NASL Minnesota United FC

Minnesota United FC Falls on Last-Minute Goal

Published on May 18, 2013 under North American Soccer League (NASL)
Minnesota United FC News Release


Miguel Ibarra slides to keep a ball in play in the first half of Saturday's 3-2 loss at the Metrodome against the Tampa Bay Rowdies. (Click for high-res image. Photo credit: Ryan Siverson, RySiPhoto.com)

Minnesota United FC battled back from a fourth straight halftime deficit, but Keith Savage's 90th minute goal gave the opportunistic Tampa Bay Rowdies a 3-2 victory at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome as Tampa Bay seized control and moved level on points with the Carolina RailHawks at the top with timely goals at the end of each half.

"It's a tough one to take because we certainly played well," Minnesota head coach Manny Lagos said. "Little plays at the end of halves add up. It was an exciting game for sure for the fans but for us it's a tough loss and we need to pick our heads up."

Tampa Bay head coach Ricky Hill agreed that Minnesota played well, even conceding that the hosts had the better run of play in a game his team found timely goals to win. "I think on the balance of play they will be disappointed, but I was delighted with my team's resolve throughout the game," he said. "The first goal we scored was against the run of play, and the second one probably was, too."

Michael Reed's first professional goal and Simone Bracalello's strike 10 minutes later had cancelled out strikes from Shane Hill and Luke Mulholland in a game both teams attacked aggressively late in a push for all three points.

Each team had one quality chance in the early going. Miguel Ibarra's cross set up Etienne Barbara for a volley from a tight angle, and the Maltese striker drew a diving save from Tampa Bay keeper Diego Restrepo. At the other end, Shane Hill's volley from 20 yards out was struck well after a partial clearance, but his shot was right at Minnesota goalkeeper Daryl Sattler.

The rest of the half was almost all Minnesota, as Barbara and Pablo Campos each drew saves out of Restrepo, who had four first-half saves. Bracalello and Ibarra were also heavily involved in the attack for Minnesota, as were outside backs Justin Davis and Brian Kallman, who made more of a threat moving forward than previous games.

Despite the solid play and limiting Tampa Bay's chances-two blocked Mulholland shots made up the remainder of the Rowdies' chances prior to Hill's goal-Minnesota trailed at the break as Hill made the most of a half chance. Sattler came off his line to punch a cross away from former Minnesota forward Amani Walker at the top of the box. His punch looped right into Hill's path, and the English midfielder lobbed a shot over Sattler and two United FC defenders on the line to stake Tampa Bay to a 1-0 lead.

Minnesota responded by starting the second half with the same intensity as the first, and substitute Michael Reed rewarded their aggression with his first professional goal after 54 minutes. Bracalello held up play well before feeding Reed's late run, and the second-year midfielder slid to beat Restrepo to tie the game.

The tie lasted only seconds before Mulholland beat Davis to a loose ball and spotted Sattler off his line, chipping Minnesota's goalkeeper from 18 yards out for his fourth goal of the season.

Ten minutes later, Bracalello and Campos combined to bring Minnesota level. Bracalello played a quick one-two with Campos before pushing his way through two Tampa Bay defenders and firing low past Sattler for his team-leading third goal of the season.

Both sides were aggressive late in the pursuit of the win. Minnesota had a goal wiped off the board after Campos was called offside in putting a shot off the post, negating the tap-in on the rebound. Cristiano Dias also had two chances after getting open on set pieces, but he had a header saved easily and skied a volley.

The Rowdies brought two sprawling saves out of Sattler to tip the ball over the bar, and Shane Hill had a shot deflect wide off his own teammate from a late set piece. The game looked destined for a tie before Savage's late heroics earned Tampa Bay all three points and dropped Minnesota to its second straight loss. Georgi Hristov broke down the right wing and crossed low. Defender Kevin Friedland, running back toward his own net, couldn't get enough power to clear the ball, which fell for Savage to slam past Sattler to make it 3-2 with too little time for Minnesota to muster another shot on goal. Pictured: (L-R) Carl Cort, Luke Mulholland and Keith Savage celebrate Savage's last-minute game winner. Photo by Ryan Siverson, RySiPhoto.com. Click to download high-resolution version.

Minnesota was without team captain and center back Kyle Altman, who sustained concussion during the week at training. Kevin Friedland will make his first appearance of the season at center back for Minnesota, while center midfielder Bryan Arguez replaced Reed in the starting lineup after a strong showing in the second half of last weekend's 2-1 loss at Fort Lauderdale.

Tampa Bay has named a strong lineup with speed on the wings and former Minnesota players Andres Arango (defender), Mulholland (midfielder) and Walker (forward) starting. Former Minnesota defender Devin Del Do was on the bench for Tampa Bay as well but did not play.

Both teams have quick turnarounds before opening their Lamar Hunt US Open Cup campaigns Tuesday. Tampa Bay faces a "road" game against USL Pro side VSI Tampa Bay, while Minnesota faces the Des Moines Menace of the USL PDL at home. That game kicks off at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium in Roseville. Tickets for that game are $5 for youth, $10 for adults and available at the gate on gameday only. Groups of 15 or more and season ticket holders can pre-order tickets by calling (763) 331-8777.

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