There was no team more committed to service from wide areas in open play during the 2018 USL Championship regular season than the Tampa Bay Rowdies.

With the addition of Brandon Allen to the club’s attacking line, continuing that approach should make Tampa Bay one of the more dangerous sides in the final third in 2019.

With 40 goals over the past three regular seasons and USL Cup Playoffs, Allen is the second-highest scorer in the league since the start of the 2016 campaign, a season in which he claimed both All-League First Team and Rookie of the Year honors with the New York Red Bulls II. A classic center forward, Allen has done much of his best work from 12 yards and in, and while that makes what the 25-year-old does sound simple, it’s everything that leads up to that moment key to his effectiveness.

Take, for example, this goal last season for Nashville SC against Toronto FC II.