New Mexico United (3 wins, 1 draw, 1 loss) currently sits in 1st spot in the Group C table with 10 points. Rising has an identical record, but is in 2nd spot in Group B.
This will be the fourth meeting of the two sides, with neither side able to claim an advantage during open play. However, New Mexico did advance via kicks from a penalty shootout after a US Open Cup clash in May 2019.
The last time that the two sides met was in September 2019 at Isotopes Park. Devon Sandoval gave the hosts an early lead, and Justin Schmidt doubled that advantage in the second half. However, a late brace from Joey Calistri was enough to rescue a point for the visitors, who then proceeded to celebrate their regular season title win by inviting the traveling fans into the locker room.
New Mexico coach Troy Lesesne said earlier this week that he’s hoping to have a full squad available at his disposal, although defender Justin Schmidt remains an injury doubt.
LAST TIME OUT
New Mexico’s last outing was a 3-0 victory away to Oklahoma City. Amando Moreno got the scoring underway for the visitors around the half hour mark, with Chris Wehan adding his fourth of the season in first half stoppage time. Joris Ahlinvi sealed the victory in the 93rd minute, giving New Mexico its third win out of four games since the restart.
Here’s what New Mexico United coach Troy Lesesne said about his team’s performance last week against OKC:
Cody Mizell was in goal for the last game, as he has been for almost every New Mexico game since the team’s inception. In fact, the only league game he’s missed was last year’s 2-2 draw at the Lab against Rising. Mizell’s previous clubs include Charlotte Independence and the Tampa Bay Rowdies, plus a spell in Iceland with Knattspyrnufélagið Fram. A younger Mizell also spent a few weeks training with West Ham United. The keeper hasn’t been the steadiest pair of hands in goal, though, with a 60.4% save percentage in 2019, and just four clean sheets from 34 games. He’s also not one to look to play it out from the back. 87% of the time, he’ll play it long, and his team has won less than a third of those balls.
Saalih Muhammad played at the back against OKC, and has also featured in every game since the restart. The California native formerly featured for Penn FC and the San Francisco Deltas, but also featured in 23 games for United last season, predominantly as a midfielder. Don’t sleep on him from distance, as his only goal in a New Mexico shirt was a 35-yard volley against Colorado Springs earlier this year. That strike was good enough to win goal of the week, and intriguingly is the only shot he’s taken this season.
A new signing for New Mexico, Kalen Ryden was part of the title-winning Real Monarchs team last season. He’s a no-nonsense center back, recording 117 clearances over 32 games in 2019. He’s actually boosted that rate this year, with 23 clearances in just five games. Originally from Norman, Oklahoma, Ryden enjoyed strong support from friends and family in the last game, which was also against one of his former clubs. While he’s come close to scoring a few times this year, Ryden hasn’t found the net, meaning his last goal was a crucial equalizer against El Paso in last year’s Western Conference final.
Austin Yearwood also lined up at the back against OKC. He’s got a lot of USL experience having featured for both Richmond Kickers and Charlotte Independence, but found himself pushed out of New Mexico’s team early last season, and has struggled to work his way back into it. This year could be different, though, as Yearwood’s clocked up every minute since the resumption of play. His passing hasn’t looked great this year at 75.8%, but that could be because around one-in-five of his passes are long.
Daniel Bruce broke into the professional game last season, and has featured in all games since the restart this year. He picked up his first assist of the year in the last match, after scoring 2 goals and picking up 2 assists over 16 league games in 2019. Bruce spent his college years at Charlotte, and won player of the tournament at the Centenary Shield with England Schoolboys.
Captain Josh Suggs didn’t feature at the start of this season. He’s only played in the last two matches, but that also means the team hasn’t lost this season with him wearing the armband. He’s set to be the pantomime villain in this game, after the Las Cruces native said that Rising “bothers” him, and that Phoenix is a team of individuals in contrast to New Mexico. Interesting, Suggs has faced Rising (or its predecessor, Arizona United) more than any other team in his professional career, thanks to spells with the OC Blues and Colorado Springs Switchbacks. In league play, he’s recorded six wins, two draws and eight losses against Phoenix. His side has progressed on both occasions when he faced Phoenix in the Open Cup.
“For me, the thing that drives me nuts is that Phoenix Rising is the anti-New Mexico United. Everything that we’re about, they are the opposite. They are the individual, and we are the collective, and I can’t…that team bothers me, and I’m not afraid to say that.” – Josh Suggs to The CurseCast in 2019.
Juan Guzmán has featured in every game this season, but he’s only gone the full 90 in the last two. The Colombian showed off his passing ability last season (92% accuracy), and helped to form the spine of the team in the middle of the park alongside Sam Hamilton. This year, he looks to be winning the ball with more frequency, which was one of the biggest holes in his game. He’s previously played for OKC Energy and Louisville in USL.
Also in the New Mexico midfield is Andrew Tinari. He’s a new signing for United this season, and previously had spells in USL with Tampa Bay Rowdies and Red Bulls II. Tinari claims to have settled into the squad well, drawing comparisons between the pressing style expected from Lesesne and the way his team played in New York. Tinari scored five goals last season, and also picked up five assists, but is yet to register either this year. His biggest weakness, though, is conceding fouls. Over the five games in 2020, Tinari has conceded ten fouls and won just two – and that’s a pretty consistent trend over his professional career.
Armando Moreno is another ex-Baby Bull, coming through the academy in New York. After spending some time in Mexico with Tijuana and Dorados de Sinaloa, Moreno returned to Harrison in 2018 to enjoy his best season to date (11 goals). That earned him a spell in the top flight with Chicago, but he was given just a handful of appearances and could break into the first team. He’s already got a goal and an assist to his name this year, but is he capable of replicating the form he found in 2018?
Speaking of form, Chris Wehan is certainly enjoying a good run. The 26-year-old needed to step up following the departure of Santi Moar and Kevaughn Frater last season, and he’s done just that. Wehan has scored in each of the four games since the restart, meaning he’s actually on track to best his ten-goal haul from last year despite the shortened season. His coach puts some of that success down to Wehan’s ability to find and exploit space on the attack; and he’ll certainly be one to watch for the Rising back line.
Check out what Lesesne had to say about his star attacker:
Romeo Parkes spearheaded the attack for New Mexico against OKC. The ex-Jamaican international certainly has history in this league, but it’s not of a good variety. Back in May 2016, enjoying a run of five goals in six games, Parkes got himself released by the Pittsburgh Riverhounds after aiming a kick at Karl Ouimette’s back during a stoppage in play. Parkes was banned by USL for the remainder of the season, which was extended by FIFA to cover the entire globe, and he later admitted himself that he feared he would never play the game again. A year on, he was actually re-signed by Pittsburgh, but never regained that same form. After a successful spell in Ireland with Sligo Rovers, Parkes is now back in the USL Championship on loan, but has yet to find the net.
Rashid Tetteh make his first appearance of the season off the bench last weekend, and his coach doesn’t have much scope to complain about the performance. The center-back won every single tackle, duel and aerial duel he faced. Tetteh played well in his debut professional season in 2019, winning three-quarters of all tackles. Don’t expect much from the Ghanaian up top, though, as he recorded just two shots last season, with none on target.
Joris Ahlinvi also came on off the bench. He’s new to New Mexico this season, and was drafted by FC Cincinnati but didn’t sign a contract with them. Born in the south west of France, the 25-year-old moved to the US for college, and played for both FIU and Indiana. Back when he was in France, Ahlinvi was called up to Benin’s national team, but was an unused sub against Equatorial Guinea. His younger brother is also a footballer, and is currently playing for the reserves at Ligue 1 Nîmes Olympique. Ahlinvi has made two appearances off the bench this season, and scored at the end of last weekend’s game.
Another substitute was Ryan Williams, who is now in his second professional season. The attacking midfielder from Hawaii played in 15 league games for New Mexico last season, scoring two goals. He’s come off the bench in each of the games since the restart, but is yet to record a shot either on or off target in 2020.
A familiar face from last season who is yet to start a game this season is David Estrada. He has made appearances from the bench, though. Estrada’s 2019 season was something of a disappointment, as he recorded just two goals and two assists. Compare that to his 2018 form, where he found the net 11 times with Sounders 2, and you start to understand why he isn’t in Troy Lesesne’s lineup. Estrada was born in Morelia, Mexico, but moved to California as an infant. He’s enjoyed spells in MLS with Seattle and DC, but has been in USL since 2015.
Sammy Sergi also got a chance off the bench last match. The young striker is looking for his first New Mexico goal after scoring ten in 17 games at college last year with Xavier. Named to the All-American second team in 2019, the question now is if he can replicate his collegiate success at the professional level.
The notable absence from the OKC Energy match? Devon Sandoval was not part of the matchday squad due to injury, but Lesesne expects him to be available in Phoenix tonight. The 6-foot-1 striker is always a danger, and scored twelve goals last season. He’s already got two this year, in just four appearances. Sandoval previously played alongside Lagos Kunga for Atlanta 2, and the Rising loanee believes that his teammates may have to stop Sandoval from turning towards goal to keep the ball out of the net.
Here’s what Lagos Kunga said about Sandoval’s finishing ability earlier this week:
RIVALRY
There’s been a lot of talk in the lead-up to this game about the rivalry aspect of the matchup, but do Rising fans view United as the club’s biggest rival? Intriguingly, fans on Twitter couldn’t decide between New Mexico or Orange County, with the vote ending in a draw.
That didn’t stop players and coaches from weighing in on the topic, though. Here’s what Rick Schantz, Lagos Kunga and Troy Lesesne had to say:
From the Ashes Prediction: A late goal for Santi Moar gives Rising its first win against New Mexico, despite the team falling behind thanks to a first half Chris Wehan strike.