The loss to Memphis 901 has put Louisville City’s plans to win the East in jeopardy. Now only two points back with a game in hand, Memphis controls the fate of the East. LouCity can’t control what 901 does, so it’s best to focus on what they can control, with that being their next match against Rio Grande Valley FC. Not only will this be the first time City will have faced RGV but it will be in their house. A critical match lies ahead for the boys in purple.
RGV is currently 7th in the very competitive race in the West. While they sit in a playoff spot, for now, anything could happen in the proceeding matches. Given their uncertain spot in the playoff picture, they will not be lacking motivation when taking on Morados. With an average of 1.4 goals for and 1.2 goals against, they can be seen as somewhat comparable to the Riverhounds. They are a possession-based team (8th) and win a lot of balls in the final third (3rd). Those are two areas LouCity does well in so it will be interesting to see who wins out on those fronts.
Some names to keep an eye on with RGV include Christian Pinzon, Isidro Martinez, and José Francisco Torres. Pinzon, a 2021 2nd round draftee, leads his squad with seven goals in his rookie USL campaign. Martinez, who has spent three of his four years in the USL with RGV, has six assists (1st), 40 chances created (2nd), and six big chances created (2nd). The veteran Torres, who spend a number of years in Liga MX, owns the 2nd most accurate passes and the highest player rating. He has also recently been serving as team captain. No surprise given his professional experience.
LouCity enters this match as the underdog, according to FiveThirtyEight. They have only been given a 33% chance to win compared to RGV’s 38% chance. If LouCity wants a shot at winning the East, they need all the points they can get. Anything less than a win will be a huge blow to that effort. To make the situation more challenging, they will be without Tyler Gibson and Corben Bone due to their actions in LOUvMEM. It’s time for others to step up in their absence. VAMOS MORADOS!
Parting Thoughts
Want to do a little more reading on LouCity? I suggest the following:
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