Minnesota United shuts out Necaxa 1-0 behind record 16 saves from Dayne St. Clair

For the second time in as many Leagues Cup games, Minnesota United finished the night with only 10 men.

Luckily for the Loons, one of those 10 was Dayne St. Clair, who saved Minnesota with a goalkeeping performance for the ages.

The Loons beat Necaxa 1-0, and St. Clair made 16 saves, setting a team and Leagues Cup record. Given that the MLS record for a league game is 16, and given that half a dozen of St. Clair’s stops were highlight-reel efforts, fans might have to say it was one of the greatest performances ever by an MLS goalkeeper.

In hockey, your best penalty killer is your goalie, or so says the cliché. Perhaps it’s fitting, then, with Mexican club Necaxa on what was effectively a 70-minute power play, Minnesota’s Canadian goalkeeper turned in a Vezina Trophy-worthy performance.

“Probably,” St. Clair said when asked if it was the best performance of his career. “Before that, it was probably the New York Red Bulls where my back was against the wall. I lost track of saves, but [PR director Eric] Durkee told me it was 16, so that’s a pretty good accomplishment.”

Said teammate Robin Lod, “Maybe the easiest way to say it is that that was one of the best individual performances I’ve seen at Allianz Field, so that was incredible for him.”

The red-carded culprit this time for the Loons was rookie center back Hugo Bacharach, who got caught a step behind Necaxa winger Ricardo Monreal only 20 minutes into the match. Bacharach tried to make a slide tackle from behind, but got his timing wrong, missing the ball and taking out the player as the forward steamed in on goal — a textbook example of a red card for being the last defender.

It came after the Loons had taken an early lead, from the penalty spot. Only six minutes in, right back Loïc Mesanvi drove into the area and was bumped off the ball. Referee Sergio Reyna had a good look and declined to call the foul, but at the next stoppage in play, the video assistant referee encouraged him to take a second look.

On review, Reyna awarded the Loons the penalty, and — after three more minutes of arguing, this being a typical cross-border encounter — Lod slotted the penalty home, giving his team a 1-0 lead.

Necaxa thought it had tied the score five minutes after halftime, as Diber Cambindo headed home a cross from Kevin Rosero. The assistant referee’s flag was up, though, signaling that the ball had cleared the end line before Rosero could cross it — and replays showed that if the ball had in fact crossed the line by millimeters.

The Liga MX visitors hit the post in the second half as well, but in the end, the shutout was no more than St. Clair deserved.

The victory means Minnesota needs to wait until Sunday to find out if they move onto the Leagues Cup knockout rounds. The Loons would qualify unless Necaxa beats Seattle in regulation, in which case the tiebreakers — goal difference, then total goals scored — would come into play.

The Loons extended their undefeated record against Liga MX in the Leagues Cup as well. The Loons now have wins over Puebla, Toluca (in a shootout), and Necaxa, and might be hoping to draw Chivas — instead of the other MLS possibilities, San Jose and the LA Galaxy — should they qualify for the knockout round.

Loons striker Tani Oluwaseyi left in the second half after coming up lame during a sprint. Oluwaseyi grabbed the back of his leg, went down to the ground, and immediately signaled to the bench for a substitution, the universal sign for a player that pulled his hamstring.