By Brian Evans,

Statesboro, GA- July and early August have not been friendly to Tormenta. Over the last seven matches, the team has only brought home FIVE points (W vs. OCB, D vs. North Texas, D vs. Lansing). Adding to Tormenta FC’s on-field struggles, midfielder Nil Vinyals will be sidelined for some time due to a knee injury sustained versus Greenville. Tormenta spent the whole season sitting in first or second place but just recently slid into third and fourth place. Every week, the playoff race gets tighter and tighter, with the top six teams in League One only separated by six points. The recent struggles of North Texas and Tormenta have opened the door for teams like Chattanooga, Greenville, and Madison to make the final stretch of the season interesting.

This week, Tormenta looks to turn things around versus FC Tucson. Tormenta has gotten the better of Tucson both times the two teams have met. Both teams come into this match on three-match winless streaks. Over the course of their streaks, neither team has scored more than one goal in a match. Every point this late in the season is crucial and that stands for both teams involved this week. Tormenta needs three points to stay in at least the top four (top 3 if they win and Chattanooga loses to North Texas). Tucson needs all three points to join the playoff race themselves. Tucson sits four points behind sixth-place Forward Madison and six points out of the top four.

This match is set up to be one with a lot on the line and a lot of tension on both sides of the ball. Neither team will want to make the first mistake due to their offensive struggles. Both teams will have to know that IF they go down 1-0, that could be it. One point will not be acceptable by either side and it will likely show in the way they play this Saturday.

What To Watch For:

Devyn Jambga: The Tucson winger has been crucial to their attack all season. Jambga leads his team in goals (5) and shots (23). Earlier in the season, Jambga was used more commonly as a substitute for Tucson but since he found his rhythm as the focal point of their offense, he has stuck in the starting XI the rest of the way. Jambga is someone that Tormenta will have to keep their eyes on if they want all three points in this match. Whoever lines up at right back for Tormenta (more on that in a minute) will need to be tight on Jambga the whole time he is on the pitch.

Formation Struggles: Over the last few weeks, Tormenta has played the usual 4-2-3-1 and 4-4-1-1. We’ve seen players rotating positions and trying to find their fit, Shinya Kadono has played CAM or Striker, Conner Antley has gone from his typical RB to CM, and Charlie Dennis has played two matches in a row at LB. It seems with the injuries piling up Coach Miglarese is trying to patch the holes in the team by moving players into positions they either played collegiately or showed capable of playing throughout practice. One thing that is for sure is that Kadono has set himself up to be Tormenta’s first option at striker. From his instant impact versus Lansing to the energy and creativity he plays with on a weekly basis, it appears that he will be holding onto that #9 spot for Tormenta.

Jordan Skelton: The ex-Tormenta 2 captain signed his first professional contract with Tormenta last week. The 6’4, 190-pound center back was a force to be reckoned with on the USL League Two-team’s backline. In seven starts over the League Two season, Skelton helped record seven clean sheets. Even when he was out due to injury, Jordan was one of the most vocal leaders for the team. The Lander University graduate dubbed “Mr. Lander,” has left an impact wherever he goes. Now, he comes into the homestretch of the League One season with a team that desperately needs new energy injected into it.

Match Facts:

Tormenta FC (8-5-6) v. FC Tucson (6-7-6)

August 17th. 8 PM

Erk Russell Park, Statesboro, Ga.