Riverhounds look to reach next level against New York Red Bulls II
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Pittsburgh Riverhounds coach Bob Lilley is looking for his team to reach its highest level.
So far through the 2020 season, the Hounds haven’t been able to reach that point, but they’ve been close. Their 3-1 victory against Louisville City FC in their season opener was a good example. They also produced a solid performance against Indy Eleven on July 22 but came up short thanks to a miraculous goal by USL Championship leading goal scorer Tyler Pasher in the 97th minute.
Lilley hasn’t seen the level of intensity he’s looking for in Pittsburgh’s last two games, a 2-1 loss to New York Red Bulls II on July 26 and a 4-0 over Philadelphia Union this past Saturday.
“If you see our quality of play against Indy and then measure it against what we did in the second half against Philly, there was a lack of execution, the passing was poor, we were not defending well as a team and the energy wasn’t there,” Lilley said. “They were running through us at times, and if someone gets beat there should be another player there closing the space behind.”
The Riverhounds (3-2-0) have time to improve, and they will get another chance to reach that level at 7 p.m. Saturday when they take on New York (2-3-0) for the second time in three games.
When the teams met in New Jersey for their first clash of the season, New York escaped with a victory in extra time as Deri Corfe buried a penalty kick in the 95th minute of the game. The Riverhounds were playing their third game in nine days, operating on a short week. With the speed and quickness New York possesses, those elements can be a dangerous combination.
“They not only have quick players and explosive attacking players, but they also have a very fast tempo to their game,” Lilley said. “It’s not just the individuals that are fast, they play fast, too, and that’s what they live in.”
In order to combat New York’s speed, the Riverhounds must be able to control the possession of the game while also taking advantage of counterattacks when they push forward.
In their first meeting, the Red Bulls controlled 53.3% of the possession and also tallied four shots on target compared to Pittsburgh’s two. Despite the loss, Lilley thought his team was able to rebound in the second half.
This time around, Lilley is hoping that his team is sharper and can control the possession more.
“I think the amount of opportunities we can create will be better at home and will be more in numbers,” Lilley said. “We can also do a better job of getting some semblance of organization to play our style rather than a wide-open track meet. I think a wide-open track meet favors New York in a lot of ways, and if we are able to manage the game and impose our will on how we want to play our game then I think it tilts in our favor.”
Through their first five games of the season, the Riverhounds sit in second place in Group F, with the top two teams advancing to the playoffs. So, improving during each game is crucial to the team’s success down the line, and Lilley has been preaching that to his team during each practice. Saturday’s contest is just the next step.
“We are always looking to get better, and we’ve talked about it this year,” Lilley said. “It’s important we grow every game and we keep pushing because we are going to be in the back half of the season, and in a couple more games we are going to be at the midpoint and every point is going to matter.”