Minnesota United are off to the best start in franchise history through seven matches. They sit third in the Western Conference, level on points with San Diego FC, and are also level with the expansion side and Lionel Messi's Inter Miami in the race for the MLS Supporters' Shield.
They are averaging the least amount of possession per-game across all 30 MLS teams to begin 2025 - and by a considerable margin. They're excelling without the ball, playing a game that is focused on moments, timing and what MNUFC manager Eric Ramsay calls "the collective."
"Our job as a group of coaches, my job as a head coach is to squeeze every drop of quality that we can from this group and push the buttons that need to be pushed in order to be competitive," Ramsay told GOAL in an exclusive interview. "I think if you look at what we do as a group, you can guarantee every week there's a level of organization, a level of discipline, a level of pragmatism, and we can cause the opposition a threat in multiple ways."
With a 4-1-2 (WLD) record, the Loons are flying higher than they ever have to start a campaign. Yet they've done so in an unorthodox manner. MNUFC are, as Ramsay describes, "pragmatic." And through a sense of "desperation" they've found identity in 2025.
The Loons sport a 3-5-2 formation, excel in transition and are the most cohesive team in all of MLS in terms of keeping, managing and maintaining their shape. Within seconds, they can threaten - even after going minutes without the ball at their feet. Ramsay has instilled a level of discipline within the team that has them aligned in every area of the pitch, a squad that understands the focus is on all 11 in a core collective.
"We've got a very level-headed group," Ramsay said. "No one's getting ahead of ourselves here. We know what buttons we need to push to continue to be competitive. But I would say in each of the seven games so far we have been really competitive, and we're here in this position on merit, and certainly by the degree of deservedness. And there's no signs of us letting up in that sense."
Led by a striker pairing of Canada international and former MLS SuperDraft pick Tani Oluwaseyi, and Designated Player and former Serie A forward Kelvin Yeboah, Minnesota have become one of the league's most difficult teams to play against in 2025.
And much of it is due to the unorthodox methods of Ramsay, who previously worked as an assistant coach at Manchester United under the likes of of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Ralf Rangnick and Erik Ten Hag. The UK native signed on as Minnesota coach in the early stages of the 2024 season as the youngest manager in league history at 32, and now, is making an impression in the early stages of 2025.
Though he has experience on the touchline, alongside some of the biggest names in world soccer, Ramsay is adamant that he's his own coach; the imprint he's made on Minnesota is who he is as a manager, and who he strives to be as he leads the Western Conference side into the 2025 campaign.
"I wanted to be my own man so that I could solve problems and adapt from within," Ramsay said. "I think that this period of a year or so, now with this group, is a really good example of that. I feel like I've really grown as a coach as a consequence of taking that mentality by which I really only look within, and I look at the strengths of the players. I look at what every individual is capable of doing at their very best. And I try and work out a way that suits those players."
The tactical identity of the Loons is a fascinating combination of total football, playing without possession, capitalizing on set-piece opportunities and ensuring that - despite limited opportunity on the ball - each chance in the final-third is meant to be maximized.
Whether or not it remains to be a sustainable option throughout the season is still to be determined - Ramsay acknowledges that - but right now, the Loons are doing exactly what is being asked of them by their head coach. And they're flourishing.
GOAL sat down with Ramsay to get an inside look into how the Loons are finding success and how his unconventional tactical methods have led the team to the best start in franchise history.
