Oakland, California — It was a difficult night on the attack for Detroit City Football Club, as they fell to Oakland Roots SC 2-0 on Saturday night. A brilliant defensive performance in the first half saw the sides go into the half level at 0-0, but Oakland picked up the first goal in the 55th minute, and Detroit never had an answer, as a mistake saw them concede late and drop the three points.
Danny Dichio made a few changes to the starting XI that took the field in Hartford last Saturday night. Carlos Herrara once again got the start in goal. There was one change on the back line, as Matt Sheldon replaced Stephen Carroll. Meanwhile, Devon Amoo-Mensah, Shane Wiedt, and Michael Bryant filled out the back line. The midfield starters included Ryan Williams, Abdoulaye Diop, Alex Villanueva, Jeciel Cedeño, and Connor Rutz. The central striker for the evening was Darren Smith.
Oakland dominated possession throughout the first fifteen minutes of this match and made it difficult for Detroit City to get anything going on the attack. Detroit City’s backline put up an incredible performance in those first minutes, as they didn’t give up a shot.
Matt Sheldon came close to an opener in the 17th minute as the ball was crossed into the box. Sheldon found it, and he got a shot off with two Oakland defenders nearby, but his shot just missed the near post.
Oakland forward Wolfgang Prentice was shown the first yellow card of the match in the 35th minute after a late tackle on Matt Sheldon.
Ali Elmasnaouy would pick up Oakland’s second yellow card of the night just four minutes later for a foul on Jeciel Cedeño off a turnover.
Off a scoreless first half, Detroit City made one change to start the second half, bringing on Sebastián Guenzatti for Connor Rutz.
In the 55th minute, Panos Armenakas launched a brilliant shot from outside the box, and it found the bottom corner of the net, giving Oakland Roots a 1-0 lead in this match.
Detroit City made two more changes in the 66th minute to try and level this match as Ates Diouf and Jay Chapman entered the match for Darren Smith and Ryan Williams.
Le Rouge struggled mightily in the box in the second half. They had moments where they were close to getting a shot off, but an Oakland defender would stop the attack.
Haruki Yamazaki entered the match for Le Rouge in the 74th minute, replacing Abdoulaye Diop.
The final change for Detroit came in the 79th minute, Marcello Polisi entered the match for Jeciel Cedeño.
Detroit’s hope for a comeback came to an end in the 86th minute, as a free kick from 30 yards out found its way into the box, and after a Marcello Polisi deflection, the ball found the back of the net, giving Oakland a 2-0 lead.
A brilliant first half defensively carried over to the early parts of the second half, but Detroit never had an answer for Oakland’s goals, leading them to drop the three points in the final game of this short two-match road trip. The loss sees Detroit drop its fourth league match in the last five games in USL Championship play.
Detroit City returns to Keyworth next Saturday, July 12, to face Hartford Athletic at 7 pm, opening a three-game home stand. Tickets for all Detroit City matches are available at www.detcityfc.com/tickets.
For more information about Detroit City FC, visit detcityfc.com and follow @DetroitCityFC on X and Facebook and @detroitcityfootballclub on Instagram.
Detroit City Starting XI – Carlos Herrara, Devon Amoo-Mensah, Shane Wiedt, Michael Bryant, Matt Sheldon, Ryan Williams (66’), Abdoulaye Diop (74’), Alex Villanueva, Jeciel Cedeño (79’), Connor Rutz (46’), Darren Smith (66’)
Detroit City Substitutes – Jay Chapman (66’), Haruki Yamazaki (74’), Sebastián Guenzatti (46’), Dominic Gasso, Ates Diouf (66’), Marcello Polisi (79’), Carlos Saldaña
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Primary Media Contact: Jarrett Maki (Sports Information Director, jarrett.maki@detcityfc.com)
