Yeah, Louisville City won and looked pretty good doing it, but that didn’t mean we weren’t all glued to our seats watching it happen. Morados walked out of their most pressure-packed game of the season against probably the most difficult out in the East with yet another first round playoff victory. For that, we have Oscar, Cam Lancaster, Corben Bone, an unfortunate ‘keeper gaffe, and some really good defending to thank.
City came out in their predicted 4-3-3 with the same lineup we’ve seen for the past several weeks leading up to the playoffs. Pittsburgh ostensibly played a 4-4-2, though the right side played much higher than the left. Forward Albert Dikwa played almost in the middle of the park while Dos Santos was much higher.
The opening half was a lot more open than the second. Pittsburgh nearly found the net first but for a great save from Ben Lundt and some timely defending from Speedy. Fortunately for City, that was the only save Lundt would need to make all night. Moments later, Brian Ownby forced a great save from golden-glover Danny Vitiello after megging the first defender with a low shot. In the 17′, Oscar found himself in space on a break on the left and hit an inch-perfect low cross to the spot, where an onrushing Cam Lancaster just needed a foot to beat Vitiello and get Morados on the board.
Not long afterward, Cam probably should have gotten his second but his 1v1 attempt was saved by Vitiello. Ownby had another chance as the half wore on when Hoppenot sent a similar ball in to Oscar’s assist effort, but the pass outpaced him and his recycled cross to Cam’s left foot was saved, too.
The second half was a whole lot tighter. Both teams managed about one chance apiece, but only City’s went in when sub Jason Johnson found Corben Bone in transition. Bone’s strike from distance was nearly saved by Vitiello who got a paw on it, but the block somehow had some topspin on it and rolled on into the net. It was probably a deserved goal, given all of Vitiello’s prior heroics.
City really showed a lot of discipline defensively after going ahead. Yes, they still generated some scoring chances, but were judicious in how many players pushed forward on breaks and really kept the game in front of them in the second half. Pittsburgh’s offense didn’t really ever get out of second gear, in spite of having so much of the ball. The problem was, it spent most of the time being cycled around the back five.
If you didn’t look at the score, you’d say it was a pretty even game, really. Pittsburgh had a shade more of the possession, and completed more passes in City’s half than their own, though not quite as much in the final third. For all that possession, though, the Hounds only put one shot on target, the very first one they took all game. City created just one more chance and the only “big” chance of the entire game.
That was a huge win, make no mistake. It was an exciting game against a really, really good opponent. For their effort, City now get to host St. Louis for the third time this season at LFS for an unexpected fifth 2020 contest, this time for keeps. We’ll worry about them later, though. For now, we can appreciate a very good win. VAMOS.
