September 27, 2024 – United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Birmingham Legion FC News Release
Birmingham Legion FC head coach Tommy Soehn issues directions
(Birmingham Legion FC)
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The logjam that is the USL Championship Eastern Conference table has gotten even more tightknit in recent weeks. That though will soon change with just five matchdays remaining in the 2024 regular season and the schedule littered with key interconference matchups, including one this Saturday as fifth place Birmingham Legion FC heads up to Pennsylvania to take on 11th place Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, with just five points separating the two sides.
“This is the most important time to get stuff right,” Legion FC coach Tom Soehn said. “I don’t think we’re consistent enough to call things right yet, we have to make sure we prove it against Pittsburgh.”
MATCH INFO
Birmingham Legion FC (12W-12L-5D; 41PTS) at Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (8W-10L-10D; 36PTS)
USL Championship | Matchday 30
Saturday, September 28 | 6:00 p.m. CT
Highmark Stadium | Pittsburgh, PA
Watch: WABM My68 (Birmingham)
Stream: ESPN+
Having found success away from The Magic City for much of the season, things have kind of flipped on its head for Legion FC over the past month with its last two wins coming at Protective Stadium, including a recent thriller against Miami FC. However, the results away from home, in turn, have dried up a bit with Birmingham falling in its last two away matches to drop its road record to a still respectable 6W-5L-4D.
In those most recent two defeats at Rhode Island on August 31 and at Loudoun United FC on September 14, Legion FC averaged 50 final third entries and created just 10 total created chances. It’s a stark comparison to its previous two home victories against Miami and the Tampa Bay Rowdies where the side averaged 73 entries into the final third to go along with 26 chances created.
Conventional wisdom dictates that more attacking opportunities would come at home, but it is a paradigm shift to what Birmingham has produced this season, which is why Soehn and the coaching staff are looking for consistency as the postseason draws near.
“I just think it’s the ebbs and flows of the game,” explained forward Tyler Pasher. “Sometimes you go without goals and sometimes you go with a bunch of goals. It’s dependent on what form you’re in but also on what defenses you are going up against. It’s just always unpredictable.”
In speaking to those ebbs and flows, Pasher’s return to the lineup as…