#1 Orange County SC vs. #3 Phoenix Rising FC
7:00 p.m., Saturday, November 3rd, Championship Stadium, Irvine, CA
TV: Cox 4 (SD) and 1004 (HD) in Phoenix, Cox 7 (SD) and 1007 (HD) in Tucson
Live Stream: ESPN+ (subscription required)
Radio: El Patron 97.3 FM (Spanish) / FOX Sports 910
MatchCenter: OCvPHX
Referee: Tim Ford (2nd Rising Match, 1st in 2018)
Before we look ahead to our OC preview, let us take one last look at the marvelous fourth goal from last weekend.
From the Cortez tackle to Rick Schantz’s arms going up, to Drogba tapping it in and Alessandro Riggi hopping all over the place, everything about that goal was pure celebration of what happened last Saturday.
That was last week though, tonight will be a whole new test as Phoenix tries to break the season series split on its way to the USL Cup.
Keys to the Match
Keep it Close
(Insert Captain Obvious gif)
Since we started doing Keys to the Match in our previews, it seems that the first key has always been the “duh, of course” one and this week is no different. Phoenix’s only loss to OC this year came when they allowed Orange County to hang a 4 spot on them before coming up short in the comeback. Otherwise, the contests between these two teams have been tight. As we saw last week, Phoenix is capable of coming back from a goal deficit but if the match gets anywhere past a single goal, Rising will have a tough time getting back on top.
Be Patient
In a game like this one, players might be on edge a little more than normal and we expect it might show in the first 5-10 minutes. Phoenix has a game plan though, and with an opponent like Orange County it will be important that all 11 out on the field work in unison. This was apparent and worked well last week in the second half when Rising dropped into two levels of defending, helped by the work Asante and Johnson did on the wings. Phoenix will likely be defending most of this match and will need to pick and choose when to throw guys forward and when to keep a little more shape.
Follow the King
There are not many players in the United States we would want on our team right now than Didier Drogba. The man has seen and played it all and his experience will matter most in this tough road match. A vital moment in the match last week occurred when Drogba huddled the team together after Swope’s second goal. Drogba gave what looked like a stern talking two and the team responded shortly after and never looked back. Drogba still brings a physical presence to the match, something that Orange County has not seen all year. Look for how Drogba deals with the likes of Chaplow and Crognale as Phoenix looks to spring the attack though him. It will be interesting to see how the referee calls fouls too, with Drogba sometimes looking for the whistle when a defender gets on him.
What do you think? What does Phoenix have to do inorder to move on and face Lousiville in the USL Cup?
