By Ben Wright
St. Louis CITY SC rewrote MLS history on Wednesday night.
With a 0-0 draw against Western Conference-leading Vancouver Whitecaps FC, CITY have gone 19 regular-season matches without a loss, equaling the league's all-time regular-season record. Their 21-match unbeaten streak across all competitions is the longest in MLS history, surpassing the previous record set by Red Bull New York in 2016.
St. Louis haven't lost a match since May 3, an astonishing 164 days ago.
“It’s more than a number," said head coach Yoann Damet, currently in his first year as a full-time MLS head coach. "It’s the pride in working so hard to create that momentum and to sustain it and to show consistency.
"I think this is one of the hardest things to do in sport at the professional level. There is a reason why it’s never been done before.”
Miraculous turnaround
St. Louis's turnaround this season is nothing short of jaw-dropping.
After 10 matches, they had earned just six points, sitting in 14th place in the Western Conference and facing a long climb back into postseason contention.
Now, after collecting 45 points in their next 19 matches, they've risen to second place in the West, just a single point behind Vancouver, and have emerged as a real threat in the hunt for MLS Cup presented by Audi.
While St. Louis are happy with the streak, they weren't thrilled with just a point against the 'Caps, believing that they could have taken the win at home to vault to the top of the conference.
“Top teams manage, even on a bad day, not to lose, and we did it," said defender Timo Baumgartl. “Normally Vancouver is high pressing, but they knew we can play through the press, so they were more in a mid-block.
"They closed [Rafael Navarro], which is normally a good target to play outside... When the first two in the league play each other, details make the difference.”
Playoffs up next
While their postseason spot may be officially clinched, St. Louis are refusing to take it easy. Instead, they're setting their eyes on bigger goals.
"We started not good in this season. We see where we came from," said Baumgartl. “It’s about hunting 56 points because that’s the record of the club. We want to hunt that.”
Damet, who looks destined to be in the running for the Sigi Schmid Coach of the Year award after a standout first season on the touchline, is also well aware of what his side can do.
"One of our objectives, which was to make the playoffs, has been done tonight," added Damet. "But there are still five league games to play, and we want to go for more. The two words that we’ve been using, humble and hungry, are still very important to us.”
"We have to stop limiting ourselves to what we think we can do. That was the first message on day one of the preseason, and I think today is a good proof of that.”
WATCH: St. Louis clinch playoff berth in record-setting draw