• RGV (1 win, 7 draws/ties, 6 defeats) currently sit in 16^th spot in the USL Western Conference, 21 points and 14 places below Rising in 2^nd place, but with 2 games in hand.
• This is the first meeting between both sides this season.  In 2017, Rising drew 1-1 in Texas, succumbing to a 95^th goal from Magalhaes following the 86^th and 88^th minute dismissals of Dia and Mala.  Rising then won the return fixture in the Valley 2-0 with goals from Jason Johnson and Didier Drogba.
• It’s been a disappointing season to date for RGV.  Their sole victory came in April at home to Orange County.  Since then, they have had a run of 5 draws/ties, and come into tonight’s match on the back of a 3-game losing streak.
• The Toros are a ‘hybrid’ affiliate to MLS club Houston Dynamo.  As a result, Dynamo are responsible for the team’s players and coaches.
• Several Dynamo players have made solitary appearances for RGV this season. These include Adam Lundqvist (formerly of IF Elfsborg in Sweden), Eric Bird (who starred for RGV in 2016 and 2017), Jared Watts, Luis Gil, and Memo Rodriguez.
• RGV defender Conor Donovan also moved in the opposite direction on May 31.  A former U.S. U20 international and Orlando City player, Donovan has made 11 appearances for RGV this season.  He holds the dubious distinction of contributing two own goals.  The first was scored in the 92^nd minute at home to Sacramento in March, thereby denying RGV a home win.  The second was scored in May in a 2-2 draw away to Fresno.  An unused substitute in 2 MLS games, Donovan returned to RGV in June and featured in the 1-0 defeat at home to Timbers 2 earlier this month.  He is known for the quality of his passing (77.1% pass success rate).
• There are no ever-presents on the RGV roster.  Kyle Adams and Nicolas Corti have started and completed 13 of RGV’s 14 league games.  Jesús Enríquez, Todd Wharton, and Matías Zaldívar have made 12 appearances this season.
• Despite coming from New Zealand, 21 year-old Kyle Adams is no stranger to Arizona.  The 6ft 1 defender played for FC Tucson in 2016, and has won 71.4% of his aerial duels this season.
• Brussels-born goalkeeper Nicolas Corti is currently keeping Puerto Rican international Matt Sanchez out of the starting XI.  The 23 year-old, who spent his childhood in the South of France and California, has kept 4 clean sheets this season, and has a 65.3% save success rate.  The only league game Corti has missed in 2018 is a 3-2 away defeat to Sounders 2 on April 14.
• Jesús Enríquez is a former Tijuana B midfielder who signed for the Toros in January.  He scored with his right foot in a 2-2 draw away to Fresno in May, and has a 72.6% pass success rate this season.
• Todd Wharton is RGV’s biggest threat in midfield, creating more chances than any other for the Toros.  The 24 year-old is currently in his third season with the team. Surprisingly undrafted in the 2016 MLS Super Draft, Wharton made his debut in March 2016 as a substitute in the 2-0 defeat to the Roughnecks.  He’s contributed 2 goals and 2 assists in 12 games in 2018.  Both goals were scored from the penalty spot – one in a 2-2 home draw against Sacramento on March 31; the other in a 3-2 mid-April defeat away to Timbers 2.
• Matías Zaldívar is an Argentinian midfielder signed from Arsenal de Sarandi in the Argentine Primera División.  He has one goal to his name for RGV this season – a left foot strike in the 3-2 away defeat to Sounders 2.  That solitary strike was followed by a red card in the 3-2 defeat away to Timbers 2.  Zaldívar has also played on a short term loan for Houston Dynamo this season, scoring the MLS club’s fourth goal in a 5-0 Open Cup victory against NTX Rayados.
• Another RGV player bagging a brace in that 5-0 Open Cup win for Dynamo was Aldo Quintanilla.  Signed by RGV in March, Quintanilla has previously played in the Mexican third tier for Santos Laguna Premier and Querétaro FC Premier.  RGV’s top scorer this season with 4 goals in 10 appearances, 3 of the goals have been scored with his right foot and one with his head.
• Guillermo Delgado is the only other forward to score this season.  The Spanish 23 year-old scored with his right foot in the 3-2 defeat away to Sounders 2, but has failed to convert 8 other attempts (4 on target) in 7 appearances.
• The lack of goals from forwards is perhaps in part a reflection of RGV’s preferred 4-2-3-1 formation.
• Four of RGV’s 14 league goals this season have been scored in the last 15 minutes of games.

• One player that has struggled to hold down a place in the RGV starting XI is Jorghino James.  The Jamaican, currently on loan from Harbour View, has scored 1 goal in 4 appearances, and managed 58 minutes in the 3-1 defeat away to OKC last weekend.  James boasts international experience, with 3 caps and 1 goal for the Reggae Boyz.
• Fifteen of the 20 league goals conceded by RGV this season have been scored in the second half, including 13 in the last 30 minutes.

• One player guaranteed not to feature tonight is defender Omar Ontiveros after he picked up his 5^th yellow card of the season last Saturday away to OKC.  Ontiveros has started 9 games this season for RGV, scoring twice.  He previously played for Santos Laguna’s U20 team in Mexico, and CS Grevenmacher in Luxembourg.
• In total, RGV have collected 23 cautions and 1 red card this season.

From The Ashes Prediction: Away win for Rising