When the Men In Red entered the Citrus Bowl locker rooms at halftime last Friday, they were preparing to play down a man for the next 45 minutes.
But head coach Veljko Paunovic spent the intermission delivering a message to his team that was about more than just hanging on for a road draw.
“I think the tie is a good result but I had hopes that we could even win that game,” Paunovic said this week. “I said to the players at halftime that playing like we played so far, stick to our plan and be ready to score the goal when we have that opportunity during the second half. We were close so it was for me very exciting.”
Given the organization of his back line, Paunovic had good reason to believe his side could steal a shorthanded three points. Earlier in the match, he had watched John Goossens and David Accam use their respective skills to account for a quick-strike counter-attacking goal, a formula they nearly replicated in the second half.
For Paunovic, the connection bodes well for what may lie ahead for the attacking duo.
“[Goossens] did well first and always for the team,” Paunovic said. “His pass to Accam was great, I believe that they know each other, even though they played just one month together, the talent they have is very important for the team. They connected very well on that play.”
“I’m very happy with his performance knowing that he went in one week from one time zone to another two times, which is always very difficult for the body,” Paunovic said. “He did very well.”
While the Fire have yet to achieve the level of sustained position that Paunovic desires, the play of Accam, Kennedy Igboananike and their supporting midfielders have allowed the Men In Red to remain potent offensively. Through two matches, the Fire lead all MLS clubs in WhoScored.com’s measure of dribbles per game (12.0), defined as an instance of taking on an opponent and beating them while retaining the ball.
Entering this week’s home match against a hungry Columbus Crew SC side (Saturday, 4 p.m. CT, CSN Chicago Plus) with a point in hand provided an important lift to the Men In Red.
“It allowed us to improve not only our confidence but our morale that we are a very tough team to beat,” Paunovic said. “I think we are growing as a team and that experience in the last game against Orlando helped us build the next step which is teamwork, working together to sustain possession.”
