In a match with few clear-cut chances on either side, Panos Armenakas picked a perfect moment to score his first-ever goal as a member of the Roots, with his 54th minute blast leading Oakland to a 2-0 win over Detroit City FC at the Oakland Coliseum on Saturday night.
The match was also Oakland’s third consecutive win, including both USL Championship and Jägermeister Cup matches, and ties a club record for most consecutive victories overall. They go for four next Saturday July 12 when they take on Phoenix Rising at the Coliseum.
Ali Elmasnaouy set up the first goal when he intercepted an attempted Detroit clearance, took a couple of dribbles to draw the nearby defenders to him, then laid the ball off for the unmarked Armenakas, who had time to place his shot perfectly. Goalkeeper Carlos Herrera laid his body out, but could only watch as the ball crossed the goal line, then rattled around the crossbars in the far-left corner of the net and boomeranged back over the line.
Armenakas also played a key role in helping the Roots score one more goal to put the match away in the 85th minute. He took a free kick from near the left touchline and 30 yards from goal. Gagi Margvelashvili headed it back across the goalmouth. Detroit’s Marcello Polisi lifted his leg to try and clear it, but he ended up deflecting the ball straight into the net.
The visitors only had one shot on goal in the entire match, and it came in the 88th minute. Alex Villanueva’s volley was on target, but easily saved by Oakland goalkeeper Kendall McIntosh.
Former Roots forward Jeciel Cedeño was in the starting lineup for Detroit. He did have a shot from inside the penalty arc in the 68th minute, but it was well wide and caused no trouble for McIntosh.
Armenakas Talks About the Team’s Performance
“Even the first half, I thought we did OK,” Armenakas said. “We weren’t really under any pressure. Second half, we started dominating a little more and put them under pressure. And once we got the goal we were able to pick our moments and go forward and we were still calm and composed under pressure to keep possession and draw them out. The second goal kills the game, but even before that I was still pretty confident that at 1-0, we were gonna we were gonna hold out.”
Coach Praises Armenakas’ Development
After the match, Oakland Head Coach Benny Feilhaber was asked about Armenakas.
“In the first couple games that I was here I was struggling to figure out how we involve Panos in the best way. And there was a really big conversation between me and him where I told him ‘I need you to be more central. I need you to be patient and the ball will find you and, and maybe we haven’t gotten yet to the point where we feel confident enough as a team to build from the back three into the midfield, too, and then find pockets of space for our tens.’
“You know, I can totally relate as a player in his position where I would get antsy, and I’m like, ‘Hey, give me the ball. If you can’t give me the ball, I’m gonna come get it, right?’ So it was one of those conversations that I’m asking him for a leap of faith, a little bit of trust, trust in what we’re trying to get to. And I think that in the Monterey Bay game he was excellent in where he was on the field, and thankfully, we were able to find him in those areas of the field, and he was able to find success. I think now he’s starting to see how dangerous he can be because of the qualities that he has with his left foot.”
Armenakas Talks About His partnership with Elmasnaouy
“We have a really good relationship on and off the field. To be honest, since preseason we’ve all seen his quality, and he’s been biding his time working hard, waiting for his opportunity. And I’ve always kind of put my arm around him. Because I see a lot of myself when I was younger, how he sees the game. So I know how difficult it can be when you’re training well and not getting those opportunities. So I think I’ve taken that role a little bit. With some of the guys, but to be honest, mainly with Ali.
“And I think the connection that we have on the field is really building, always looking for each other and for such a young player to show the calmness and the maturity that he’s shown. These past weeks, to just be like thrown in the deep end and deal with it, and he’s been unbelievable. And today, yellow card in the first half and to complete 90 minutes staying there mentally. Not giving away fouls and to have that composure on the ball was big for us when, even when we went one-nil up, you know, drawing fouls, keeping possession. So I think he was our best player on the field today and and he’s helped us massively. Just like people like Gagi coming in has been amazing, and every guy that stepped onto the field. But for sure, I think Ali deserves the most praise.”
