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Initial Thoughts
Ottawa Fury FC travels to Indiana to face fellow expansion side Indy Eleven on Saturday afternoon. Ottawa is coming off of a morale-boosting 1-1 home draw against San Antonio, in a match where they snatched a late equalizer after falling behind in a game in which they had the majority of the chances. Indy Eleven, meanwhile, was soundly defeated last weekend by Minnesota 5-1 away, and made headlines for all the wrong reasons, with their conceding of a goal that is expected to grace NASL highlight reels for many years to come.
Ottawa, however, is the team that is looking up at Indy in the Fall Season table, remaining in 10th place with 2 points from 6 matches. Indy sits at 8th place with 7 points from their 7 matches, having picked up some important wins in recent weeks. Ottawa has an away record of 1-1-5 in all league play in the 2014 NASL season, while Indy Eleven has a despairing league home record of 0-3-5 at Michael A. Carroll Stadium in Indianapolis.
Due to the 27-match format of the NASL season, in which clubs play each other 3 times, Ottawa travels to Indy, having already done so in May. They picked up a particularly valuable 2-4 away victory that day, with CM Tony Donatelli shining especially bright with 2 very well-taken goals, and DM Richie Ryan setting the tone with strong distribution to the flanks throughout the game. Ottawa lined up in its usual 4-3-3 formation, while Indy came out in a flat 4-4-2, which has since shifted to a diamond 4-4-2.
RNO Ours is the Fury Podcast Match Preview
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Keep Thinking
A couple of Fury FC players continue to heal on the sidelines, including CB Omar Jarun and RB Andres Fresenga, while LB Maykon made a return to the bench for the match against San Antonio. Winger Oliver remains day-to-day and may return to the matchday squad after missing out last week.
In Ottawa’s last match against San Antonio, their offense stuck to its possession-based philosophy and created a number of chances against the table-topping team, giving confidence to both the players and the coaching staff. However, the lack of finishing on the team is starting to become somewhat more glaring, and the team has scored only 3 times in its 6 Fall matches, the lowest in the league. The goalscoring responsibilities were carried mostly by the midfield for the Fury during the Spring Season, and it is up to Ottawa’s strikers and the wingers to start adding to the tally as well.
A common feature of Ottawa’s well-taken victories during the Spring Season, such as the away win vs. Indy and the 4-0 home win vs. Carolina, was the impressive mid-range distribution from DM Richie Ryan and CM Tony Donatelli out to the wings. Their precise diagonal passes from the center of the pitch to the flanks, whether it be to the wingers or the fullbacks, allowed the play to build up naturally, and for the wingers to get in dangerous positions in which to whip the ball in to the penalty area or to work short passes around the area. A number of commentators, from a diverse range of mediums such as Rogers TV and soccer forums, have picked up the increasing tendency throughout the Fall for the Fury to force long passes or through balls down the middle to the centre-forward instead, which has resulted in a general decrease in possession and chances for the team. A good balance in the Fury’s attacking approaches, whether through the middle or down the flanks, will be a valuable component as the team looks to recover its magic from the Spring Season.
Ottawa manager Marc Dos Santos believes the entire team has benefited from the late equalizer against San Antonio and will use that confidence going into this week. Dos Santos believes that the fixture against Indy will not be as easy as it was in the spring season, asking us to “put yourself in Indy’s position, at home in front of 11,000 people, out of a 5-1 loss, I think they will have blood in their eyes. They will say Ottawa are in the standing close to us [Indy] and we can pass them. It’s a place we have to be extremely focused.” Dos Santos, for one, will not be thinking about the 2-4 away win in the Spring Season, as this is “a new game and a new reality” and that “the boys [Fury] have forgotten the 4-2 and are focused for this week.”
Indy Eleven has had an interesting start to the Fall Season, with two road wins in the first three matches giving them their first wins in their club history, but winless in their four matches since. Their defensive record is the worst among the 10 clubs in the Fall Season, as it was in the Spring Season, with 14 goals conceded in 7 matches. Indy Eleven has shifted to a diamond 4-4-2 formation, taking advantage of their marquee signing CM Kleberson, formerly of Manchester United, who has scored 7 goals and putting himself near the top of the goal-scoring charts, even after missing a number of games in the spring due to an injury.
DM Brad Ring, who had played in every league match for Indy, was recently ruled out for the season with a foot injury, but Jamaican winger Jermaine Johnson, a veteran from the English Championship, returns from a 2-match suspension. ST Mike Ambersley, a veteran in the NASL and the USL Division 1, is another goal-scoring threat for Indy, while defender Erick Norales, a Honduran international, is a player known amongst Canadian soccer supporters.
Final Thoughts
The morale-boosting late equalizer against San Antonio last week serves Ottawa well for this 2nd round of the expansion battle, while Indy’s morale is at a big low after their thrashing away at Minnesota. This match will be a great opportunity for the Fury FC to go on the attack to exploit Indy’s weak defense, but the team must be wary of the threat that Kleberson poses.
Injuries and Suspensions
CB Omar Jarun (out), RB Andres Fresenga (doubtful), winger Oliver (day-to-day)
TV (Ottawa)
NASLLive.com, Saturday 7:30pm EDT
Prediction
Indy Eleven 1-2 Ottawa Fury FC
RNO Ours is the Fury Podcast Match Preview
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