Before heading to St Petersburg, New Mexico United were well on their way to earning their frequent flier miles for the season. In just over a month, the club has traveled an approximate 12,234 miles for their road trips. After this weekend, they’ll be over 15,700 miles and hopefully return with another three points.
Tampa Bay has rarely found themselves outside of the playoff discussion and the early returns this season are no different. They sit 4th in the East on 10 points and despite the +6 goal differential, the results haven’t quite gone the way they would like. The Rowdies are unbeaten, but this is a side that would feel hard done by in a few of their matches when they should have picked up three points. In their last outing, the Rowdies had to come from behind to steal a draw in El Paso, keeping the Locomotive winless.
Rowdies are one of those clubs that is able to reload on talent every season. They added Jordan Farr and Manuel Arteaga, giving them veterans at both ends of the pitch. One of the biggest returns for the Rowdies has to be Forrest Lasso. This is a team that never seems to be out of their matches and will be a tough task for any opponent.
Player to Watch
Manuel Arteaga – One of the best players on the Phoenix Rising roster in 2023 made the move East in the offseason and is leading the attack for the Rowdies. Arteaga is joint top of the club scoring stats alongside Cal Jennings. Both will need to be held in check if United wants to walk away from another successful road trip.
United are in one of their best runs of form ever. With a four-match win streak, they’re playing with a lot of confidence right now. With so much travel early in the season, it’s easy to get mentally tired. Right now, they’re relying on veteran leadership, their ability to get forward, and a bit of hard work to get the results. One thing that hasn’t gone well for United so far this year is trying to play out of the back. At times it has caused a great deal of stress. They need to find a way to either make quicker decisions with the ball at the back or switch tactics at times to relieve some of the pressure. Tampa is very good at making visiting clubs uncomfortable, and United will have to adjust.
Coming into the season, there was a question of where the goals would come from for United. While Greg Hurst is clearly the man up top, United has a surprising number of options at their disposal. Much of the club’s success so far this season has come when they’re able to attack the middle of the pitch. Tampa is very good at clogging this area and can prevent United from playing through the area. Coach Quill’s men will need to effectively work the outside in order to open chances through the middle for Marco Micaletto.
Player to Watch
Greg Hurst – Hurst is finding his form and looks dangerous. He’ll need to find ways to create space off the shoulder of defenders and take the shots that he is given.
Coverage of New Mexico United and the Tampa Bay Rowdies will begin at 4:30 on ESPN Radio 101.7 FM The TEAM with Adam Diehl and Andy Hageman. The pregame show can also be heard on The TEAM website and The TEAM apps. Kickoff of Saturday’s match will be at 5:30 (MT).