Takeaways from 901 FC preseason
Memphis 901 FC officially wrapped up preseason Saturday night with a 1-0 win in an exhibition match against the University of Memphis men's soccer team at Autozone Park. The winning goal came from 19-year-old Matt Hundley — whose signing on loan from the Colorado Rapids was announced last week — in the 71st minute.
Head coach Tim Mulqueen praised his team after the match for the number of shots taken, for dominating possession and for what he said was a successful preseason overall, before turning his attention to the season ahead.
“From this second on it is 34 games to finish in the top 10. So every decision we make, every training session we have, every moment we're together, that's the focus,” he said.
Moving from preseason into the regular season next weekend, here are a few takeaways.
Changes for the old guard
While the squad for the 2020 campaign is comprised mostly of new faces, 10 men from the inaugural season remain, and fans will notice some differences in where they're being deployed on the pitch.
With the addition of more seasoned players in on the backline and in the midfield, captain Marc Burch has been able to move back into left-back, where he had played for the majority of his professional career.
“I want to enjoy this year as much as possible. I'm back outside on the flank,” he said at a recent practice. “It's been my staple for my entire life and I want to get crosses off, I want to get shots off, I want to defend well. I want to make the team better.”
The addition of Michael Reed in the midfield has also seemed to allow fellow midfielders Dan Metzger and Duane Muckette the ability to move further up the field during offensive possessions.
System changes
Metzger and Muckette's forward runs are also part of a larger change in tactics between this season and last season. Mulqueen and sporting director Tim Howard have both said 901 FC'S style of play this year will be higher-pressing with more focus on possession and quick ball recovery after turnovers.
The higher-pressing style, which by nature can leave a side more vulnerable to long balls and counterattacks, will also force the keeper into more outfield play. Goalkeeper Jimmy Hague appears more willing to come off his line and out of his box than his predecessor Jeff Caldwell, who was a solid shot-stopper but struggled at times with outfield play.
Mulqueen and Burch both said the team was sloppy when it came to possession on Saturday, particularly in the first half, but they tightened it up in the second half, denying the Tigers possession or clear passing lanes. Mulqueen said Saturday that the players had bought into the club's new system, a point he had also made at a practice earlier in the week.
“It's gonna take some time still, but we're really further ahead than I thought we'd be at this time,” he said.
Expect more goals
The 2019 campaign's leading scorer Brandon Allen remains with the team in 2020, but Mulqueen said they have added more offensive firepower to the lineup to complement his attacking skills. One of those additions is former Everton midfielder, Jose Baxter.
“I'd like to say I create and score goals,” Baxter said this week. “That's something I love doing. I love creating a goal as much as I like scoring one.”
With his side playing higher up the field, Mulqueen said he's hoping to see more chances created from midfielders and even defenders.
“Scoring goals is the hardest thing to do in football, so we have to create more volume,” he said. “Our goal conversion from chances created (last season) was very high. So we need to just create more chances.”
There has been positive movement in that direction. The preseason match against Forward Madison saw 901 FC take 18 shots, three of which crossed the goal line.
More work to do
However, there still is work to be done in that department. Earlier in the week, Mulqueen said that he wanted to see better reactions from his team with players responding immediately to possession changes and making ball retrieval and getting into defensive shape priorities.
“The other thing I still want us to do better is finishing around the goal,” he said. “It's very important that when we have the ball we create something out of it.”
That point was on display Saturday night. Despite getting off numerous shots, 901 FC only found the back of the net once. Last year, 16 of the team's regular-season games were decided by one goal and Memphis lost 11 of those matches.
Memphis 901 FC opens the regular season on Saturday at Autozone Park against the Indy Eleven.