St. Louis CITY SC beat Austin FC 6-3 in the team’s first MLS contest since July 15. Just as he did when the two sides clashed in CITY SC’s first-ever match, Tim Parker opened the scoring with a header. Niko Gioacchini pushed the home side’s lead to three with goals bookending the halftime break, but Austin’s Sebastián Driussi followed up by converting a penalty kick to draw the away side closer. The Verde & Black netted two more goals in a comeback effort, but a goal from Tomás Ostrák and brace from Sam Adeniran kept CITY SC ahead, helping the team secure its third consecutive home victory.
Ten MLS Goals
CITY SC forward Niko Gioacchini scored his ninth and tenth goal of the season with his brace against Austin FC. With his goals, Gioacchini extends his tally for the most goals on the team. Gioacchini is now the first player in CITY SC history to record 10 goals. Gioacchini is the 18th player to score 10+ goals for an expansion team and ranks 12th among those players in terms of fewest games played to achieve 10 goals.
Leading From the Back
CITY SC vice-captain Tim Parker has been instrumental in the team’s success so far this season. The defender has played in 21 MLS games this season, scoring four goals in the process. Parker scored the club’s first-ever goal against Austin FC in the 24th minute and scored his fourth goal against Austin tonight in the 22nd minute. Prior to joining CITY SC, Parker scored two goals in 217 games and has doubled that in 21 games for CITY SC.
Hattrick of Assists
Eduard Löwen was very involved in CITY SC’s win over Austin FC. The Designated Player pulled the strings in midfield, recording three assists. The midfielder has now provided nine assists which is tied for fifth in the league. Löwen has now recorded five total assists against Austin FC, the most by any player in MLS.
Postgame Notes
- With his goal tonight, Tim Parker has now scored in three consecutive home games (versus Colorado Rapids, Inter Miami CF and Austin FC)
- CITY SC has trailed just 100 of 1170 minutes at CITYPARK in MLS play
- With his brace, Gioacchini became the fourth CITY SC player to record a multi-goal game in MLS play (João Klauss vs Real Salt Lake, Indiana Vassilev vs Sporting Kansas City and Sam Adeniran vs San Jose Earthquakes)
- Sam Adeniran recorded his second brace of the season after scoring twice against San Jose earlier this season
- Adeniran now has five goals on the season
- Löwen's three assists are the most single-game assists by a CITY SC player in MLS this season
- CITY SC's six goals ties Atlanta United for the second-most goals in a single game by an expansion team in MLS play
- With three assists tonight, Löwen now has nine assists this season, tying him for the seventh-most assists by a player on an expansion team in MLS history
- CITY SC's four players with five or more goals ties New England Revolution for the most such players on a team in MLS this season
- CITY SC is 12-0-2 in MLS play when scoring first this season
- CITY SC is 9-3-1 at CITYPARK in MLS action
- CITY SC recorded its eighth home win scoring three or more goals
- CITY SC has ten wins scoring three or more goals this season
- CITY SC has 35 goals across 13 home MLS matches
Goal-Scoring Plays
STL – Tim Parker (Eduard Löwen), 22nd minute: Tim Parker header from the center of the box to the bottom right corner.
STL – Niko Gioacchini (Eduard Löwen), 45’+2’ minute: Nicholas Gioacchini right footed shot from the center of the box to the bottom right corner.
STL – Niko Gioacchini, 50th minute: Nicholas Gioacchini right footed shot from very close range to the bottom right corner following a fast break.
ATX – Sebastián Driussi, 61st minute: Sebastián Driussi converts the penalty with a right footed shot to the bottom right corner.
STL – Sam Adeniran, 72nd minute: Samuel Adeniran left footed shot from the left side of the box to the top right corner.
ATX – Will Bruin (Jon Gallagher), 87th minute: Will Bruin left footed shot from the center of the box to the bottom left corner.
STL – Tomás Ostrák (Eduard Löwen), 88th minute: Tomás Ostrák right footed shot from the left side of the box to the top right corner.ATX – Emiliano Rigoni, 90’+1’ minute: Emiliano Rigoni left footed shot from the center of the box to the bottom right corner.
STL – Sam Adeniran, 90’+5’ minute: Samuel Adeniran left footed shot from the right side of the box to the top left corner.
Next Game
CITY SC hits the road for a meeting with Orlando City SC on Saturday, August 26, at Exploria Stadium.
August 20, 2023 – CITYPARK (St. Louis, Missouri)
Goals by Half
STL First (2) Second (4) Final (6)
ATX First (0) Second (3) Final (3)
Scoring Summary
STL: Tim Parker (Eduard Löwen), 22
STL: Niko Gioacchini (Eduard Löwen), 45’+2’
STL: Niko Gioacchini, 50
ATX: Sebastián Driussi, 61
STL: Sam Adeniran, 72
ATX: Will Bruin, 87
STL: Tomás Ostrák, 88
ATX: Emiliano Rigoni, 90’+1’
STL: Sam Adeniran, 90’+5’
Misconduct Summary
STL: Njabulo Blom (caution), 16
Lineups
STL: GK Roman Bürki ©; D Akil Watts (Joakim Nilsson 87’), D Josh Yaro, D Tim Parker, D Kyle Hiebert; M Njabulo Blom (Indiana Vassilev 65’), M Eduard Löwen, M Rasmus Alm (Sam Adeniran 65’), M AZ Jackson (Tomáš Ostrák 87’), M Jared Stroud (Nökkvi Thórisson 81’); F Niko Gioacchini (Célio Pompeu 81’)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Ben Lundt, D Jake Nerwinski, D Anthony Markanich
TOTAL SHOTS: 15; SHOTS ON GOAL: 10; FOULS: 11; OFFSIDES: 0; CORNER KICKS: 2; SAVES: 6
ATX: GK Brad Stuver; D Matt Hedges (Alex Ring 68’), D Jon Gallagher, D Julio Cascante, D Adam Lundkvist (Nick Lima 57’); M Dani Pereira, M Sebastian Driussi ©, M Owen Wolff (Jhojan Valencia 80’), F Ethan Finlay (Emiliano Rigoni 58’), F Memo Rodriguez (Gyasi Zardes 58’), F Maxi Urruti (Will Bruin 45’+5’)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Matt Bersano, D Hector Jimenez, F CJ Fodrey
TOTAL SHOTS: 17; SHOTS ON GOAL: 9; FOULS: 6; OFFSIDES: 4; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 4
Referee: Tim Ford
Assistant Referees: Corey Rockwell, Kevin Lock
Fourth Official: Brad Jensen
VAR: Alejandro Mariscal
AVAR: Fabio TovarVenue: CITYPARK
Weather: Clear, 90 degrees
