Memphis 901 FC dominate Birmingham 3-0 in Southern Harm rivalry

Marlon Santos provided the chances. Bruno Lapa put them into the back of the net. Lucas Turci added in a phenomenal strike.

The recipe that had been lost in the five-game losing streak in league play from Memphis 901 FC (2-5-0) had been found, at least for 90 minutes against Birmingham Legion (3-3-1). Memphis was clinical in front of goal, capitalizing on opportunities in the 3-0 victory.

“The boys are delighted and I’m so happy for them,” Stephen Glass said after the win. “The performances they put in recently, to get a reward like that away at Birmingham.”

The Brazilian duo of Marlon and Lapa combined for two of the three goals, and for the second straight game, Memphis got on the board early.

Zachary Duncan’s through ball to Marlon gave him plenty of space behind the Legion back line. He was able to find Lapa in the box who struck the ball cleanly while reaching behind with his right foot.

Marlon continued to cause havoc down the right side creating chances for Memphis. Teammates were finding him on timely runs and he was aggressive when he got the ball.

“We wanted to impose ourselves on the game,” Glass said. “We knew with the pace of Marlon up front we could be a threat. There was a lot of danger at the top end of the pitch for us.”

Another threatening pass from Marlon in the 17th minute provided a corner. Birmingham struggled to clear and Lucas Turci took advantage with a rocket nestling in the bottom left corner.

The command Memphis had on the game lessened as the half went on. Birmingham gained possession but struggled to attack through the midfield. Instead, they went a more direct route going over the top. Tyler Deric had several key saves throughout the match to maintain a clean sheet, finishing with six saves.

Relying on counter attacks, Memphis was able to put the game away with a Lapa run that started behind the midfield circle. A quick give-and-go action with Marlon left him one-on-one with the keeper. He finished another quality strike.

Memphis had less shots than their opponent for only the third time this year — 15 to 7 in total shots, 6 to 4 in total shots on target. However, 901 FC finished all three of their big chances.

“We got ourselves in a fairly comfortable position and we managed to see it out,” Glass said.

Next Game

Memphis will be back at home to take on the Tampa Bay Rowdies Saturday, May 4 at 3pm.