Austin FC defender gifts St Louis City "funniest goal ever" in opening MLS game

27 February 2023 , 15:37

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Kipp Keller passed the ball straight to St Louis City striker Jared Stroud

St Louis City SC forward Jared Stroud was bizarrely assisted by an opposition player on Saturday night - and it's been branded as the "funniest goal ever" online.

The newest Major League Soccer franchise played their first league game on Saturday, and managed to kick things off with a stunning 3-2 win against Austin FC. After initially taking the lead, St Louis found themselves 2-1 down before being handed a brain fade to find a route back into the game.

Kipp Keller had a major lapse in concentration and was seen passing the ball straight to Stroud, who was left with a simple one-on-one to shoot at and get St Louis back into the game. It was a freak error with no real explanation, and fans have found it very amusing.

Stroud was a former Austin player, but switched sides to join the new MLS franchise and become their main man. Keller clearly forgot his former team-mate was now wearing white and not green, and simply gave him the ball in front of his own goal.

Commentators, fans, and both teams were stunned by the error, and to make matters worse Austin went on to lose the game despite leading at the time. St Louis tweeted out a video of the freak goal, with a small dig at their opposition as they wrote: "Stroud back in Austin".

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One fan responded: "Funniest goal ever." Another was extremely confused, as they said: "I can’t get over the fact that this man Kipp Keller took 3 touches forward, stepped on it, turned back towards his goal and passed it straight to Stroud."

Stroud was clearly in an offside position, but as the ball was deliberately played by Keller, the goal was completely legal despite initial complaints by some players. The commentary team covering the game did their best to explain the goal, despite clearly being shocked by the questionable play.

"It's a horrible mistake," commentators said. "Great here from Keller, as he looks to pass the ball back and Stroud - yes he's in an offside position but it's a deliberate play from Keller.

"So given that, Stroud then - it's fair play. He's onside and doesn't he take this well. Against his old club. He's got all the time in the world."

It's a clip that Keller will not want to watch back, but given it's gone viral it'll be hard to miss. Keller will certainly think twice before passing back in the future, especially if his former team-mates are around.

Joseph McBride