Vargish’s View: Switchbacks Look For Win Against The Miami FC At Home
On Saturday evening the Switchbacks begin the first of two matches in four days in Southern Colorado as Miami FC make their first ever trip to Weidner Field. The first fans through the gates at 6pm will receive a Switchbacks trucker hat courtesy of the Phil Long family of dealerships. Tickets are available for Saturday’s game and the 4th of July matchup against Monterey Bay FC HERE.
The Switchbacks have won two in a row at Weidner Field following a 4-0 demolition of Orange County SC on June 10th and a 2-0 victory over the Las Vegas Lights seven days later. Travel-weary Miami make the journey to Colorado Springs following a cross-country visit to the West Coast last weekend against Monterey Bay FC.
What the Switchbacks Say:
Jonas Fjeldberg. The Norwegian winger made his first Switchbacks start in last Saturday’s loss to New Mexico United: “Personally it was a great moment for me to make my debut for this big club – I’m really proud of that. It was obviously not the result we wanted but on a personal level it was a great honor for me to put the jersey on for my first start. We can not look back now – we have to look forward and get those three points against Miami. [Miami] have been struggling so I think it’s a good opportunity for us to come back [to Weidner Field] and get back to what we’re good at and hopefully get three points. I cannot wait to play here [at Weidner Field] again. I played here three times as the away team and I’ve never won here, so I can’t wait to win here for the first time.”
Switchbacks Head Coach Stephen Hogan:
“[Jonas is] great – him and Juan Tejada are absolutely fantastic! You can see their quality on the ball. At times Jonas is a little bit behind Juan in terms of match fitness because of [Jonas’] injury, but you see some ideas, and some things that [Jonas] can do with the ball to get away from pressure can be phenomenal. It’s just that final step now for him – that creativity, that last pass, that strike on goal – and we think that will be in the next few weeks where he comes in and starts to do that and dictate. The two of them [Jonas and Juan] are fighting for [places] with everyone else in those front four positions. The changes we made the second half of the New Mexico game were impressive. We’ve talked about making sure about our intensity when [play] breaks down and how fast and how clean and how aggressive we are because that will stop the goals on the other side.”
Miami Sneakpeak:
Miami FC are winless since May 3rd and enter Weidner Field 2-7-7 in 2023 USL Championship play. On June 20th Miami FC announced that Head Coach Anthony Pulis had left the club, with Lewis Neal taking charge on an interim basis. Neal’s first game as manager ended in defeat last Saturday at Cardinale Stadium in Seaside, California with Monterey Bay FC beating Miami 1-0. Former Clemson Tiger Kyle Murphy leads Miami’s goal-charts with four, one ahead of El Salvadorian international Christian Sorto.
“They can be a very good footballing team,” said Head Coach Hogan. “They do try and play. They’ve got a good goal-scorer up top [in Kyle Murphy]. I know he’s not had the best of years, but he had a [very good] year last year. They’re very structured at times but you can get at them. I think we have to try and put as much pressure on them [as possible] early doors and get into that mindset of chasing them. [Miami’s] structure of a 4-4-1-1 or a 4-4-2 [is something] we need to break down quickly. If you let [Miami] play, they’ve got enough talent on the field that they can keep the ball rolling so we have to make sure we’re solid in every aspect of the game that we haven’t been in, because if we aren’t they’ll move the ball well. The heat killed us in RGV – we know that. We were exhausted going into the New Mexico game so we tried to make some changes but keep some core [players] in there, and hopefully we are fresh enough to get after [Miami] this weekend.”
Vargish’s View:
Miami are 0-4-3 away from South Florida in 2023 and have struggled mightily for goals. For the visitors to have any chance this weekend, Lewis Neal’s team must convert set-piece opportunities and be able to physically cope with the Switchbacks having the vast majority of possession.
It’s tough to look at anything in early July as a must-win, but the Switchbacks’ two home games in just 96 hours are pivotal. So far this season at Weidner Field the Switchbacks have won four times while using the home crowd – and accompanying altitude – to full advantage. On Saturday night, the Switchbacks’ high-press, in-your-face, and flying forward on counter attacks style must be on show. And on show from the opening whistle.
