midfield as well as the wide space alongside fullbacks Akil Watts and Markanich.

Utilizing two eights rather than two wingers allowed City to create overloads — numerical advantages — in different areas of the pitch. These overloads help City progress the ball forward and result in crosses or shots.

But utilizing two eights was also indicative of City’s defensive gameplan: to deny LAFC space in the midfield. Control of the midfield is crucial for a possession-based team that scores most of its goals off passing sequences or in transition like LAFC.

LAFC favors a 4-3-3 formation to create a three-man numerical advantage in the midfield. But City’s four-man midfield hindered LAFC’s ability to dominate possession, which led LAFC to focus on another point of attack: its wide play. LAFC utilized the speed and 1v1 ability of wingers Dénis Bouanga and Cristian Olivera to create dangerous opportunities. Bouanga and Olivera accounted for 11 of LAFC’s 14 shots.

Matches between two top teams can be decided by small margins. Both teams attacked methodically and made no defensive errors.

“When good teams get together in a perfect stadium and a perfect evening, if you give away a critical moment, you lose the game. I think both teams played a tight, cagey game, giving nothing away to each other,” Carnell said.

The stat sheet proves how close the match was. City managed 12 shots compared to LAFC’s 14. LAFC won 53 duels while City won 55. Possession was nearly 50-50. It was the first 0-0 scoreline in City history.

“I think it was a very balanced game. I think we had no big chances, and they had no big chances,” Bürki said. click to enlarge COURTESY CITY SC They’re going to the playoffs! Now the question is whether the playoffs are coming here.

Almost Playoff Time

City boasts 50 points after 30 MLS matches, and ironically, it’s LAFC that holds the record for the most points accumulated in an inaugural season for an expansion team, with 57. With a possible 12 points up for grabs in its final four matches, LAFC’s record is within reach for City.

City SC holds a five-point lead over second place Seattle Sounders. City SC will host the final match of the regular season against Seattle on October 21 — a match that could see the winner crowned as Western Conference champion.

Parker hopes City can continue to pick up points, which would allow the team to earn home field advantage in the playoffs. “Home field advantage is definitely something that we’ve had our eye on now with the position we’ve been in, because we know how hard it is to play here at Citypark [for other teams] and we know how we’re able to play here. So, to get the fans here in St. Louis a home playoff game is big for us.”

Julian Trejo, a sophomore at Washington University in St. Louis, is a native of Arkansas, and a former goalkeeper for several state championship teams. His work is supported by the River City Journalism Fund.

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Fenton Man Charged in Sword Attack on Roommate

Published

12 months ago

May 22, 2024

Natural Bridge

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A warrant is out for a Fenton man’s arrest after he allegedly attacked his roommate with a sword.

Police say that on Sunday, Angelus Scott spoke openly about “slicing his roommate’s head” before he grabbed a sword, raised it up and then swung it down at the roommate.

The roommate grabbed Scott’s hand in time to prevent injury. When police arrived at the scene, they found the weapon used in the assault.

The sword in question was a katana, which is a Japanese sword recognizable for its curved blade.

This isn’t the first time a samurai-style sword has been used to violent effect in St. Louis. In 2018, a man hearing voices slaughtered his ex-boyfriend with a samurai sword. His mother said he suffered from schizoaffective disorder.

As for Scott, 35, the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office was charged yesterday with two felonies, assault first degree and armed criminal action. The warrant for his arrest says he is to be held on $200,000 bond.

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Caught on Video, Sheriff Says He’s Ready to ‘Turn It All Over’ to Deputy

Published

12 months ago

May 22, 2024

Natural Bridge

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Video of St. Louis Sheriff Vernon Betts taken by a former deputy suggests that the sheriff has a successor in mind to hand the reins of the department over to, even as Betts is in an increasingly heated campaign for reelection.

“I ain’t here for all this rigmarole,” Betts says in the video while seated behind his desk at the Carnahan Courthouse. “The Lord sent me here to turn this department around and I’m doing the best I can and I think I’ve done a good job. I’ve got about eight months and I’m going to qualify for my fourth pension.”

He goes on, “Right now I can walk up out of here and live happily ever after and forget about all this…and live like a king.”

The sheriff then says his wife has been in Atlanta looking at houses and that the other deputy in the room, Donald Hawkins, is someone Betts has been training “to turn it all over to him.”

Asked about the video, Betts tells the RFT, “My future plans are to win reelection on August 6th by a wide margin and to continue my mission as the top elected law enforcement official to make St. Louis safer and stronger. Serving the people of St. Louis with integrity, honor and professional law enforcement qualifications is a sacred responsibility, and I intend to complete that mission.”

The video of Betts was taken by Barbara Chavers, who retired from the sheriff’s office in 2016 after 24 years of service. Chavers now works security at Schnucks at Grand and Gravois. Betts’ brother Howard works security there, too.

Chavers tells the RFT that she was summoned to Betts’ office last week after Betts’ brother made the sheriff aware that she was supporting Montgomery. It was no secret: Chavers had filmed a Facebook live video in which she said she was supporting Betts’ opponent Alfred Montgomery in the election this fall. “Make the judges safe,” she says in the video, standing in front of a large Montgomery sign on Gravois Avenue. “They need a sheriff who is going to make their courtrooms safe.”

In his office, even as Chavers made clear she was filming him, Betts told Chavers he was “flabbergasted” and “stunned” she was supporting Montgomery.

“I don’t know what I did that would make you go against the preacher man,” he says, referring to himself. He then refers to Montgomery as “ungodly.”

Betts goes on to say that not long ago, he was walking in his neighborhood on St. Louis Avenue near 20th Street when suddenly Montgomery pulled up in his car and, according to Betts, shouted, “You motherfucker, you this, you that. You’re taking my signs down.”

Montgomery tells the RFT that he’s never interacted with Betts outside of candidate forums and neighborhood meetings.

“I don’t think anyone with good sense would do something like that to a sitting sheriff,” Montgomery says.

Montgomery has had campaign signs missing and on at least two occasions has obtained video of people tearing them down. (Chavers notes that the sign that she filmed her original Facebook video in front of is itself now missing.)

One man who lives near Columbus Square says that he recently put out two Montgomery signs, which later went missing. “If they keep taking them, I’ll keep putting them up,” he said.

Betts says he has nothing to do with the missing signs. In the video Chavers filmed in Betts’ office, Betts says that his campaign isn’t in a spot where it needs to resort to tearing down opponents’ signs.

“If you sit here long enough, a man is getting ready to come across the street from City Hall bringing me $500, today,” Betts says. “I’m getting that kind of support. I don’t need to tear down signs.”

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St. Louis to Develop First Citywide Transportation Plan in Decades

Published

12 months ago

May 21, 2024

Natural Bridge

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The City of St. Louis is working to develop its first citywide mobility plan in decades, Mayor Tishaura Jones’ office announced Tuesday. This plan seeks to make it easier for everyone — drivers, pedestrians, bikers and public transit users — to safely commute within the city.

The plan will bring together other city projects like the Brickline Greenway, Future64, the MetroLink Green Line, and more, “while establishing new priorities for a safer, more efficient and better-maintained transportation network across the City,” according to the release.

The key elements in the plan will be public engagement, the development of a safety action plan, future infrastructure priorities and transportation network mapping, according to Jones’ office.

The overarching goals are to create a vision for citywide mobility, plan a mixture of short and long-term mobility projects and to develop improved communication tools with the public to receive transportation updates. In recent years, both people who use public transit and cyclists have been outspoken about the difficulties — and dangers — of navigating St. Louis streets, citing both cuts to public transit and traffic violence.

To garner public input and participation for the plan, Jones’ office said there will be community meetings, focus groups and a survey for residents to share their concerns. The city will also be establishing a Community Advisory Committee. Those interested in learning more should check out at tmp-stl.com/

“Everyone deserves to feel safe when getting around St. Louis, whether they’re driving, biking, walking or taking public transit,” Jones said in a news release. “Creating a comprehensive transportation and mobility plan allows us to make intentional and strategic investments so that moving around St. Louis for jobs, education, and entertainment becomes easier, safer and more enjoyable.”

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