It was a beautiful day for soccer at the Kino Sports Complex in Tucson. FC Tucson continued its preseason tune up with a 9-0 win over Phoenix UPSL side Sporting AZ. Coach Sawatzky has done a fantastic job this preseason drilling the players on positional play and tactics. At the request of both clubs, I will refrain from discussing trialists/guest players involved in the match.

As the game started, the first thing I noticed was how FC Tucson lined up in the exact same shape as Rising FC did their first two games. That formation seemed to be a 4-3-3/ 4-1-4-1 hybrid that changed depending on possession. I’ll save you any further attempt at analysis and refer you to @RisingTactics. To sidestep any formatting issues, here’s how FC Tucson lined up to start the game.

Defenders:

RB – Austin Ledbetter

CB – Kody Wakasa

CB – Kyle Bjornethun

LB – Jose Carlos Terron

Midfielders:

DM – Raheem Somersall

CM – Karsten Hanlin

CM – Luis Martinez

Forwards:

RW – Zach Wright

ST – Guillermo Delgado

LW – Jamael Cox

FC Tucson dominated possession in the opening half. Like their Rising counter-parts, FC Tucson controlled possession and played the ball out of the back. The back line showed great improvement in positioning and communication over previous pre-season matches. Wakasa and Bjornethun didn’t have any of the breakdowns that plagued FC Tucson defenders earlier this preseason. I was extremely impressed with Ledbetter and Terron, they were solid in their defensive responsibilities and were constantly getting forward in the attack. They would overlap on the wings and create overloads that Sporting AZ didn’t have an answer to.

In front of the back four, Somersall was solid. Many of Sporting AZ’s attacks ended in the midfield once they reached him. After winning the ball back, he would move up the field and look for a pass to split the defense. This is how Somersall sent Delgado in on goal, who had a beautiful finish, for Tucson’s first goal.

Cox and Wright were explosive on the wings and were consistently torching defenders. Cox made a great run down the left side, beating his defender, and sent in a cross for Delgado. The result was a tap in for Tucson’s second goal.

Martinez and Hanlin earned their starts today. They had good chemistry with each other and were consistently by-passing pressure with great interplay. Both of them did not shrug off their defensive duties either, they were often dropping deep and swarming attackers. Hanlin scored Tucson’s third goal with a wonderful strike from distance that the opposing keeper didn’t have a chance on. Martinez followed it up soon after by pouncing on a defensive mistake that resulted in an easy goal on an empty net.

The second half started off slow with both teams making adjustments. Colin Stripling was the only sub at half, he came on at DM, replacing Somersall. Stripling didn’t miss a beat and kept up the high level of play, this could be a position battle to watch. Ten minutes into the second half, after fighting his way through a crowded box, Wright found the back of the net.

In the 60th minute there was a mass sub. The FC Tucson subs included:

ST – Roy Abergil

CM – Andrew Wheeler-Omiunu

CB – Luke Hauswirth

GK – Carlos Merancio

Merancio made a good case for the starting GK spot. He didn’t face much pressure, but came up big when challenged. What impressed me the most was his distribution. He was comfortable playing out of the back, and was accurate with his long balls.

Luke Hauswirth spent time at both CB and RB during the second half. He had great positioning in both defense and in possession. He made runs at least 3 times on the right side that forced Sporting AZ to concede a corner.

Stepping into the midfield, Wheeler-Omiunu made an immediate impact by getting on the end of goal kick and chipped the keeper for Tucson’s sixth goal. He controlled the tempo of the game in the midfield and created lots of scoring opportunities. Wheeler-Omiunu definitely showed why he was deserving of the Captain’s Armband last week against GCU.

Roy Abergil is a player that is always a threat in the box, he demonstrated that today. After the mass sub, Abergil made a run behind the defense and received a pass in the box. He took one touch and was taken down earning a penalty, which he converted. Abergil scored twice more on crosses into the box to complete his hat trick.

The match showed off the potential of FC Tucson’s attack and helped ease worries about the defense with a clean sheet. I am interested to see how FC Tucson matches up against a pro opponent. I wouldn’t be surprised if the club schedules an away friendly against another pro side before the start of the season.

11 more days until the start of FC Tucson’s first professional season.