Birmingham defeated Loudoun United on the road 2-1 after outshooting the home side 20-12
LEESBURG, VA (April 24, 2022) – Birmingham Legion FC earned its second USL Championship win of the season on Sunday afternoon, 2-1 at Loudoun United, thanks to second half goals from forward Enzo Martinez and forward Macky Diop.
Legion FC continued the season-long theme of being lively and ambitious in the attack but failing to capitalize on any of its many chances created, at least in the first half. The best chance of the first 45 came from Martinez dribbling into the box along the endline and cutting it back to Marlon Santos, but Santos’ shot was pushed up onto the crossbar by the outstretched fingertips of United’s ‘keeper, Luis Zamudio.
Zamudio produced six saves on the afternoon to keep Legion FC in check despite holding the edge in expected goals, 2.87 to 0.96 for the home side. One of those immense saves kept the score line level at zero in the 49th minute after Birmingham midfielder Bruno Lapa was fouled in the box, but then had his penalty kick attempt saved.
The breakthrough for the visitors finally came in the 62nd minute via the boot of Martinez for his first goal in Black and Gold. Some Legion FC pressure from Lapa and Kasim forced a Loudoun turnover inside its own box, and Lapa found Martinez just to the right of the penalty spot for a first-time finish.
Macky Diop substituted into the contest for Legion FC in the 69th minute, and immediately put pressure on the home side. As Diop was running down a long ball over the top, a United player handled the bouncing ball and was shown a red card in the 71st.
Another ‘first’ for BHM, this time in the form of Diop’s first goal for the Three Sparks, put the good guys up two in the 79th minute with a quality finish. Martinez found Diop around the top of the box, and the second half substitute used a deft touch to get around the first defender, opened his hips and hit the back of the net.
“It feels really good to be able to celebrate with my teammates,” said Martinez. “I have been thinking about this since I signed here. I wanted to be able to hug my teammates and be able to celebrate – there is nothing like that moment where we are all celebrating a goal together.”
Loudoun kept their intensity level high after conceding and pulled one back right away in the 81st minute. Another pair of substitutes made an impact, as forward Zoumana Diarra jumped on a loose ball in the Legion FC defensive third, had a shot that was partially blocked by BHM captain Phanuel Kavita, but the deflection was put in by an onrushing United forward, Abdoul Zanne.
The win, and goal output, is vital for Legion FC to start building some momentum on the season and start the climb back towards the top of the table, according to Head Coach Tommy Soehn.
“We know we’re in a run where making your own luck has been difficult,” said Soehn. “Even today was an example of that considering the amount of opportunities we create. All I’ll say is whatever happens, keep grinding. Enjoy it, enjoy the guys around you, and it’ll come. Today came hard, but it came and three points are always the objective. You need those first three to put a streak together. It’s a big confidence builder.”
| 1st Half | 2nd Half | |
| LDN | 0 | 1 |
| BHM | 0 | 2 |
LDN – 3-4-3 – #50 Luis Zamudio; #2 Rio Hope-Gund, #20 Hayden Sargis, #4 Carson vam Steeg (46’ – #19 Houssou Landry); #6 Gadussou Samake, #15 Nicky Downs, #3 Jacob Greene; #21 Sami Guediri (90’ – #35 Abdellatif, #18 Azaad Liadi (46’ – #12 Zoumana Diarra), #17 Kimarni Smith
BHM – 4-3-3 – #1 Matt VanOekel; #24 Jonny Dean, #24 Alex Crognale, #3 Phanuel Kavita ©, #7 Ryan James (61’ – #20 Zach Herivaux); #5 Mikey Lopez, #6 Anderson Asiedu, #8 Bruno Lapa (85’ – #13 Jake Rufe); #10 Prosper Kasim (85’ – #27 Thomas Vancaeyezeele), #19 Enzo Martinez, #11 Marlon Santos (69’ – #77 Macky Diop)
The next home match for the Black and Gold will be at Protective Stadium on Wednesday, April 27, at 7:00PM CT against the Charleston Battery, and ‘Everybody Wins on Wednesday’ campaigns are BACK. Gates will open at 6:00pm for ticketed fans to come in early and enjoy discounted $4 Miller Lites, $6 White Claws, and $6 canned Trim Tab beers in the South Plaza area underneath the videoboard.
To take advantage of the new deals at all Wednesday night Legion FC matches this spring/early summer, the club has also released three-game mini-plan packages available for purchase now! Contact the Legion FC Ticket Office at tickets@bhmlegion.com or 205-791-7145 if you have any questions, and keep up with Legion FC by following along @bhmlegion on social and downloading the Legion FC app.
