Detroit City FC thrashed Toledo Villa FC, 6-0, Sunday evening, as 6,892 City supporters looked on from the packed stands at historic Keyworth Stadium.
You may have heard that the Boys in Rouge have a streak going. It’s now nine consecutive games without conceding a goal. They’re 7-0-2 during that stretch.
Sunday’s win, combined with Grand Rapids FC’s defeat, expands DCFC’s lead in the NPSL Great Lakes Division standings to two points. Le Rouge are now 8-1-2 in the league.
Bakie Goodman was awarded Sunday’s Man of the Match in recognition of his brilliant performance in midfield, including two assists. In truth, the honors could’ve gone to a whole host of City players. Max Todd scored a hat trick in just 67 minutes of action. Shawn Lawson assisted on one of Todd’s goals, in addition to scoring one of his own. Cyrus Saydee also registered a goal and an assist. Santiago Agudelo scored on his first touch off the bench. The defenders were all on top of their game, yet again. The familiar triumvirate of Stephen Carroll, Jalen Crisler, and Moussa Gueye anchored that effort.
Kudos to Toledo, though, who came in with a bit of confidence, having secured their first-ever NPSL win their last time out, a 3-0 triumph over FC Columbus. Villa showed much more positivity than we’ve grown accustomed to seeing from visiting teams. Though it wasn’t enough, fair play to them for applying pressure early and coming to play for more than just a draw and a point.
Todd’s first goal came in the 24th minute, a header from a Lawson cross. Still, Toledo hung in and looked determined not to roll over. It must be said that the visitors were squarely in this match for the first 35 minutes or so.
It wasn’t until the second goal that things took a turn. Goodman picked a Toledo defender’s pocket and suddenly found himself in behind. Selflessly, he bided his time as Todd came flying into the box. Goodman proceeded to slide it over to Todd who guided it home, 2-0. From there, City were unquestionably dominant. A four-goal second half made it a runaway in the end.
Lawson got his in the 54th minute. It took only a simple tap-in at the back post, after Kervin Kenton did the hard work on the left wing and bent in the cross. Kenton continues to impress, providing width in the attack, as well as stellar defending from his midfield-left back hybrid role.
Todd completed his hat trick in the 61st minute, calmly finishing off another easy ball from Goodman. At this point, it seemed City could have picked the final score themselves. Toledo’s stretched defense simply could not keep up with the attacking power that Le Rouge had on display.
Agudelo came on for Lawson in the 80th minute and scored immediately, heading home a curled corner from Saydee. And finally, Saydee nicked one of his own, tucking it past the keeper, cool as you like, to make it six.
Next weekend is crucial, to say the least, with a pair of much-anticipated, all-important rematches awaiting the Boys in Rouge. First, it’s Grand Rapids FC on Friday, July 5 at 7:30pm. With the campaign nearing its end and only four points separating the two sides, you’ll not want to miss out. Tickets for the match are $12 online and will be $15 at the gate on matchday. Get yours now.
Then comes the showdown with AFC Ann Arbor on Sunday, July 7. True, nothing comes close to Keyworth, but this one’s just a short schlep away, at Concordia University. If everything goes according to plan, Le Rouge will be playing for the league title that night, so you’ll want to make sure you’re in attendance to help spur them on to victory.
Detroit City FC Starting XI: #0 Hunter Morse, #2 Kervin Kenton (#22 Oscar Gonzalez, 80’), #5 Stephen Carroll (#4 Seb Harris, 46’), #8 Bakie Goodman, #9 Shawn Lawson (#13 Santiago Agudelo, 80’), #11 Max Todd (#10 Cyrus Saydee, 68’), #14 Abdoulaye Diop (#99 George Chomakov, 70’), #15 Jalen Crisler, #17 Moussa Gueye, #27 Will Perkins, #30 Danny Deakin (#16 Daniel Wright, 80’)
