
ST. PETERSBURG, FL – For a second straight year, Birmingham Legion FC finds itself in the Round of 32 in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and will face quite a familiar face at 6:30 p.m. CT on Wednesday night as it travels to Florida to face the Tampa Bay Rowdies. However, for all the clashes the two USL Championship rivals have had in past regular seasons and playoffs, this latest meeting will be the first time that the two sides face off in the country’s oldest soccer tournament.
“We have plenty of video on them and they have plenty of video on us, so there won’t be many surprises,” said Legion FC coach Tom Soehn. “It’s always a good match between the two. They have a lot of quality, they defend the ball really well and are always dangerous on set pieces so we have our work cut out for us.”
MATCH INFO
- 2024 U.S. Open Cup | Round of 32
- Birmingham Legion FC at Tampa Bay Rowdies
- Wednesday, May 8 – 6:30 p.m. CT Kick-off
- Al Lang Stadium – St. Petersburg, FL
- Stream on USLsoccer.com and USsoccer.com
Birmingham narrowly has the advantage in the overall series history with a 4-3-3 record in 10 meetings with the Rowdies. That fourth victory was, of course, a memorable one as Legion FC went on the road in the opening round of the 2023 USL Championship Playoffs and eliminated Tampa Bay, 3-0, behind goals from Preston Tabort Etaka, Diba Nwegbo and Prosper Kasim. Returning to Al Lang Stadium for the first time since that signature victory, Birmingham hopes to recapture that playoff magic once again.
“Whenever we play them, it’s also tough,” said Kasim. “They always give us their best, but we also always give them our best, so I expect it to be yet another good match when we face them.”
Thanks to some random scheduling fate, Kasim and his Legion FC will be spending quite some time in the Tampa Bay this week with another match against the Rowdies on Saturday in a return to USL Championship action. While it will feel a little different to spend an extended period of time away from home, it’s these type of road trips that the players point to as special team bonding moments than can help strengthen the chemistry throughout the squad, especially in the early part of the season.
“These type of outings gives you a lot of time to talk about what happened in the last game, what we can change going forward and just enjoying everyone’s company,” said Legion FC midfielder Enzo Martinez. “It’s very special because when you’re at home, everyone has their lives and everyone has their own thing, but when you have an away trip, everyone is together 24/7 and that can be a lot of fun.”
Last Time Out
Legion FC hits the road after two-game homestand that culminated last Saturday with a thrilling second half comeback to pull out a 2-2 draw against FC Tulsa. Martinez opened Birmingham’s account in the 71st minute with a goal off an assist from Nwegbo. Stefano Pinho then saved the day in stoppage time with a header into the back of the net via a Tyler Pasher corner. Pinho, in particular, is happy to see a return to Open Cup action after the forward accounted for all four goals in a 4-2 win in extra time over Chattanooga Red Wolves SC in the Third Round on April 17.
Meanwhile, the Rowdies saw their seven-match unbeaten streak come to an end over the weekend with a 4-1 home loss to Memphis 901 FC. It was a particular shocking performance for the Tampa Bay defense that entered the match having already posted a pair of clean sheets and had not allowed more than two goals in any of its previous matches. Wednesday marks the Rowdies first match of 2024 U.S. Open Cup after securing a bye to the Round of 32 following a top seven finish in the USL Championship standings last season.
Follow Along
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