DETROIT — Detroit City Football Club claimed a crucial three points on Saturday afternoon with a 2-0 victory over North Carolina FC. Jeciel Cedeño’s converted penalty gave Detroit a 1-0 lead before half, and a moment of brilliance from Ates Diouf in the 74th minute would lead Detroit City to their first victory since September 7th.
Danny Dichio made a few changes to the starting XI from the squad that took the field last week against Louisville City. Carlos Herrera got his first start since the New Mexico game on September 10th. Devon Amoo-Mensah, Stephen Carroll, and Shane Wiedt make up the back three with Alex Villanueva, Kobe Hernandez-Foster, Ryan Williams, Isaiah LeFlore, and Jeciel Cedeño in front of them in the midfield. Ates Diouf and Darren Smith make up the two attackers.
The first half of this match was marked by the chippiness on both sides. If it wasn’t known that the playoffs were close, the first half would show that, as both teams are scraping for any and every point possible.
Early on in the match, the visitors controlled the possession and the pace. North Carolina would find the back of the net in the fourth minute off a corner kick, but a foul in the buildup saw the goal ruled off.
Given the chippiness of the half, the yellow cards would definitely be displayed multiple times this match, with the first being shown in the 12th minute to North Carolina’s Rodrigo da Costa for a late foul.
Ates Diouf would come close to an opener in this match in the 22nd minute, as his shot from outside the box takes a slight deflection off the keeper and trickles past the far goalpost. To stop North Carolina from finding an opener, it would take a moment of brilliance from Stephen Carroll to make a goal-line clearance.
A foul in the box on Jeciel Cedeño in the 43rd minute would see the referee point to the spot, giving Le Rouge an incredible opportunity to end its three-game goalless drought. It would be Cedeño stepping up and putting it in the bottom corner, giving Detroit City a 1-0 lead just before the half.
Coming out of the half, Detroit City made one substitution as Haruki Yamazaki entered the match for Isaiah LeFlore.
Shane Wiedt would be shown a yellow card in the 49th minute for a late foul on the counter-attack.
Two more subs came on for Detroit City in the 66th minute, as Jay Chapman and Michael Bryant entered the match for Le Rouge, replacing Kobe Hernandez-Foster and Shane Wiedt.
A free kick earned in the 74th minute would see Ryan Williams deliver the ball into the box, finding Ates Diouf, and he would slam the ball into the back of the net, doubling Detroit City’s advantage. For Diouf, it was his fifth goal in the USL Championship this season, netting for the first time since September 7th’s match against Orange County SC.
Another substitution for Detroit City came in the 82nd minute as Matt Sheldon entered for Alex Villanueva. Detroit’s final sub would come six minutes later as Sebastian Guenzatti entered the match for Darren Smith.
Carlos Herrera would be shown a yellow card for time wasting right before the start of stoppage time.
After more than six minutes of stoppage time, the full-time whistle would blow, seeing Detroit claim the full three points for the first time since September 7th’s match against Orange County SC. With the win, Detroit City now sits on 35 points, which keeps them in seventh place in the Eastern Conference.
Detroit City wraps up this homestand and the regular season home schedule next weekend by hosting another crucial Eastern Conference match against Loudoun United. The kickoff from Keyworth on October 11th is at 4 p.m. Tickets for all Detroit City FC games 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 Herrera, Devon Amoo-Mensah, Stephen Carroll, Shane Wiedt, Alex Villanueva (82’), Kobe Hernandez-Foster, Ryan Williams, Isaiah LeFlore (46’), Jeciel Cedeño, Ates Diouf, Darren Smith (88’)
Detroit City Substitutes – Jay Chapman (66’), Michael Bryant (66’), Matt Sheldon (82’), Haruki Yamazaki (46’), Sebastián Guenzatti (88’), Carlos Saldaña, Jordan Adebayo-Smith
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