Miami holds strong and ties Atlanta 0-0
Published on August 8, 2008 under USL First Division (USL-1)
Fort Lauderdale Strikers News Release
Miami, August 8, 2008 - Miami FC ventured into the home of the Atlanta Silverbacks Friday evening looking to get a positive result in their journey for the playoffs and came away with a point from a 0-0 tie. In a game that featured the top 2 scorers in the USL-1, Miami FC's Alex Afonso and Atlanta's Macoumba Kandji, goals were very to being scored but neither team could find the back of the net. Kudos to both goalkeepers. Atlanta came in with a 3 game win streak and 3 goals per game during that streak but a brilliant Josh Saunders and a strong Miami backline denied any Atlanta goals.
In the first 10 minutes both teams looked shaky as they were trying to find their rhythm. Miami was without midfielder Léo Inácio, which is a possible reason why the Blues lacked fluidity in their offense in the beginning of the first half. In his place though the newly acquired Connally Edozien started the game and played well in Inácio's role as the attacking midfielder behind forwards Alex Afonso and Sean Fraser.
In the 15th minute there was a scare early on for Miami as the tall and skillful Macoumba Kandji weaved left and right down the right flank between two Miami defenders and forced Josh Saunders to save a vicious shot.
In the 25th minute Edozien showed one of the reasons why he was acquired by fending off multiple Atlanta defenders as he was able to fight his way toward the area with great strength and skill but could not get a clean shot off.
Each team showed their defensive competence by thwarting the others' offensive build up in the first 30 minutes. Miami lacked that final ball that connected from the midfield to the forwards which contributed to some frustration for Sean Fraser and Alex Afonso.
In the 35th however, Afonso took it upon himself to make a big play, which is what savvy veterans do, when he received a pass in the Silverbacks half and while being pressured by an Atlanta defender he flicked the ball over the oncoming home team player and was off to the races toward the goal. He then played a low cross to the on rushing Sean Fraser into the box but the ball was cleared out for a corner.
Some of the more flashy Silverbacks players such as Ansu Toure took advantage of his quickness and the aggressiveness of the Miami defenders by making multiple fakes with the ball which led to some scares for Miami FC fans.
In the 38th minute some good build up by Atlanta led to a very close chance right in front of goal which fortunately rolled wide as no one could touch it into goal.
Then on the next possession Miami took the ball away from Atlanta only to give it right back with a bad pass. It made its way to the feet of Macoumba Kandji who let off a missile toward Josh Saunders' goal. The ball flew a few feet over the bar but could have been a costly error for Miami.
After a first half that contained a good amount of excitement and flashy play both teams left the field tied at 0.
The best chance in the first hour came in the 52nd minute when Connally Edozien made some good moves and burst into the area with the ball and he got off a little chip shot over the on rushing Felipe Quintero but his ball rolled just wide of the empty goal.
Miami looked as though they were growing more and more comfortable with Edozien in the line up but there was still a lack of a good final ball in the Blues front line which played to the advantage of Atlanta.
In the 70th minute Miami deserved a better finish to a great play which probably should have put them up 1-0. Walter Ramirez combined well with Afonso who fed the left back a nice pass into the area who worked his magic and got the ball around the oncoming Atlanta keeper. Ramirez's pass speedily rolled in front of the goal mouth but there was not a Miami player who arrived in time.
In the final 10 minutes of regular time Josh Saunders came up huge as his goal was under assault by the Silverbacks. He made several outstanding saves which allowed Miami to stay in the game. In the 85th a nice little one-two pass by Atlanta in the Miami box was blocked beautifully by Saunders who was forced into that situation a few times during the game.
In what was a heart pounding 4 added minutes neither team could put the game away and Miami FC closed out the game with a 0-0 tie.
Miami's next game is in Carolina where they will play the RailHawks on August 15th at 8 pm (ET- live on Fox Soccer Channel). Miami's next home match at Tropical Park is on August 24th against the Charleston Battery. Group tickets are currently on sale by visiting our ticket page by calling 305-728-2612. Single game tickets are available through Ticketmaster.com or by calling 1-866-57-MIAMI. Watch all of Miami's away games and all other USL games live on USL Live!
USL First Division Stories from August 8, 2008
- Atlanta Silverbacks Tie Miami FC Blues 0-0 - Atlanta Silverbacks
- Impact blank Carolina, 2-0 - Montreal Impact
- Miami holds strong and ties Atlanta 0-0 - Fort Lauderdale Strikers
- RailHawks lose to Montreal 2-0 - North Carolina FC
- Atlanta Silverbacks Sign Brent Sancho; Trade for Aaron Paye - Atlanta Silverbacks
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