Opponent: Birmingham Legion
Match Date: July 13
Location: Protective Stadium
Kickoff: 5:30pm MT
How to Listen: XTRA Sports 1300am with the Voices of the Switchbacks, Ryan Kaufman and Roland Vargish – coverage starts at 5pm MT.
Coach Chambers’ Comments: “[The win against FC Tulsa last Thursday on the Fourth of July] was a good win considering the performance of the game. We deserved the three points, and we still got [the win] late in the game and obviously [Zach] Zandi gets the winner. I think the crowd had a huge part to play in the whole thing. I thought honestly [the crowd] was terrific – the atmosphere was great. But it’s done now…and we move on now and we get ready for Birmingham. “The staff have done such a good job in the background of managing [Zach Zandi]. [He’s] probably been frustrated at times with how we’ve managed him, but the reality is we need to get the best out of him, and I still think there [are] more levels to him. I think he continues to get better. He’s at a decent level right now, but there’s more in him and hopefully he shows that over the next couple of months.”
Look at the Legion: “[Birmingham Legion] have got some really talented players – I say that every weekend – but they do,” continued Head Coach Chambers. “They have some really talented players. Obviously [Tyler] Pasher, Enzo [Martínez] are two really, really good footballers, [and then Tabort] Etaka [Preston] and [Diba] Nwegbo. They’ve got [good] players like that, and they have a couple of injuries at the moment, so we’re not sure if they’ll be back this weekend, but we know that they’re a strong opponent at home and we’re very wary of what we’re walking into. “It’ll be a little bit warmer [in Alabama] – 95° I think, give or take. It’ll be warmer but look, we’re aware of that [and] it’s not like we’re walking into the unknown. We know Birmingham are a top team and we are going down there – which is a difficult place to go – and the weather is always a different component at this stage of the season, but it’s no excuse. It’s another factor that we have to take into consideration, but we still have to go and put a performance on, whether that be in heat or whether that be snow or rain. We still have to do our job. “I think [Enzo Martínez] is [what makes Birmingham tick]. They play a lot through him and I think Pasher feeds off him quite well. [Martinez and Pasher have] got a good connection – almost telepathic at times – and Enzo has been around a long time; he doesn’t need me to tell him how good he is. He’s aware of that and Tyler [Pasher] I think is probably still trying to find his best form, but he’s got a number of goals this year and still looks like a top, top threat.”
Vargish’s View: Birmingham have been inconsistent this season, but they can produce eye- opening results – perhaps most clearly evidenced by a 3-0 demolishing of San Antonio FC on June 19th at Protective Stadium. Despite the Legion’s mixed form in 2024, they enter Saturday’s contest in the Magic City with 24 points – just three points fewer than the Switchbacks’ 27. In the next seven days, the Switchbacks will face two immensely tricky tests against Eastern Conference opponents, starting on Saturday in near triple-digit temperatures in the Yellowhammer State. Birmingham Legion present a challenge that is, in many ways, the perfect trial for the Switchbacks to see where they stack-up at the halfway point of the 2024 USL
Championship season.
