Minnesota United Falls to Atlético de San Luis
MLS Minnesota United FC

Minnesota United Falls to Atlético de San Luis

August 7, 2025 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Minnesota United FC News Release


SAINT PAUL, Minn. -- Minnesota United's numerous goal chances were not converted on Wednesday night at Allianz Field, leading to an ultimate 2-0 defeat to LIGA MX side Atlético de San Luis in the Loons' final Phase One match of Leagues Cup 2025. Minnesota was eliminated from Leagues Cup 2025 Knockout Round contention with the loss, and will now shift its focus to MLS regular-season action this weekend, hosting the Colorado Rapids on Sunday, August 10.

5' - Minnesota striker Kelvin Yeboah created the first dangerous scoring attempt of the match when he found space and ran into the Atlético de San Luis penalty area from the left flank. His shot from close range hit the near post before deflecting out of the end line.

10' - San Luis forced MNUFC goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair to make his first save of the evening. Mateo Klimowicz drove the ball past the left side of Minnesota's back line, firing a shot from just inside the box, which St. Clair ultimately stopped.

45'+1' (0-1) - The LIGA MX side were first on the scoreboard. Captain Sebastian Salles-Lamonge took the corner kick, where his service fell right in place where Joao Pedro was crashing towards goal. Pedro's header found the back of the side netting to give the San Luis side the lead right before half.

64' - The Loons earned a corner kick. Midfielder Joaquín Pereyra was the one to send the service into the box. His kick landed inside the middle of the San Luis 18-yard box, where defender Jefferson Diaz took a close-range, one-time shot, but was blocked and deflected back out of bounds.

68' - Frenchman Owen Gene broke through the San Luis back line after receiving the final pass of a quick-pass sequence by the Loons. He turned toward goal and took a strike inside the penalty area, only for it to hit the right side of the netting, ultimately resulting in a goal kick.

76' - Loons' defender Anthony Markanich connected a header from a corner kick. Markanich's header screamed towards goal, where Atlético de San Luis keeper Andrés Sanchez made a diving save to keep the score 0-1 in favor of the Mexican side.

89' (0-2) - San Luis scored the second goal of the night. A long-ball over top was sent into the Minnesota defending third by Sanchez. Yan Phillipe brought it down with his body before breaking past the Loons' back line. Phillipe then passed it to an open Sebastián Pérez Bouquet, who bagged the goal in the far right corner of the net.

GOAL SUMMARY

0-1 ASL - João Pedro (Sébastien Salles-Lamonge) - 45'+1'

0-2 ASL - Sebastián Pérez Bouquet (Yan Phillipe) - 89'

DISCIPLINARY SUMMARY

ASL - Benjamín Galdames (caution) - 52'

ASL - Mateo Klimowicz (caution) - 54'

MIN - Joseph Rosales (caution) - 62'

ASL - Román Torres (caution) - 79'

ATTENDANCE: 14,607

LINEUPS:

Minnesota United XI: GK Dayne St. Clair ©; D Joseph Rosales, Morris Duggan, Jefferson Diaz (Carlos Harvey 66'), Nicolás Romero (Anthony Markanich 54'), DJ Taylor (Bongokuhle Hlongwane 54'); M Joaquín Pereyra, Robin Lod, Owen Gene (Wil Trapp 79'), Julian Gressel (Tani Oluwaseyi 54'); F Kelvin Yeboah

Substitutes Not Used: GK Alec Smir, D Michael Boxall, Kipp Keller; F Darius Randell, Loïc Mesanvi, Luke Hille

Atlético de San Luis XI: GK Andrés Sanchez; D Aldo Cruz, Daniel Guillén, Juan Ramírez, Román Torres; M Óscar Macías (Miguel García 46'), Jahaziel Marchand (Juan Manuel Sanabria 66'), Sébastien Salles-Lamonge (Rodrigo Dourado Cunha 66'), Mateo Klimowicz (Yan Phillipe 57'), Benjamín Galdames (Sebastián Pérez Bouquet 89'); F João Pedro

Substitutes Not Used: GK César López; D Julio Domínguez, Javier Suárez, Eduardo Águila; M Luis Calzadilla, Jonantan Villal; F Fidel Barajas

UP NEXT:

MINNESOTA UNITED FC vs. COLORADO RAPIDS

Allianz Field | Saint Paul, Minnesota

08.10.2025 | MLS 2025 Regular Season | Match 27

5:00 p.m. CT (MLS Season Pass, Apple TV+ / 1500 ESPN)

MINNESOTA UNITED POST GAME QUOTE SHEET

HEAD COACH ERIC RAMSAY

On tonight's match...

"Obviously focusing mostly on tonight as opposed to the Club America game, which of course contributes to our position in the table, but I think tonight we obviously showed a real lack of urgency in the first half and certainly didn't look in the opening stages in the game, a team that was desperate to score, desperate to really play with a rhythm that reflects the need to win and the need to really push. I can't look at the second half and say that that wasn't the case. I felt like we played with far more urgency. It was very clear that it was almost like watching two different teams suppose in that sense, but that is what you'd expect in a set of circumstances like that where you're attacking at the end with a real desperation to score and win, and I think we were able to spark a little bit of energy and a bit of connection between the players and the crowd through the changes that we made. But ultimately, when it takes 19 shots to get two on target, and we really lack the precision around the top of the box, then I think we could have been there for another couple of hours and perhaps would've scored so, we're obviously really disappointed with the nature of the performance. Some of the really critical moments that cost us in terms of defending our own box, the lack of precision, and the lack of real decisiveness at the other end. But the flip side of that is and this is what I have to take forward, the greater good that goes with a reduced fixture congestion, given where we are at the moment and the number of games that we've got to play. What I don't want to happen is any bad feeling to seep into how we feel about MLS, how we feel about Open Cup, and that was the message that the players had, that we have to learn, we have to get better. We have to really look at ourselves hard around some of the themes across the three games, but ultimately, I want to preserve that feeling of this being a group that is moving in the right direction."

On the team's reaction to the first goal...

"We're obviously really disappointed with marking again at set plays, and I've made the point to the guys recently that the critical moments in defending our box, they are now not just costing three points or two points. They will cost now our position in the table, our status when it comes to the playoffs, our ability to stay in tournaments, it may perhaps cost trophies, and I've talked to the players about that in the context of now we're at the business end of the season. Every moment is very decisive. So, the point at which we switch off in our man-marking responsibilities are really costly, and that's been costly over the course of the last two games. So what has to happen now is that we really learn from those moments and we fortunately had a chance to experience what has felt like two cup finals, I would say over the course of the last two games against Club America and tonight, without them being cup finals. And we've been able to hopefully learn lessons from games that feel important. And then the second goal is again really disappointing in the sense that I think a theme over the course of tonight was a lack of real conviction in the duels, and we lose two duels on the edge of the box on the halfway line, I should say. [Joseph] Rosales loses the first one. Anthony [Markanich] loses the second one, and ultimately it transpires in the second goal. So I think just that lack of conviction was a theme across a number of players over the course of the entire game and that has been really costly tonight."

On the decision to rotate the squad...

"It's my responsibility more than anyone's here to make sure we keep the sort of 15, 16 senior players that we've got at the moment in really good shape and that was obviously reflected in the team we picked in the beginning, the way in which we made changes. But, ultimately there's a bigger picture at play here is that we are in the [U.S.] Open Cup semifinal, we do have an incredibly important run of games in MLS and I want to make sure that the guys are fresh, injury free where we can possibly help it. Up until this point across those 15, 16 guys we've done a really good job in that sense and I'm very transparent with the players when they talk about that thing at the moment. I'm really prioritizing preservation, freshness, and that of course has its drawbacks but I think ultimately I'm the person that has that responsibility. I'm the only one that can make that decision, I'm hoping over the course of the coming months we feel good about some of these decisions that we've made in the same way that over the course of the early summer months we felt good about a couple of decisions we made to rotate because the greater good is the phrase I have in mind and that big picture being really important to us."

On if Atlético de San Luis' defensive tactic reminded him of Los Angeles FC's defensive strategy...

"Yeah, for sure. Some of the symptoms of tonight have been, there's been a thread through those, over the course of probably four games this season that we've played at home where we do have the luxury of dominating possession. I would say there's two, I'm off on a tangent here, but I think we have improved over the course of the last couple of months in terms of being able to get our foot on the opposition's neck and get to the top of the final third with more ease, with more control with the team together. So I think there is a progression there, but obviously with that entails smaller spaces. A much greater demand on the players on the top of the box to play with real precision, be able to give the final pass under real pressure and create in some senses what feels like nothing, and I've said that it's no secret that we've got a group of forwards that are very comfortable attacking in big spaces, but also we have players that can unlock, that can find the final pass. Tonight we didn't see that. We created, I would say 19, what felt like half chances. We may have created four or five of some note, but I wouldn't say there was anything really clear, perhaps other than Bongi's [Bongokuhle Hlongwane] chance. So there is evolution there from the perspective of how we approach those situations, how some of the individuals do, how the squad hopefully starts to look over the course of the months and the windows to come in there being real variety across that front line. I'm convinced that we will continue to improve in that sense and the players will hopefully, really relish that challenge to be better in those situations because ultimately it's an enjoyable situation to be in where you're attacking relentlessly and you have a real opportunity to show yourself as a player that can go and decide a game, and unfortunately that's not been the case tonight."

On the team knowing other teams' scores before taking the field...

"I mean it's incredibly difficult to progress and I think depending on how that Portland game is now going - Portland were winning it at one point and it was looking as though almost our result tonight would have been largely irrelevant anyway, assuming that one of two teams goes to win tomorrow. There is very little margin for error in this format, and I'd sent the team out tonight with a message that ultimately, first and foremost, it was about winning the game and not getting drawn into chasing multiple goals very quickly because I felt like that could be a really unhealthy message to go and give the players, given that it's not, it's so it's such an abnormal thing to ask of the team, And, and ultimately I felt like we did enough to win the game by multiple goals, But the nature of the tournament means that that sort of thing is of course hanging over players' heads, and there is a strange feel I suppose once you get to this point with lots of dead games, lots of teams that are playing for very little, and then and then other teams that are playing with real conviction and desperation, but we've not been able to use that to our advantage tonight, so it's, it's certainly no excuse and we have the platform to do what we needed to do tonight and I include winning by multiple goals in that sense."

MIDFIELDER ROBIN LOD

On his thoughts on the tournament...

"I mean of course it's a disappointment. Before this night we were in three different competitions that we are fighting for and it's something we are eager to win something and prove that we are a team that is capable of that one. Of course tonight hurts us in the sense that we are out of the [2025] Leagues Cup, but now we don't have that many games, we're in the last stretch of games in MLS and that is something that we need to take advantage of and show that we are hungry."

On the issues defending set pieces in the second half...

"We empathize on that thing before the game, that set pieces are important, especially knowing us, we've been in set pieces really good through the whole year. So, it's a really disappointing way to lose that crucial point in this competition [2025 Leagues Cup]."

On the difficulty of breaking teams down that sit back in their half...

"Yes and no. It's better in the first half, also in the second half we dominated the game. In the end, it's those moments that when we get to the final third we start to make the right decisions, but the final pass, the final action needs to be more precise. We had a lot of shots denied but not many on goal and that's something we need to work out and [put] more emphasis on that."

On if the team is looking for any additions to the squad during the summer transfer window...

"I don't know. You know that the group we have is strong enough that we have showed so far this year that we are more than capable to win something with this club and it's more of a club decision if they are going to bring players or not."

On focusing on MLS and the U.S. Open Cup...

"We can all be disappointed tonight but as tomorrow comes we need to forget this one because we can't look at the past, there's nothing we can change in this competition. As you said, we are still fighting in the league [MLS] and the competition going into the playoffs and we have the U.S. Open Cup. Now this team is even more hungry to go [play] in those ones because we lost tonight."

On looking at how the tournament is set up...

"Before the tournament, if you think about it, only four teams go to [the semifinals] and there's 18 teams. Even if in some scenarios you win all three games and get through, it's really tough, but there's nothing the players can do about it. In the end, the four best teams are deserving to be there, can't complain."

On the ability to keep the identity of the team but adapting to the opponent...

"Coming into the game, the focus was to win the game and see where we are because you can't go into the game and think we need to score four goals or five goals because then you lost the focus of winning the game. Today we were just focusing on winning the game and see how it goes in the end and where we are, but it's stupid to think about it now."

MIDFIELDER JOAQUÍN PEREYRA

On reaction to tonight's elimination from Leagues Cup...

"Sadness. Frustration. We knew we were depending on ourselves and today we had a match where we couldn't find ourselves. We didn't know how to be the team that we are and that played against [Club] América. Although we generated attacking threats against them, we didn't have the intensity that we needed for this game. We knew that we needed to win and score a lot of goals, but we weren't able to do so today."

On what the issues were in front of goal even though the team was creating chances...

"It was knowing that we had to score a lot of goals. We knew that this is a tournament that requires [teams to score] many goals because they are worth more than points. We know goals qualify you to the next round. We didn't have patience because of that and we rushed the whole game with the desire to score two or three goals and we were attacking without thinking. We didn't have the patience that we usually have and we also didn't defend as well as we normally do. We are one of the best defensive teams in the league and we didn't do that tonight either, with two or three chances towards our goal, they were able to score. So, we are leaving very sad because we wanted to continue [in Leagues Cup]. We know are doing well in [Lamar Hunt U.S.] Open and in the regular season, but we also wanted to advance in this tournament too because it's also important."

On if it was difficult to stay patient because the team needed to score a lot of goals to advance...

"Yes, it was difficult. We didn't stay patient at any point [during the game]. We played a match that felt rushed, entered the field knowing that Orlando was up 5-0, so it was a culmination of things that made us lose our composure. We knew that we had to score goals, but we should have focused on maintaining our score, getting a win. If goals are important, a win would have at least had us waiting on other teams' scores to see if we would advance. But we can't allow this loss at home against a rival that I honestly think is inferior to us. At home, we have to be strong and never lose."

On what he can personally take away from Leagues Cup and what was missing from this match...

"We had two good matches. I thought we deserved to win the game against [Club] América. We did a lot more than our opponent, but that's football. They tied it up in the final minutes of the game and we ended up losing in the penalty shootout. It's details like that that if we want to compete in these tournaments, we have to adjust and be a team that is compact, competitive in those situations because a lot more is expected from teams in games against big rivals than in MLS. We have to be calm and turn the page and focus on MLS again as well as the [Lamar Hunt U.S.] Open Cup because there are two big matches coming up to win a trophy, if all goes well. The game today left an impression that doesn't represent us as a team and we are going to try to quickly forget about it."

On if the players talk about needing to add players to the roster...

"No, we don't talk about it because it's not our business. We have to dedicate ourselves to playing, responding, doing what our head coach asks us to do, helping each other on the field. If there are new players, that's the club's job. We have no part in that and that's why we don't get involved. We know that we have a competitive team that has two or three players per position who can do the job right. We have been able to demonstrate that in MLS and although we are a bit upset today, we can't let this tournament tarnish what we are doing in MLS. But as I was saying, it's not our job to talk about other players, we are here to follow the coach's orders and try to do our best in these tournaments."

On the Leagues Cup format...

"I, sincerely, didn't find out about the format until after the first match. The whole time, I thought we were in a group with just Club América, Querétaro F.C. and Atlético de San Luis. To only have four MLS teams advance, and I know it's the same for Liga MX, but a lot is expected from the teams. You need to win all three games to be able to be safe. Obviously, the other teams study you and then you have teams like today, [Atlético de] San Luis came to defend themselves and they scored some goals. The format is a bit weird because with the points and goals that we had, if it was the top team to advance out of the group, we would have advanced. But with only four teams advancing there is less margin for error and we made some mistakes last game that took away the win and then tonight we also made some mistakes. But that's also something that I can't control."

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