NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, CFL stats



FC Edmonton

NASL's Top Two Teams Meet as FC Edmonton Faces New York Cosmos

September 16, 2016 - North American Soccer League (NASL)
FC Edmonton News Release


EDMONTON, AB - FC Edmonton (12W-5D-5L) will face league-leading New York Cosmos (15W-3D-6L) in North American Soccer League (NASL) action, September 17 at 5:00 p.m. MT. The Eddies will be looking to re-enter the win column and capture all three points, at James M. Shuart Stadium and sweep the three-game season series between the two clubs.

The Eddies were unlucky to come away without a win in their Wednesday, Sept. 14 match against Rayo OKC. Edmonton-born goalkeeper Daniel Fernandes was tremendous between the woodwork for the visitors, making five crucial saves to help his side split the spoils with the Eddies in a 0-0 draw. At the other end of the pitch, 'keeper Matt VanOekel collected his league-leading 12th clean sheet of 2016 and was also solid when called upon.

In his second consecutive start at midfield, Vancouver native Ben Fisk put forth another impressive performance but was unable to find his first goal of the year after sending a blistering strike off the post. Teammate Tomi Ameobi also appeared to have the go-ahead goal in the second half, but his low shot to the bottom left of goal was pushed clear at the last moment by Fernandes.

Defending NASL Champion New York Cosmos continue to maintain their lead atop the league standings heading into this weekend's action. The team's attack this year has been led by Venezuelan midfielder Juan Arango, who sits third in league scoring. Arango leads the league in shots with 63 and has started in all 23 matches for the Cosmos, collecting 1,961 minutes overall. The Cosmos are coming off a 1-0 win over Minnesota United FC last weekend, which saw 'keeper Jimmy Mauer collecting his tenth clean sheet of the season following a six-save performance.

The Eddies have handed the Cosmos two defeats this season, with the first meeting between the two clubs taking place on May 15 in a 2-1 victory. The Eddies then replicated that result in arguably their most exciting match of the year on July 27. An early goal from Arango held up through a majority of the match before being cancelled out late by Canadian international Nik Ledgerwood. Teammate Daryl Fordyce then stunned the visitors with a goal in stoppage time to secure all three points. It's an effort that the Eddies will need once again as they compete in their third fixture in a week.

"It will be an exciting game," FC Edmonton head coach Colin Miller stated. "It's the top two teams in the league at this moment in time so hopefully we can provide very good and difficult opposition to them. We've beaten the Cosmos twice this year and we will have to be at our very best if we hope to get three points. We go into this game in a very positive frame of mind, but we know there is a serious amount of work to be done because this is a very talented team."

FC Edmonton and New York Cosmos close out their three-game NASL season series, Saturday, Sept. 17 at James M. Shuart Stadium. Kick-off in the match is set for 5:00 p.m. MT. The match will be broadcast and streamed live on ONE World Sports in Canada and the United States.

For tickets and more information, please click HERE, call 780.700.2600 or visit www.fcedmonton.com.

Check out the FC Edmonton Statistics

• Discuss this story on the North American Soccer League message board...

North American Soccer League Stories from September 16, 2016


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central