Strikers deal in confidence. João Klauss knows this as well as anyone at his position.
It had been a quiet start to the season for the St. Louis CITY SC attacker, who entered last weekend’s showdown against D.C. United without a goal contribution in 10 consecutive matches dating to his brace against Sporting Kansas City last September.
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He needed a boost—and he got it on Saturday.
Klauss’ scoring drought ended when he converted on his first penalty attempt in MLS, booting the ball into the back of the net in the 70th minute to help CITY earn a point and remain undefeated in the 2-2 draw against D.C.
“As a striker, everybody expects that they score goals every single game,” Klauss said. “It’s not possible.”
Klauss, of course, is correct. He can’t score every game. Few, if any, can. To his credit, the Brazilian did so many of the little things well during his scoreless spell early this year. He finds himself in the 92nd percentile of progressive passing among MLS forwards, while also ranking toward the top of his position group in tackles, interceptions, and clearances. CITY head coach Bradley Carnell has appreciated his star striker’s strong work rate, though he has given the nod to another striker, Sam Adeniran, a few times as the season has gotten underway.
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“I think he’s been working his tail off to try to get in moments,” Carnell said, “I think we dominated much of the proceedings [Saturday], and so it’s massive for Klauss to get into good spots. He’s got his fitness back, you can see. He doesn’t stop working for the 90 minutes and he’s a real menace up top. He’s working his way back, and the harder you work, you know your game is in better situations.”
Klauss was rewarded for his hard work on Saturday. Starting alongside Adeniran, Klauss received his best opportunity yet to find the net after teammate Célio Pompeu went down in the box midway through the second half. An undercurrent of intensity pulsed through CITYPARK as Klauss stepped to the spot for his first penalty attempt, and after a clean and deceptive stutter, the 27-year-old sent the ball past D.C. keeper Alex Bono to tie the game.
“It works very well in training,” Klauss said of the stutter.
As the crowd erupted, Klauss bathed in relief.
“It’s a good feeling,” he said.
Carnell succinctly summarized the emotion of the moment, saying afterwards: “Massive.”
It was a well-earned payoff for Klauss, who eagerly accepted thankless defensive tasks as he awaited his chance to strike, making him the ideal striker in Carnell’s system. The goal provided him with a jolt of momentum. Now, he needs to carry it forward.
With one goal and a little confidence at his back, anything feels possible.
