Decision Day

Minnesota United gets home playoff game thanks to old star Christian Ramirez

Christian Ramirez – Houston Dynamo – goal celebration

Christian Ramirez hasn’t played for Minnesota United in over a year, but the mutual admiration is clearly still very strong.


Ramirez, who was traded to LAFC in August 2018 and then to the Houston Dynamo last Aug. 7, bagged a brace in a 4-2 win over the LA Galaxy on Decision Day presented by AT&T.


His starring role in defeating the Galaxy, ensured the Loons secured the No. 4 seed in the Audi 2019 MLS Cup Playoffs, despite Minnesota’s 1-0 loss at the Seattle Sounders. That seeding granted Allianz Field with a home postseason match in its debut season, as Minnesota will host the No. 5-seeded Galaxy on Oct. 19 or 20.


Head coach Adrian Heath was clearly in a thankful mood, even after defeat.

Ramirez, who had 21 goals across 50 matches for Minnesota in MLS following a sterling career with the Loons in NASL, caught wind of the sentiment and joined in on the social media fun. He’ll pass up on the wine, and instead has a simple request: reunite Superman (Ramirez) and Batman (Miguel Ibarra).

The banter didn’t stop there, as Ramirez was keenly aware of the role he played in Minnesota’s postseason destiny. Perhaps he’ll make a trip back to Allianz Field for the Galaxy match?

Since being traded to Houston, Ramirez has tallied five goals and one assist through 10 matches. Combined with his time at LAFC, Ramirez finished the 2019 regular season with nine goals for the second straight year.