901 FC continued their excellent run of form with a 2-1 win over FC Tulsa, with goals coming from Nighte Pickering and Aaron Molloy.
After contributing to a goal in the previous match, Pickering got one of his own tonight as he scored from a shot deflected off the crossbar.
Molloy’s goal came minutes later off a lovely bit of individual play, and also had a timely deflection on its way to the back of the net.
Despite both goals coming in the 2nd half, Memphis maintained solid control from kickoff. During this franchise record-setting run, 901 have continued to play from the back and beat teams in the possession battle, whether in AutoZone Park or traveling elsewhere. The team is playing with a ton of confidence from all areas of the field.
Going back to 2021, Memphis has beaten Tulsa in four consecutive games which keeps yet another streak alive. Tulsa, on the other hand, continues their early season struggle – they have drawn in five of their 11 games up to this point and sit below the playoff threshold.
Credit to the Midfield
Tulsa trotted out a 4-1-4-1 formation hoping it would mesh well with their pass-heavy style of play. Coming into tonight, they were ranked first in the Championship in passes with 4,842 – over 1,000 more than 901 FC sitting in 18th. However, the home side struggled for possession up until they conceded the goal to Pickering. Memphis’ quick pace and a stellar performance from the midfield made life difficult for Tulsa.
That trio of Molloy, Pickering and Jeremy Kelly meshed extremely well together and impacted both sides of the pitch. They anchored the back line when called upon and had the offensive qualities to put pressure on the opposition.
Containing the Counter-attack
Tulsa relied on a counter-attacking style of play for most of the match with their disadvantage in possession. Milo Yosef, a 24-year-old forward, was the target man quite often on the right wing. This put pressure and a lot of responsibility on Akeem Ward and company. They responded to the challenge, making several potentially goal-saving challenges produced from Yosef. 901 FC also performed well defensively on corner kicks and other set pieces.