BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Back in The Magic City after an extended stay in Tampa Bay last week, Birmingham Legion FC caps off a grueling stretch of four matches in 12 days with what is sure to be its toughest test to date in the 2024 campaign, as the USL Championship-leading Charleston Battery and its undefeated record stroll into Protective Stadium for an Eastern Conference showdown Wednesday evening.
“Obviously, they are doing something right,” Legion FC coach Tom Soehn said of his team’s upcoming opponent. “They are winning a lot of games and looking dominant while doing it. We have our work cut out for us this week.”
MATCH INFO
- USL Championship | Matchday 10
- Birmingham Legion FC (4W-3L-2D) vs Charleston Battery (7W-0L-3D)
- Wednesday, May 15 – 7:00 p.m. CT
- Protective Stadium – Birmingham, AL
- Watch: WABM My68 (Birmingham)
- Stream: CBS Sports Golazo Network
Through 10 matches this season, the Battery have proven thus far to be the class of the USLC.
Powered by forward Nicholas Markanich and his league-leading 12 goals, Charleston has been incredibly difficult to keep off the scoresheet with 25 team goals this season. Markanich has also accounted for a team-best three assists, but much of the creativity when the Battery are on the ball comes off the feet of Aaron Molloy. The Irish midfielder not only leads USLC with 71.7 completed passes per 90 minutes at an 86.8-percent accuracy clip, but is also second in the league with 27 total chances created.
Combine that dynamic attack with a sturdy defense that has posted a clean sheet in half of its matches this season, it’s not hard to figure out how Charleston has outscored its opponents 21-7 en route to its current five-match winning streak.
“They score a lot and don’t give up a lot,” said Soehn. “That’s always a good recipe for success, so we have to be at our very best if we want to come away with a good result.”
Birmingham enters Wednesday’s match looking to put the “protect” in Protective Stadium as it attempts to defend homefield and hand the Battery its first loss of the season. And if there is a perceived weakness for Charleston, it could be that they aren’t as dominant in road matches with all three of its draws in 2024 occurring away from home. On top of that, Legion FC appear to be finding its scoring touch as of late, having scored seven goals in its last three matches after averaging a little over one goal per game in its first eight.
It should come as no surprise that Enzo Martinez is playing an important part in the scoring uptick with a goal in each of those last three matches. He, Kobe Hernandez-Foster and Tyler Pasher finally seemed to have gotten the engine running in the midfield with those three combining for 50 key passes played. Meanwhile, the Three Sparks defense, with veteran centerback Alex Crognale back in the mix, achieved some much needed momentum with its first clean sheet since a 1-0 victory at Miami FC back on April 20.
“When we have faced Charleston in the past, it has always been a good and competitive match,” Soehn said. “I expect this one to be no different.”
Last Time Out
Birmingham showed some moxie, answering an emotionally charged Open Cup loss to the Tampa Bay Rowdies by turning around just three days later against the same squad on the same field and putting on a defensive masterclass in dealing with the high press to get revenge with a 1-0 win. The lone goal, a 68th minute strike from Martinez on an assist from Jake Rufe was Legion FC’s first of two shots on target.
Meanwhile, the Battery last stepped on the pitch on May 8 and saw its Open Cup account extend to the Round of 16 following a 3-2 extra-time victory over USL1 side South Georgia Tormenta FC. In its last USLC match back on May 4, a 12th minute goal from Markanich was all Charleston needed in a 1-0 home win over Hartford Athletic.
Follow Along
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