
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Whether it’s been in the U.S. Open Cup or in USL Championship, Stefano Pinho has had a knack for late goal heroics. Making his first start in nearly two months, the Brazilian forward went back to his roots in a big way with an 85th minute go-ahead goal to propel Birmingham Legion FC to a much-needed 2-1 victory over Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC Saturday night at Protective Stadium.
“I always tell coach that whenever he needs me, I’m ready,” said Pinho who last got on the scoresheet on May 4 with a stoppage time equalizer against FC Tulsa. “I’m always trying to be in good positions so that I can score. It’s one of those things that I train for every day so that I can give my best for the team.”
The victory not only pushed Legion FC’s record back over the .500 mark but it also snapped Colorado Springs’ 20-match unbeaten streak in which it scored the opening goal. Dawson McCartney, also back in the lineup after missing the last three matches due to injury, marked his return with an equalizing goal in the opening minute of first half stoppage time.
“This result was important,” Legion FC coach Tom Soehn said after a victory that saw his club move its USLC point total up to 27 while snapping a two-match losing streak in the process. “How you get to it sometimes isn’t always the way you planned but all that matters is that we got there.”
Both of Birmingham’s goals were a simple case of wanting it more than its opponent with Pinho and McCartney being the first to the ball following a deflection by Switchbacks FC goalkeeper Christian Herrera.
Following a long-range attempt from Kobe Hernandez-Foster that Herrera was unable to corral, McCartney read the situation perfectly and pounced with a blast into the roof of the net to make it a 1-1 game at the half.
“It felt amazing really amazing to get the goal, be back out there with the guys and get three points at home.” McCartney said after logging his second goal of the season. “We weren’t happy with how we started and knew we had to pick it up. Being able to get that goal and go into halftime, it allowed us to build from there and take over the game.”
The match winner was nearly a carbon-copy of the first goal with Herrera only able to parry away a shot from Prosper Kasim. It went right towards Pinho, but he still had to get his body around the ball before firing off a left-footed strike that sent the Protective Stadium crowd into delirium.
“When I saw the ball bounce to me, a lot of thoughts went into my head,” recalled Pinho. “But then I told myself to almost just close my eyes and shoot as hard as I can and it worked.”
The goal pushed Pinho’s team-high total to seven goals across all competitions, including the four he scored against Chattanooga Red Wolves SC in the third round of the 2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on April 17.
“He’s done this for a long time,” Soehn said of Pinho. “He always knows where to be and how to follow up shots.”
With Pinho’s goal as the catalyst, Birmingham’s second half performance was a welcomed sight for Soehn who knew his squad needed to change some things after the Switchbacks controlled the midfield and the pace of play for most of the first half. Through the opening 45 minutes, Legion FC were only able to complete 77.6% of its passes, with Colorado Springs winning the possession battle throughout that stretch.
The Switchbacks jumped out in front in the 11th minute when midfielder Jonas Fjeldberg split the Legion FC defense with a through-ball to Zach Zandi. Birmingham’s Derek Dodson challenged the shot, but Zandi was still able to get a touch beyond Trevor Spangenberg – making his season debut after a long injury stint – for the early goal.
The second half saw Birmingham flip the momentum to its side with the edge in pass accuracy (84.3% – 80.9%) and possession (57.2% – 42.8%) numbers, while also holding a big advantage in corner kicks (8 – 2).
“The first half, I don’t think we did well at all with the way we gave them so much of the game,” said Soehn. “But we had a good chat at halftime and we came out in the second half much better. We knew we had a lot more to offer after we let that goal in.
“I was really pleased with how the guys took the halftime adjustments to heart and came out of the break the way we did.”
Match Details
BOX SCORE | 1ST HALF | 2ND HALF | FINAL |
COS (8W – 7L – 3D) | 1 | 0 | 1 |
BHM (8W – 7L – 3D) | 1 | 1 | 2 |
LINEUPS
COS: Herrera – GK, Lacroix, Real (Pierre 83′), Mahoney – C, Santos, Williams (Huerman 45′), Hanya (Henriquez 73′), Fjeldberg (Foster 73′), Zandi (Tejada 64′), Rocha, Damus
BHM: Spangenberg- GK, Paterson (Hamouda 78′), Kavita – C, Crognale, Dodson, McCartney (Perez 59′), Hernandez-Foster, Rufe (Mensah 78′), Pincho, Martinez, Tabort Etaka (Kasim 59′)
GOALS
COS: Zandi 11′
BHM: McCartney 45+1′, Pinho 85′
DISCIPLINE
COS:
BHM: Paterson (Yellow) 69′
NEXT UP
Having notched its third victory at Protective Stadium this season, Legion FC hopes to ride this momentum as it now embarks on a quick turnaround with another home match on Wednesday, July 17 against Rhode Island FC. The USL Championship debutants beat Miami FC 3-2 on Saturday to move up to 8th place in the Eastern Conference standings with 22 points, five behind Legion FC.
“Any game in our conference is always a big game and it’s never easy,” Soehn said. “It’s a home game and we have to take care of business at home.”
Kick-off is set for is set for 7:00 p.m. CDT. Legion FC is urging fans to “Pack Protective” with a special offer of $25 VIP Club Seats that can be purchased HERE.