PHOENIX- The Phoenix Rising FC had good looks of scoring goals in the second half but fell to FC Tulsa on the home opener with a score of 0-1.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!In the new season of the USL Championship, the Phoenix Rising FC team consists of a mix of youth and veterans, and it will take time for the players and coaching staff to develop chemistry.
One of the new players, forward Damian Rivera, signed a multi-year contract with the club in December. He brings experience from his time in MLS with the New England Revolution.
“I think it wasn’t a bad performance from us,” Rivera told reporters Saturday. “Obviously, it’s not the result we wanted, but I think we just have to go look back at the film and go from there.”
In the first half, Phoenix Rising FC allowed Forward Alex Dalou to score at the 25-minute mark, giving FC Tulsa its first win of the season. The team struggled to score during this period. However, in the second half, Phoenix Rising FC became more aggressive and improved their scoring efforts near the goal line.
“Pretty disappointing,” Phoenix Rising goalkeeper Patrick Rakovsky said. “I think the first, first half in general, I felt like we were a little bit slow… In the second half we created more chances. At the end of the day, we didn’t create enough. You got to be honest about that as well. So again, I feel like the first half was no good. The second half got better. I’m going to build up from that.”
Phoenix Rising FC head coach Pa’Madou Kah believes that the team can bounce back from slow starts as they will face the El Paso Locomotive FC on the road on Saturday.
“It’s normal,” Kah said. “You know it’s the first game, real game, real test and it was a game of feeling. We were feeling them they were feeling us. Obviously, goals change games. That was the little momentum that they needed. I believe they came to slow the game down, not get into a fast-paced game with us…It’s a long season and I’m looking forward to go to El Paso next week.”
Kah also had his head coaching debut for the club on Saturday and credits the fans despite the loss at the home opener.
“It was unbelievable,” Kah said. “Our fans were unbelievable, the atmosphere was fantastic, and I think the boys felt it. I definitely felt it. Credit to the fans, it’s not the result that we wanted but one thing I know that this group is, that they will respond because it’s a bunch of group with great characters and I know their response will be great so I am looking forward to see their response next week.”
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Reporter Aya Abdeen covers the Phoenix Mercury, Arizona State Athletics and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow her on her X account, @ayabdeen, and on Bluesky, @ayabdeen.bsky.social.
