Boys in Blue Head North to Renew Rivalry with Le Rouge
#DETvIND Preview
Indy Eleven at Detroit City FC
Saturday, March 25, 2023 – 4:00 p.m. ET
Keyworth Stadium – Hamtramck, Mich.
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In-game updates: @IndyElevenLive Twitter feed
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2023 USL CHAMPIONSHIP REGULAR SEASON RECORDS
Indy Eleven: 0W-0L-1D (0 GD), 1 pt.; T-8th in Eastern Conference
Detroit City FC: 1W-1L-0D (+1 GD), 3 pts.; 5th in Eastern Conference
COMMUNITY HEALTH NETWORK SPORTS MEDICINE INDY ELEVEN INJURY REPORT
OUT: DF Robby Dambrot (L foot injury)
QUESTIONABLE: none
DISCIPLINE REPORT
IND: none
DET: none
INTERNATIONAL DUTY
IND: none
DET: none
After enjoying an early season bye for the USL Championship’s Round 2, Indy Eleven is back at it – and back on the road – this Saturday, when it renews its budding rivalry with Detroit City FC at historic Keyworth Stadium.
Indiana’s Team will be looking to continue the momentum gained from its season opener against the Tampa Bay Rowdies back on March 11, when Aodhan Quinn’s penalty conversion deep in stoppage time helped the Eleven take a point back home. Like Indy, Detroit began its 2023 campaign with a pair of road games, starting things off with a 0-1 defeat at San Diego Loyal before rebounding with a resounding 3-1 win last weekend at El Paso Locomotive FC.
For Mark Lowry’s side, the row with the Rowdies provided some strong evidence that Indy’s veteran laden squad will be able to hold its own against top competition, even away from home. The Boys in Blue (or red as the case will be away from home in 2023 … just indulge us!) went toe-to-toe statistically with the home side in shots (8 apiece), shots on target (3 each), total big chances (2 each), expected goals (1.50 vs. 1.42 in favor of Indy), and even penalty kicks (1 pivotal chance each) in a performance that showcased eight new players in the squad’s starting XI.
There were other indicators that showed even more proof of concept of how Lowry wants his side to play, most notably Indy’s massive 58%-42% possession advantage that was created with 130 more pass attempts (498-368) throughout the 90 minutes. That helped swing significant favors in crosses attempted (20-13) and fouls suffered (23-13), while the Eleven also held a 6-4 advantage in corners. In addition, Indy’s pressure on the defensive side of the ball resulted in more than 2-to-1 margins in tackles attempted (18-7) and tackles won (11-4), which evened out Tampa Bay’s 11-3 differential in interceptions.
This weekend Indy will face another challenge in DCFC, which lost the game in which it had the advantage in expected goals (1.46-0.87 at SD) and won the contest in which it was outpaced in xG (1.35-1.65 at ELP). After putting only two of its 16 shots on target in the opener against Loyal SC, the Michigan side straightened things out last weekend in El Paso, scoring on five of its 17 shots overall, five of which were on target. Early on the Detroit attack has been largely spearheaded between the three-headed monster of Maxi Rodriguez (1 goal, 4 shots, 2 shots on goal), Yazeed Mathews (1G, 7 shots, 2 SoG, 5 key passes), and Skage Lehland (1 assist, 5 shots, 2 SoG, 5 key passes).
Stephen Carroll continues to be a staple for Le Rouge’s backline, as the Irishman returns for his seventh season with the club and his fifth as captain. He’s joined by a trio of defenders in their second full seasons with the DCFC – Rhys Williams, Matt Lewis, and Devin Amoo-Mensah – while Jalen Robinson brings six seasons of USL Championship experience with him, most recently with Loudoun United FC last season. In goal the dependable Nathan Steinwascher has picked up where he left off last year, with his nine saves from DCFC’s first two matches ranking tied for the second most across the Championship in the early going.
SERIES VS. DETROIT CITY FC:
USL Championship regular season (2022): 0W-1L-1D (0 GF/1 GA)
Home record: 0W-1L-0D (0 GF/1 GA)
Away record: 0W-0L-1D (0 GF/0GA
Goals were at a premium in the first season series between the two new rivals last year, with Detroit City capturing a 1-0 win at Carroll Stadium on July 9 and the teams dueling to a scoreless draw at Keyworth Stadium on Sept. 3.
In the July meeting in the Circle City, DCFC rode a Connor Rutz goal five minutes in all the way through to capture the full three points for the visitors, who kept the Boys in Blue without a shot on goal throughout the proceedings. The Labor Day weekend affair in Michigan was even stingier, as the teams combined for three shots on frame, with Tim Trilk making a pair of saves en route to a second shutout in a three-game stretch that, when combined with previous wins over conference leaders San Antonio and Louisville City, contributed to a week that began to turn around Indy’s fortunes down the stretch.
The two sides also met in an exhibition match during Detroit City’s NPSL era back on Aug. 13, 2019. In that friendly, Eugene Starikov’s 71st minute goal was the lone tally in the Eleven’s 1-0 victory.
#INDvDET FAMILIAR FACES
The lone familiar face between the two teams is on the Detroit City FC sideline in the person of Head Coach Trevor James, who served as Indy Eleven’s Technical Director and Assistant Coach across the 2017-18 seasons. There is one other link to the Hoosier State on the DCFC squad in Richard Ballard, who helped Indiana University to the 2012 National Championship as part of his tenure in Bloomington from 2012-16.
ELEVEN PLAYER TO WATCH: DF YOUNES BOUDADI
If you were paying attention above, you could surmise that “gritty” would be a fitting word to describe last year’s two meetings. We’re not fortune tellers by any stretch, but with the following forecast set for Saturday in Hamtramck, we’ll guess this weekend’s game might continue that trend:
49 degrees, showers, SW winds at 26 MPH
Needless to say, an approach that led to 20 crosses like we saw in the opener might not be optimal, so how might Indy adapt? Enter Boudadi, who is the more comfortable of the two likely starting wide defenders (alongside Gustavo Rissi, with Robby Dambrot sidelined) on the ball. His 79 touches in the opener at Tampa Bay were the third most on the squad (behind only Adrian Diz Pe’s 85 and Cam Lindley’s 81), so there’s clearly a willingness to trust the Belgian to start play from the back and get involved going forward.
He was also 2-for-2 in dribbles on the evening, and with the winds whipping around Keyworth on Saturday his ability to keep it on the carpet – and keep possession in the process – could go a long way towards helping the Boys in Blue control the contest.
