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MLS NEXT Pro Minnesota United FC 2

MNUFC2 Scores Twice, Defeats Whitecaps FC 2

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


BLAINE, Minn. -- Upon returning back to Minnesota following an entire month of road matches, MNUFC2 looked to rebound from two consecutive losses. Hosting Whitecaps FC 2 at the National Sports Center Stadium on Saturday night, the Loons found their winning ways again in front of the home crowd, defeating their Western Conference foes 2-0 on the backs of Emmanuel Iwe and Aziel Jackson goals, along with an Alec Smir clean-sheet win.

The first half was all in favor of the Loons. If there was one stat to prove it, it was shots. MNUFC2 pressed nine shots against Whitecaps FC 2, with five of them directly on target. On the other hand, the 'Caps only put three shots, one on target against Loons' goalkeeper Alec Smir.

Adding to the first-half dominance, MNUFC2 held much of its possession in Whitecaps FC's half of the pitch, connecting passes and creating plenty of chances in the first 45 minutes. Midfielder Emmanuel Iwe was the beneficiary of finding space in between the 'Caps defenders, connecting crosses inside the box and fighting for possession in front of the goal.

Whitecaps FC 2 found an early moment of promise in the sixth minute Smir left the box, leaving the net open. But defender Callum Montgomery rushed back to clear the ball just yards from the goal line.

Amidst the many chances MNUFC2 had, the big break came in the 23rd minute when midfielder Aziel Jackson connected with Iwe once again, but this time Iwe's shot from just inside the box squeaked between the legs of the 'Caps keeper on the near post, giving the Loons the 1-0 lead.

Iwe then, in nearly the same spot as his goal, drew a foul and therefore a penalty kick in the 42nd minute. Jackson went to the spot to take the penalty, but the shot was saved and the score remained at 1-0 at half.

Following the break, the Loons gave more of the same strong energy as they had in the previous half. Jackson had yet another shot on target that was saved in the 50th minute, while forward Tommy Williamson added another scoring opportunity from a set-piece free kick, missing just left of the far post.

In the 75th minute, midfielder Diogo Pacheco nearly scored a few yards from the goal, but the rebound landed at the boots of Jackson, where he netted the second goal of the night (his sixth regular-season tally), giving the Loons the 2-0 advantage.

The MNUFC2 back line held firm throughout the remainder of the contest, giving goalkeeper Alec Smir little work from the net. But Smir's night wasn't lifeless, as the 'Caps notched four shots (one on target), with Smir earning his first MLS Next Pro win and shutout.

With the win, MNUFC2 moves to the sixth spot in the MLS Next Pro Western Conference standings (6-4-3, 24 points).

MNUFC2 is home again, facing St. Louis CITY2 on Sunday, July 10 at the National Sports Center Stadium in Blaine, Minnesota. Kick is set for 8:00 p.m. CT, and tickets for the match are still available and can be purchased here. The contest will also be streamed live at www.mlsnextpro.com.

GOALS

1-0 MNUFC2 - Emmanuel Iwe (23')

2-0 MNUFC2 - Aziel Jackson (75')

DISCIPLINARY SUMMARY

Yellow, MIN - Jason Ramos (44')

Yellow, VAN - Jay Herdman (65')

NOTABLE STATS

23-4 - MNUFC2 outshot Whitecaps FC 2 by 23 to four, including an impressive 12-1 on goal

95.5% - Midfielder Nick Mendonca connected over 95% of his passes on the night

2 - Midfielder Emmanuel Iwe netted his second goal of 2022 for MNUFC2 in the 23rd minute

TEAM LEADERS (Updated through July 2)

Goals - Aziel Jackson (6)

Assists - Aziel Jackson (4)

Saves - Fred Emmings (33)

Wins - Fred Emmings (3)

Shutouts - Eric Dick (2)

MLS NEXT PRO STANDINGS, WESTERN CONFERENCE (Through July 2)

(W,L,D, points) SOW*

1. North Texas SC (9-3-2, 30 points) 1

2. St. Louis CITY 2 (9-3-2, 30 points) 1

3. Tacoma Defiance (7-3-4, 28 points) 3

4. Houston Dynamo 2 (8-4-2, 27 points) 1

5. Whitecaps FC 2 (6-4-5, 25 points) 2

6. MNUFC2 (6-4-3, 24 points) 3

7. Earthquakes II (6-5-3, 21 points) 1

8. Sporting KC 2 (6-6-2, 20 points) 0

9. Colorado Rapids 2 (4-8-2, 15 points) 1

10. Timbers2 (1-10-2, 7 points) 2

11. Real Monarchs (1-11-2, 5 points) 0

*Shoot Out Wins count as two points

MNUFC2 POST GAME QUOTE SHEET

HEAD COACH CAMERON KNOWLES

On his initial thoughts following the Whitecaps FC 2 match...

"It was a good performance from the group. We needed to bounce back from a couple of results that didn't go our way and we wanted to come out with intensity, come out on the front foot. We set ourselves a goal coming out of halftime with a clean sheet, and we did that. We had the goal and could've had one or two more at halftime, and then the challenge was more of the same in the second half: Come out with the same intensity, don't let our guard down, and make sure we get the second goal. Then, we're able to see the game off and the guys did really well. [They] played hard, worked hard, and took care of chances."

On playing with intensity, finishing chances, going the extra yard...

"It was evident in their performance. You could see that we were getting production out of our pressure in the front half, we were getting tight, we were blocking shots and blocking crosses, making important tackles when the opposition were in dangerous areas. Then in the box, the run that AZ [Aziel Jackson] made to get that rebound to get us a second chance, it is important. That's just desire. It gets you in the box, gets you in front of the goal and you're able to pounce on a mistake. I thought, to a man, the guys were really good with the guys out wide being dangerous and giving them [Whitecaps FC 2] problems and all across the field, the guys did a really good job."

On the importance of tonight's victory...

"Everyone feels good after a win; it's good. We have to continue to evaluate the performances. There's certainly things that we need to work on, things we can do better. That's part of the learning, too. And it's maybe easy to have some of those conversations after a good result, but we have a really big game coming up, and against a really strong team that's been playing well. But, we had a really good performance against them last time when we went to St. Louis CITY2. So, we'll see. It'll be a tough matchup, we've got a long week, but plenty of work for the guys to get them ready for it."

On goalkeeper Alec Smir's first clean sheet and win...

"I'm really pleased for him, because he comes in everyday and works incredibly hard and oftentimes with Freddy [Fred Emmings] coming to play, with Eric Dick who's come and played for us, there's just not a lot of time for him on the field. He is a guy who's attitude is unwavering. He puts in the work and he was prepared. And credit to him, credit to John [Barber] the goalkeeper coach for getting him ready because we didn't know he was going to play until a day or two ago. That happened suddenly, but that's why you have good habits, that's why you train with the same intensity every day whether you play or not because you don't know when the opportunity is going to come. He was really solid today. Credit to him that the guys have that trust. There was no one worried that he was going to play the game; everyone has a lot of trust in his ability. We're fortunate that we have a good pool of goalkeepers that we can draw from every week."

MIDFIELDER EMMANUEL IWE

On returning home to play in Minnesota after a month of road matches...

"It actually feels great. It's been almost like a month since we've been back and I'm just happy to contribute a goal and get those three points."

On creating the number of chances they did against the 'Caps...

"We talked about it pregame and yesterday about them [Whitecaps FC 2] running a back-five. There's going to be spaces behind their wing-backs and kind of just keeping the ball, drawing them out and then looking to find the balls in behind and switching the play around and back down the opposite side and it really worked well. The first half, we were really keeping the ball well and obviously saw my goal was a cross in and we caught them sleeping. So, it was great."

On their fight and finishing chances as they worked on in training...

"It's mostly about working through your teammates. We talked about it this week, when you make those runs - one thing I've learned here is you've got to work through your teammates. Sometimes when you make those runs, you're not necessarily freeing up those spaces for yourself, but someone that's running off your shoulder might be wide open. That's how we do it and you see Diogo [Pacheco] gets the ball down wide, he hits a shot and AZ [Aziel Jackson] is wide open down the middle because he's [Diogo] drawing attention to himself and so we talked about that. Working through your teammates, making sure you're putting in that extra mile not just for yourself, but to help create chances for your teammates."

On scoring a goal in front of hometown fans...

"This is my hometown and so it feels great. I have a sense of pride whenever I play here. I have friends and family in the stands and as for the guys, it finally feels good to be back playing in front of our fans. Even though there's not much, the fans make a huge difference, especially when they're cheering for you. And, so it feels great to finally be back now and we've got another one against St. Louis [CITY2] and we're looking to do the same thing then."

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