Rowdies Reflections: Seba Sets the Standard
July 3, 2021 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Tampa Bay Rowdies News Release
On Friday night, Sebastian Guenzatti joined the ranks of past Tampa Bay Rowdies legends by making his 100th appearance for the club. To mark the occasion, the Rowdies captain recorded the match's lone goal from the penalty spot to put the Rowdies over the top against the Charleston Battery.
"Having my family here, and obviously the fans, for my 100th game was a dream come true," said Guenzatti. "I didn't get to do it at my other clubs, but I got to do it here. I want to thank all my teammates, all the staff, everybody that works here. Since day one, they've been unbelievable to me. I just want to thank everybody. I don't want to forget anybody because everybody's a huge part of this."
Not only was Friday's tally his 44th as a Rowdies player, it was also his 19th game-winning goal for the Rowdies since he signed with the club midway through the 2017 season. Only Georgi Hristov and original Rowdies striker Derek Smethurst have scored more goals for the Rowdies than Guenzatti.
"He's always available, he's always there," Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins said of Guenzatti. "And by available I mean standing up to be counted. I've played on and coached teams where, when the going gets tough, some people take a step back and some people take a step forward. No matter how Seba's doing form-wise, he always takes a step forward."
Guenzatti had to earn that trust from Collins in 2018 when the latter took over coaching duties. The two were teammates together before Collins switched from playing to coaching, but Collins' estimation of Guenzatti only grew as that 2018 season wore on. As the team struggled to find consistency, he saw Guenzatti approach every aspect of the game with dogged determination. Guenzatti aimed to prove he should be in the number 9 role in the attack and he did just that. Collins gave him a shot up top and also gave him the captain's armband starting in 2019. Guenzatti paid back the favor by setting a new Rowdies single-season scoring record with 19 goals.
"Whatever team I play for, I'm gonna give everything, and I've said that from the beginning," said Guenzatti. "Neill gave me the chance to start as a forward and be the captain and when the opportunity came, I wasn't gonna let that go. It was a position I've been wanting for many years since I became a pro... The group we've developed over the years and the team's heart, just everything, it's all been really good. I want to thank everybody because every day it's a joy to come to work with everybody."
Guenzatti joins the likes of Takuya Yamada, Frankie Sanfilippo, Keith Savage, Matt Pickens and of course Hristov as modern era Rowdies who have made 100 or more appearances for the club. His performance and also the example he sets on a daily basis outside of gamedays has established a high standard for others over the last several seasons.
"We've got a lot of people who, when the chips are down, they're resilient and they're always there," said Collins. "They train every day. They work hard every day. I think Seba sets that mentality. That's what we've got to sustain to keep doing what we're doing. We need to get as many people like that in as we can. Seba's a huge part in setting the tone for that. It's not the most glamorous trait, but trust me every coach around the world would give their right arm to have 23 guys with Seba Guenzatti's attitude."
From the Spot
Guenzatti's winner against the Battery was his 8th already this season. He's currently outpacing his record-setting season in 2019, when he had five goals through the same amount of matches.
Four of his goals this year have come from the penalty spot. Those may seem like gimme opportunities, but Guenzatti only makes it look that way with his calm consistency.
"We see it at the highest levels, even the Euros, they miss," said Guenzatti. "It looks easier than it is, when everybody's there and singing and their eyes are on you. We practice them. We have amazing goalkeepers that are willing to let me shoot on them every day. That's the secret. Practice makes perfect. Thanks to the goalies that are always there to save my shots."
Lock Down
Charleston were the only side to beat the Rowdies in 2020, doing so three times largely by virtue of a lethal counter attack. In this outing, the Rowdies gave up nothing on the counter and hardly anything at all. The Rowdies remained vigilant all night long to deny the visitors a single shot on goal and allow only four attempts at all.
"The best way to deal with (the counter) is to score when we're having so much possession and we didn't quite manage that as early as I'd like, but I thought as a team we dealt with it very well," said Collins. "Of course we're wary of it. The thing is, with players like Nicque Daley and Stavros Zarokostas, they can do that to anyone, at any level. So credit to our defenders tonight. They were on it, just as they were in the playoffs against them...I think tonight it was good to get the win but we know we've got another three times to play them so we'll need to deal with it another three times at least."
Atlantic Division Race
The Rowdies have now run through each Atlantic Division opponent at least once and still stand out from the pack with a 7-point lead atop the table. It's a strong position for the Rowdies to be in, especially given all their injury woes in the first two months of the season. However, the competition is only likely to get tougher as the season progresses with the Rowdies having to face 13 more away matches and a significant amount of rematches left on the calendar. The only teams to post a win over the Rowdies this year were Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC and the Charlotte Independence when they met the Rowdies for a second time. Learning to adapt when other teams change up what they do will be key to maintaining this successful stretch.
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