Memphis 901 FC @ Pittsburgh Riverhounds Preview

The countdown to the playoffs have begun and Memphis 901 FC find themselves right in the thick of the standings. They currently sit seven points clear of the playoff drop but are only eight points behind the first place Pittsburgh Riverhounds with three games in-hand. 

All five matches for Memphis this month have come against Western conference teams and they escaped with two draws and three losses. This stretch ended their record-breaking unbeaten streak and has left the team battle scarred before re-entering conference play.

However, a season with no adversity is near impossible and there is ample time left in the season to make up for this wobbly run of form.

Memphis will be away from home for all four games over the next two weeks, starting on Saturday, July 29 against the aforementioned conference leaders in Pittsburgh. 901 has beaten the Riverhounds once in their history, losing the other four times. This includes the match all the way back in March, which was their last defeat in league play until July 1. 

Games on the road generally produce worse results than when teams are at home, but the opposite is the case for Memphis. They have won 50% of their eight games on the road while losing only once. 901 has won the same amount inside AutoZone Park, but have been beaten four times.

The Opponent

Pittsburgh will be attempting to bounce back from two poor performances this week, suffering consecutive 3-1 losses against Indy Eleven and Charleston Battery. Head coach Bob Lilley will be hoping these are outliers as in the grand scheme of the season, his unit have been dominant defensively. The Riverhounds have conceded the fewest goals in the entire Championship at 18, and have only conceded multiple goals in a game twice excluding the past two matches. Pittsburgh is also the only team to reach the double-digit mark for clean sheets with 10. 

The perfect aid to Pittsburgh’s stellar defensive minded approach has been Albert Dikwa, a 25-year-old Cameroonian who has steadily improved since his arrival from Saint Louis FC (a former USL Championship club who ceased operation after the 2020 season) three seasons ago. 

The striker has scored 10 goals in the championship and is in the chase for the golden boot. He is two goals away from doubling his goal total before this season started. He also scored the deciding goal in Pittsburgh’s US Open upset in the Round of 16 against MLS side Columbus Crew.

Final Thoughts

Pittsburgh has been one of the top teams in the Championship since the season began and has not gone more than two games without picking up a win. Memphis will need to erase a lot of the mistakes that have accumulated in July to pick up a result to start this road trip on the right track.

Comparing the two clubs, there are few notable differences in how they have found their success. Seven players have scored three or more goals for Memphis this year, showcasing a well-rounded attack with a lot of firepower. Only three Riverhounds have reached that threshold as their goal distribution is much like Memphis of last year with Philip Goodrum leading the charge. 

This difference is reflected in the overall goals scored – Memphis having the advantage with 35 goals scored compared to the Riverhounds with 27. Pittsburgh does have a better goal difference (+9) than Memphis (+3). 

With three less games played than Pittsburgh, a climb to first place isn’t out of the realm of possibility for 901 if they get a result on Saturday. Regardless, I anticipate a captivating game between two teams in the fight for home-field advantage come October.

When, Where

Date: Saturday, July 29, 2023

Venue: Highmark Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Time: 6:00pm CT

TV: WMC 5.2, ESPN+