ST. PAUL -- Matt Navratil and his parents were minding their own business, spectating the afterparty of Minnesota United鈥檚 2-1 victory at Nashville SC on Sunday.
About 50 MNUFC supporters 鈥� the club鈥檚 largest traveling group of the season 鈥� were singing 鈥淲onderwall鈥� in one section of brand-new Geodis Park, while the Navratils were watching players mingle from the concourse level.
ADVERTISEMENT
Next to the field, United midfielder Joseph Rosales was thanking his girlfriend and her family for coming to see him play when a Nashville fan took it upon himself to tell Rosales he should go up into the stands to meet and greet the Navratils.
Matt Navratil, a 26-year-old from Burnsville, Minnesota, is a diehard Loons fan and a season-ticket holder who travels with his parents, Scott and Chris, to a few road games each season. Matt has necrotizing autoimmune myopathy, an extremely rare condition that causes muscle weakness in his core and extremities.
It can be difficult for him to do stairs and he sometimes needs the aid of a wheelchair. The Navratils were sitting on the American with Disabilities Act section of the stadium, so Rosales darted up the stairs to take a photo with Matt.
鈥淗e couldn鈥檛 make it down from his seats but I made the effort to go to him and complete that dream for him,鈥� Rosales said in a Spanish translation via club employee Gabriela Lozada.
Navratil has met a few Loons players before 鈥� with Robin Lod signing a Finland jersey and Rosales doing the same for a Honduras kit. But the Navratils weren鈥檛 seeking an interaction last weekend.
鈥淚t was really nice and thoughtful of him to make his way up there and say hi to us,鈥� Navratil said in an interview. 鈥溾�� It caught us completely by surprise.鈥�
Rosales explained why he went out of his way on Sunday.
ADVERTISEMENT
鈥淢ore than anything, first, (it鈥檚) putting myself as a person, first and foremost, and (with) humility above all,鈥� Rosales said. 鈥溾�� I (also) knew nothing bad was going to happen to me.鈥�
The Nashville fan also was a protagonist. 鈥淎s someone whose home team just lost, it was really, really nice of them to do that,鈥� Navratil said. 鈥淣ashville鈥檚 fans are up there on my list of very, very nice people. And before that, they were nice, too. But this interaction really stood out to me, how kind the gentleman was to take time out of his day.鈥�
Rosales, 21, was a second-half sub Sunday and provided the game-winning assist on Alan Benitez鈥檚 goal. Rosales has assists in consecutive games going into Saturday鈥檚 big game at Allianz Field when Minnesota (11-9-5, 38 points) takes on Austin FC (14-5-6, 48 points) at 7 p.m.
Navratil praised how accessible the St. Paul stadium is to fans with disabilities; he is able to get down to the lower-level stadium club for home games, and a supporters group, AccessiLoons, is dedicated to and advocates for MNUFC fans with disabilities,
Rosales finds himself in a crowded midfield now with fellow Honduran Kervin Arriaga back from an ankle injury, Wil Trapp on the mend from a hamstring injury and Jonathan Gonzalez added on a loan from Monterrey just before the summer transfer window closed in early August.
With that depth, and Hassani Dotson (knee) back next season, Rosales鈥� future might be hazy. His 18-month loan from Panama club Independiente runs out at the end of the 2022 season, but the Loons have an option to buy his contract, and it鈥檚 not considered to be an expensive price tag.
鈥淚鈥檇 like to stay,鈥� Rosales shared Tuesday. 鈥淚 feel at home here. I鈥檝e adapted to everything, the weather, the food, my teammates, friends. Everything will be decided at the end, and if I get to stay, I鈥檒l keep defending the colors of Minnesota United until I die.鈥�
ADVERTISEMENT
______________________________________________________
This story was written by one of our partner news agencies. Forum Communications Company uses content from agencies such as Reuters, Kaiser Health News, Tribune News Service and others to provide a wider range of news to our readers. Learn more about the news services FCC uses here.
The Trust Project
