Lights FC concede late in a road draw vs. Monarchs SLC
Las Vegas Lights FC gave up a late equalizer to settle for a draw vs. Monarchs SLC.
After holding a lead late in the match, Las Vegas Lights FC conceded a late goal and had to settle for a draw on the road vs. Real Monarchs SLC Christian Torres and Tabort Etaka Preston tallied for Las Vegas while Jack Blake scored a brace for the Real Salt Lake affiliate.
Key stats
🔑 14 shots in the box for Monarchs SLC. The Lights were pinned back at times, especially late, by the Monarchs’ attack and they had to defend in their own penalty area. That led to five big saves from Adam Hobbs and some nervy moments.
🔑 50% shooting accuracy for the Lights. With four of eight shots going on goal, the Lights did well to give themselves the best chance for success on the road. Despite having 11 fewer shots than their opponent, Las Vegas had only three fewer shots on target.
Three Brightest Lights
💡💡💡 Christian Torres: Getting the start in the defensive midfield, Torres scored the opening goal, created two chances, and made five clearances.
💡💡 Preston Tabort Etaka: The Cameroonian buried a chance on the break to give the Lights a late lead. His pace and skill on the ball allowed him to draw four fouls.
💡 Junior Sandoval: He assisted on Torres’ goal and completed 38/42 passes. The Honduran also tallied four tackles and won ten duels.
Quick Kicks
⚽Definitely an unfortunate ending for the Lights with a road win being snatched from their grasp. The effort was solid and a draw is better than a loss, but this late in the year, that is a very frustrating ending.
⚽ Speaking of the ending of the match, I’m a bit surprised Douglas Martinez didn’t see red for blatantly shoving Adam Hobbs down after the equalizing goal. He did get a yellow card and the league could look into the decision.
⚽ I tweeted before the match that I don’t think Torres starting in the midfield best suits him, based on this season and last. But, not surprisingly, Eric Wynalda knows quite a bit more about soccer than I and Torres turned in a great performance. I still think he’s better suited on the backline, especially centrally.
⚽ It was great to see Mobi Fehr back in action and I think he will be an important piece for this club, especially at home where they hold more possession. A midfield combination of Fehr and Ferrety Sousa could be interesting with Sousa’s ability to get forward and cover ground box to box paired with Fehr’s composed distribution.
⚽ Cristian Martinez got the start on loan from Chicago Fire and he didn’t have much of an impact in his 45-minute shift. He registered zero shots, only 11 passes, and had one tackle.
⚽ Two straight matches with no Thomas Olsen in goal without him being on the injury list. He will likely get back into action during this crucial three-match homestand.
What’s Next?
📅 Cash Drop 2.0 Night at Cashman Field on Saturday. Las Vegas Lights FC will take on El Paso Locomotive FC with kickoff set for 7:30 PM Pacific Time.
