Soccer Recap 27: Minnesota Wins On The Road, Loons Go International, A Look Around MLS, The USMNT Preview, and Alex Morgan Retires From Professional Soccer
Minnesota Soccer Spot
Friday, September 6th
Minnesota Wins On The Road, Loons Go International, A Look Around MLS, The USMNT Preview, and Alex Morgan Retires From Professional Soccer
*Disclaimer: My takes are not thoughtful, and they are NOT based in knowledge.*
Welcome back to another installment of "Lydia complaining against everyone else's will." This week is a longer one, so buckle up. Get ready for some soccer updates and the possibility of potentially learning new curse words.
I've been switching off between Mondays and Tuesdays as of late. I'm trying the Friday approach this week to see how it goes. Bear with me.
Minnesota VS San Jose Recap:
This past Saturday, Minnesota United traveled to San Jose, California intending to steal three points away from the San Jose Earthquakes. Even though Minnesota was coming off of a 3-2 loss at home, there were some highlights: The introduction of Kelvin Yeboah made Minnesota's attack look efficient for the first time in a while. That combined with the return of Tani Oluwaseyi gave fans hope going into the fixture.
Both teams were in different positions coming into this match. Minnesota United sat just outside of the playoff picture. With a win against San Jose (assuming all other results would hold in their favor), they were looking at sitting above the playoff line by the end of the evening. Minnesota's quest for a playoff berth was and is alive. On the other hand, San Jose was and still is in a much more precarious position. The Earthquakes, who currently sit at dead last in the Western Conference, may as well kiss their playoff dreams goodbye. While they are not eliminated mathematically from playoff contention, they may as well be. At this point in the season, given their form and standing, these players are playing to set a tone for the club's future and to keep their jobs, whether those jobs be at the club or enough for a transfer. Regardless of the differences, both teams had something to play for.
The Lineups:
Here is how both teams lined up:
I know this isn't the normal lineup format, I'm sorry
(Before I get into the lineups, I want to make a formal complaint to the MLS YouTube channel: PUT THE LINEUPS IN THE VIDEO. PLEASE. IT MAKES MY LIFE SO MUCH EASIER, AND I CAN SEE WHO IS STARTING THE MATCH BEFORE THE HIGHLIGHTS BEGIN. Thank you).
Anyway... Minnesota head coach Eric Ramsay opted to go with a 5-3-2 formation. Dayne St. Clair remains the consistent starter in goal. The five-back defensive formation includes Tapias, Boxall, and Díaz at centre-back and Rosales & Sang Bin in the fullback positions. The three-manned midfield includes Dotson, Trapp, and Lod, all of whom are familiar faces to Minnesota United fans. Bongi Hlongwane and newcomer Kelvin Yeboah get the start up top with Oluwaseyi and Pukki on the bench. San Jose's interim head coach opts to go with a 4-3-2-1 formation. This lineup includes the familiar faces of Cristian Espinoza, Minnesota native Jackson Yueill, and newcomer Amahl Pellegrino, a striker who has brought life to the struggling Californian side.
The Match:
The Loons started the match on the front foot. The first few minutes showed a constant pressure from the away side, leading to a few half-chances. San Jose was struggling to keep any amount of possession, and most of the chances Minnesota was having were coming from San Jose's sloppy giveaways. It felt as though it was one giveaway after another for the Californian side. The pressure would pay off for Minnesota in the eighth minute of play: Pellegrino cheaply gives the ball away to Hassani Dotson in the middle of the pitch. Dotson finds Trapp in a supporting role, who then provides a pass to Robin Lod. Lod's touch gets a bit away from him, but Dotson puts himself on the line to keep the ball with Minnesota, drawing a foul in the process. The ref gives the advantage since Lod was the first player to the loose ball. Robin showcases his individual brilliance by providing a split ball to the on-running Hlongwane. Bongi finishes first-time, and Minnesota is up 1-0 on the road. It's a brilliant all-around team goal, but credit to Hassani Dotson for keeping the play alive and putting his body on the line.
Besties celebrating
Minnesota would continue to dominate the first half. Just a couple of minutes after the goal, a corner kick for the away side almost results in a second for Hlongwane. In the twenty-second minute, a well-worked ball from Rosales through the center of midfield finds the run of Kelvin Yeboah. He strikes the ball from the top of the box, forcing San Jose's keeper into a smart save. Outside of the chances, they continued to dominate chances created as well.
San Jose would eventually equalize against the run of play. A ball from Rodrigues takes a wicked deflection off the head of Díaz. The deflection causes the ball to fall to the head of Pellegrino. Pellegrino squares the ball to Bouda who puts it past Dayne St. Clair. The match is 1-1, and Minnesota has some work to do to restore their lead. San Jose would have one more opportunity before the end of the first half, but Dayne would come up big in what would be his best save of the match. The half would end 1-1.
San Jose are the kings of meaningless possession
The Loons would start the match as brightly as they did the first. They would have a few half-chances but would be unable to put anything away until the sixty-third minute: Joseph Rosales takes a long throw-in from Minnesota's left-hand side. The ball finds the head of a San Jose defender who unintentionally squares the ball across the box. Bongi attempts to tap it in, but Daniel comes up with an incredible save tipping the ball off of the crossbar. There's chaos in the box. Eventually, Bongi is able to finish it off (barely) to restore Minnesota's lead. It's the ugliest goal the Loons have scored to date, but a goal is a goal.
The rest of the match wouldn't have many legitimate chances. San Jose would have a point-blank chance to equalize in stoppage time, but the shot would go over Minnesota's net. The match would end 2-1, granting Minnesota three valuable points in their playoff push. In summary, Minnesota provided a dominant performance against a struggling San Jose side. The match would end with stats in favor of the home side, but the stats wouldn't reflect the chances that mattered. (AKA: meaningless possession). Bongi Hlongwane is looking like his old self: With a brace on the night, he has re-entered the conversation regarding who starts for this stacked Minnesota attack. Defensively, the Loons held their own for the most part. Díaz is still worthy of the "does he need time or does he just suck?" debate, but all-in-all, it's an important result to finish out the season.
Welcome back to another installment of "Lydia complaining against everyone else's will." This week is a longer one, so buckle up. Get ready for some soccer updates and the possibility of potentially learning new curse words.
Here is how both teams lined up:
 |
| I know this isn't the normal lineup format, I'm sorry |
(Before I get into the lineups, I want to make a formal complaint to the MLS YouTube channel: PUT THE LINEUPS IN THE VIDEO. PLEASE. IT MAKES MY LIFE SO MUCH EASIER, AND I CAN SEE WHO IS STARTING THE MATCH BEFORE THE HIGHLIGHTS BEGIN. Thank you).
Anyway... Minnesota head coach Eric Ramsay opted to go with a 5-3-2 formation. Dayne St. Clair remains the consistent starter in goal. The five-back defensive formation includes Tapias, Boxall, and Díaz at centre-back and Rosales & Sang Bin in the fullback positions. The three-manned midfield includes Dotson, Trapp, and Lod, all of whom are familiar faces to Minnesota United fans. Bongi Hlongwane and newcomer Kelvin Yeboah get the start up top with Oluwaseyi and Pukki on the bench. San Jose's interim head coach opts to go with a 4-3-2-1 formation. This lineup includes the familiar faces of Cristian Espinoza, Minnesota native Jackson Yueill, and newcomer Amahl Pellegrino, a striker who has brought life to the struggling Californian side.
The Match:
The Loons started the match on the front foot. The first few minutes showed a constant pressure from the away side, leading to a few half-chances. San Jose was struggling to keep any amount of possession, and most of the chances Minnesota was having were coming from San Jose's sloppy giveaways. It felt as though it was one giveaway after another for the Californian side. The pressure would pay off for Minnesota in the eighth minute of play: Pellegrino cheaply gives the ball away to Hassani Dotson in the middle of the pitch. Dotson finds Trapp in a supporting role, who then provides a pass to Robin Lod. Lod's touch gets a bit away from him, but Dotson puts himself on the line to keep the ball with Minnesota, drawing a foul in the process. The ref gives the advantage since Lod was the first player to the loose ball. Robin showcases his individual brilliance by providing a split ball to the on-running Hlongwane. Bongi finishes first-time, and Minnesota is up 1-0 on the road. It's a brilliant all-around team goal, but credit to Hassani Dotson for keeping the play alive and putting his body on the line.
 |
| Besties celebrating |
Minnesota would continue to dominate the first half. Just a couple of minutes after the goal, a corner kick for the away side almost results in a second for Hlongwane. In the twenty-second minute, a well-worked ball from Rosales through the center of midfield finds the run of Kelvin Yeboah. He strikes the ball from the top of the box, forcing San Jose's keeper into a smart save. Outside of the chances, they continued to dominate chances created as well.
San Jose would eventually equalize against the run of play. A ball from Rodrigues takes a wicked deflection off the head of Díaz. The deflection causes the ball to fall to the head of Pellegrino. Pellegrino squares the ball to Bouda who puts it past Dayne St. Clair. The match is 1-1, and Minnesota has some work to do to restore their lead. San Jose would have one more opportunity before the end of the first half, but Dayne would come up big in what would be his best save of the match. The half would end 1-1.
 |
| San Jose are the kings of meaningless possession |
The Loons would start the match as brightly as they did the first. They would have a few half-chances but would be unable to put anything away until the sixty-third minute: Joseph Rosales takes a long throw-in from Minnesota's left-hand side. The ball finds the head of a San Jose defender who unintentionally squares the ball across the box. Bongi attempts to tap it in, but Daniel comes up with an incredible save tipping the ball off of the crossbar. There's chaos in the box. Eventually, Bongi is able to finish it off (barely) to restore Minnesota's lead. It's the ugliest goal the Loons have scored to date, but a goal is a goal.
The rest of the match wouldn't have many legitimate chances. San Jose would have a point-blank chance to equalize in stoppage time, but the shot would go over Minnesota's net. The match would end 2-1, granting Minnesota three valuable points in their playoff push. In summary, Minnesota provided a dominant performance against a struggling San Jose side. The match would end with stats in favor of the home side, but the stats wouldn't reflect the chances that mattered. (AKA: meaningless possession). Bongi Hlongwane is looking like his old self: With a brace on the night, he has re-entered the conversation regarding who starts for this stacked Minnesota attack. Defensively, the Loons held their own for the most part. Díaz is still worthy of the "does he need time or does he just suck?" debate, but all-in-all, it's an important result to finish out the season.
Loons Go International:
A Look Around MLS:
The USMNT Preview:
The roster has mainly familiar faces with some key absences and youngsters. Let's get into it:
This camp has four goalkeepers called up rather than the normal three. Despite limited minutes at the club level, Matt Turner remains the starting goalkeeper for the United States. His backups include Ethan Horvath, a familiar face, Patrick Schulte, the rising star from Columbus, and Diego Kochen. Diego Kochen is the new face on this roster. At eighteen years old, this is his first senior team call-up.
As far as defenders are concerned, there is a mix of familiar faces and introductions. U.S. Soccer fans will be familiar with Tim Ream, Kristoffer Lund, Mark McKenzie, Chris Richards, and Joe Scally, all of whom have been called up to recent rosters. Auston Trusty and Caleb Wiley may be familiar to those who choose to watch the B-team. These two youngsters have both recently made moves to Europe. With under ten caps for both of them individually, they will look to prove themselves worthy of a more consistent spot on the A-team. Marlon Fossey is the newcomer here. This will be his first National Team call-up. Sergiño Dest is the biggest absence here. He is still dealing with the injury that kept him out of the Copa America tournament. Starting left-back Antonee Robinson is also not on this roster.
The midfield is full of names fans will recognize. Brenden Aaronson, Johnny Cardoso, Luca De La Torre, Yunus Mussah, and Malik Tillman have all been on recent rosters. Aidan Morris is a familiar name to MLS observers. With only five appearances with the National Team, he will look to make a name for himself. Gio Reyna was initially called up to the roster, but unfortunately, he was forced to depart camp due to injury. Former San Jose Earthquakes man Cade Cowell replaces him. Tyler Adams and Weston McKennie are not on this roster.
The list of forwards is unsurprising. Balogun, Pulisic, Pepi, Sargent, and Wright are all of the current rotating forwards. There isn't much to discuss here. It'll be interesting to see if Josh Sargent can emulate his club-level self. He has struggled to replicate the success he has at his club for the national team. This may be a solid opportunity for him to get some minutes.
The USMNT will take on Canada TOMORROW at 3 PM central and New Zealand on Tuesday at 6 PM.
Alex Morgan Retires From Professional Soccer:
Just yesterday, USWNT legend Alex Morgan announced her retirement from professional soccer. She released her statement on social media yesterday morning. This was a long-time coming, especially after being left off of the olympic roster. Despite that, she has been a trailblazer in the world of women's soccer. On an international level, she has two world cups and an olympic gold medal under her belt. She has made 224 appearances with 123 goals. At the club level, she made 212 appearances (minus her final match on Sunday) with 94 goals across a number of clubs. Her career has been impressive, and she will be missed.
Here is a link to her statement:
That's all for this week!
That's all for this week!
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