USL Tampa Bay Rowdies

Match Preview: #TBRvMEM

August 23, 2019 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Tampa Bay Rowdies News Release


The Basics

Tampa Bay Rowdies vs. Memphis 901 FC

Saturday, August 24, 7:30 p.m. ET

Al Lang Stadium, St. Petersburg, Fla.

Follow us for live updates on Twitter at @RowdiesGameday

Tickets

Tickets for Saturday's match are available by calling (727) 222-2000. Gates will open at 6:30 p.m., 60 minutes before kickoff.

Game Giveaway

All fans will receive a Georgi Hristov bobblehead while supplies last.

How to Watch

The match will be broadcast online on ESPN+.

Records

Tampa Bay: 13-4-7 (W-L-T), 3rd place; 6-2-4 at home

Memphis: 4-12-7 (W-L-T), 16th place; 2-6-4 on road

Last Meeting

These teams haven't met since the opening day of the regular season on March 9. The Rowdies were given a tough assignment as the visitors for Memphis' inaugural match, but Juan Tejada drew an early penalty and Sebastian Guenzatti converted it in the fourth minute. Tampa Bay held on to win 1-0 and spoil the party.

Rowdies Notes

The Tampa Bay Rowdies return home following a thumping at the hands of North Carolina FC on Wednesday night in Cary. The Rowdies leveled the score in the 32nd minute but then conceded three goals in the second half to see the game slip away. A late Juan Tejada consolation goal narrowed the margin of defeat.

That result saw the Rowdies slip one spot to third place in the USL Championship's Eastern Conference, four points of New York with a game in hand over the Red Bulls. Third place is the lowest the Rowdies have been since May 8 heading into a match against Nashville SC.

Tampa Bay finds itself in a bit of a summer slump at the moment. After losing once in the first 20 games of the season, the Rowdies have now lost three of their last four. The Rowdies were swept in the season series against North Carolina, losing both matches by a combined score of 7-3.

Coming off a bye week, Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins made five changes to his lineup that had lost to Birmingham in its last match. Jaime Siaj made his first start of the season, while Mohamed Kone, Andrew Tinari, Dom Oduro and Juan Tejada were all restored to the starting lineup.

Tampa Bay's opener against North Carolina was scored by Sebastian Guenzatti, his 13th goal of the season. It was his first goal since July 20 against Saint Louis FC. He is fourth in the Championship Golden Boot race behind Phoenix's Solomon Asante (18), Nashville's Daniel Rios (17) and New Mexico's Kevaughn Frater (14).

Juan Tejada also ended a scoring slump Wednesday night, nodding home a header on a corner kick in the 90th minute. It was his first goal since July 7 at Swope Park. He is second on the team in scoring with eight goals.

Among the players that has recently been sidelined by injury is goalkeeper John McCarthy, who strained a hamstring late in a 4-1 win over Saint Louis FC on July 20. McCarthy led the league in clean sheets at the time of his injury with nine but has missed four matches since then.

Injury Report

QUESTIONABLE - Shawn Barry (leg)

QUESTIONABLE - Yann Ekra (leg)

QUESTIONABLE - John McCarthy (leg)

QUESTIONABLE - Zach Steinberger (leg)

Check out the Tampa Bay Rowdies Statistics



United Soccer League Championship Stories from August 23, 2019


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