Complete U.S. Open Cup Coverage

Alec Wojak

2023 US Open Cup Round of 16: Birmingham Legion upsets 10-man Charlotte FC in front of record crowd

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Prosper Kasim of Birmingham Legion controls the ball against Charlotte FC in the Round of 16 of the 2023 US Open Cup. Photo: Birmingham Legion FC
Prosper Kasim of Birmingham Legion controls the ball against Charlotte FC in the Round of 16 of the 2023 US Open Cup. Photo: Birmingham Legion FC

On a historic night in their club’s history, Birmingham Legion FC defeated Major League Soccer club Charlotte FC to advance to the Quarterfinals of the 2023 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. A solo goal from Prosper Kasim was the difference as Birmingham became the first Alabama club to reach the Quarterfinals after 107 tournaments in the competition’s history.

Along with their first appearance in the Round of 16, Protective Stadium in downtown Birmingham hosted an announced crowd of 12,722. This was the largest crowd to witness a Legion game in the club’s relatively brief history (est. 2019).


“We’ve been here five short years and I feel like the game continues to grow and then the city continues to back us up and it was hard not to enjoy that,” said Legion head coach Tom Soehn, who won three US Open Cup titles as a player (1997 Dallas Burn, 1998, 2000 Chicago Fire) and one as a head coach (2008 D.C. United). “I think understood what the game meant. We talked a lot about what it took to come out with the results tonight and then I think they executed quite well.”

The match began with Charlotte FC controlling the majority of the possession, leaving Birmingham unable to retain any of the ball and create any chances. 15 minutes into the game Charlotte controlled 67% of the ball and looked the stronger side. It nearly paid off after Brandon Cambridge scored for Charlotte but it was ruled offside.

The first half continued to go in Charlotte’s favor as they were relentless in their chances. Birmingham were saved however by their goalkeeper, Trevor Spangenberg, who made many crucial stops to keep the score at 0-0.

The second half saw Birmingham Legion come out on the front foot with quick passes that repeatedly caught out the Charlotte players. The Legion made the visitors uncomfortable and the momentum that they had in the first half dissipated even more after Adilson Malanda was sent off after picking up a second yellow card in the 51st minute.

With Charlotte playing with ten men, Birmingham completely took the match over. Their give-and-go’s caught out the Charlotte back line, along with their quick feet and darting runs this made Charlotte sloppy in their defending.

In the 60th minute of the match, Kasim received a ball from Juan Agudelo and darted at the back line of Charlotte before cutting onto his left foot and unleashing a shot that nestled into the bottom left corner. The 12,000 plus fans erupted as a “cupset” was brewing in Birmingham.

The match continued with no response from any of the Charlotte players and Birmingham kept knocking for a second to secure their path into the next round. Charlotte failed to spring any true attacks together in order to get back into the match. With Birmingham’s strong possession and their constant attacking threat, this made it near impossible for a comeback for the away side.

In added time, Charlotte had one last opportunity from a free kick to equalize. It was headed away by Birmingham and the full time whistle was blown. The crowd erupted as it capped off a magical night in the Magic City.

 

2023 US Open Cup Round 4: Nashville SC still unbeaten at home in Cup play with win vs. FC Dallas

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Nashville SC players celebrate after scoring a goal against FC Dallas in the 2023 US Open Cup. Photo: Nashville SC
Nashville SC players celebrate after scoring a goal against FC Dallas in the 2023 US Open Cup. Photo: Nashville SC

FC Dallas travelled to FirstBank Stadium to take on Nashville SC in the Round of 32 of the 2023 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup and it was the hosts that booked their place in the next round of the competition after two goals and a good defensive showing made sure Dallas had no chance of coming back into the match.

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A crowd of 5,196 saw Nashville book their place into the Round of 16 for the second time in their club’s history after making it to the Quarterfinals in the 2022 season. A disappointing Dallas side exited the competition in the Round of 32 for the second year in a row and will be looking to bounce back before their rivalry matchup against Austin FC at the weekend.

The first half saw little to no action as each side had one shot but neither were on target. Nashville controlled the majority of the possession as they tried to counter Dallas’ high press and build out of the back. Nashville saw 54% of the ball throughout the first half as FC Dallas had no cohesion when pressing forward against a strong back line of Nashville.

The second half began just how the first had ended with possession from Nashville and constant pressure from Dallas. Both sides exchanged harsh tackles and picked up numerous fouls but referee Lukasz Szpala didn’t believe these tackles warranted a yellow card.

The first chance of the second half came from Dallas after Ema Twumasi slid a ball through Nashville’s back line into Jesus Ferreira who blasted a shot into a Nashville defender winning a corner for the away side. The pressure continued as Ferreira sent in a corner that met the Brazilian right back Geovane Jesus’ head as he redirected the ball straight into Elliot Panicco.

Nashville responded immediately to the pressure that Dallas had begun to bring and decided to take this tie into their own hands in the 63rd minute. Fafa Picualt was played a ball on the left flank and pressed towards the Dallas goal before cutting inside and placing a shot directly into the bottom right corner of the net. Jimmy Mauer could only attempt to save it as he was let down by poor defending from his back line.

The momentum had shifted completely in Nashville’s favor and they were looking for more. They thought that they had secured a 2-0 lead in the 76th minute when the ball bounced around in the six yard box and eventually found its way in, but the assistant referee ruled the goal out for offsides.

FC Dallas, a two-time winner of the competition, were given a lifeline but it did not last long before Nashville scored another to end the tie. A poor attempt to clear the ball ended with Alex Muyl receiving the ball on the edge of the box and with some skill and precision, he curled the ball into the net leaving Jimmy Mauer helpless yet again.

FC Dallas attempted to string attacks together with nothing going in their favor. Nashville secured their safe passage into the next round of the competition and remain undefeated at home (7-0-1, 1-0 PKs) in their club’s Open Cup history. For FC Dallas, it will likely be a long flight home after the club’s first one-and-done US Open Cup since 2012.

 

2023 US Open Cup Round 3: Birmingham Legion need PKs to edge Chattanooga FC

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Birmingham Legion players celebrate after scoring a goal against Chattanooga FC in the 2023 US Open Cup. Photo: Jackson O’Bryant
Birmingham Legion players celebrate after scoring a goal against Chattanooga FC in the 2023 US Open Cup. Photo: Jackson O’Bryant

Birmingham Legion took on NISA side Chattanooga FC in the Third Round of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup and secured safe passage into the next round after goalkeeper Trevor Spagenberg saved an easy Leonel Alvarenga penalty which sent the Tuscaloosa crowd home happy with a 4-3 (1-1) win in kicks.

The match was played in Tuscaloosa at the University of Alabama’s soccer complex in front of a crowd of 150 people. The game started slow with both sides not looking very comfortable on the ball but the hosts found the net first.

In the 31st minute, forward Prosper Kasim took advantage of a poor clearance and punished Chattanooga with a beautiful curling effort from the outside of the box. Kasim’s shot took the goalkeeper completely by surprise and all Jean Antoine could do was admire the ball curl into his net.


The goal seemingly took the life out of a confident Chattanooga side but the held onto the game by keeping the score at 1-0 going into the half. Birmingham were comfortable throughout the entire half and were rarely ever challenged. The home side ended the first half on top and full of confidence for the next 45 minutes.

Chattanooga had other ideas however for how the second half would play out. With swift passing, controlled possession, and more attempts on goal; you would have assumed that it was an entirely different team on the pitch than the one seen in the first half.

In the 68th minute Chattanooga’s constant attacks finally paid off after winger Taylor Gray was fouled in the box after some silky touches to get past his defender. Norwegian forward Markus Naglestad stepped up to the spot and sent the keeper the opposite direction to equalize for the away side.

This goal seemed to wake up the home side as they went all out attack in order to find a winner. Chattanooga however were comfortable and confident in their ability to deter any attack formed. Chattanooga can thank their lucky stars that they had Jean Antoine between the sticks as the goalkeeper kept the ball out of the net with some spectacular saves in order to push his team to the finish line.

With the score tied at 1-1 after an eventful 90 minutes, extra time began and Birmingham were relentless with their attacking presence as they tested Chattanooga’s back line on multiple occasions. Jean Antoine kept his side from conceding yet again stopping several shots after swift attacking plays from Birmingham kept penetrating the backline of Chattanooga.

With the score still tied after an additional 30 minutes, both teams scored their first penalty all the way until the second set. Coming up big again, Jean Antoine saved back-to-back penalties from Juan Agudelo after coming off of his line for the first penalties. Chattanooga missed the following penalty which kept the penalty score at 1-1.

Every player converted until Leonel Alvarenga’s penalty to keep the shootout was saved by Spagenburg. A cruel ending to an incredible run for Chattanooga FC and a big sigh of relief for Birmingham as they escape and move onto the Fourth Round for the first time in their history.

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