The question rumbled around St. Louis CITY SC for months.
It even persisted as they stacked result after result this summer, building a 19-game unbeaten streak across all competitions before visiting the LA Galaxy for this weekend’s Sunday Night Soccer presented by Continental Tire clash (7 pm ET | Apple TV).
Where’s the DP striker?
First-year head coach Yoann Damet crafted a sturdy foundation, his press-and-possess game model making St. Louis fun to watch and tough to beat. Yet even amid a career year from current leading scorer Simon Becher, the project felt incomplete without a high-grade capstone, especially after two of the club's most prolific attackers and recognizable figures, Marcel Hartel and Eduard Löwen, departed in August. Large swathes of the fanbase grew restless.
Club-record deal
Sporting director Corey Wray’s answer arrived in the final days of the MLS summer transfer window: a lanky, crafty Brazilian with several trophies and a consistent record of productivity. Yet this Designated Player didn’t touch down from Rio de Janeiro, but Denver – a record-setting cash-for-player trade (just north of $12 million) with the Colorado Rapids for Rafael Navarro.
It was a statement of intent from St. Louis and their owners. And the player himself, too.
“It means a lot to me, because I like to be among the greats. I work hard for that, you know?” Navarro told MLSsoccer.com with a grin this week, speaking during a one-on-one interview in Spanish, his second language. “So I like having that price tag.”
Big dollar amounts tend to come with lofty expectations. That’s a pro, not a con for this 26-year-old, who’s battled for that sort of respect for much of his career and embraces everything about being the ‘face of the franchise’ in St. Louis.
“I know it happened because I’m doing my job well, so I enjoy it,” Navarro said of the landmark transaction that brought him to the Midwest. “I know that I can improve more.
“For sure, it’s an honor … I know what my responsibilities are, what my job is, what my game is. I think there’s pressure, but I’m used to playing with pressure. I played in Brazil.”
Early days
Navarro has spent most of his life working towards a stage like this. He was only 13 when he left his home in Cabo Frio, a beach town about 100 miles east of Rio de Janeiro, to seek his fortune in soccer, initially to study in the youth system of Brazilian powerhouse Fluminense.
“I grew up quickly. I was 13, but I had to have an adult mentality,” he explained. “My life has always been like that.
“That’s why I developed my mentality at an early age. I feel very good about that; it helped me a lot.”
Cabo Frio is a tourist zone, with ample nightlife and miles of picturesque white-sand beaches. But young Rafa learned to grind early on, which may help explain why he’s now one of MLS's most defensively-committed forwards.
“My dad left early every morning for work and would come back at night. The same with my mother,” he recalled. “By the time I was an adult, they were separated; I split my time between them. We were happy with what we had, but now, thank God, I can give them both a better life.”
Brazil to MLS
Navarro charted a dogged climb up the Brazilian pyramid, from Fluminense to Atlético Goianiense to Botafogo, where his 15g/9a led the Fogão to a Série B title, and back into the top division after relegation in 2021. That earned him a move to São Paulo giants Palmeiras, 12-time Brazilian Série A champions.
There he won titles, contributed to a run to the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup final and learned a great deal from respected Portuguese manager Abel Ferreira, working alongside cracks like Endrick, now a rising starlet at Real Madrid.
But regular minutes were hard to come by on such a stacked squad. He craved more, and was intrigued when the Rapids came calling in 2023. MLS turned out to be a hospitable setting for Navarro’s sharp pressing, clever movement and finishing instincts. He led the Rapids in scoring with 15g/5a in league play as Colorado returned to the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs in 2024, maintaining a comparable pace even as the team’s results backslid last year.
That well-roundedness drew Wray and Damet's attention as they shopped for a spearhead to advance STL's rebuild, which was on a promising trajectory but in need of further infusions of quality. And while many observers around MLS expected Navarro to eventually be lured back home by one of Brazil’s big clubs, or perhaps to Europe, he felt at home in the United States and drawn to CITY SC’s pitch.
“It’s been a very good experience for me,” Navarro said. “I enjoy the league, which is getting better and better, and all the big-name players who have come here, like Messi, Lewandowski, Antoine Griezmann, Thomas Müller. So MLS is a very good league.
“The culture, the pitches, the competition, they’re a little different. But I’ve been treated very well. I also like the city a lot. I like living here. I enjoy the life I live.”
Ideal fit
With its high tempo and bold approach to possession play, Damet’s system is inspired by the one his former boss, Wilfried Nancy, oversaw with the Columbus Crew en route to MLS Cup 2023 and Leagues Cup 2024 titles (with Wray a key architect of the roster). Carry the comparison further, and Navarro might become St. Louis CITY's version of Cucho Hernández, the Crew’s Best XI striker during those campaigns.
“He's a great addition to the group,” said Damet during Navarro’s first weeks in St. Louis. “On and off the ball, he's very, very good – he's one of the forwards that presses the most in the league. He's scoring goals, he's working for the team, he's selfless, so everything we like to have and everything that we have been doing as well with the team.”
As intricate as the French coach's game model is, Navarro has slotted in smoothly, notching 5g/1a in his first five matches.
“We press to score, we press all over the pitch to win the ball back. That’s why I think we’re doing so well,” said Navarro, noting the video sessions and other prep work that’s fashioned St. Louis into such a well-oiled machine. “The system suits us perfectly because it demands a lot of effort from everyone.
“[Arriving] midway through a season is hard, but [Damet] has had a lot of patience with me; he’s helped me a lot. He always speaks to me, which has helped me be able to do what he wants from me.”
Chasing titles
Navarro, combined with fellow summer reinforcements Carlo Holse and Alex Mățan, plus Becher’s continued excellence, has powered STL's ascension into a higher gear.
CITY SC have climbed to second place in the Western Conference and are just three points behind longtime leaders Vancouver Whitecaps FC as the regular season enters its final weeks. They’ll also visit Columbus for the US Open Cup final later this month, a huge chance to hoist the first trophy in club history, though Navarro is cup-tied for that one.
“We set out to raise the floor in December and create a good core group of guys that we can compete with,” Wray said at Navarro’s introductory press conference. “We said we would address the ceiling as much as we can in this window if we found the right players.
“I feel like we're on track, and I've delivered what we said we would. I think ultimately that's super important as we build out this team, that we're able to do what we say we want to do.”
Settled in his new city and familiarized with his colleagues, Navarro believes St. Louis can hunt for other honors this autumn.
“I came here with the intention of scoring a lot of goals to help the team. But my goal is to become a champion with St. Louis, to win a trophy,” he said. “I want to be among the greats, among the league’s best goal scorers. I want to be there.
“I think we have a team that can win big things.”
