Away to The Miami Preview

Date: Thursday April 11, 2024

Kickoff Time: 7:00 pm EST at FIU Soccer Stadium in University Park, FL

Records: Tampa Bay Rowdies (6 pts 1W-3D-0L); The Miami FC (5 pts 1W-1D-3L)

Standings: The Rowdies are 6th in the East and The Miami are 9th   

This article last week mentioned the potential trap door the Rowdies could fall through while facing Pittsburgh. While they didn’t necessarily go all the way in, it might be safe to say the boys dropped their shooting boots down there. This week, Tampa Bay will look to get things back on track against a team that hasn’t had much luck in 2024 – and a would-be rival at that. 

Is it one step forward and two steps back?

As the old saying goes… The Rowdies were able to really leave a mark in their game against Rhode Island. It turns out, though, that mark was in pencil. You remember that something was there. You can see the patterns and the punctuation in your mind’s eye – four exclamation marks. Now we must all watch over that blank sheet again, waiting for it to be filled in. 

If that tired metaphor is too much for you, more blunt terms are fine: the game against Pittsburgh was not good. For all the progress fans thought they saw, it turns out that was the outlier game in this early part of the season. Getting more players back from injury seems not just important, but absolutely necessary to success now. The system so far just won’t get us enough goals. 

So what was the difference in this game? If readers will take a step back, it was actually only the second half vs. Rhode Island where the Green and Gold created much. The first 45 minutes was very much a Blue and Gold show, with the visitors both pressing out of possession and using the ball to create chances. Most of those chances were from long balls over the top. 

Several players and coach Robbie Neilson talked after the game about the speech at halftime. “Some words were shared,” in the understated tone of the Scottish manager. It was the Rowdies that came out in the second half and looked to play the ball over the heads of their opponents and earn good chances off the knockdowns that followed. They were clinical in doing so. 

The match that followed against the Riverhounds almost seemed like an Oops-All-First-Half box of cereal. Suddenly a team that had struggled to create and defend for three straight games –  even more than the Rowdies – looked the more likely to score. Tampa Bay, meanwhile, were limited to two shots on target. One of those off a Lewis Hilton free kick nearly changed the game.  

Pittsburgh had been forced to use one of their primary playmakers as a central defender for those first three games. Patrick Hogan’s return to the lineup allowed Danny Griffin to move into the midfield again, a weakness noted on this network’s Rowdies podcast. That that would make such a difference is still a hard pill to swallow. It can’t be down to one player, can it?

Obviously, not necessarily. The Riverhounds were dogged out of possession. (… Right?) They did not allow their visitors time to set up many passing sequences. Any that might have broken through were snuffed out by the turf monster or some simply wayward passing. It appeared that Hilton and Joey DeZart were better on the defensive side of things, barring that one shot.

Rowdies fans might be left wondering why the changes they saw against Rhode Island didn’t happen against Pittsburgh. Playing a true #10 helped that day. First, it was Leo Fernandes who was slid further back to take on that role. He calmed things down for his teammates. When he had to go off due to injury, Josh Perez did an even better job there. Fernandes wasn’t available and Perez didn’t come on until after the 60th minute. 

Instead, it was up to Danny Crisostomo to play in the more advanced role ahead of Hilton and DeZart. While he has done well this season – and did well defensively this weekend, too – it may not play to his strengths to ask him to be the supreme creator in the middle. Manuel Arteaga and Cal Jennings were starved for service all night. This is such a pity because it’s been shown they barely need a whiff of a chance to make something count. 

What does The Miami have to offer their fan?

We like to have fun here at RBLR, and this line is definitely in jest, as having another Florida-based rival would be a good thing. Though, it is true that our Teal neighbors – only four hours away – struggle to pull in fans. (I remember an image of another Miami soccer team seeing fans leave because a certain Argentine superstar had to come off due to injury… At least they bought tickets in the first place?)

In a crowded and tough sports market, gaining traction is difficult. Lacking the resources to sign megastars, The Miami have followed a different strategy to earn attention in 2024: looking for the Next Big Thing. With partial Italian ownership and a largely Italian coaching staff, it should be no surprise that they expect that Next Big Thing to have Italian roots as well. Hence the Trio. 

In amongst some other exciting younger players, The Miami have brought in 21-year-old Manuel Botta, and 19-year-olds Mattia Gagliardi and Rocco Genzano. While these players don’t have the immediate cache of coming from a Juventus or a Milan, they have all contributed early on to what success their new club has had. Genzano has two assists, while Botta has one goal. 

These are just the most prominent faces of what appears to be a real change in approach from The Miami down south. Only three players returned from the 2023 roster and they have not played a big role in proceedings this year. With that said, it should not be surprising that their record so far is far from the best. As Rowdies fans know, putting it all together is never easy. 

So what will these new players bring to the table? One thing that is almost a given considering their average is energy. There will be more intensity out of the home side – something Tampa Bay has struggled to deal with as well in 2024. They will look to win the ball in positions that allow them to rip off a quick shot or give their main goalscorer, Allen Gavilanes, a chance on net. 

Gavilanes has made the jump from USL League One to the Championship when he signed on from Greenville Triumph over the offseason. While he wasn’t the most regular scorer back in South Carolina, he has three goals in Miami’s five games so far. He will look to benefit from the new style of play at his new club again on Thursday. 

Where the Rowdies seem to have a clear advantage, and this comes directly from World Soccer Talk’s Kartik Krishnaiyer, is in their height. The Miami have given up several goals this season from crosses and set pieces. Forrest Lasso, Manuel Arteaga, and the hopefully returned Freddy Kleemann could stand to benefit. That’s if the team handles things appropriately. 

The Miami will still offer a lot of surprises, considering the lack of available information on this unit working together. If the main source of Tampa Bay’s chances comes from long balls over the top of a press, it seems at this stage of the season that would be to their benefit. If the game plan remains passing it out of the back, things could quickly turn. Hopefully, the grass on a true soccer field will be nicer than the turf in Pittsburgh. 

Score Predictions from the RBLR Rowdies Podcast:

Carlos Rueda: 1-0 W

James Knowles: 2-0 W

Yurika Wheeler: 2-1 W

Special Guest: 1-1 Kartik Krishnaiyer (@kkfla737)