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MLS NEXT Pro Minnesota United FC 2

MNUFC2 at Tacoma Defiance Preview

July 17, 2022 - MLS NEXT Pro (MLS NEXT Pro)
Minnesota United FC 2 News Release


GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn. -- After a two-game homestand for MNUFC2, the Loons are headed back on the road. This time, they will be making the trek to the West Coast to take on the Tacoma Defiance, as they attempt to bounce back from their 2-1 defeat at the National Sports Center against St Louis CITY2.

The Tacoma side presents quite the challenge for the Loons. Just two points off the top of MLS NEXT Pro's top spot, the Defiance have proven to be a high-scoring, lethal outfit. Tacoma has netted 41 goals and conceded only 17, giving them a positive goal differential of 24. The only other side in the league close to that mark is NYCFC II. In comparison, MNUFC2 currently has 26 goals for and 20 against, good enough for a plus 6 goal difference.

Sunday's matchup will mark the first meeting of these two teams, with MNUFC2 chasing the playoffs and Tacoma chasing the top of the league standings. When the season ends, only eight teams will make the MLS NEXT Pro playoffs, four from each conference. Though the Loons are currently sitting in 7th in the Western Conference, they are within touching distance of the playoff spots with 10 games left to play in the regular season.

MATCH NOTES:

MNUFC2 travels to face the Tacoma Defiance for the very first time at the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila, Washington. The game starts at 9:00 p.m. CT, and can be viewed by streaming at www.mlsnextpro.com.

Cameron Knowles on what MNUFC2 needs to do to get three points against Tacoma Defiance...

"In-form doesn't really do them [Tacoma Defiance] justice. They've been one of the better teams in the league - the entire league, not just the Western Conference from the jump. What have they scored 40, 41 goals? And ours is 10 goals behind and most are in the high 20s and their goal difference is off the charts. So, it's not just that they're scoring a lot of goals, it's that they're not conceding a lot either, and they're really efficient. I was looking at our chance creation and we've done a really good job of that compared to other teams in the league at chance creation. But, our execution in those moments hasn't been as high. That should give us a lot of confidence, that we know we're creating chances, we saw it again in the game the other night. If we can match their efficiency and executing in those moments, we should have a good chance. The other side of it is we've got to be really difficult to break down. A team that's scored 40 goals - and they put six [goals] on Portland [Timbers 2] and could've had more - we know that they're in form, they're flying and they're playing with a lot of confidence. That said, they're the team that's at the top of the table; the pressure is on them to get the result and we're looking to make it very difficult for them."

Cameron Knowles on how to stop goal scorers like those on Tacoma's squad...

"If you can stop them from shooting, you can probably stop them from scoring. It's a collective effort to deny good chances. And that means keeping teams out of the box, it means denying them having sustained possession, possession in the front half. They're a very good team in their pass completion rate in the opponent's half, and we've got to disrupt that a little bit. We've got to get a lot tighter to guys and far more so than we were in this last game, making it difficult for teams to play and to find a rhythm, especially in the final third. That's got to be very difficult for them once they get into the final third and in our defending third to combine and create. They've got a really tidy team and guys that have been in their system for a number of years."

Jason Ramos on his first MNUFC2 goal during the St. Louis CITY2 match last week...

"It means a lot to get on the score sheet, help the team get back into the game. We were 2-0 down. As a defender, I prefer to get a clean sheet before getting a goal. I scored my first goal here in Minnesota and hopefully there are more to come."

Jason Ramos on what it takes to make a playoffs push...

"It starts this weekend. We play one of the top teams. So, taking points from those top teams is always going to help us jump up the table. Getting these points at home also, we kind of let these points get away like it happened last weekend. Also try to get three points every game - one on the road, two if you can from PK shootout. That's about it. Keep getting points and try not to give anything away here at home."

Jason Ramos on facing Tacoma Defiance and getting the win on the road...

"It started Tuesday when we came back into training. Like I said, we came from a 2-1 loss, so the group knew right away that we had to get a good week of training and prepare for the big game on Sunday, not just because it's Tacoma, a team on top of the table. That's how we treat every game. We try to train hard every day of the week and focus on the game on Sunday."

MNUFC2 @ TACOMA DEFIANCE

STARFIRE SPORTS COMPLEX | TUKWILA, WA

07.17.22 | MLS Next PRO Regular Season | Week 15

9:00 p.m. CT (mlsnextpro.com)

2022 Record

MIN: 6-5-3 (3-3-2 on the road)

TAC: 8-3-4 (6-1-1 at home)

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