Battling to ensure they get a spot in the USL Championship playoffs, the Legionnaires scored twice in the second half to win the game 2-1
Memphis, Tenn. (September 30, 2023) – Birmingham Legion FC came out on top against its arch-rivals Memphis 901 FC away from home at AutoZone Park. Showing resilience and determination, the Legionnaires came back from a one-goal deficit and scored two goals in the second half to clinch the victory. Birmingham are now one win away from clinching the playoffs.
Tonight’s win against Memphis makes Birmingham the victors against its rivals this season after the last clash between the two sides ended 1-1 at Protective Stadium.
“We’ve had some difficult stretches here [at the end of the season] when it means something,” said Soehn on the importance of tonight’s win and what it means.
“This one meant so much, especially the timing of the year, and then plus we had played them on short notice a couple of weeks ago and I felt like we let ourselves down. So, it was one of those character-building moments because even though we gave up a goal I thought we were the better side in the first half and then when I came in at halftime I could just — you could feel the confidence of the guys. They knew we were coming back. You could feel it. And they did. It was a really important character-builder.”
The first half of play went Memphis’ way, although Legion looked good in attack and led four shots to two. Moving the ball down the left side of the pitch, Memphis was awarded a penalty kick after a handball was called on Legion defender Jake Rufe. Stepping up to the spot, Rodrigo da Costa converted to make it 1-0 at halftime.
Immediate action began at the beginning of the second half, with Legion FC scoring its first goal of the match 45 seconds into it. Getting on the end of a ball that deflected out to the left side of the box, Diba Nwegbo instinctively shot to the far post with power and got one into the back of the Beale St. net. Nwegbo’s goal was the third of the year for the 21-year-old, who came on as a substitute in the 39th minute.
“We cleaned up a couple of things but it was really just more of the same,” Soehn said on tactical changes he made at halftime. “I think our game plan was sound against them, they didn’t create a lot. In the first half, because we played into the infield that’s really poor grass, I thought our chances lacked. When we got onto the good grass you could see it flow a bit better. Just a really outstanding team performance and some really good individual performances, but a great mentality for the whole game.”
Five minutes later Nwegbo would go on to make an impact again, giving a beautiful ball to Neco Brett over the top to get in behind Memphis’ backline. Finding himself one-on-one with the ‘keeper, the Jamaican calmly chose to chip the ball for his 12th goal of the season.
“It was tough out there with how hard Memphis fights, and we were just trying to outwork them, honestly,” said Nwegbo on feeling the rivalry tonight. “The locker room feels good, everybody is buzzing right now, but we know that we have unfinished business and we’re still trying to secure playoffs so it’s really onto the next. We’re gonna be back at home next Sunday trying to fight and get the W.”
Birmingham closed out the rest of the half with its one-goal lead. Goalkeeper Trevor Spangenberg came up big with three saves. Despite Memphis having a few really good chances later in the second half, the entire Legion squad showed resilience and determination to close out the win. This is the sixth time the Black & Gold have won from a losing position this season (18 points) — no other side in the USL Championship has recovered more.
The Legionnaires return to Protective Stadium on Sunday, October 8 to take on Monterey Bay FC of the USL Championship Western Conference. A win would clinch the playoffs for the Black & Gold. Fans can purchase tickets for the important game here.
Match Details
Box Score:
| 1st Half | 2nd Half | |
| Memphis | 1 | 0 |
| Birmingham | 0 | 2 |
Goals:
MEM – 40′ – #10 Rodrigo da Costa (p)
BHM – 46′ – #7 Diba Nwegbo (assisted by #11 Neco Brett)
BHM – 51′ – #11 Neco Brett (assisted by #7 Diba Nwegbo)
Starting XI:
BHM – 4-2-3-1 – #18 Trevor Spangenberg; #3 Phanuel Kavita, #33 Moses Mensah, #21 Alex Crognale, #13 Jake Rufe; #5 Mikey Lopez (39′ – #7 Diba Nwegbo) , #10 Prosper Kasim (81′ – #4 Collin Smith); #19 Enzo Martinez, #28 Preston Tabort Etaka, #9 Juan Agudelo; #11 Neco Brett (63′ – #15 Tyler Pasher)
To keep up to date on all things Legion FC, Legion encourages its fans to follow @bhmlegion on social media and keep an eye on bhmlegion.com and the Legion FC app. Download the Legion FC app today on Apple or Android, and sync our 2023 schedule to your calendar HERE.
