Scores
Ross County 1 – 3 St Mirren
The Staggies finally fell into the danger zone after their defensive collapse at home against St. Mirren. Coupled with Kilmarnok’s cruising win against Dundee, the pressure is truly on the Staggies to get a result against one of the better teams.
Talleres 1- 2 Emelec [Copa Sudamerica]
Los bombillos opened their quest for continental glory with a fine comeback win in Argentina. Pedro Ortiz was put through his paces against an aggressive and fluid attack, which he (mostly) defended well). Fortunately Emelec stars, Facundo Barcelo and Romario Caicedo, were able to make their connections count beautifully as the game wound down. They combined to set up both a hand ball penalty and a well taken short angle goal to win against the flow of the match. (Side note: Talleres goal scorer and selfie-celebrant Franco Frangapane is heavily rumored to be the latest Argentine attacker bound for Minnesota)
Troyes 3 – 1 Grenoble [M]
A win at the league leaders would have gone a long way to justifying Grenoble’s case for promotion. But despite Anthony Belmont’s opening goal it wasn’t to be, as seven attackers overwhelmed the alpine defenders.
Freiburg 1 – 1 Hoffenheim
While Hoffenheim was in fine form throughout the match and seemed to keep Freiburg permanently on the back foot. Fortunately, Freiburg capitalized when their best chance of the match led to a penalty by one of their best players, Vincenzo Grifo. Grifo’s injuries put him on the sidelines right around the same time Freiburg cemented their spot in the mid-table.
Vozdovac 2 – 1 Cukariki
It was frustrating to see the Red Dragons biggest win of 2021 see them stick on the cusp of relegation. Ivan Milosavljevic buried an absolute screamer to take the lead. Aleksa Jankovic, drew a decisive late penalty. Beating the third place side in Serbia should have been a celebration, instead the dragons stayed stuck near the bottom of the table and were left to wait and hope that the Cukariki comes through against other relegation scrappers.
Minnesota United 1 – 2 Real Salt Lake
The Loons hopes for a playoff run are already looking rough. Constrained by injuries and players out of position, they’ve been burned twice now. We are hoping things are a little less uh…burny…from now on.
SC Freiburg 0 – 3 Eintracht Frankfurt [F]
It’s a been a hard go of it for the ladies from Breigsau. Hoping for smoother sailing ahead.
Legon Cities 1 – 1 Dreams FC
The Royals started with approximately seventy bajillion crosses. However, it paid off when Hans Kwofie broke the early deadlock with a well placed header. But Legon couldn’t hold on to the lead for long enough to take all the points.
Órense v Emelec [M]
A rise in local Covid cases led to Ecuador postponing the match (at least it hasn’t affected the women’s league…yet)
News & Notes
Dancing Shoes
The University of Montana has landed and is training eagerly for their big match in the NCAA tournament. It’s clear from the write up that the team doesn’t have much expected of it in a match against one of the best non-seeded teams in the tournament. The Griz will be bringing the veteran mindset, the improved offense, and the sterling record of Claire Howard against a perennial contender from South Carolina with talented seniors and star freshmen.
New Contest
The Copa SudAmericana isn’t quite the glamorous affair that several other contests might be, but it is a continental battle and, as such, is worth a mention.
The second tier of South American scuffling sees teams who didn’t triumph face off in a group stage followed by a tournament for each group’s winners (and those eliminated from the more prestigious Copa Libertadores). Los Bombillos have a group with contending sides from Argentina (Talleres), Brazil (Red Bull Bragantino), and Colombia (Tolima). There’s a long way to go, but Emelec’s form in Ecuador should make them very excited to fight at a higher level.
Super League Shut Down
I told you that this didn’t matter. Sure enough, a few hours after I posted last week’s update, the supposed “super league” collapsed in a crashing heap of public relations face saving and crying softly into a slightly smaller pillow stuffed with money.
Few if any people complained about the crossing borders, or the quality of play, but the unfairness and unwillingness to risk demotion smacked of greed and shortsightedness. So, out of fear that it might all come undone, almost all the teams bailed. The question of whether they are really in serious financial peril or not remains to be seen.
Player of the Week
After a rough week, there’s not a lot to choose from, but we’ll give the nod this week to Ivan Milosavljevic whose thunderous shot helped steer Vozdovac back towards success.
Standings Update
Nothing changes in this week’s table as Minnesota sinks lower, while Vozdovac inches closer to Ross County. The Griz stay on top, but a lopsided loss (as has happened regularly against top seeded opponents) might drop them down to well within striking distance of Emelec and others.
| Team | W | D | L | PPG | GFA | GAA |
| University of Montana | 9 | 0 | 1 | 2.7 | 2.1 | 0.6 |
| Emelec | 8 | 2 | 1 | 2.4 | 2.0 | 1.0 |
| Grenoble Foot | 8 | 6 | 6 | 1.50 | 1.3 | 1.2 |
| Punjab FC–b | 7 | 4 | 6 | 1.47 | 1.2 | 0.9 |
| Freiburg | 9 | 3 | 10 | 1.36 | 1.5 | 1.5 |
| Legon Cities FC | 5 | 4 | 5 | 1.33 | 1.3 | 0.9 |
| Alebrijes | 4 | 7 | 5 | 1.2 | 1.5 | 1.9 |
| Ross County | 5 | 2 | 9 | 1.1 | 1.3 | 1.7 |
| FK Vozdovac | 2 | 5 | 7 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 1.7 |
| Minnesota United | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 3.0 |
| Rosenborg BK-b | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – |
b–Team is between seasons
What’s Next
Wednesday, April 28th
11:00 Novi Pazar v Vozdovac
University of Montana Grizzlies v University of South Carolina Gamecocks [NCAA Tournament]
7:30 Emelec v Red Bull Bragantino [Copa Sudamerica]
Thursday, April 29th
Friday, April 30th
[NCAA TOURNAMENT 2ND ROUND V Georgetown Hoyas IF APPLICABLE]
Saturday, May 1st
8:00 LSV Kvinner v Rosenborg [F]
8:00 Dundee United v Ross County
10:00 Legon Cities v Asante Kotoko
7:00 Minnesota United v Austin FC
8:30 Barcelona SC v Emelec [M]
Sunday, May 2nd
7:00 SC Freiburg v Eintracht Frankfurt [F]
Monday, May 3rd
8:00 Grenoble [M] v Clermont Foot
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