Eddies ready for tough match
Edmonton FC hopes for better result against Whitecaps this time
The opening leg of FC Edmonton’s matchup with the Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the Amway Canadian Championship semifinal round will get started a week late at 8 p.m. MDT Wednesday at BC Place in Vancouver.
The game was initially scheduled for last Wednesday at Clarke Field, but had to be postponed due to a heavy snowfall and cold temperatures.
“Really, it just set everything back three or four days and it kind of worked in our favour for the return leg back home,” said Edmonton head coach Colin Miller, whose team will host the second game on May 20.
“Hopefully, the guys will be fully fit (Wednesday).”
The Eddies, who are coming off a 4-2 loss to the New York Cosmos on Sunday, need a good performance out of their sometimes struggling defensive line against the Whitecaps, the top team in Major League Soccer’s Western Conference with a 6-3-2 win-loss-tie record.
Edmonton’s defensive play slowed down Vancouver’s attackers and cut down their angles when the teams last met in the 2013 Amway championship semifinals.
“We had some really good matches against Vancouver,” Miller said.
“I thought we were unfortunate to lose that last match at Commonwealth (Stadium) and we held our own until the very end in BC Place the following leg.”
The Eddies lost a controversial match at home, with Miller getting a red card for a sideline outburst, and dropped a 2-0 decision in Vancouver without Miller on the bench and a man short in the second half of a scoreless game after a defender received a red card.
While the Whitecaps often play some of their inexperienced players in the championship, they will still be a potent offensive team.
“Regardless of who will be wearing a Vancouver Whitecaps FC strip on Wednesday, they’ll have real quality and will be very well prepared for this match,” said Miller.
“We need to continue to communicate and not get stretched out in the back end and to use our pace to keep them in front,” veteran defender Eddie Edward said.
Edmonton has been buoyed this season by the strong offensive output of striker Tomi Ameobi and midfielder Ritchie Jones, who have both scored three goals (matching Jones’ total for all of last year).
“Tomi has been really working to get in the box and its led to a few goals and penalties” Miller said. “And Ritchie is just a good old school box-to-box player. One moment he’s winning the ball on his own 18-yardline, next thing he’s scoring from theirs.”
The game will be broadcast on Sportsnet.
Edmonton reached the semifinals by beating Ottawa Fury FC 6-2 on aggregate score in the preliminary round.
The Eddies return to North American Soccer League action against the San Antonio Scorpions at 2 p.m. Sunday at Clarke Field.