Pascal Jansen believes Nicolas Fernandez delivered a statement performance during New York City FC's 3-2 defeat to Inter Miami before the international break.
After Gonzalo Lujan had put Miami side ahead, Fernandez stepped up and crashed in an equaliser with a free-kick that thundered the underside of the crossbar.
However, despite going ahead through Agustin Ojeda in the 59th minute, goals from Lionel Messi and Micael dealt NYCFC their first MLS defeat of the campaign.
New York have taken 10 points from their opening five games of the season and are within striking distance of leaders Nashville SC ahead of their return to league action.
Jansen's team welcome St. Louis City SC to Citi Field, and the New York boss is confident Fernandez will continue to have his say for the rest of 2026 for the club.
"I think his performance in the game speaks for itself," Jansen said of Fernandez. "When you play against one of the best teams in the league, you can see his individual quality.
"From the dead-ball situation that brought us back into the game, it was unbelievable. We had a nervous start, but then Nico stepped up and got us on the scoreboard.
"That was a real statement of his quality. I see it every day in training, so it does not come to me as a surprise. Throughout the game, he gave them a really big headache."
Ready to pick it up again after the international break pic.twitter.com/XD5QOuurBA
— New York City FC (@newyorkcityfc) March 24, 2026
But New York come up against a St. Louis side who saw the international break arrive at the wrong time following their 3-1 victory over the New England Revolution.
The result marked Yoann Damet and St. Louis' first of the campaign, with Simon Becher, Chris Durkin and Marcel Hartel cancelling out Ilay Feingold's 14th-minute opener.
St. Louis remain level on points with Sporting Kansas City and the Portland Timbers at the bottom of the Western Conference, and Damet urged his players to use their maiden win of 2026 as a foundation to build on.
"It feels good," Damet said. "Mostly, I am happy for the guys and the staff. Those guys show up every day and put in the work. They believe. They are certainly improving.
"I am just happy for them. It's about them and not how I feel. It's about them believing about how good they can be and what they can do.
"Again, I don't want to minimise the result, but it's another game in our journey. I think at the same time, we need to stay level-headed and that we don't get carried away."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
NYCFC – Nicolas Fernandez
Fernandez is the first NYCFC player to record five goals through the first five games of a season and has scored in three straight home games.
He is the third NYCFC player to score in his first three home games, joining Santiago Rodriguez (2024) and Alex Ring (2020).
St. Louis City – Marcel Hartel
Against the Revolution, Hartel scored his fourth career MLS goal from outside the box, all of which have come since September 20, 2025.
The only other player with more than two outside-the-box goals in MLS regular-season play in that time is Lionel Messi (five).
MATCH PREDICTION: NYCFC WIN
This is the first time NYCFC have hosted St. Louis.
The only previous meeting between the teams was a 2-0 St. Louis win at home in March 2024.
NYCFC have also scored in all their games this season, joining San Diego FC and the Los Angeles Galaxy as the only teams to do so.
Their 13 goals are tied for second most in MLS this season (after the Vancouver Whitecaps – 14) and their most through the first five games of a season in club history.
St. Louis beat New England for their first victory of the season. It was just the team's seventh win over the last 365 year, but all those wins have featured multiple goals. St. Louis have scored multiple goals in 34 of its 37 wins across all competitions.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
NYCFC – 61.7%
Draw – 20.2%
St. Louis City – 18.1%