St. Louis CITY SC fell 2-1 to Sporting Kansas City at Children’s Mercy Park in the second match of the MLS Cup Playoffs Best-of-3 series, ending the team’s record-breaking debut season. Kansas City’s Logan Ndenbe drew first blood with a goal in first-half stoppage time, and then forward Daniel Salloi increased the home side’s advantage with a goal in the 73rd minute. Midfielder Célio Pompeu halved CITY SC’s deficit with a beautiful strike from distance in the 86th minute, but SKC held on to their lead and secured the victory.
Postgame Notes
- St. Louis CITY SC finished the regular season 17-12-5, with the team’s 56 points good for the second most by an expansion team in MLS history (excluding the shootout era)
- CITY SC’s 17 wins set the record for the most wins by an expansion team in MLS history
- The team became the first expansion team in MLS history to win their conference in their inaugural season
- CITY SC joined Atlanta United FC, Los Angeles FC and Chicago Fire FC as the only expansion teams to score 60 or more goals in their debut seasons
- Sixteen (16) different players got on the scoresheet for CITY SC in MLS play, tying the team with Charlotte FC (2022) for the most different goal scorers for an expansion team in MLS history
Goal-Scoring Plays
SKC – Logan Ndenbe (Alan Pulido, Daniel Salloi), 45+1st minute: Logan Ndenbe right-footed shot to the bottom right corner.
SKC – Daniel Salloi (Gadi Kinda, Johnny Russell), 73rd minute: Daniel Salloi left-footed shot to the bottom left corner.
STL – Célio Pompeu (Njabulo Blom), 86th minute: Célio Pompeu left-footed shot to the upper left corner.
November 5, 2023 – Children’s Mercy Park (Kansas City, Kansas)
Scoring Summary
SKC: Logan Ndenbe (Alan Pulido, Daniel Salloi), 45+1
SKC: Daniel Salloi (Gadi Kinda, Johnny Russell), 73
STL: Célio Pompeu (Njabulo Blom), 86
Misconduct Summary
STL: Eduard Löwen (caution), 23
STL: Tim Parker (caution), 32
SKC: Alan Pulido (caution), 42
SKC: Logan Ndenbe (caution), 69
SKC: Dany Rosero (caution), 81
STL: Kyle Hiebert (caution), 90+6
SKC: Roger Espinoza (caution), 90+14
Lineups
SKC: GK Tim Melia; D Andreu Fontas, D Dany Rosero (Robert Castellanos 85’), D Jake Davis, D Logan Ndenbe; M Nemanja Radoja, M Gadi Kinda (Roger Espinoza 90’+3’), M Remi Walter; F Alan Pulido (Erik Thommy 85’), F Johnny Russell © (Khiry Shelton 90’+7’), F Daniel Salloi
Substitutes Not Used: GK John Pulskamp, D Graham Zusi, M Felipe Gutierrez, M Felipe Hernandez, F Marinos Tzionis
TOTAL SHOTS: 8; SHOTS ON GOAL: 4; FOULS: 14; OFFSIDES: 1; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 1
STL: GK Roman Bürki ©; D Akil Watts (Tomáš Ostrák 76’), D Josh Yaro, D Tim Parker, D Kyle Hiebert; M Njabulo Blom, M Eduard Löwen, M Indiana Vassilev (Aziel Jackson 90’+3’), M Jared Stroud (Niko Gioacchini 65’); F Sam Adeniran (Célio Pompeu 46’), F João Klauss
Substitutes Not Used: GK Ben Lundt, D Joakim Nilsson, D Jake Nerwinski, D Anthony Markanich, F Nökkvi Thórisson
TOTAL SHOTS: 15; SHOTS ON GOAL: 2; FOULS: 14; OFFSIDES: 2; CORNER KICKS: 7; SAVES: 2
Referee: Ismail Elfath
Assistant Referees: Michael Barwegen, Lyes Arfa
Fourth Official: Guido Gonzales Jr
VAR: Michael Radchuk
AVAR: Jonathan Johnson
Venue: Children’s Mercy Park
Weather: Sunny, 74 degrees
