June 20, 2024 – Major League Soccer (MLS)
Colorado Rapids News Release
The Colorado Rapids (8-7-4, 28 pts.) earned all three points on the road against St. Louis CITY FC (3-6-9, 18 pts.) at CITYPARK on Wednesday night. A Djordje Mihailovic hat trick lifted his side to victory with help from a dominant performance from the back line and goalkeeper Zack Steffen to record the club’s second consecutive match with a clean sheet.
On a humid night in Missouri, the Rapids came to play in a battle against a tough St. Louis CITY SC side. Colorado would end up bringing the heat early and setting the tone for the rest of the match.
After winning the ball in the final third, the Rapids earned a throw-in, taken by defender Sebastian Anderson. The 21-year-old capitalized on the close-range throw by sending in a deep heave that took a bounce and found the head of Mihailovic, who made no mistake with the finish to put his side up in the ninth minute. Anderson’s assist on the goal was the first of his MLS career.
The Rapids continued their pressure on the St. Louis back line and created multiple high-quality chances in the final third in hopes to double the lead. The home side was limited in their first-half attack thanks to strong efforts from the Colorado defensive front.
Colorado went into the halftime break with the lead but were still hungry for more to secure a positive result on the road.
In similar fashion to the first half, the Rapids continued their dominant attacking play right from the whistle. The visitors were knocking on the door, both through their build up play and pressure applied on the St. Louis defenders. The pressure would prove to be a difference-maker, as Colorado would double their lead 15 minutes into the second half.
After forcing multiple corners, the Rapids maintained consistent possession in the final third. St. Louis goalkeeper Roman Bürki scooped up a loose ball and looked for a quick outlet throw to his wingback, but a misfire found the feet of Mihailovic, who buried it home from long range to secure his second goal of the match.
From there, the match stayed the course. Colorado maintained consistent possession while limiting St. Louis to little to no chances on net. Multiple rounds of substitutions gave the Rapids starters much-needed rest for most of the team’s second match in a four-day span.
Those substitutions proved to be impactful, with Calvin Harris drawing a penalty kick in stoppage time to put an exclamation point on the…
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