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NASL Minnesota United FC

Minnesota United Opens 2016 Home Campaign Saturday

April 15, 2016 - North American Soccer League (NASL)
Minnesota United FC News Release


Minnesota United Celebrates at Home
Minnesota United Celebrates at Home
(Minnesota United FC)

SAINT PAUL, Minn. - Minnesota United return to friendly confines of National Sports Center Stadium Saturday to face off against the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. CDT - fans can watch all the action live on MY29 TV and ESPN3.

Minnesota United's return to NSC Stadium will be an introduction of sorts for many in the club. For starters, the Loons have 10 new players in the squad who have never played a home match in Minnesota before. In addition to the players experiencing a Minnesota United home field advantage for the first time, Carl Craig will be experiencing his first home match as a head coach and Assistant Coach Ian Fuller will make his first appearance with the club since traveling as an opponent to the Minnesota Thunder.

"Personally I'm thrilled because I've never seen the Dark Clouds, never seen the rest of the group-you know, my last trip here was to play the Thunder when there were about 500 people in the stands, so it's going to be a really exciting night for me personally, but it's only as good as the result that we put on the field," said Fuller. "We're thrilled, but we know that we've got some work to do and a tough Fort Lauderdale team is going to come in and we have to play our best to get a result."

Fort Lauderdale comes to Minnesota with a focused attacking core. Players like Neil Hlavaty, PC, Adrianinho and Maicon Santos have proven records of scoring goals in the past and could create issues for a slightly-tattered Loon defensive line. Tiago Calvano was taken out of last weekend's match with an injury and could be sidelined this Saturday-leaving the pairing of Brent Kallman and Damion Lowe to keep the Fort Lauderdale Attack at bay.

"I think that they're very similar in style to us-some kickers in there, some aggressive players," said Craig. "They're very assertive, physically powerful, with some skills so I think it'll be a good challenge for us."

Fort Lauderdale will be traveling to Minnesota with a relatively healthy squad, having last week off to recover and prepare for the away trip. The past two matches in Minnesota have been good results for the Strikers, taking all six points away from NSC Stadium. Still, Fort Lauderdale Head Coach and General Manager Caio Zanardi understands this weekend's fixture could be difficult for the Strikers.

"We had to work on a lot of things from our first game, but we are practicing and looking to put those mistakes right by being more organized against Minnesota," said Zanardi. "The bye-week gave us another week to recover some key players and I hope to have two or three more players back from injury to be available for the match for this weekend."

With 22 goals in just six matches between these two clubs, goals are almost a certainly for Saturday's home opener at NSC Stadium in Blaine. Be part of the action, tickets are available now at mnunitedfc.com/tickets. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. CDT.

Minnesota United Match Details

Kickoff: 7 p.m. CDT

Opponent: Fort Lauderdale Strikers

Broadcast: MY29, ESPN3

Tickets: HERE

United Tickets:

Catch Minnesota United live at the National Sports Center Stadium in Blaine on April 16th at the United home opener. Tickets are available today HERE. The Loons kick off against the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in their third match of the 2016 NASL Season.

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Minnesota United Celebrates at Home
Minnesota United Celebrates at Home
   



North American Soccer League Stories from April 15, 2016


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