COMMERCE CITY, Colo. — The Colorado Rapids (2-9-8, 14 pts) go on the road to face St. Louis CITY SC (10-7-2, 32 pts) at CITYPARK this Saturday, July 1, for Matchday 22 (6:30 p.m. MT; Apple TV – MLS Season Pass, Altitude Sports Radio 92.5 FM).
Last Saturday, the Rapids played their first match in 14 days following an extended break due to the postponement of their June 21st match against Vancouver because of inclement weather. In their return to action, Colorado hosted the LA Galaxy in a scoreless draw that saw goalkeeper William Yarbrough make a later fingertip save to preserve a clean sheet, the 31st of his career. The two-time Liga MX champion currently holds the club record for most clean sheets, which he set earlier this season.
The Rapids will be welcoming back defender Lalas Abubakar and winger Braian Galván as both players are returning from red card suspension. Midfielder Bryan Acosta (Honduras) and rookie defender Moïse Bombito (Canada) will be unavailable, as both players have been called up to their respective national teams for the Concacaf Gold Cup this month.
In their inaugural season, St. Louis CITY SC are currently leading the Western Conference with a conference-high 10 wins after beating the San Jose Earthquake, 2-1, last weekend. With the result, the club became the second-fastest expansion team to reach 10 wins. Forward Sam Adeniran scored a brace in the win, opening the scoring in the first half and later converting the game-winning penalty in the second half after San Jose had equalized. St. Louis is now undefeated (8-0-2) when scoring first and their offense is currently tied for second in the league with 37 goals. Forward Nicholas Gioacchini leads the team with eight goals on the season, tied for eighth most in the league. Forward João Klauss and midfielder Eduard Löwen have both added five goals apiece, while Löwen leads the team in assists with six. Goalkeeper Roman Bürki leads MLS in saves with 76, after an eight-save performance last Saturday.
The two sides had their first ever meeting back in April, which resulted in a 1-1 draw after a stoppage-time goal from Rapids forward Michael Barrios rescued a point. Barrios’ goal marked his 12th with the club, all of which have been scored in the second half of a match. St. Louis’ Bürki recorded a career-high 12 saves in that match to stifle an aggressive Rapids’ attack before Barrios scored the equalizer. Midfielder Ralph Priso tallied his first assist as a member of the Rapids, alongside forward Diego Rubio, who found his 24th assist with the franchise. The Chilean striker currently sits in eighth for most assists in club history.
