Indy Eleven vs Pittsburgh Riverhounds - 11.25

Summary

- Opponent: Pittsburgh Riverhounds
- Location: Carroll Stadium
- Attendance: 10,319
- Final Score: 1-1 D

- Starting XI: Sulte, Musa, White, Ofeimu, Martinez, Stanley, Wootton, Quinn (C), Guenzatti, Foster, Williams, R.

- Substitution: Lindley 62' (Wootton); O'Brien, J. 62' (White); Williams, A. 62' (Guenzatti); Neidlinger 74' (Musa); Collier 82' (Martinez)

- Unused: Oettl, Gibson, Mines

- Scoring Summary:
PIT - Griffin 73' (assist Osumanu)
IND - Williams, R. 90'+7' (unassisted)

- Bookings:

PIT - Hogan 3' (RED)
IND - Martinez 34' (Yellow)
PIT - Mertz 66' (Yellow)
IND - Lindley 71' (Yellow)
IND - Williams, R. 72' (Yellow)

- Referee: Elijio Arreguin

- Adage goals: None

Thoughts and Opinions

Before this week of games started, Coach McAuley stated that he felt an obligation to the club, the team, and the fans to provide the best lineup possible for the U.S. Open Cup game on Tuesday. If the team won all three or lost all three games, he thought he could feel confident with his decisions due to the importance of what a USOC Final could have meant for the club. Indy lost last Saturday in Las Vegas 3-2, then lost to Sporting Kansas City on Tuesday 2-nil. Coming into this game against Pittsburgh, the team knew that this was the proverbial 6-point type of game with the way that the middle of the Eastern Conference has bunched. With the 1-1 draw in tonight's game, Indy didn't provide any more separation from Pittsburgh (and lost ground on Rhode Island who leap frogged Indy (and Loudoun and Birmingham), but Indy has a game in hand), and Pittsburgh didn't gain any ground on Indy in points. While the game had the potential to be a 6-point game, it's not surprising that the game finished in a draw. In the now 15 times that the two teams have played since 2018, the game has been decided by more than a 1-goal differential just three times, and there have been four draws. Pittsburgh keeps games close.

The only reason a low-scoring draw is a surprise is because Indy had a man advantage for nearly the entirety of the game. In a reckless high boot challenge against Guenzatti, Hogan put his cleats into Seba's thighs. Referee Arreguin immediately pulled out the yellow card despite the early 4th minute for the infraction. However, following a brief moment, either in conversation with his AR or just thinking about it more, the yellow was rescinded and Hogan was sent to a very early departure from the game as the card was changed to a straight red. With three games in 8 days, 86-minutes of a man advantage (even against a defensively sound Pittsburgh club) looked like it was going to be a welcome wrinkle to the week.

The defensive block from Pittsburgh though, coupled with Indy's pace of play, which wasn't glacial but definitely deliberate, led to a scoreless first half. Indy couldn't find enough space to get through or around the Pittsburgh defense. To overcome the Pittsburgh block, Indy needed to address their tactics after the halftime break. Foster dropped deeper to be able to get the ball in more space to be able to use his speed against the Pittsburgh defense, which pushed Guenzatti up top. Bob Lilley, similarly, adjusted his tactics as well. Instead of sitting so much in the block, the Riverhounds looked to be much more aggressive going forward creating a much more wide open start to the second half. Likely because he realized that Indy was struggling with breaking down his defense, Lilley likely thought his squad could take a few more chances going forward to steal three points on the road.

Pittsburgh full-time shots

From Indy's perspective, when you don't take your chances, and let a team hang around, you run the risk of putting yourself in a bad situation. The Pittsburgh defense is so sound that even with Indy's man advantage, or maybe because of Indy's man advantage, Pittsburgh became even more sound defensively, thereby severely limiting Indy's chances. When Indy couldn't find the goal that might have opened the floodgates, Pittsburgh took their opportunity and put themselves on the board in the 73rd minute. Despite Indy holding a 74% to 26% possession advantage, a 13 to 6 shot advantage, a 34 to 8 advantage in crosses, and Pittsburgh getting just three shots in the second half (none after their goal), Pittsburgh made good on their opportunity in the box. Indy, conversely, peppered the Pittsburgh goal with shots in the second half, but couldn't find a way through. 

It looked like it might end with the Riverhounds headed to Pittsburgh with three points on their bus and a further tightening of the playoff race. However, Indy finally found that break through the Pittsburgh defense in the 90'+7'. Foster was fouled about 25-yards from goal, giving Indy a last ditch effort from a free kick. Quinn and Romario Williams both stood over the ball, and as Romario indicated afterwards, there "was a brief conversation" between them and once he told Quinn that "he fancied a shot," Quinn let him take it. Given Williams' recent run-of-form in front of goal, I had anticipated Quinn taking it as I stood on the sideline. Williams, to his credit, put a perfectly placed free kick over the wall and out of reach of Eric Dick to give Indy the equalizer. The free kick from Williams turned out to be the last major action of the game as the referee blew his whistle to end the game the second Pittsburgh restarted the ball after the goal. 

It's easy to say that a team that has a man advantage for 86-minutes (plus stoppage times) should easily win a game. In many ways, a man advantage against a Pittsburgh Riverhounds team does the exact opposite. They are so sound defensively, and so compact, it often takes a moment of brilliance to break it down. Foster's ability to get fouled by being disruptive in the middle of the field, and Williams' ability to pick out the upper 90 of the goal on the free kick was the moment of brilliance needed. This was not Indy's best played game, but much of that could be because of how well Pittsburgh played.

Indy has just one more mid-week game as the team comes down the homestretch of the season. Once the calendar officially rolls over into September, Indy doesn't play a single playoff team for the entire month. After Pittsburgh, who continues to hover near the playoff line but stays on a good run, Indy face Hartford (11th in East), El Paso (12th in West), North Carolina (10th), and Miami (12th and who staved off being officially eliminated from the playoffs thanks to a victory in Monterrey Bay) before starting October at home against Louisville. After Indy's 8-game win streak, Indy have found just 1 win in the past 10 games. While never a guarantee in this league, a stretch of four games against the league's basement-dwellers might provide Indy with some much needed points and confidence. Indy will hope to make that four wins out of four heading into the LIPAFC match to help themselves move up the table, or at a minimum, create some separation from the other playoff teams below them that are going to want to solidify their own standings in the table. Indy return to The Mike in two weeks to face El Paso.

The Game Beckons Game Ball

White was in the starting lineup having been in the country for less than a week. That's a "welcome to the country and the USL Championship" under fire kind of introduction. Some injuries helped precipitate that start, but he looked good despite the minimal training with the team. What I appreciated the most from his effort was his ability to have his head up when he received the ball. Pittsburgh's deep block due to their man disadvantage meant that getting the ball to the forwards was going to be difficult. As his teammates continued to pass the ball around the ball, too slowly to be honest, White looked to put the ball over the defenders with crosses. White had 3 crosses in the first half. As I've stated before, the GBGB often comes down to who I keep noticing the most. Tonight, that was White.

Romario nearly got the nod from me, but only because of such a brilliant free kick to equalize the game. His overall game, though, was not enough for me to knock White off the GBGB podium.

Photos - Don Thompson Photography