Tomas Totland is going to play a significant role in St. Louis CITY SC’s 2024 season.
He was CITY sporting director Lutz Pfannenstiel’s top target this past offseason, a wingback with a well-rounded skill set who has looked like a top-flight defender while playing in some of Europe’s toughest competitions.
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“I had the Europa League match in December and pretty much came right into preseason,” says. “I talked with Lutz about the style he and Bradley [Carnell] like to play, and it seemed like a perfect fit.”
Now, as CITY’s season enters its second week, Totland is eager to show exactly how he can elevate the club’s level in its second season. So far, Totland looks like a prototypical Bradley Carnell player. He’s a rangy wingback who can control the ball in a phone booth, and gives the CITY head coach coverage out wide that Carnell could only have imagined during the team’s 2023 season.
Totland’s fit with Carnell’s system goes beyond his obvious love of direct play. The 24-year-old Norwegian has settled in quickly with his teammates, particularly enjoying the Scandinavian kinship he’s found in the CITY dressing room. “It’s a great group of guys from all different cultures,” Totland says. “I also have some Scandinavian guys that have made the adjustment easier.”
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During the preseason, Totland’s play teased his potential as a key resource in progressing the ball down the pitch, while also covering the vulnerabilities that opposing clubs exploited out wide last season. It should be no surprise, then, that Totland started both matches during Week 1 of CITY’s 2024 season, joining Roman Bürki and Anthony Markanich as the only players to stay on the pitch over 180 minutes.
Meanwhile, Totland’s ease in adjusting to life in St. Louis can also be credited to his growing chemistry with Célio Pompeu. The wide players are already providing glimpses of a well-tuned partnership on the wings. It’s also becoming evident that their rapport stems from their relationship away from the field.
“There are a lot of good players on this team, and the hunger in the first team really surprised me coming in,” Totland said at the club’s recent media day. Pompeu sat next to him, his ears perking up as Totland spoke.
“Good players like this guy right here,” Pompeu interjected, drawing a laugh out of Totland. “That’s why we sat together; there’s good vibes.”
Totland, of course, won’t be able to play every minute of every match. But his drive to compete and approach to the game have him quickly acclimating to the way CITY wants to play. Carnell asks his wingbacks to push forward, cutting off the lanes out wide before a buildup can occur. That’s something Totland feels like can do seamlessly. “The way that I’m being asked to defend—the forward defending—is very natural to me,” he says.
Sure, it’s still very early in Totland’s MLS career, and it’ll be interesting to follow his adjustments over the course of a long MLS season. But the initial returns have been very positive, illustrating that he’s fitting in just fine with his new club.
And in short order, he might just become another St. Louis favorite.
