St. Louis City will look to halt an early five-match winless run on Sunday when they host an Austin FC side that has won back-to-back matches.
The St. Louis slide is a mild one, with the second-year club playing to a draw in four of its past five matches.
But the inability to turn one point into three can't continue for St. Louis manager Bradley Carnell as his team looks to build on last year's first-place finish in the Western Conference.
One major difference has been the form of striker Joao Klauss, who has only one goal despite an abundance of chances. He began his MLS career in 2023, scoring five goals in his first five matches for St. Louis (1-1-5, eight points), but he has struggled to open the 2024 campaign.
"Oftentimes, you get that one moment and that one moment changes everything," Carnell said. "Usually when that happens, they become a very dangerous specimen on the field of play when it's going for them, right?
"So when it's not, what are you doing? You're showing extra video, you're getting extra sessions on the field after training, you're sending them clips of encouragement. So I think we've invested everything. It's just a matter of time because I'd be more worried if Klauss was not getting chances."
Klauss could also benefit from the return of attacking midfielder Eduard Lowen, who trained fully this week after missing his side's previous four matches.
Sunday marks the second meeting of the season between St. Louis City and Austin (2-2-3, nine points) after the sides drew 2-2 in Texas on March 9.
The Verde have improved since that last head-to-head, earning back-to-back home victories after going winless in their first three. Most recently, Austin rallied from a two-goal deficit for a 4-3 win over the San Jose Earthquakes on April 6 thanks to Sebastian Driussi's tally in the 11th minute of second-half stoppage time.
It was Driussi's second goal of the match.
Austin FC manager Josh Wolff has yet to earn a win in three all-time meetings against St. Louis, and he expects another difficult test on Sunday.
"The important part is the mentality of how you go into that game," Wolff said. "Going to St. Louis is a challenge. Watching them play against Dallas and against LA Galaxy, they're a formidable team. They stress you in a lot of ways and you have to be able to answer that side of it first and foremost."
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