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USL Tampa Bay Rowdies

Matchday 11 Preview: Rowdies at Phoenix

May 14, 2022 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Tampa Bay Rowdies News Release


Tampa Bay Rowdies at Phoenix Rising FC

Sunday, May 15, 9pm ET

Phoenix Rising Soccer Complex, Phoenix, AZ

Watch: The match will air nationally on ESPN2.

Follow Along: Live updates on Twitter at @RowdiesGameday.

After a week off, the Tampa Bay Rowdies are ready to resume the USL Champion campaign this Sunday as they travel to face Western Conference powerhouse, Phoenix Rising FC. The two sides will face off on the one-year anniversary of their last meeting on the field. Tampa Bay took last year's contest with a 2-1 result in front of their supporters at Al Lang Stadium. This season, the Rowdies enter the matchup as the away side.

"Huge respect for (Phoenix Head Coach Rick Schantz)," said Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins. "What he's done at Phoenix can't be rivaled the past few years. It's a really consistent team that plays exciting football. We're gonna go there and try to win a game of football like we do every game on the road. The fact is we're playing against a top team in a really good environment we've never been in before so we're looking forward to that."

There's no getting around the fact that April was a tough month for the Rowdies. Between league play and the U.S. Open Cup, the Rowdies took the field eight times in April and finished on top in just two of those contests. With a bit of time to rest and get to work improving on the training field, the Rowdies hope to take advantage of Phoenix's busier schedule over the last week and get back in the win column.

"When you get a long spell it can sometimes be difficult," said Collins. "You want to get the balance right. You want to give the players rest, which they well deserve. You've gotta give them time with their families because we've all missed time with our families with that busy stretch. That makes you feel better, that freshens you up. Then just getting time on the field together, working on things. I think we really have taken advantage of it. I feel we're in a good place, but we all know we're judged by what we do on a Saturday or a Sunday on gameday."

Maintaining Attitude

Despite falling to San Diego in heartbreaking fashion, there was at least one aspect of the squad's performance that night that the Rowdies hope to hold on to. With a few injuries and facing their fifth match in 15 days, the Rowdies still went toe-to-toe with a San Diego side that had had nearly two weeks without a match to prepare.

"I just wanted to see more of what I saw from an attitude standpoint against San Diego," said Collins. "In the Memphis game there was positive in terms of our attitude once the sending off happened but prior to that I thought we lacked that little bit of energy and intensity we're renowned for. Against San Diego, when it would have been so easy to feel sorry for ourselves, the players fought all the way. I think with more bits of quality and moments of concentration we should have won the game. With players who have a good attitude, we're always going to be in a good spot."

Guenzatti Inches Closer to Rowdies History

One of the few positives to come out of the bitter loss to San Diego was club captain Sebastian Guenzatti finally getting his first tally of the year. While it took longer than expected, now that Guenzatti does have his first, he could be in line to start consistently bagging more. After a six-match scoreless drought during the 2021 season, Guenzatti came back with flurry of 12 goals over the final 13 matches of the campaign.

"Any striker will tell you when you go a few games without scoring a goal it does become a frustration, but Seba handled it well. He got his goal, a fantastic goal as well. Over the period he's been here and I've been in charge, he's just scored goals at such a constant rate and he does score at streaky rates. I think he's ready to get into one of those runs. With players like him and Steevan Dos Santos it's only a matter of time before they start finding the net. It was nice for Seba to get that goal."

Injury Update

Rowdies midfielders Sebastian Dalgaard and Lewis Hilton returned to training this week after dealing with knocks over the last couple weeks. Both players will be late decisions for Sunday's match in Phoenix. Dalgaard has been out since the win over FC Tulsa, while Hilton was sidelined for the match against San Diego.

Injury Report:

OUT: Robert Castellanos

QUESTIONABLE: Sebastian Dalgaard, Lewis Hilton

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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.

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