Following the notably one-sided road win against Birmingham, Louisville City was off to California to take on the Oakland Roots. The Roots, who gave LouCity their most thrilling match of the 2023 season, is a squad that appears to be contenders as they hover in the upper fourth of the Western Conference standings. Louisville may have been riding the highs of that BHM victory but the entirety of that positive momentum did not transition into the OAK match as the boys in purple suffered their first scoreless defeat.
“It was nowhere near good enough from the group,” an unhappy Coach Danny Cruz said. “I thought our quality on the ball was poor. I thought our urgency when we went down a goal was poor. All in all, nowhere near the standard of level we expect from ourselves.” LouCity was the better side in the first half, keeping Oakland to just 0.09 xG. However, the home side came out strong in the second half. They found the match's lone goal and added significantly to their xG total, bringing them to 1.36 by the end of the night. “In the second half, they came out and wanted it more,” Elijah Wynder commented. “It showed. It’s disappointing from us.” Coach Cruz also acknowledged the half-over-half difference as well as the small pitch factor. “I think the field was helpful for them, but it was a game where if we play the second half the way we did the first half, we win.”
For as much as we all would have liked to see LOU continue to steamroll through the league, it has become clear the demands of the season are catching up to them. We have seen other hot teams slow down (ex. CHS) so it is not surprising that eventually, the team would begin to look human. “We need to get some guys healthy,” Coach Cruz said. “A big part of how we push the group is that they understand there is competition behind them. It brings out the best in the group when that is the case. At the moment, we are missing a few pieces, and those pieces help push the group to be at its best so complacency doesn’t set in.” For as deep as the squad is, players out of action make them that much more vulnerable. The team has and will continue to adapt, but to get back on a tear like they started the season could be challenging.
With that said, there is no reason for concern. A beat-up LouCity is still better than most other teams. Not to mention the lead they have built up on the table. It is also worth pointing out that the schedule becomes more favorable over the coming matches. Four of the next five league matches are in Butchertown, including the Fill The Fam match against Charleston. If the roster is still bang up through that period, the team should at least have the advantage of playing at home (and on a huge pitch) to help tilt things back in Purple’s favor. The loss to Oakland is simply just that; a quality home side beating Louisville. Full steam ahead for the team as they begin preparations for their next match and hopefully the start of another long win streak.
Parting Thoughts
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