Louisville City midfielder Magnus Rasmussen was voted Man of the Match by fans during Louisville City’s frustrating 1-0 loss to Pittsburgh Saturday night.
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Photo Gallery: LouCity vs. Pittsburgh Riverhounds
VID: Hackworth, Rasmussen discuss LOUvPIT
After Louisville City fell 1-0 to the Pittsburgh Riverhounds Saturday night, coach John Hackworth and midfielder Magnus Rasmussen spoke with the gathered media. Here is what they had to say.
LouCity falls 0-1 to Pittsburgh Riverhounds on a PK
Louisville City fell 0-1 to Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC Saturday night at Slugger Field on a frustrating Penalty Kick in the 74′.
Playing without starting midfielder Paolo DelPiccolo and Brian Ownby and forwards George Davis IV and Luke Spencer due to injury, LouCity had a makeshift lineup. Despite two players going down in the first half to hamstring issues – Davis and Spencer – City had numerous chances to get on the board vs. a Pittsburgh squad that has given up a pair of goals per match so far this season.
Oscar Jimenez nearly sneaked one over Pittsburgh goalkeeper Ben Lundgaard’s head in the 30′. Then in the 41′ a close-range header by Speedy Williams sailed over the bar and into the supporter section.
Abdou Thiam also had a shot miss the frame over the bar in stoppage time in the first half and the half ended 0-0.
The second half was more of the same as none of the LouCity chances found paydirt and the score stayed 0-0 until midway through the second half.
In the 74′ minute, a collision happened between a pair of Pittsburgh players and Louisville City’s Alexis Souahy. Just before the collision, Souahy appeared to get a foot on the ball, but the penalty stood.
Pittsburgh’s Neco Brett took the penalty kick and buried it into the top left hand corner for the winning goal.
In the remaining 20 minutes, Louisville City tried valiantly to score the equalizer, but Bob Lilley’s squad locked down the box and didn’t allow a LouCity goal.
The loss sends Louisville City to 2-3-0 on the season while Pittsburgh Riverhounds are now 1-1-2. Louisville City travels to face the Tampa Bay Rowdies Saturday, April 13.
Scoring Summary:
74′ PIT – Brett, Neco – PK
Game Day: Louisville City vs. Pittsburgh Riverhounds
Louisville City defends Slugger Field Saturday night vs. the Pittsburgh Riverhounds in what could be a tough challenge despite Pittsburgh’s rough start to 2019.
Game Preview: Louisville City faces tough challenge vs. PIT
Spring Break Special: Click here to activate your FREE kids ticket
Parking: Louisville City Parking Map/Pass Info
About the Stadium: Slugger Field A to Z
Kickoff Saturday night is set for 7 p.m. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.
Louisville City is currently in 6th place in the Eastern Division with six points in its first four matches. Pittsburgh Riverhounds have just two points in their first three matches.
WDRB Forecast for Kickoff
Louisville City hosts Pittsburgh Saturday at 7
Louisville City hopes to return to its winning ways this weekend vs. a Pittsburgh Riverhounds club desperate for points.
“Probably not a good time to be playing Pittsburgh,” Louisville City coach John Hackworth said. “Their style is extremely difficult. It is counter-intuitive to the way that we play and so it is a tough opponent. They do what they do extremely well.”
Under coach Bob Lilley, the Riverhounds have typically been one of the stingiest defenses in the USL. Lilley’s teams are known for “Lilleyball,” a phrase sometimes used in admiration for his defensive style and other times uttered in the same way one might describe getting stuck in a traffic jam. When it works – like the incredible 0.44 goals allowed mark by the 2015 Rochester squad – it can be infuriating for the opposition.
The 2019 Riverhounds haven’t figured the system out just yet. They only have two points after their first three matches.
“This will be the third consecutive week that we are facing an opponent that comes in extremely hungry,” Hackworth said. “And we know that we are going to get everybody’s best all season. That’s a scary proposition when you have to play Pittsburgh in that scenario.”
Louisville comes in hungry for points as well after giving up a three goals to lose any chance at points vs. Birmingham Legion last week.
Hackworth explained, “I know they haven’t had what they would consider a good start to the season, but I told the guys – I went against my usual rule and looked at the standings earlier this morning when I saw the Seattle-Sac Republic score – it looks like across the Eastern and Western Conference, everyone is dropping points. It looks like everyone has at least had their fair share of struggles, but there are points to be had out there.”
Louisville City and Pittsburgh will kickoff at 7 p.m. Saturday night.
Louisville City hosts United Soccer Coaches for Open Training Week
Louisville City Football Club hosted coaches from around the Louisville region and from surrounding areas at training Tuesday as part of the United Soccer Coaches Open Training Week.
“Part of our mission is to grow the game we love,” Louisville City coach John Hackworth said. “We are happy to give a chance for coaches around our city to come watch us train. For us, it is part of our outreach into the Louisville soccer community.”
Open Training Week provides an opportunity for coaches from all levels and backgrounds to experience new environments, observe high-level training sessions, and learn from one another. Men’s and women’s teams at the college and professional levels will welcome local soccer coaches in their communities to attend a practice with the goal of uniting coaches around the love of the game.
From the United Soccer Coaches: “Now in its third year, Open Training Week truly embodies the association’s core values of advocacy, education and service and ties in with the Commitment to Culture initiative, specifically the cornerstone of We Are Family Strong.”
LouCity falls 3-2 to Birmingham Legion
Louisville City fell 3-2 to Birmingham Legion FC Sunday morning at Slugger Field. The match, originally scheduled for Saturday night at 7 p.m., had to be postponed due to field conditions after heavy rain. It was played on Sunday morning at 10 a.m.
“No secret now. We’re into this,” Louisville City coach John Hackworth said. “Our defending is woeful. It’s irresponsible. I don’t even know what to call it. It’s just not anywhere close to being good enough for us.”
Louisville City got on the board first on a 30′ strike from Magnus Rasmussen with an assist by Sean Totsch. But City didn’t hold its lead for long as Birmingham Legion struck back just 70 seconds later on a goal by Propser Kasim.
“It was similar to the way we played against North Carolina where we played some excellent soccer at such a high level. To get that goal – excellent service, good runs in the box and [Magnus Rasmussen] finishes fantastically on that,” Hackworth said. “But from letting them have a goal immediately after that, it cancels that out quite quickly.”
It was Birmingham’s first goal in club history after going scoreless in the first two matches. Just five minutes later Birmingham pushed ahead 2-1 on a goal by Chandler Hoffman.
Louisville City evened the score in the 81′ when Abdou Thiam sent a cross into the box that bounced off Birmingham’s Mathieu Laurent and into the goal for the equalizer.
Then in the 87′, Birmingham Legion pushed back ahead on a goal by Brian Wright. Louisville City tried to find an equalizer in the final four minutes or regulation and seven minutes of stoppage time, but they were unable to find the net.
“The only proper response is to come back out and learn from some really hard lessons right now,” Hackworth said. “To get so much of the hard part right and then to give up in little areas where it’s not about the quality of the athlete or the level of professionalism. We just need to do our jobs better.”
Louisville City will play the third game in a three-game homestand Saturday at 7 p.m. vs. the Pittsburgh Riverhounds.
Louisville City’s Sunday morning match with Birmingham Legion FC streamed LIVE on YouTube. Here is a replay of the match.
Louisville City's match has been rescheduled for Sunday
Louisville City FC’s match with Birmingham Legion FC has been postponed until Sunday. The game will be played Sunday morning at 10 am. Gates will open at 9 am.
Fans should keep their ticket stubs from tonight’s game. All Louisville Season-Ticket Members can use their tickets for tonight’s match tomorrow. There will be a digital ticket in their Seatgeek account.
If fans are unable to attend tomorrow’s match, they can exchange tonight’s ticket for any other regular-season home match this season.
Match Day: Louisville City vs. Birmingham Legion
Louisville City defends Slugger Field Saturday night vs. Birmingham Legion FC, one of the new clubs in the USL Championship division.
Game Preview: Louisville defends Slugger Saturday
Parking: Louisville City Parking Map/Pass Info
About the Stadium: Slugger Field A to Z
Kickoff Saturday night is set for 7 p.m. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.
Louisville City picked up a win in its home opener with the help of a USL Team of the Week performance by Magnus Rasmussen, who assisted on Louisville’s first goal and created a pair of other chances as well.
The game will be televised locally by WBKI-CW Louisville and nationally via ESPN+. All Louisville City games are broadcast on radio through iHeartRadio Louisville. Saturday’s matchup is set for 790 KRD, with pregame starting at 6:45.
