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USL Oakland Roots

Oakland Roots Move Up To Fifth Place With A Big Win Over San Diego Loyal

May 27, 2023 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Oakland Roots News Release


Nearing the halfway point in the USL Championship season, Oakland Roots have quietly moved their way up the Western Conference table.

On Saturday night against SoCal rivals San Diego Loyal, Oakland Roots started off with a bang, going up 1-0 in the seventh minute thanks to a nifty play by Johnny Rodriguez and Memo Diaz. Diaz challenged for a 50-50 outside Loyal's box and quickly chipped a pass through to Rodriguez, who turned his defender and dispatched from close range.

The game seesawed for the next 20 minutes with Roots enjoying more of the ball and chances and went into the locker room up 1-0.

In the second half, Loyal pressed and tested the Roots' backline, to little avail. Paul "The Wall" Blanchette made a few saves but by and large Oakland was comfortable to soak up pressure and play on the counterattack.

In the dying embers of the match, Roots found time for one more attack. Anuar Peláez jumped on a loose ball around the half circle, drove towards San Diego's goal, and coolly finished into the bottom corner, doubling the Roots' lead and all but assuring victory.

Next up for Oakland Roots are away tilts against the Colorado Springs Switchbacks and the Phoenix Rising. Roots will then play at home against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds on June 17th.

Hearing From Head Coach Noah Delgado

Coach Delgado, that's a big win. Guys are up to fifth in the standings. Talk about the win and how you executed the game plan?

We made some rotations; we've got a lot of games and we're getting players minutes. I thought scoring that early goal really motivated us. We did a good job in our mid-block and forcing them out wide. Attacking-wise we were looking for transition.

Johnny Rodriguez played really well tonight; he started at striker instead of Darek Formella. Talk about his performance tonight?

Johnny's been playing really well. We're a team that's going to use a lot of players and use different lineups. It's important for players to get different experiences and make it a challenging environment in the team.

Oakland Roots SC vs San Diego Loyal

USL Championship | May 27, 2023

Venue: Cal State University, East Bay, Hayward, California

Kickoff: 7:00 PM PT

Weather: 59 degrees, clear

SCORELINE:

OAK: 2

SD: 0

SCORING SUMMARY:

OAK: 7' Johnny Rodriguez

OAK: 90+5' Anuar Peláez

DISCIPLINE SUMMARY:

OAK: 20' Johnny Rodriguez (yellow card)

OAK: 35' Neveal Hackshaw (yellow card)

OAK: 64' Emrah Klimenta (yellow card)

OAKLAND ROOTS LINEUP: Paul Blanchette, Emrah Klimenta, Neveal Hackshaw, Danny Barbir, Bryan Tamacas, Memo Diaz, Joseph Nane (Napo Matsoso), Daniel Gomez (Tarek Morad), Edgardo Rito, Lindo Mfeka (Anuar Peláez), Johnny Rodriguez (Darek Formella)

Unused subs: Trayvone Reid, Ryan Her, Taylor Bailey

Shots: 12 | Shots On Goal: 6 | Corner Kicks: 3 | Fouls: 14 | Offside: 3 |

SAN DIEGO LOYAL LINEUP: Duran Feree, Kyle Adams, Jackson Kasahzu (Adrien Perez), Elijah Martin, Blake Bodily, Collin Martin, Alejandro Guido (Joe Corona), Nick Moon, Tumi Moshobahe (Camden Riley), Evan Conway, Elliot Collier (Ronaldo Damus)

Unused subs: Alan Solorio, Morgan Hackworth, Xavi Ghalavti

Shots: 10 | Shots On Goal: 5 | Corner Kicks: 5 | Fouls: 10 | Offside: 5 |

Check out the Oakland Roots Statistics



United Soccer League Championship Stories from May 27, 2023


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