One hour into Saturday night’s Copa Tejas fight against Rio Grande Valley FC, El Paso Locomotive FC trailed by one goal – a capitalization on a counterattack that opened Elvis Amoh up to slip one into the El Paso goal in the 38th minute.
Just after 60 minutes of play, the Boys in Blue from El Paso were kicking it into full gear, leading a charge that set Forward Lucho Solignac up for the equalizing goal. Lucho took that goal in a spectacular fashion that highlighted national attention as Number 4 on ESPN SportsCenter Top 10 plays. That goal equalized the scoring and pushed El Paso into finding two others to secure a 3-1 win over the Toros.
“For me, it’s important for the confidence,” shared Lucho after Saturday night’s win. “I always say I like to score goals that matter. Today, it was our first goal which put us in a tie and gave us that confidence to keep going and open the game. I think it also killed their momentum a little bit.”
It truly was a goal of extravagant proportions. It was a goal that featured the togetherness and creativity that emboldens El Paso Locomotive FC. Sebastian Velasquez fought against Carter Manley, pushing the ball down to the end touchline, however, Velasquez found the space he needed to lay the ball off to Aaron Gomez. Now on the ball, Gomez took it back out to the wide area, finding Andrew Fox at the top of the box. All took when the ball reached Fox, was a quick read of what to expect by Lucho and it was over from there.
Fox took one touch to lift the ball towards the goal where the Argentinian striker was already making his run. Leaping to meet the ball, Lucho picked his mark out of the air, with a backheel that Rio Grande Valley’s Colin Miller could do nothing to stop.
The strike sent Southwest University Park into an uproar while stunning the Rio Grande Valley bench and players into silence.
“I like to do things like that! I do it a lot in training,” continued Lucho. “I think this was the perfect condition to do it. I read the timing of the run and Foxy delivered a great ball. For me, it wasn’t cheeky at all. It was one of the resources; it was what I needed to do. If I hit it with my left – I reach better and faster with my right foot there, so it’s nothing cheeky. I know it looks good but in the end, it was just more of a resource moment.”
Through the 2021 season, Lucho has continued to show his quality in front of goal. The Argentinian leads El Paso in goals scored, having put away his seventh of the year in the 67th minute on Saturday. It’s a level of quality that few strikers in the league possess.
“He can score from a variety of different ways,” stated Head Coach Mark Lowry. “He is such a cultured, elegant player. When the ball comes into his touch, he is so good, his movement is good, he is smart and intelligent. He is a really good forward who has the ability to score those types of goals because of that quality.”
Lucho has the ability to score more goals and with the season just past the halfway point to playoffs, it’s a safe-bet guarantee that he will add to his club-leading tally. He is happy to score for the club, but he would sacrifice scoring goals if it meant having the whole team buy into the season and win games.
“I always choose to win. If I can choose both like today, I’m more than happy,” said Lucho. “I’m happy that everybody is tuned in, and everybody wants to participate. We talk about this all the time, about how people are coming in from the bench and making an impact. It’s so important because that’s something that is going to matter when it comes to the playoffs.”
The USL Championship playoffs are rapidly approaching as El Paso Locomotive continues to push through the latter half of the 2021 season. With everyone buying into the same system, tuned in to the desire to win, and a level of quality that stretches deep into the bench, fans can expect more opportunities for bangers that feel right for the SportsCenter Top 10.
Lucho Solignac and the rest of El Paso Locomotive FC will continue their strive to claim the 2021 USL Championship Regular Season title against San Antonio FC next Saturday, August 28. Kickoff for that match is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. MT at Toyota Field in San Antonio. The Boys in Blue will return to Southwest University Park on September 11 for a match against Sacramento Republic. Tickets are available for purchase at https://sportsengine-staging.go-vip.net/eplocomotivefc/tickets, through the official El Paso Locomotive FC App, or by calling 915-235-GOAL.