Duluth FC Defeats LC Aris FC 4-0
By Ryan Tigner/Duluth FC
It was a beautiful and brisk day in Duluth, Minnesota on Wednesday, and it was terrific weather for hosting LC Aris FC. The visitors came to play physically, and thankfully so did the BlueGreens. After their unexpected loss last Wednesday, Duluth was more than motivated to come out on their home turf and put on a strong performance. This is exactly what they did, scoring two goals in the first half and two goals in the second. The end result was a 4-0 win for the home team.
The game started out as most do with tons of energy. The BlueGreens wasted no time at all getting the ball down the field and attempting the first strike on the net. This would be accompanied by many others in the first 15 minutes of the game. The Duluth defense was the backbone of this offense with a solid core of Jake Starling, Martin Grzywa, and Cian Gantley. They were able to maintain the back line and not let any defenders get behind them. They also went on to attack at the midfield and got plenty of steals there as well.
As Duluth kept attacking, LC Aris was also able to sneak in a few chances and halfway decent looks at the net.
The continuous barrage by Duluth finally paid off in the 43rd minute when an interception by the defense turned into a nifty pass that split three defenders. The pass would spring open Felipe Oliveira who got a good angle and slammed it home for the first goal of the game. The BlueGreens were feeling it and didn’t want to stop there before the first half ended. They were able to get the ball back right away and to Sam Thornton who then dished it off to a cutting Blake Perry.
Perry would lose his footing a little but his awareness was still sharp. He was able to flick the ball out to Felipe Arteaga who finished it off, putting them up 2-0 at halftime.
LC Aris would start out the second half more assertive as they would take the first shot on goal. As the half went on their energy would keep up, but their offensive possession would not. Duluth’s defense simply would not break. A lot of the visitors’ energy resulted in some fouls and yellow cards. Duluth, just the same as in the first half, was doing almost everything right other than finishing off the play near the net.
Thornton was one player who had so many chances to bury one through the game. At some point you could have sworn he scored at least two of them. He was finally able to bury one off a great clearance and pass by Perry but also great timing and spatial awareness by himself.
LC Aris was able to get a few chances down the stretch and almost got one on the board. But it was the BlueGreens that went up 4-0 in the 88th minute. It came off an incredible Gantley clearance right to Rory Carlson who slid it across to Paul Bobai to finish it off.
Duluth’s next match will take place at home this Saturday, July 9th against Med City FC at the Public Schools Stadium at 7:00 pm.
Photo Credit: Holden Law/Duluth FC
