Panic on the streets of Glyndon.
Panic on the streets of Bellingham.
I wonder to myself,
Will good form ever return again?
The Blaine side-streets that you slip down…

A combination of tough results and uninspired performances have seen Minnesota squander the lead it had previously built, between itself and the field, in the race for the NASL’s fourth and final playoff seed.

Miami threatens the Loons’ position on two fronts. Alessandro Nesta’s team sits just six points back of first-place New York in the Fall Season table, and holds a game in hand on the Cosmos. Simultaneously, Miami trails Minnesota by only a single point in the combined table.

Tampa Bay also trails Minnesota by a single point in the combined table. Worse, the Rowdies hold a game in hand on the Loons. Additionally, Carolina and and Fort Lauderdale are both mathematically alive, though seeing either rise to the top of a five-way scramble, with so few games left to play, would be unlikely.

Of Minnesota’s six remaining regular season matchups, tonight’s is the most favorable. Its other remaining home games come against Edmonton and New York. It must also still face Tampa Bay, Puerto Rico and Carolina on the road.

The Armada have averaged just 0.81 points per game this season, and have not managed a single win in their last seven outings. Should Minnesota fail to grab all three points this evening, its playoff hopes will have been dealt a significant blow.

Recent Form

Armada	L	L	D	D	D	-2 GD	0.6 PPG
MNUFC	D	W	L	L	L	-3 GD	0.8 PPG

Minnesota rides into Saturday on the back of a three-game losing streak. The last time the Loons lost three league matches in a row occurred between October 5th and 19th, 2013, when Minnesota went winless against the New York Cosmos, Atlanta Silverbacks and Carolina RailHawks.

Should Minnesota falter again, it will equal its longest losing streak of the McGuire era, which ran from June 22nd to Augst 3rd of 2013, spanning the NASL’s midseason break. The Loons fell in defeat to the RailHawks, FC Edmonton, and the Silverbacks twice, consecutively.

Previous Meetings

Minnesota owns a 3-2-0 all-time record against Jacksonville, as well as a plus-seven goal differential. At home, the Loons have three wins in three meetings with the Armada.

The two teams last met on August 20th, playing to a scoreless tie, with Ibson shown a straight red in the 77th minute.

Officials

Referee	Fotis Bazakos
Assistant	John Krill
Assistant	Dan Stupca
Fourth	Kyle Burkhardt

Bazakos has officiated four previous Loons matches in his career. In 11 matches this season — spread across MLS, the US Open Cup and the NASL — Bazakos has issued 35 yellow cards and two straight red cards.

Roster Report

Per Wes Burdine’s Friday training report, the Loons are as fit as they’ve been in quite some time. Greg Jordan and Bernardo Añor participated in full on Friday, but are still working their way back to match fitness. Jeb Brovsky is nursing a heel injury and will not take part in Saturday’s match.

Jacksonville: Last Time Out

The Armada, playing at home this past Wednesday, managed to seize the initiative against FC Edmonton, but were unable to get the best of Matt VanOekel. Interim head coach Mark Lowry, deploying his charges in his preferred 4-2-3-1, saw his team manage over 60-percent possession and place four shots on target to the Eddies’ two.

Miguel Gallardo started in goal, with Bryan Burke, Mechack Jérôme, Tyler Ruthven, and Matt Bahner making up the Aramda’s back line. Lucas Scaglia and Kevan George both sat fairly deep in the center of midfield, while Burke took liberty to get forward with some regularity. Leading goal scorer Charles Eloundou was played on the right wing, while Jemal Johnson was nominally Jacksonville’s left winger. The Englishman drifted in often, almost operating as a strike partner for center forward Al Keita, while Zach Steinberger played in the hole behind the center forward.

Matchup

The Armada have struggled with goal keeping over the course of the 2016 season, but Gallardo presently finds himself in Lowry’s favor. Minnesota needs to put shots on target, and should not be shy about doing so.

Jacksonville are a deeply flawed team, but they do have pace. It falls to Carl Craig and his team to push forward and take the game to the Armada, while respecting the speed of Johnson, Keita and Eloundou. Full backs Kevin Venegas and Justin Davis are unlikely to be exposed, so long as their positioning is sound. However, Jacksonville can create problematic matchups with its forward line and the Loons’ center backs, if Minnesota forces the latter to cover too much ground.

With a roster approaching fully healthy, the talent at Craig’s disposal well surpasses what Lowry can put on the field. Tonight’s game is primarily a test of Craig and company’s competitive drive, and sense of urgency. Minnesota has allowed the field to draw it in, and now must fight down the stretch to reach the playoffs. If the Armada prove a stumbling block, the Loons have precious little time left to recover.