Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Saturday March 4, 2023 St. Louis City SC's first home game vs Charlotte FC at CITYPARK downtown St. Louis João Klauss
CITY striker João Klauss looks to make a play as he dribbles unmarked through the middle of the field. On the day he arrived in town last summer, the Brazilian told CITY head coach Bradley Carnell that he was tired of bouncing across the globe, from one team to the next. In St. Louis, Klauss hoped to find a second home.
The anguish was still visible on João Klauss’ face.
As he took a seat Monday in the CITYPARK interview room, it was clear that the past four months have been hard for the St. Louis CITY SC striker. After suffering a quad injury during the club’s match at Colorado on April 23, Klauss missed the next 16 games before returning during last weekend’s trip to Orlando. The unplanned, extended break took a toll on the 26-year-old.
“I think everyone has a lot of questions about my injury and why it took so long,” Klauss said. “So I wanted to give an explanation.”
Klauss’ goal-scoring prowess was among the highlights of the first two months of the regular season. Entering that late-April match at Colorado, he was tied for first in Major League Soccer with nine goal contributions—five goals and four assists. Then, in a matter of minutes, his season went sideways.
“It was the moment of the first goal in Colorado,” Klauss said. “I just felt burning a little bit. After walking back to the midline, it relieved the pain and I wasn’t feeling bad. But the moment I started to jog again, I felt that it wasn’t right. So I stopped immediately so that it wouldn’t get any worse.
The initial prognosis indicated that Klauss needed at least a few weeks of rest before he could work his way back into training. Ultimately, weeks turned to months as the frustrating process unfolded. There was hope that Klauss might be ready to re-join the roster in June, but a test of his quad led to a setback that shelved the striker for several more weeks.
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“It was just a little burn,” Klauss said, “so everyone expected that it wasn’t so bad and the MRIs didn’t look so bad either. After 15 days it felt normal again, so I started to move again on the field. [But] it didn’t feel right when I tried to be more intensive on the field, so we waited another 15 days.”
Rinse and repeat. It wasn’t until another MRI revealed that Klauss had suffered damage to the tendon, as well, that he and the training staff realized the extent of the injury.
“I always thought I could just go, go, go,” Klauss said. “So it’s been hard to accept that my body does have those limitations.”
Klauss’ perspective is understandable, especially when you consider that this was the first major injury of his career. Accepting that he wasn’t physically able to contribute was one of the hardest parts of the process. But Klauss did find plenty of support from those around him. CITY head coach Bradley Carnell, for one, could relate to the frustration and anxiety Klauss was feeling.
“I’ve been injured for many, many months in my career. Way too many,” Carnell said. “I think they could accumulate to years over my 18-year career. I know what it feels like when everyone tells you that your body is ready, but your mind just may not be ready. Your mind can tense up your body in a certain way, and then you pick up little things along the way. I was a prime candidate for that. I put too much tension and expectations on my shoulders. All of a sudden, I spoke myself into an injury.”
Now, Klauss says he’s both physically and mentally ready to pick up where he left off in April, while acknowledging that there will be a slight curve to navigate as he regains his form. He returned for a 12-minute cameo on Saturday in Orlando, touching the ball seven times. Though his appearance was brief, simply stepping back onto the field felt like a success. Klauss’ joy was evident as he bounded around the pitch with his unique gait, even completing a pass that pushed CITY into the final third as the club chased a late-match equalizer.
“I know that I have to do a lot yet,” Klauss said. “I’m not in the physical condition that I want to be in. I’m not maybe performing in the way I want. I just need time, to be patient, and to trust the work—trust our sports scientists. They have been doing an amazing job with me every single day. I’m doing more than the rest almost every single day. Feeling better each day.”
