Birmingham Legion prepares to face Inter Miami CF in U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals
Not since the peak of human civilization has soccer advanced to such a prominent moment in Alabama history.
That, of course, would be the 1996 Olympic Games which saw Birmingham host group play and knockout stage quarterfinals at Legion Field.
It’s been almost 30 years but the city is back in the spotlight as its hometown team is one of eight finals teams vying for hardware in the oldest soccer tournament in the nation.
The Birmingham Legion continue an unprecedented run toward the Lamar Hunt Trophy as they host MLS club Inter Miami CF in a U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal match, Wednesday, June 7, at Birmingham’s Protective Stadium.
“They’re a soccer team, we’re a soccer team,” Legion coach Tommy Soehn said. “They want to advance and we want to advance. At the end, that’s all that matters.”
Legion (5-7-1) has appeared in three U.S. Open Cups in its five seasons, the 2020 and 2021 events canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and advanced to the third round in both of its previous outings before knocking off Chattanooga FC (NISA) this year to advance to the Round of 32.
Since then, Birmingham has been on a historic tear with a 3-0 win over USL Championship rival Memphis 901 FC in the Round of the 32, followed by a 1-0 victory over MLS club Charlotte FC in the Round of 16.
The latter of the two victories saw a record attendance of 12,722 at Protective Stadium for the club’s first win over an MLS team.
Despite four straight wins to advance to the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals, the Legion has dropped five straight league matches since the beginning of May and fallen from the top of the eastern conference standings to sixth place in a little more than a month.
“We know the quality we have, it’s just about showing up on the day,” Legion captain Phanuel Kavita said. “It’s been up and down but the quality that we have, we can play with anybody.”
The Legion last played on May 27 in a 1-0 loss at Detroit City FC and took advantage of an 11-day layoff after 13 matches in an eight-week period. Fundamentals were on task for the break, specifically on defense after conceding 12 goals during the five-game losing streak, and the rehabilitation period could also play a factor for the Legion.
Neco Brett, who led the club in scoring in consecutive seasons (2020-2021) and has three goals this season, succumbed to a hamstring injury earlier in the year but could possibly make his return this week for the U.S. Open Cup match along with Dallas FC loan Collin Smith.
“It’s changed that we’ve had training,” Soehn said. “It’s been recovery after recovery through that stretch. It’s awfully hard to fix things while you’re going through a stretch when you’re unable to train. I would think the boys would say it’s been pretty intense this week, getting back to good habits.”
As rough a streak as Legion has endured the past month, its opponent, Inter Miami CF, is on a four-match losing streak, last place in the MLS eastern conference standings and fired its coaching staff Thursday.
Phil Neville, a former Manchester United player and British women’s coach, and assistant coach Jason Kries, were both relieved of their duties after leading the team to a 5-10-0 record. Javier Morales was named interim head coach for the club and is currently 0-1 after falling D.C. United on Saturday.
Inter Miami has scored 15 goals while conceding 21 this season but is still a dangerous team with proven talent on the pitch.
Josef Martinez and Leonardo Campana have three goals each to lead the club, the former recently scoring his 100th MLS goal, and nine other players have scored a goal. Drake Calendar has defended the net every match this season, earning 65 saves and allowing all 21 goals for a 75.6 save percentage, and captain DeAndre Yedlin has contributed three assists.
“Their whole team is going to be deep, we know that,” Legion defender Alex Crognale said. “Martinez’s salary is more than our entire team. That’s just something we understand as a group. It’s not going to be just a one-man effort. Kavita and I know that we’re going to have to be at our best competing against some of the top strikers in the MLS.”
Similar to the Legion, Inter Miami CF has flourished in the U.S. Open Cup with victories over Miami FC (USLC), Charleston Battery (USLC) and Nashville SC (MLS).
“We watched as a group, they have similar qualities to what Charlotte had,” Soehn said. “For us, it’s about making sure our group shows up and is at the top of our game. If we show up and do what we’re good at, I think we can play with anybody.”
Legion’s leading scorer from last season and current club leader Enzo Martinez (5 goals) is in agreement with Soehn and believes the Legion’s historic U.S. Open Cup run has yet to write its final chapter.
“I know that we have more than enough of the quality in this team to do something special on Wednesday,” Martinez said.
