Pre-match Preview: CITY SC to face newest MLS expansion club for the first time

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (Matrix Midwest) - St. Louis CITY SC will head west this weekend to take on Major League Soccer’s newest expansion club, San Diego FC.

This will be San Diego’s second-ever MLS match, and a battle between the league’s two newest clubs.

Last Week

St. Louis secured a point in its 2025 opener against the Colorado Rapids, which resulted in a 0-0 draw.

On a cold night at Energizer Park, CITY SC’s attack was red-hot, with 18 shots and five shots on goal. Head Coach Olof Mellberg’s defense was very effective, allowing just two shots to the Rapids and preventing a shot on goal for the second time in club history.

“Overall, it was a good gig and we created a couple of chances to score a couple of goals,” said Mellberg after the match. “And obviously defending to have expected goals is almost zero for Colorado is quite unusual in a game. So, obviously happy with that.”

“I think just individually great performances and then the shifting in the back line was really good at covering for each other at all moments,” said Defender Henry Kessler.

Both Conrad Wallem and Alfredo Morales made their club debuts, and Roman Bürki earned his 16th career MLS clean sheet and the first in a season opener for CITY SC.

Next, the team will travel to warmer territory, and face an unfamiliar opponent.

Up Next

St. Louis will now head to southern California to face the MLS newcomers, San Diego FC.

San Diego won its first-ever MLS match the week prior, defeating MLS Cup Champions, LA Galaxy, 2-0. Despite a fairly even stat line, San Diego outshot its opponent nine to seven, with six shots on goal.

The victory places them in an early third place in the Western Conference, tied with five other clubs that also won their first match. Anders Dreyer scored both goals for San Diego, which were set up by Forward Tomás Ángel and the club’s first-ever Designated Player, Hirving “Chucky” Lozano.

The match against St. Louis will be this new club’s first home match.

St. Louis delivered a dominating performance in its 0-0 draw last weekend - as dominating as a 0-0 draw can get. In addition to the 18 shots, CITY SC held a 55 percent possession with an 81 percent accuracy on nearly 500 es.

“You could say last year we would have lost that game, we were clearly the better team,” said CITY SC captain Roman Bürki. “The only thing missing was the goal.”

Henry Kessler (91.7), led the club in ing percentage after a full 90-minute performance.

In his 81 minutes, Simon Becher saw a large amount of attacking opportunities. Becher tallied five scoring attempts, with three of them on target. This included a forced save by Colorado in the 16th minute and, shortly after, a goal that was disallowed for offsides in the 19th minute.

CITY had a few other opportunities to score throughout the rest of the match but ultimately came up short.

“We had a number of chances in the second half as well,” Becher said. “So, yeah, just, you know, continuing to work and stick to the game plan.”

After two seasons, St. Louis CITY SC is no longer the MLS newcomer. And with some offensive promise on Match Day 1, they’ll look to capitalize this week against the newest expansion team to the league, San Diego FC.

Kick-off is set for 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 1, at Snapdragon Stadium.

For more on St. Louis CITY SC, click here.

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