Sang Bin Jeong came off the bench in the second half to score a brace and Robin Lod also scored to lead Minnesota United to a 4-1 Decision Day victory over St. Louis City on Saturday night in Saint Paul, Minn.
Tani Oluwaseyi had two assists and Kelvin Yeboah picked up his first career MLS assist for Minnesota United (15-12-7, 52 points), which finished in sixth place in the Western Conference with their seventh win in their last 10 matches (7-2-1). Dayne St. Clair finished with four saves for the Loons, who will play third-place Real Salt Lake in the best-of-three first round of the MLS Cup playoffs.
Marcel Hartel scored a goal, Roman Burki made two saves and Henry Keesler had an own goal for St. Louis City (8-13-13, 37 points), which finished 1-8-8 in road matches, tied with FC Dallas for fewest road wins in MLS.
Minnesota had nine shot attempts while taking a 1-0 first-half lead, with Burki making a diving save near the left post to deny Joseph Rosales’ right-footed shot from the middle of the box in the 17th minute. But four minutes later, Lod broke down the middle of the field and took a long through pass from Yeboah and sent a left-footed shot inside the left post for his seventh goal of the season.
St. Louis had a pair of scoring chances later in the half but came away empty-handed. The first came on a long curling right-footed shot outside the box by Cedric Teuchert that skimmed off the outside of the far post. Joao Klauss was later denied by St. Clair on a sharp-angled right-footed shot from the edge of the six-yard box.
Jeong made it 2-0 in the 72nd minute when he booted a right-footed shot into an open right side of the goal off a crossing pass from Franco Fragapane.
St. Louis cut it to 2-1 just three minutes later when Hartel skidded a right-footed shot from the top of the box inside the left post for his third goal, snapping a 480-minute shutout streak by the Loons.
But Minnesota extended the lead to 3-1 in the 78th minute when Kessler headed a crossing pass from Rosales into his own net.
Jeong then made it 4-1 in the 83rd minute when he tapped in Oluwaseyi’s pass inside the far post for his sixth goal.
–Field Level Media
