Last July, while taking stock of his St. Louis CITY SC roster ahead of the summer transfer window, sporting director Lutz Pfannenstiel made a bold statement.
He was talking about Joakim Nilsson, the injured center back who, to that point, had not played a single game in St. Louis while recovering from a knee injury. Because he had been sidelined, it was hard to know exactly what Nilsson would bring when he joined the lineup. But that didn’t stop Pfannenstiel from predicting big things from the Swede.
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“Joakim Nilsson is coming back soon,” Pfannenstiel said that day. “He’s one of the best defenders in MLS, if you ask me.”
It was an eye-opening assessment of a player who, at least locally, would remain a bit of a mystery for some time. While Nilsson did, eventually, get back to action, debuting for CITY on August 21, by the end of the season, it wasn’t clear yet whether Pfannenstiel’s claim was based on wisdom or wishful thinking.
But on Saturday night at CITYPARK, Nilsson finally had the kind of performance he—and CITY—had been waiting so long to see.
Nilsson excelled in the club’s 2-0 win over New York City FC, helping CITY lock down the defensive third and preserve a clean sheet for goalkeeper Roman Bürki in the team’s first victory of the MLS regular season. Nilsson was outstanding, earning recognition from the league as part of its Team of the Matchday.
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After several frustrating months of recovering from his knee injury, Nilsson had the kind of night that backed up his boss’ assessment.
“To see him coming out on top like this [on Saturday] is an indication and a reflection of exactly why we signed him,” CITY head coach Bradley Carnell said after the game. “He’s had a stuttered time with us, but to finally get to see him in a string of games, getting him strong, getting him healthy, I feel that the curve is trending in the right way for Joakim.”
It’s understandable if you weren’t sure what to expect from Nilsson prior to Saturday night. He left Tuesday’s Concacaf Champions Cup contest at Houston moments before halftime when he went down with what Carnell characterized as tension in his glute. Midweek reports out of training indicated that Nilsson avoided an injury that would keep him out of the lineup, though you’d be forgiven for wondering if he might be a player who—for whatever reason—might struggle to avoid bad-luck injuries.
Nilsson not only played 90 minutes against NYCFC, he turned in an elite and complete effort. It all felt like a long time coming for Nilsson, who missed a chunk of the team’s training camp to fly home to Sweden to obtain his green card. After so many starts and stops to begin his brief CITY career, Nilsson enjoyed a match that finally allowed him to demonstrate his potential in North America.
“I didn’t have the preseason I hoped for, and with a tight schedule I’ve been playing and the things that are going on with our center backs, I’ve been needing to play more minutes,” Nilsson said. “… Today, I felt fresh again.”
He certainly looked like it. Nilsson finished with eight clearances, and filled his position well on a few long runs back to CITY’s defensive third. After the match, Nilsson was pleased to report that he felt increasingly better as the game progressed.
Carnell said the team knew by Friday that both Nilsson and his defensive partner Tim Parker would be able to play in Saturday night’s match; a boon for a team whose defensive depth has already been tested two weeks into the campaign. Having both Nilsson and Parker able to provide a veteran presence to the back line—and do so together—also felt like an enticing preview of what CITY can expect from its defense as the season unfolds.
“We gained a lot [on Saturday night],” Carnell said.
That includes affirmation of exactly how good Nilsson can be in this league.
