Olof Mellberg wants his St. Louis City team to be unpredictable in his first season at the helm, with the club's ownership demanding a playoff run.

St. Louis host the Colorado Rapids in their first game of the MLS campaign this weekend, having hired former Sweden defender Mellberg following a half-season under interim coach John Hackworth.

They finished 12th in the Western Conference last year, but Mellberg is hoping they can catch their rivals napping in 2025.

"We definitely want to be an unpredictable team and a surprising team," Mellberg said in a pre-season press conference. 

"You know, we like to have direct attacks and to get in behind the opponents, and that is something we are working on."

Mellberg will not get a grace period, though, with owner Carolyn Kindle saying St. Louis' aim is always to make the postseason.

"The expectation for 2025 is we will make the playoffs," Kindle told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "There's no waiver. That is the expectation.

"We've said from day one that we want to be a playoff-quality team every year. When you don't make the playoffs, you really do have to do a deep dive on: 'What do we need to do differently? 

"I think that everybody — whether it's sporting or business — took the time and really did that deep dive."

Colorado were one of the teams that made the playoffs ahead of St. Louis last year, finishing seventh in the West in their first season under Chris Armas.

They were crushed 9-1 on aggregate by eventual MLS Cup champions LA Galaxy in the playoffs, but Wednesday's 2-1 win over Los Angeles FC – in the first leg of their CONCACAF Champions Cup tie – suggested they could build on that performance this year.

"It was a pretty smooth transition and it was just straight back to what we worked on last year," Armas said of his approach to his second year in charge.

"Obviously there was some sour taste in our mouth from the way that the season ended, so it's just about getting back and trying to raise the standards."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

St. Louis City – Cedric Teuchert 

Teuchert recorded a team-high nine goal contributions (five goals, four assists) despite playing in just 10 matches for St. Louis in 2024, after his mid-season arrival.

That saw him equal the fewest games played by a player who led a team in goal contributions in any MLS season (Clint Mathis for the MetroStars in 2001, Danny Koevermans for Toronto FC in 2011).

Colorado Rapids – Djordje Mihailovic

With 11 goals and 12 assists last season, Mihailovic became the first Rapids player to record 10 goals and 10 assists in a single MLS campaign. 

Mihailovic's 23 goal contributions in 2024 equalled the most by a Rapids player in a single regular season (alongside Diego Rubio in 2022).

MATCH PREDICTION – ST. LOUIS CITY WIN

Colorado collected 50 points in 2024 after totalling just 27 in the 2023 campaign. 

That 23-point jump is the largest year-over-year improvement by the Rapids in their MLS history (excluding the shortened 2020 season), surpassing a 21-point bounce from 2015 to 2016.

The Rapids also won both meetings with St. Louis last season, outscoring them 7-1 in those matches, after City took four points (W1 D1) off Colorado in two meetings in 2023.

However, St. Louis have a reputation as fast starters, going unbeaten in matches prior to March 30 in each of their first two MLS seasons, recording six wins and four draws in their opening five matches of those campaigns overall.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

St. Louis City – 47.2% 

Colorado Rapids – 26.5%

Draw – 26.3%