St. Louis CITY’s much-needed 2-1 win over the LA Galaxy on Sunday doubled as bragging rights for goalkeeper Roman Bürki — the longtime teammate and friend of recent Galaxy signing Marco Reus.
“His quality is without question one of the best in Europe,” Bürki said after the game.
When Reus stood over a second half free kick with St. Louis clinging to a 2-1 lead, Bürki admitted to feeling a little nervous.
“To see him getting ready for the free kick, even if it's not the best position, I was a little bit extra focused,” he said.
Bürki made a comfortable save on the free kick, one of a handful that helped St. Louis pull out the upset victory.
Reus gets first Galaxy start
Reus, meanwhile, made his first start for the Galaxy after a brilliant debut in their 2-0 victory last week against Atlanta United. Reus played 77 minutes — something Bürki and St. Louis apparently did not expect.
“Him and Roman are tight. [Reus] BS’d him all week and told him he was only gonna play 30 minutes,” St. Louis interim coach John Hackworth said with a laugh after the game.
Bürki confirmed Hackworth’s account — but noted they only talked soon after Reus’ debut against Atlanta.
“I asked [Reus] at the beginning of the week how the game was. He said, ‘After the first sprint I was dead, no way I'm gonna play 90 minutes [next week],’” said Bürki, who added they didn’t text again that week given the upcoming clash.
The two were teammates for seven years with Borussia Dortmund. Bürki joined St. Louis for the expansion season in 2023, and Reus followed this summer.
Reus, meanwhile, said the heat in St. Louis was difficult to play in, but that wasn't why the Galaxy lost.
“We lost too many balls in areas where we should not do many mistakes, and then we lost the control of the game because of the mistakes, what we did. It was, yeah, it was hard for us to create big chances," he said.
"I thought after the 1-1 that we are in the game, and we have the control. And then I think we make a stupid mistake, and then was a counterattack and then was 2-1 and was even harder to come back.”
A blow to Shield hopes
CITY went ahead early in the game on a goal from Cedric Teuchert, only for Gabriel Pec to equalize in the first minute of the second half. Another of CITY’s talented summer transfers, Marcel Hartel, potted a cross from Jayden Reid to secure the three points.
St. Louis’ win is a blow to the Galaxy’s Supporters’ Shield hopes. They continue to lead the Western Conference, but now trail Inter Miami CF by seven points at the top of the standings.
It will serve as a nice boost of confidence for CITY, who face a tough climb from near the bottom of the Western Conference standings. After last week’s back-and-forth 4-4 draw with the Portland Timbers, they held onto their lead against the high-powered Galaxy.
“I'm satisfied this week, but I don't think this is the end of it,” Hackworth said. “We want more, and we have more to improve on. It's a bonus when you can perform against a team like that.”
Bürki, with a smile, noted his happiness at beating Reus and the talented Galaxy.
“It turned out well today.”
