Minneapolis City and the Madison 56ers played to a 1-1 draw on a hot day in South Minneapolis. Early goals from Isaac “Goose” Friendt for City and an own goal from Nate Engel for Madison shortly after led to City’s first and Madison’s second draw of the season.
Minneapolis City was coming off of their first loss: a 1-0 affair to Croatian Eagles last week. The Crows sit second in the West Division at 8 points, level with Milwaukee and Cedar Rapids with the order being determined by goal differential.
Madison has struggled this season and sits at the bottom of the West Division. The 56ers have lost three of their four matches on the season, the lone exception being a 1-1 draw with Cedar Rapids on the first match day.
Lineups
City started in a 4-3-3 formation fronted by Andrew Lorei up top and anchored by goalkeeper Duncan Werling.
Madison played in a fluid 4-3-3 with both wingers dropping back to help defend regularly. This led to it occasionally looking for a like a 4-5-1.
Tactics
This match was interesting from a tactical standpoint. The teams took turns controlling the ball 15+ minutes at a time and playing on the counter. In general, Minneapolis attempted to control the ball and work it forward, while Madison tended to play a high pressure game and try to score on the counter. There were times when Madison sustained possession in Minneapolis’ area.
Tactics were hindered by a pitch that was neither flat nor smooth; it was difficult to connect passes as the ball took unexpected bounces. This resulted in a lot of midfield play and many changes of possession while the ball was in the midfield.
The First Half
The match began with each team pushing forward trying to impose their will on the other team. Minneapolis certainly began better, controlling possession and keeping the ball in Madison’s third. This early pressure paid off as Isaac Friendt poked a shot into Madison’s net in the first 10 minutes to take the lead for the Crows.
As Madison got their footing and pushed forward, an odd bounce found the net behind Duncan Werling. There were shouts for offside from the fans, but the AR looked confident in their decision to keep the flag down. The final ball may have gone off Minneapolis defender Nate Engel.
The match proceeded to fall into a pattern; one team would have possession for several minutes in their opposition’s area, fail to connect a final pass, recover, repeat. Finally the defending team got on the end of a clearance and everyone charged to the other end of the field to repeat the process in the other direction.
Neither Madison nor Minneapolis were able to create chances for themselves until nearly the end of the first half of play. While on the break, Madison’s striker got on the end of a cross, but his effort came back off the bar. As Minneapolis defender Olson went to recover, he was fouled heavily, stemming the danger for the home side.
The half ended 1-1.
Second Half
Early in the second half, Isaac Friendt found himself in on goal with only one defender to beat. He went down in the box, but the referee never looked to call a penalty kick. Particularly early in the half, the Crows looked dangerous, but were unable to connect their final passes to create truly dangerous chances. There were a few promising shots taken, but they either found the keeper or went over the bar.
As Minneapolis continued to control possession, eventually dangerous chances were created. Matthew Gweh cut into the penalty area and ripped a shot into the Madison keeper’s gut. The rebound fell to Ben Wexler, but his left-footed shot went wide left. As City recovered the ensuing goal kick, Friendt again found himself in the box alone, but he was called offside.
As the match wore on, Madison continued to gain more and more possession of the ball. As Minneapolis grew more tired, tactical roles well and truly switched, with Madison controlling play and Minneapolis looking to play the counterattack. Minneapolis’ exhaustion also led to midfield giveaways, giving Madison a chance to break quickly onto the counterattack. The Crows’ back line and Duncan Werling played well, with Werling making several diving saves to deflect shots that were headed for his net.
Madison was issued three yellow cards for heavy tackles. As the match drew to a close, both teams thought they had found a winner, but both shots rolled inches wide of the goal.
The 1-1 scoreline saw out the half.
Next Up
The teams will have the chance to find closure, as next week Minneapolis travels to Madison for the reverse fixture. Minneapolis will look to return to their winning ways, while Madison still searches for their first victory of the season. Minneapolis searches for a playoff berth, while Madison fights to climb out of the basement, with hopes of a playoff spot likely dead already.
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