OTTAWA - On Saturday afternoon, under the Floridian sun, Ottawa Fury FC faced its first true opposition of the year in its third preseason match, this time against the MLS club Philadelphia Union. The two sides battled to a 2-1 final score in favour of Philadelphia at Al Lang Stadium in St. Petersburgh, FL.
Fury FC opened the score thanks to a powerful run on the right wing by François, but saw Philadelphia come back to tie before the half. The Union would later take the lead off a converted penalty kick midway in the second half.
STORYLINES
Newcomer Christiano François looked dangerous on the attack, causing all sorts of trouble for the Union defensive four. His connection with Oliveira was evident throughout the match. François was also the one to open the score onthe afternoon.
Fury FC showed a good, compact form in its final third, protecting its zone against most of the Union’s threats. The leadership on that Ottawa backline came from Montreal loanee and 2018 Young Player of the Year Thomas Meilleur-Giguère.
Fury FC’s longest-serving member, Carl Haworth, showed his versatility, playing the first 60 minutes as a forward, and moving back to the right wing for the remainder of the match.
POST-GAME COMMENTS
Head Coach Nikola Popovic
On his team’s performance… “I saw [from our side] a very positive test. Taking into consideration some of the challenges we have with the roster, leaving us with not a lot of players to use, a lot of them had to play 90 minutes only in our third week of preparation. However, taking all of this into consideration, I think it was a very good test for us. We are already showing signs of the principles that we want to see in our game, offensively and defensively, so it was a very positive test for us.”
On the movement that led to the goal... “This kind of movement we’re already seeing, and I think we’ll see much more, however, we need a little bit more time. The next two weeks will be important for [the players] to get used to the size, and to the air and the pitch but today was a very positive test.”
Forward Christiano François
On how it felt on the pitch… “So far so good. I think it was a good test. What we did in training we just tried to prove it on the field. I think we did very good, against an MLS team, and I think as we get further in the season it will get much better.”
On his goal… “Dixon had the ball and passed it [on the wing] towards me, and I knew on my back the defender wasn’t close so I made the turn and took the shot.”
MATCH REPORT
Download Match Photos (Credit: Mary Holt / Philadelphia Union)
Starting XI
Ottawa Fury FC (4-3-3): Monsalve; Kinumbe, Mannella, Meilleur-Giguère (Vilfort 84’), Dixon (Gagnon-Laparé 59’); Fall, Ward (Attakora 72’), De Freitas (Ricci 46’); François, Oliveira, Haworth
Philadelphia Union (4-4-2) : Coronel; Real, Collin, Elliott, Mbaizo; Jones, Creavalle, Fontana Aaronson; Accam, Przybylko
Scoring Summary
21’ – OTT François
40’ – PHI Pryzbylko
65’ – PHI Picault (PK)
