Union Omaha (10-8-3, 2nd Place) vs. South Georgia Tormenta (8-5-11, 7th Place)
Erik Russell Park, Statesboro, Georgia
7 PM (CST), ESPN+
Wow, this week really snuck up on me. I hope your week has been a great one. If not, you can start your weekend on the right foot. It’s Week 25 and it’s matchday! Union Omaha travels down to Georgia for a key match for both clubs. When kickoff starts, make sure that you find yourself with your watch party, good food and beverages, and ready to cheer the Owls on to three points.
South Georgia enters the week coming off of a bye week. This match will also be Tormenta’s last match in Erk Russell Park, as the club builds a new, state-of-the-art 5,300-seat soccer-specific stadium, Tormenta Stadium. Obviously the team will want to win in their last home match of the season, as well as their last home match in this stadium. Tormenta has only lost one match in their last five, as well as having only lost one match in their last five home matches. South Georgia is a club that looks quite a bit different from where they started this season. In their first 12 matches, they lost 7 of them. The second half of the season saw them only lose 4. This is due in part to ten goals from forward Marco Micaletto (currently 3rd in the Golden Boot race) and five assists from midfielder Luca Mayr-Fälten. It’s also worth pointing out the Mayr-Fälten is the top creator in the league for crosses and chances. Fortunately for Búhos Nation, key producer and forward Azaad Liadi will have to sit out tonight’s match, after accumulating yellow cards. Liadi has five assists this season and has scored a goal in each of their last four matches. The club currently sits in seventh place and only has three matches left in the season, all of which are on the road. They’ll need to collect every point they can if they want to get into the playoffs. Other teams in the standings have a couple of games in hand, so it could spell danger for Tormenta if they lose tonight and see their counterparts gain points.
Union Omaha looks to shake off the FC Tucson match from last weekend. They would have loved to add a point, or three, in the standings, especially since first-place Chattanooga lost on the same night. There’s still plenty of time left in the season to add points, create space between themselves and third place, and even overtake Chattanooga. In order to do so, the defense and midfield will have to stay compact, communicate, and limit touches for both Mayr-Fälten and Micaletto. It seems as though their entire offense runs through these two (when Azaad is sitting on the bench). If Mayr-Fälten is given the opportunity, he’s going to cross balls into the box time and time again. There will have to be numbers in the box to win the aerial challenges and to start the attack on the ground. The Owls had a good ground game last week, so hopefully we’ll see more possession and passes as the team moves up the field. Union Omaha is only two points away from Chattanooga and five points ahead of FC Tucson. A win tonight would go a long way toward securing a first-round bye in the playoffs and possibly home field advantage.
Thank you so much, Búhos Nation, for coming out to Morrison Stadium last weekend. It was great to see so many people in the stands. The presence of the fans made it tough for FC Tucson, as they told fans after the match. We want Omaha to be a tough place to play and the fans help to create that atmosphere, so great job. If this article isn’t enough to get you ready for tonight’s match, make sure that you check out the latest episode of the Who Gives A Hoot? podcast. It was released this morning and features Luke and Ryan discussing a little bit of Ajax results, last weekend’s match, and a preview of tonight’s match, as well. Feel free to contact us on social media with any questions or comments. We’d love to hear from you. Enjoy tonight’s match, wherever you happen to watch it. ¡Viva Búhos!
Who Gives A Hoot? 