It’s a question as old as the game itself: can you do it on a rainy night in Saint Paul? Few teams can claim such a feat, and as we learned tonight, RSL does not belong on that list. Minnesota United took down the Claret and Cobalt by a score of 2-0 on one of the wettest nights in recent memory, putting in a near-faultless defensive performance while finding ways to capitalize on quality chances.
Despite the return of the international Loons, the backline in front of Dayne St. Clair remained similar to last weekend, with Nicolás Romero, Morris Duggan, and Jefferson Díaz occupying the three center back spots. Joseph Rosales returned to his left wingback role opposite Bongokuhle Hlongwane, while Robin Lod slid into the midfield alongside Wil Trapp and Joaquín Pereyra. The strike-partnership of Kelvin Yeboah and Tani Oluwaseyi was back in action to complete the lineup.
A slow start to proceedings was likely due in large part to the elements, with both teams struggling to adjust and find any kind of fluidity in the opening quarter hour. Sloppy passing and slow runs showed early evidence of the relentless rain, and if that wasn’t enough, the giant puddle in front of the Wonderwall was proof enough that this game was going to take a little grit to get through, for both fans and players alike.
The pace and quality picked up after the 15th minute, spurred on by some fantastic through-balls courtesy of Robin Lod. The Finnish playmaker seemed to jumpstart the team, inspiring fellow midfielder Pereyra who began pulling strings and setting teammates up with one of the best passing displays MLS has seen in 2025. Several close calls nearly saw the Loons find the breakthrough, but it wasn’t until the 29th minute that the opening goal finally came.
After a clinical, efficient counter attack, Jefferson Díaz played a pinpoint cross into the box to find Oluwaseyi, who rose like a salmon during migration to connect perfectly, placing his headed shot into the bottom right corner of the net without giving RSL keeper Rafael Cabral any chance of saving it.
Salt Lake had relatively little to offer in response, with very few ideas leading to an almost listless and entirely harmless attack from the visitors. Long balls over the top simply didn’t work against this compact, disciplined Loons side, and backwards passes were a welcome sight for the hosts.
More of the same followed in the second half, with the added threat of long balls into wide areas for the surging Loons. Just 10 minutes into the second half, Tani made it two on the night, tucking a great left-footed finish past Cabral to double the lead and put the game to bed. RSL was already stretching to get a point, but two goals was always going to be a tough ask for what appeared to be a totally unprepared Claret and Cobalt.
Following the match, captain Wil Trapp spoke about how the weather affected the performance, and what his team did to get the result.
“Those are games where the opponent doesn’t want anything to do with it, because it’s so cold and so wet,” he said. “The important thing was scoring the first goal. Then in the second half, it’s about trying not to just rest on what we did in the first half, but try and get the second goal. Ultimately we did, and then the game just kind of wears itself out.”
The entire team put in a great shift tonight, but the efforts of the midfield three were outstanding. They forced RSL back and wide, refusing to let the opponents find any space to work with on the ball. This led to turnovers, and with the passing range of both Pereyra and Lod absolutely tearing the opposition open, it quickly became open season for Oluwaseyi and Yeboah. Tani made it five goals in his last three games, demonstrating the kind of clinical form that strikes fear into the hearts of any defense. Nicolás Romero notably had a solid 90 minutes as well in just his second start for the club, shutting down long balls and keeping composure in his 1v1 battles.
Loons Assistant Coach Dennis Lawrence also had plenty to say after the match, but wanted to send a message to the fans that braved the cold before he got to brass tacks.
“Before we talk about the match, I think we need to give a lot of credit to the fans at the end of the night,” Lawrence said. “We all saw the conditions. It was really, really cold, a horrible night in terms of weather. For the fans to turn up and stay there throughout the game? We need to give them full credit. I thought it was one of the more professional, organized performances that we’ve had this season. The boys gave a really disciplined performance, a really pleasing one, and we can give them credit for that, to a man.”
After holding their opponents to just 0.1 xG in the first half, the script for this game couldn’t have gone much better for the hosts. A few injury concerns aside, it was a brilliant night despite the weather, extending the Loons’ unbeaten run to a well-deserved five matches in a row. The Loons will look to make that six when they travel to NYCFC next week to play in a baseball stadium, with kickoff scheduled for 2:00 p.m. CT.
