A frustrating couple of weeks almost got even more frustrating for Búho Nation. That is until a 90’+6’ strike from Steevan Dos Santos gave Union Omaha a 0-1 victory against Central Valley Fuego on Friday night. Wallis Lapsley added six saves for the Owls’ first win, and first clean sheet, in almost a month. Meanwhile, Fuego found themselves cooled off in heartbreaking fashion after winning three of their last four and were kept off the scoresheet for the first time since the May 29 Jägermeister Cup match in Omaha.
Union Omaha was forced into at least one change outside of their normal rotation for the Cup match. Pedro Dolabella was out of the team sheet while serving the first of a two-match suspension for throwing an elbow at a Forward Madison player during the 2-2 draw the previous Saturday. With him out of the lineup, Max Schneider was called on to make his first start since his loan signing. Joe Gallardo and Brandon Knapp also made a return to the starting XI, while Charlie Ostrem got his debut and first start since joining the team on July 30.
Jermaine Jones kept only three starters from the side that defeated Chattanooga Red Wolves last weekend. Razak Cromwell, Bryan Bustamante, and Omar Lemus anchored the continuity with the other eight members rotated, including goalkeeper André Zuluaga making only his sixth appearance in all competitions this year.
Union Omaha would make their intentions known very early in this match. With less than a full minute elapsed, the Owls took a throw in deep inside the final third and turned it into a great chance. Steevan, taking the throw inside the box, lofted a cross over Zuluaga’s head and onto the crossbar. The ball rebounded right to Charlie who found Aáron Gómez alone in the center about 7 yards out. Aáron took a mighty swing at the volley, but whiffed on the chance to fire it past the keeper. The ball trickled harmlessly away and was cleared easily by Fuego.
Though it was a sign of the threat that Omaha could bring to bear, it was also a harbinger of the type of night Los Búhos would be in for.
The next 15 minutes were pretty much all Omaha in momentum. Good play up the wings, with Dion Acoff primary on the right side, led to several good positions if not good chances at goal. The defense wouldn’t let Fuego out of their own half for most of this period, forcing them into desperate long balls that were easily cut out by the defenders. Many of the second and third balls were going to the Owls as Fuego seemed to get more and more frustrated by the lack of ability to play out.
The 16’ minute would bring that moment of miscommunication that often undoes the normally stout Búho defense. Off a free kick just inside the Omaha half, Fuego fired quickly in hopes of setting up Qudus Lawal who was sneaking behind the defense. The errant pass was headed backward by Blake Malone, but seemed to surprise Wallis. While not a threat on goal itself, it did force a corner that would call the Omaha keeper into action quickly.
Taran Williams’ corner went well placed to the far post where Cromwell significantly out jumped his marker to put the ball in on target. Wallis had the shot read all the way, but it was a moment of danger that very well could have been avoided.
From here the game opened up a little for each side, but while possession went more in Fuego’s favor the threat was more in Omaha’s. The right wing became the best avenue of attack with several deep penetrations forward but no final ball to set up a chance. A couple of times Aáron would find himself with a great opportunity, served up by either Joe or Charlie, only to see the shot blocked or the volley misplayed to end the attack.
Conversely, the Fuego attack started to find more space in the midfield, playing through some patient passes. Abandoning so many long balls worked well for them in keeping possession, but most of the time Max would find ways to plug the holes before too much damage could be done.
When Max and the back line weren’t collapsing back to keep Fuego in check, Wallis was there to make sure nothing got in the net. Within a two minute stretch, the Owl keeper was tested three times. First was a shot by Zahir Vasquez that went between Luca Mastrantonio’s legs and was saved by a diving stop to Wallis’ left. Next came a one-on-one breakaway by Lawal where the keeper got just enough of the shot to keep it out long enough for Marco Milanese to clear the line. Finally, a long shot off a free kick by Cromwell forced a leaping save to keep the ball out of the top corner and the game even.
The momentum stayed with Fuego for a few minutes more as Union Omaha started to have trouble playing through the midfield. However, there would still be more threat from the visitors just before halftime as the press created some turnovers in great areas to allow for quick counter attacks.
Within 30 seconds of each other, two great turnovers led to chances for Aáron that just didn’t make it to the target. The first off a through ball from Brandon Knapp to the left side of the box was skied well over net. The second, a beautiful lobbed ball that put Aáron in 1-on-1 against the keeper was saved as Zuluaga came out leaping and easily defended against Aáron’s attempted chip shot. The follow up shot by Charlie on an open net streaked wide, finishing off the half in pretty much the same way it started: Lots of teeth, but no bite.
The halftime stats would only add to the frustration. Union Omaha managed to get 11 shots off, 7 of those from inside the box, with only one of those on target. Their 23 touches in the opposition box led to 3 big chances, but no one seemed to be able to finish.
As if the failure to take advantage of those chances weren’t enough, Jermaine Jones still had several key starters ready to come in off the bench. Having weathered the first half storm, it looked like Fuego might be ready to spark in the second half.
Yet within the first few minutes after the break it was Omaha who had the better attack and chances, limiting Fuego much they way they did to start the second half. More good runs by Dion turned into an early chance or two and the midfield started to step up better to take away the ease with which the hosts had exploited that early of the pitch. While not fully sharp, the game became more back and forth, but with little threat to Wallis’ goal. The match had turned into a stalemate with no one really able to find an advantage.
That advantage perhaps should have come to the Owls just before the hour mark. As they were starting to push the ball up into more dangerous situations, Dion took the ball up the right wing and played a nice 1-2 with Joe to open a path into the box. As Joe dribbled toward the defense, Alfredo Midence found himself beaten and a step behind the quick midfielder. He reached out a hand and appeared to push Joe from behind causing him to fall over in the box. With all the players stopping to expect a whistle, Referee Olvin Oliva (in perfect view of the play) waved off all pleas for a penalty and instead awarded Omaha a corner as the ball trickled across the end line. Whether truly a penalty or not, Búho Nation would feel aggrieved that the ref didn’t consider pointing to the spot for even a moment.
The attacking momentum stayed with Omaha for the most part except for a couple of shots that kept Wallis on his toes and the Búho backline honest. While Central Valley never seemed like a goal was imminent from them, neither was it from the Owls either. Several chances passed into the box only for the ball to be met wide or shot over the bar. Occasionally, the strikers would just miss as Steevan did to a well placed ball from Joe that would’ve seen the Cape Verdean able to put the ball into the far post with a flailing Zuluaga almost helpless. Still, the game didn’t seem to be in too much trouble for the Owls.
Until it was, of course. In the 80’ Central Valley would find their last best chance to take the lead in this match. Working the ball through midfield after intercepting a long ball by Wallis, Chris Heckenberg found himself in a ton of space outside the Omaha area. Dribbling past one marker, Heckenburg opened up Midence on the left side set up in prime position to take a shot. Midence put his boot through the ball, but Wallis not only read the play correctly, but was able to hold on to the laser beam of a shot and control it to kill off the attack.
The final 20 minutes belonged to Union Omaha as the pressed to find the winner and keep their group hopes alive. Steevan seemed to turn back the clock with some of his physical play, getting to loose balls and muscling Fuego off their strides and passes. Joe kept things running with smart passes and good vision. Lagos kept moving forward with his dribbling play and frustration of the Central Valley defense.
And it would be those three that would finally see the breakthrough Omaha had desperately been seeking since the first minute.
Intercepting a goal kick near midfield, Nortei Nortey managed to find Joe with a whole lot of grey shirts around. Joe poked the ball perfectly into Lagos’ stride, and the young striker was off to the races. Even though there were four defenders back, José Carrera-Garcia felt the need to blatantly pull Lagos back by his shirt to stop the attack. In the moment, it might have seemed like taking the yellow card was worth it, but it gave Joe all the space he needed to save the game.
Stepping up to the free kick from about 35 yards out, Joe lofted a ball that just barely made it over two Fuego defenders before settling at the Steevan’s feet well inside the area. Taking a quick settling touch, Steevan placed a powerful ball up and to the keeper’s right. The accuracy of the shot left Zuluaga with nothing he could do but look back into the net and hang his head at a clean sheet and three points lost.
As the final whistle blew, Union Omaha found themselves shed of their winless streak and on 13 points with 1 match left to play in Group 3. Even though Northern Colorado has a massive edge on them to win the group, the Owls gave themselves hope for a miracle comeback—even if they did leave it very late.
The Positives
- Once again, Wallis Lapsley did an amazing job at keeping Fuego off the scoresheet. He made six saves, three of them in pretty quick succession, and they weren’t easy to do. Wallis showed off his ability to read the ball, fight through screens, and the athleticism to react to some powerful and well placed shots from the defense. I’ve said before that there are several teams in this league, and some in the Championship, where Wallis could be a starter. We’re lucky to have him, if nothing else so that we don’t have to face him.
- Even though Wallis was called into action six times, the defense did a really good job of making sure that the periods of threat were minimized. Max Schneider played a crucial role in this by helping to plug up the midfield when Fuego started to find their rhythm in that area of the pitch. Even though Max’s stats don’t reflect the tackles and possession won that the others may have, his presence there forced passes that enabled the others to do their defensive duties in winning back the ball. Led by Dion Acoff (7), five outfield players had at least five possessions won with three of those being midfield/forward players (Joe Gallardo, Aáron Gomez, and Brandon Knapp).
- And speaking of Brandon, he had a very solid game in midfield. His passing was decent, and he did manage to create a chance, but where he really showed his value was in the aforementioned possessions won (5) and his aerial duels won (5). When Fuego had started the match attempting long balls and runs behind the defense, a lot of the credit for cutting these out goes to Brandon in the midfield. The only player to win more duels for the Owls was Steevan (7), and considering his size that’s not surprising.
It appears that even if he’s not getting on the scoresheet or assist log, Brandon is starting to fit in very well with Dom’s system. He’s starting to acquit himself very well, if quietly sometimes, and is going to be the kind of player that you’ll notice his absence more often than not.
- Finally, a quick shout to Charlie Ostrem on his debut and first start. He led the team in touches with 68 and created 3 chances—a great start for someone seeing their first action with the team. While his passing accuracy overall (64%) and his final third accuracy (47%) won’t light the world on fire, he did manage to get in 10 crosses, which is what his winger position is designed to do. He’s showing great promise for his first run out, and I can only expect him to get better as he starts to build chemistry with the team.
The Negatives
- The fact that we left the game so late after dominating the attacking momentum is still concerning. It’s not that we didn’t get good chances—the Owls logged an xG of 2.36 (to Fuego’s 0.63). We got the ball into the right places and couldn’t do anything to really test Zuluaga—a keeper who is not in favor and has limited appearances for the team.
To illustrate this, of our 19 shots, 11 of them were off target, 5 were blocked, for 3 on target. Of those 19 shots, 13 of them were from 12 yards or closer. Only one of those—Steevan’s winner—was on target. Even worse is that 4 of those were from 6-yards or closer, all of them off target. This likely doesn’t include Aáron’s first minute whiff on a really open net that would’ve set the tone for the entire match (though I can’t confirm that).
These are the types of things that keeps opponents in the game. It not only emboldens them to the idea that they can steal three points from us (see the Chattanooga match), but also frustrates our attack. The more frustrated the attackers, the more we tend to see hopeful shots that are amazing when they come off, but further demoralizing when they don’t.
- There were prolonged periods of the match where Fuego was able to work through our midfield pretty easily and set up some great spells of possession. While this didn’t lead to a lot of attacking momentum (thanks to the team defense mentioned in the positives), it gave Fuego some opportunities that should have been cut out before they got dangerous. That gap will need to be corrected going forward if Omaha look to make a deep run in the playoffs.
What’s Next
Union Omaha has a bit of a layoff now with some time to rest, reset, and incorporate some lessons learned into their training. The next action is on Wednesday, August 21 in a friendly against Bellevue University at 6:30 pm at Werner Park. The friendly will be 2 30-minute halves with some prizes and knockerball played at halftime.
The Owls return to league play at home against the Richmond Kickers on Saturday, August 24 at 7 pm. The Kickers are currently 10th in the table, on a three-game losing streak, and have lost the most games of any team in the league so far. Despite this, they still have a very dangerous Emiliano Terzaghi and Nil Vinyals that won’t make this an easy task. Getting back in the win column could put Union Omaha back at the top of the table, pending results from the other league matches.
Interesting Facts
- Central Valley’s home scoring drought against the Owls continues. In five matches against Omaha at home, Fuego has only scored one goal. Overall in nine matches, Fuego has only scored four goals, and has only beaten Omaha once in their history—a 0-2 victory at Werner Park in October 2022. They have never done anything but lose to the Owls at home, now going 0-0-5 with a goal difference of -6.
- Union Omaha has played three matches against Fuego this season. So far they have attempted 42 shots across those games. Only six have been on target resulting in three goals. The xG in those matches has been (chronologically) 1.50, 0.40, and 2.36.
- Even though there were some seemingly missed calls, there are a couple of notable things about referee Olvin Oliva. First, the four cards issued (and most of them late) were the lowest total he’s given since a March MLS NXTPRO match between Philadelphia Union II and New England II. He’s also been called up twice for international friendlies—both times as a fourth official—for Ecuador vs. Bolivia and Mexico vs. Brazil. Finally, he shows no signs that he crossed any picket lines, continuing to work between MLSNP and USL League One during the lockout. Some credit there, where it is due.
Key Events:
Central Valley Fuego Subs: 46’ – Shavon John-Brown ON; Ashkanov Apollon OFF
– Alfredo Midence ON; Zahir Vazquez OFF
– Clayton Torr ON; Issa Yaya OFF
Central Valley Fuego Subs: 60’ – Chris Heckenberg ON; Bryan Bustamante OFF
– José Carrera-Garcia ON; Taran Williams OFF
Union Omaha Sub: 62’ – Lagos Kunga ON; Aáron Gomez OFF
Union Omaha Sub: 75’ – Missael Rodriguez ON: Blake Malone OFF
Union Omaha Yellow Card: 78’ – Lagos Kunga (Tactical Foul)
Union Omaha Yellow Card: 82’ – Max Schneider (Game Delay – Kicking Ball Away)
Central Valley Fuego Yellow Card: 90’+5’ – José Carrera-Garcia (Tactical Foul)
Union Omaha Goal: 90’+6’ – Steevan Dos Santos (4th) (Unassisted) 0-1
Central Valley Fuego Yellow Card: 90’+7’ – Razak Cromwell (Pushing)
Who Gives A Hoot? 