May 10, 2023 – United Soccer League Championship (USL) – Birmingham Legion FC News Release
Birmingham Legion FC’s Tyler Pasher in action
(Birmingham Legion FC)
BIRMINGHAM, AL — Birmingham Legion FC trounced its arch-rivals Memphis 901FC 3-0 in a dominant performance on Wednesday night in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Round of 32. Two goals in the first half at Protective Stadium set the Black & Gold en route to victory and a third goal in the second half capped off the night.
Former United States Men’s National Team forward Juan Agudelo opened the scoresheet for Birmingham in the 20th minute. Midfielder Enzo Martinez fed a ball in off a Chick-fil-A Corner Kick and Agudelo delivered a cheeky finish that threw his fellow former USMNT international, Memphis goalkeeper Bill Hamid, and found the back of the net.
Legion’s second goal came in the 39th minute of the first half. Off a shot from Tyler Pasher that was saved but not fully cleared by Hamid, Martinez beat a defender with a cut back and sneakily placed the ball at the near post into the bottom right corner.
In the 64th minute the Black & Gold would score again to shut down any chance of the visitors making a comeback. After strong hold up play by Agudelo to spring the counterattack, 2019 Team MVP Prosper Kasim connected with Pasher in the box, and Pasher powerfully curled the ball past the hands of the Memphis goalkeeper from short distance.
“I feel like we have a really good counterattacking team,” said Agudelo. “When we have space on the ball, we’re very dangerous, speed-wise and things like that. We struggle a little bit whenever we’re trying to be a possession team. When we sit, conserve our energy, and then just blast off like a rocket on the counterattack with the pace we have — it’s a very tough team to deal with. I liked how we played today.”
Defensively, the Three Sparks were solid throughout the entire match. The best chance by Area Code FC came in the 5th minute, when former Legionnaire Akeem Ward hit the post after a long spell of Memphis passes. The Boys in Black would go on to finish out the night on a shutout and deliver a clean sheet against its rivals from Tennessee. Defender Alex Crognale was a particular standout from the back, leading the team in clearances (8) and interceptions (6), while goalkeeper Trevor Spangenberg earned his second shutout of the season.
“I thought we handled them quite well tonight,” said Head Coach Tommy Soehn. “It was a really professional performance….