Its been only forty-two days since Rising and OCSC played but the two meet again Saturday night.
Phoenix Rising FC (6-5-2, 23 Points, 2nd in West) vs. Orange County SC (4-7-3, 19 Points, 10th in West)
7:30pm, Casino Arizona Field, Scottsdale, AZ
TV: CW 6 & 61.1
Live Stream: ESPN+ (subscription required)
Radio: AzSports.com / ESPN Phoenix 620 AM
MatchCenter: #PHXvOC
Series History: Phoenix leads the series 8-6-5
Rising’s Last Match
It was another $1 Beer Night victory for Phoenix as they thrashed the Tulsa Roughnecks 5-0. It didn’t take long for Rising to get on the board as Adam Jahn opened the scoring with his Goal of the Week winner, set-up by James Musa. Junior Flemmings (2x), Solomon Asante, and Andrew Wheeler-Omiunu also got in on the action, while Zac Lubin kept another clean sheet thanks to a spectacular diving spot in the final minutes. The win moved Phoenix up to second place in the West, only two points behind New Mexico United with two games in hand.
Team News
Junior Flemmings was named to the USL Team of the Week thanks to his 2 goal, 1 assist performance, while teammate Solomon Asante was named Honorable Mention……..Flemmings joined fellow international Kevon Lambert with the Jamaican National Team after the match. The two will play at least matches with the Reggae Boyz and are expected to advance somewhat deep in the tournament. The pair should be back with the team by July 13th at the latest…… Adam Jahn is one match away from triggering the Good Behavior Clause and could avoid a suspension due to yellow card accumulation. A yellow card against OCSC, however, means Jahn would miss the Reno match on the 18th.
New Addition
Phoenix made an acquisition this week, bringing in midfielder Ramone Howell from Nashville SC. The 24 year old has only made one appearance for the USL side this year and only for overall since signing at the beginning of 2018. The Jamaician will wear number 95 and eligible for selection tonight.
Orange County
Since these two teams met on May 4th, OCSC has won once and drawn four times. They should have stolen all three points from Vegas in their last match but an opportunity to win on the last kick went over the bar. Orange County did play a man down for the second half of that match and even scored while at a disadvantage so a point probably wasn’t the worst result. The Orange & Black have yet to win on the road in seven attempts this year, but have earned 5 of their 7 draws when traveling. Orange County will be without Michael Seaton (yellow card accumulation) and Joe Amico (red card suspension) but will still be a threat with Aodhan Quinn and Darwin Jones on the field.
Tale of The Tape
Player to Watch
Jon Bakero – The Spaniard has been a revelation for Rising FC over the course of the season, bringing a much needed boost of creativity to the midfield. However, with both Flemmings and Lambert, #10 might be asked to stretched the field even more. Coach Rick Schantz has hinted that we could see Bakero on the left wing but even if he is in the midfield, expect him to drift over to the left more than normal to help Calistri with the attack. This could open space for OCSC to counter in.
Projected Lineup
It should be another straight forward lineup for Schantz, plugging in Musa for Lambert and Calistri for Flemmings. Many people have mentioned Dia as a possibility for the left wing position, but I don’t see it. In the 4-3-3, the wingers are asked to cut in using their inside foot. While Dia has a killer left, his right foot leaves some to be desired. So Dia stays in his left-back position where he can stay tight to the sideline and overlapped the cutting Calistri.
Did You Know?
– Phoenix has not given up a goal in June since the 2017 season on June 24th.
– Phoenix is only one point back of their total through 13 matches last year and has 6 more goals than at the same point.
– Solomon Asante is third in USL in both shots (37) and Chance Created (39). Only one other USL player (Jared Stroud) is in the Top 10 of both categories.
What do you think? Will Rising miss Flemmings and Lambert or will the trio of Asante, Jahn, and Bakero be enough to secure a 5th straight win?
