By Alex Toledo/Staff Writer
With just 10 men and an early deficit, Miami FC overcame and beat the New York Cosmos 2-1. The win is their 13th consecutive as Wednesday night’s US Open Cup match vs. the MLS’ Atlanta United FC looms.
Miami FC remains comfortably in first place in the North American Soccer League table at 9-3-1, with 30 total points, seven ahead of the next-closest. On the same night the 23-point San Francisco Deltas defeated FC Edmonton 1-nil, getting them to 6-5-2.
“Our team is in a good groove right now,” said defender Mason Trafford, who ranks second and fourth in the NASL in total passes and clearances, respectively. “We bunkered down and kept New York out of the area. It was a tough game, but we grinded it out and we got the result which is what’s important at this stage of the season.”
With both teams running back-and-forth at frantic paces, the match was a tale of who made less mistakes in their relentless half-long runs. Although the ball was moving rapidly, the Cosmos had struck first blood in the fifth minute when midfielder Emmanuel Ledesma scored on the first shot attempt of the game.
For the rest of the half, Miami FC was the one with more possessions resulting in shot attempts in the first half. After a pass-filled ten-second possession and a Richie Ryan cross, Stefano Pinho’s equalizer at the 20-minute mark ended up being the difference in the two teams’ battle. Enzo Rennella’s score off a decisive corner kick in the second minute of the second half put Miami FC over the top for the rest of the game.
Both teams came out and scored early in the respective halves, but Miami FC was the team to actually capitalize off a lead in shot attempts early on. While New York responded to Miami’s second goal by taking the possession lead in the second half and firing off 14 shot attempts, they weren’t able to nail any.
“It seemed like a game we could’ve won easier, but we didn’t get enough opportunities at the goal,” said Rennella. “We struggled throughout the game and we didn’t play our best, but we won anyways, which indicates how strong a team we are.”
With both team playing at a frenzied pace, the game was chippy from start to finish, as the Cosmos finished with three yellow cards while Miami FC had one yellow card as well as a Kwadwo Poku red card, which resulted in the midfielder’s ejection. Poku can still appeal the red card, but for the time being, he will be suspended for the next league game, meaning he will still play Wednesday against Atlanta United FC.
“No, honestly, we didn’t expect that,” said Rennella regarding the game’s particular chippiness. “We expected a team that wanted to play, but they surprised us with their one-on-one aggressiveness throughout the game. We didn’t hold our position like in other games; it was really risky on their part to be playing one-on-one the whole game like that.”
In the end, Miami FC’s offensive approach was a more controlled and efficient one, as the team hit on half of their shots compared to the Cosmos fast-paced approach, which resulted in 38.5 shot accuracy on a much higher volume of shot attempts, crosses, passes and defensive plays.
“Thank goodness that we tied up the game quickly and that we scored early in the second half, because that game would have been very difficult to win without,” explained Rennella.
“Well I always say that a good forward is only as good as his team,” said Rennella about being the leading goal-scorer in the NASL while also boasting the league-lead for shots and assists. “Up to this point, I’ve been really happy with the team’s play as well as mine and we’re hoping for this to be the case for a long time.”
For Miami FC, which leads the league in goals scored with the second-highest conversion rate while conceding the least goals, now comes preparation in anticipation of Wednesday night’s match, when the MLS’ Atlanta United FC visits the Riccardo Silva Stadium for the fifth round of the US Open Cup. The last time Miami FC faced an MLS team was on June 14th when the team beat Orlando City 3-1 at the Orlando City Stadium.
“To be honest, we’re just focusing on one game at a time. We haven’t thought too much about Atlanta, when you start to do that, the game in front of you starts to get blurred a little bit and it’s not the best approach,” said Trafford.
“Well, I think it will be very difficult. They move the ball well, they run a lot, and they pressure high,” said Rennella regarding Wednesday night’s match. “I think that if we are calm and focused, we can really hurt them.”
“It’s gonna be fun for us, though. I think our team actually is quite well-suited to play MLS teams,” continued Trafford. “It’s often, in a funny sense of the word, easier to play against them as you saw us play against Orlando. It’s gonna be one of those games where, if you make a mistake, they have guys that will punish you instantly.”
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