Memphis 901 FC @ Miami FC Preview

The Western Conference standings in the USL Championship being as tight as they are is both a blessing and a curse. For Memphis 901 FC, in 4th place, the blessing is that they are only three points out of second place. The curse, however is that they are only six points away from being entirely out of the playoff places. It means that getting three points on the road against last place Miami FC is critical.

901 FC’s form of late has been almost a net neutral. In their last five games, they’ve won twice, lost twice, and drawn once. They were able to beat Detroit City on the road and grind out a gutsy, short-handed win at home against San Antonio FC. The home draw against El Paso Locomotive was perhaps disappointing given their place in the standings. And the two losses were both on the road, the first being against FC Tulsa. Most recently was a 3-1 loss to the Charleston Battery. They were reduced to ten men after Lucas Turci was sent off in the 37th minute and duly went down a goal four minutes later. But they responded well to start the second half and tied the game up in the 50th minute on a goal by Samuel Careaga. Unfortunately, Charleston’s man advantage eventually made the difference as the Battery scored twice to get a 3-1 win.

Memphis 901 FC’s opponent is having a rough go of it this season. They are dead last in the league. They’ve only won two games all season. Their losing streak has reached seven straight games and their winless streak currently sits at 15 straight. The last time Miami FC won a game was on April 27th. Perhaps the most interesting thing to happen to Miami FC this year is the recent name change to their stadium. In the ever more absurd financial arms race in college athletics, Florida International University (where Miami FC plays their games) has signed a five-year deal with recording artist Pitbull that will pay them $1.2 million per year. So the venue formerly known as FIU Stadium and Riccardo Silva Stadium is now know as Pitbull Stadium.

While not as known worldwide as Pitbull, Miami FC has a coach with a lot of high level club playing experience. Antonio Nocerino is originally from Italy and played at a number of high level clubs including Juventus and AC Milan in Serie A, West Ham United in the Premier League, and Orlando City in MLS. But Miami FC is his first coaching job and it appears to have been a steep learning curve for the Italian thus far.

When, Where

Date: Wednesday, August 14, 2024

Venue: Pitbull Stadium

City: Miami, FL

Time: 6pm CT

TV: WMC 5.3, ESPN+

Radio: SiriusXM FC Channel 157

All-Time Series

Memphis 901 FC trails 1-3-1

Last Meeting

Date: Saturday, June 3, 2023

Venue: AutoZone Park

City: Memphis, TN

Attendance: 3,672

Result: Memphis 901 FC 5-1 Miami FC

Conference Standing

Memphis 901 FC: 4th in West (32pts)

Miami FC: 12th in East (8pts)

Next Game

Date: Saturday, August 17, 2024

Competition: USL Regular Season

Match-Up: Memphis 901 FC vs. FC Tulsa

Venue: AutoZone Park

City: Memphis, TN

Time: 7:30pm CT

TV: WMC 5.3, ESPN+

Tickets: Memphis 901 FC vs. FC Tulsa tickets