Home vs. El Paso Preview
Date: Saturday April 20, 2024
Kickoff Time: 7:30 pm EST at Al Lang Stadium in St. Petersburg, FL
Records: Tampa Bay Rowdies (9 pts 2W-3D-0L); El Paso Locomotive (1 pts 0W-1D-5L)
Standings: The Rowdies are 5th in the East and El Paso are 11th in the West
It seems like the Rowdies love playing The Miami. While their in-state opponents drew a better crowd than usual – on a Thursday evening no less – Tampa Bay was able to sweep them aside and add three more points to their haul for the season. Can the boys come back home and keep up that same form against a club with an even worse record?
Please, sir, can I have some more goals?!
There was a lot to write about for this game before it took place. Two clubs from Florida were playing each other. The hosts were playing in their usual area, but on a different field. They had also made a two-person trade with Indy Eleven before the match. So many factors to take into account! Unfortunately for the local fans, though, none of it mattered much.
No, when the Rowdies play The Miami, it mostly goes one way. While this game was closer than the score would suggest, a win for Tampa Bay was always the most likely outcome – even in those moments when their hosts threatened to level things. It has been noted by other outlets as well that there appeared to be a gulf in quality between the two sides. But, 5-2?!
For starters, both of these clubs are currently in the process of connecting several new pieces brought in during the offseason. One could argue it’s harder for The Miami, considering only three players came back from 2023 – and two of those were traded away hours before this game. The age difference in Miami’s roster will also make things worse, as the Rowdies have more USL veterans who know what it takes to contribute in this league.
Despite it all, The Miami had moments in this game where they were threatening. Once Tampa Bay had gone up, the home side’s manager, Antonio Nocerino (formerly of Orlando City), had seen enough. He yanked starting midfielder Michael Vang and brought on a fellow Italian in Manuel Botta. That allowed for a slight change in formation.
Where Andrew Booth and Gabriel Cabral had been told to sit in front of the back four to start the match, suddenly Booth was allowed to roam. Cabral remained in a much more protective role, with Botta allowed to act as the partner to whoever needed it. For roughly ten minutes, the away side were stifled and The Miami became the creative force. They’ll just wish for better finishing.
With the score much closer at only 1-0, it was Frank Lopez who squandered several guilt-edge chances in front of the local fans. Had he taken those opportunities better – and had Jordan Farr not been excellent on the night – this could’ve been different.
As it was, the goals The Miami put on the board were consolation only. Rocco Genzano was able to beat his man to a cross and score; but, that only brought it back to 3-1. Cal Jennings restored a three-goal-lead before Allen Gavilanes made it 4-2. Yet again, though, the prowess and experience in the Rowdies’ attack showed, as Manuel Arteaga simply waited for Daniel Gagliardi to slip up. That was the fifth for the Green and Gold.
His goal came right after another chance was brilliantly saved off the line by Gagliardi, too. Ultimately, a defense that was seemingly cobbled together was no match for Jennings, Arteaga, and their two main helpers, Blake Bodily and Eddie Munjoma. With numbers, they overwhelmed The Miami over and over and had put this one to bed long before the 90 minutes were up.
What’s gone wrong for El Paso?
Now the Rowdies will go from an intimate, purpose-built soccer field to another purpose-built, though slightly-less-intimate soccer field. Tampa Bay have shown their ability to dominate other teams on proper grass, exploiting the wide spaces and keeping the ball on the ground. Against The Miami, there were dangerous overloads created on both the left and right.
Fans will be hoping that this play continues when El Paso comes to town. It’s a great time to take some momentum and build on it by establishing those patterns and really fine tuning them with the players currently available. While injuries are still a large problem for the Rowdies coaching staff – seemingly a universal truth – there is obviously a talented squad that can do real damage.
Important for the Rowdies will be considerations of the future. Usually, any coach will tell you that they are focusing on the game at hand. That is smart, because you need to be dialed in as an athlete to get the job done. However, those goals are one in the same this weekend. Assuming Tampa Bay are able to put it all together, they could be in a race for the title come October.
If the standings for the Eastern Conference are tight near the top, almost a surety, every point over the course of a season will matter. Dropping points in situations where they were the easiest to come by (all in relative terms) is problematic to say the least. With all due respect, El Paso look ready to give up those three points on the line.
So far this season, they have drawn two games in all competitions. The first was in fact their first of the regular season. Subsequently, they lost all USL Championship matches before drawing Union Omaha in the US Open Cup on Wednesday April 17th. This game is only considered a draw on a technicality, because they actually went out of the competition on penalties.
This appears to be a team that is demoralized, downtrodden, and, due to travel ahead of the match this Saturday, probably exhausted. It went the full 90 minutes, 30 minutes more, and they still lost on pens – meaning they have never progressed past their first game in the Open Cup in their club history. All factors point to a Rowdies win at home in St. Petersburg.
How can they secure that W? Getting back to basics is the most simple answer. Even in their game vs. Union Omaha, the Locomotive looked vulnerable when trying to play out of the back. They rarely stopped trying; but, that frequently led to turnovers and good chances for the home team in Nebraska. A lack of quality in those chances meant the contest lasted as long as it did.
While it’s almost assured that regular starting goalkeeper Jahmali Waite will return to the field in Tampa Bay, it’s also assured that the strikers getting on the end of any of those chances created will be better, too. If the Rowdies can prevent chances from what few long balls out of the back El Paso are likely to play, they should be able to keep this game firmly in their grasp.
If the Locomotive’s wider center backs act as auxiliary fullbacks while their actual wingbacks stay higher up the field, the Rowdies can try to overwhelm them in the center of the park. When they swarm back to the middle to make up the numbers, that space will open up out wide again. The Tampa Bay team in September and October will thank this April team if they get the job done.
Score Predictions from the RBLR Rowdies Podcast:
Carlos Rueda: 3-0 W
James Knowles: 4-1 W
Yurika Wheeler: 2-0 W
