Miami, June 6, 2022
Miami Dutch Lions FC played host to Miami Beach CF on Sunday June 5 in the first ever meeting between the two clubs. MDL FC came into the contest with a 1-2 record on the season after falling 1-0 to Miami United FC on Wednesday. For Miami Beach CF, they came into the match having won two of the their first three games in the club's inaugural season as a part of the NPSL's Sunshine Conference. The Lions lost 1-0 for the straight time after a goal in the 42nd minute.
The game started out with the Lions controlling the first few minutes of play, followed by a dominant twenty-minute stretch by Miami Beach. The two teams went back and forth with Miami Beach holding the edge in possession, shots, and set piece opportunities for a majority of the first half. MDL FC did not get shut down quietly in the first half however, as the team started generating chances in transition via solid ball movement from the outside backs and the wings. The key moment in the first frame for the Lions came by way of a free kick in the 23rd minute when the right foot of Axel Funk drove a spectacular ball in towards goal, but Miami Beach did just enough to keep the ball from reaching the back of the net. It seemed as if the game would hit the halftime break scoreless as the two teams entered the final five minutes of the half. However, the momentum rapidly turned back in the direction of Miami Beach as the back line of the Lions found themselves scraping by to deny numerous scoring chances. The attacking onslaught continued into the 42nd minute when the back line of the Lions got beat and standout attacker, Kerry Sarmiento found a lane and beat star goalkeeper, Peter Wentzel to give Miami Beach the 1-0 advantage heading into halftime.
The second half saw the momentum in favor of Miami Beach CF, goalkeeper Peter Wentzel came up with several saves as he did in his previous double-digit save performance against Miami United to keep both games with a 1-0 score line. But the Lions also had two good opportunities in the box to find the equalizer, but could not score on veteran goalkeeper, Cristian Blanco, who provided his team with his second consecutive clean sheet.
With the loss, Miami Dutch Lions FC fall to 1-3 on the season, with all three losses ending in a 1-0 result. MDL FC will be in action this upcoming Sunday when they host Magia FC at 4pm, a team in which they beat in the season opener 1-0. Miami Beach improves to 3-1 and find themselves on the road Saturday against the Central Florida Panthers SC.
After the game, head coach Robert Stoutenburg mentioned how his "team weathered the storm" and found himself encouraged by some really good moments in the first half where he also noted that his team "possessed and switched the ball well, but that the final touch or the final pass affected the ability to finish when getting into the attacking third." Stoutenburg remained optimistic about his team heading into the back half of the season. "Now we take the results and the moments and learn from it. We need to build on our training sessions and translate that into the game situation. I have an amazing staff behind me and without them, half the stuff we're doing wouldn't be possible so thank you to them. The time they take out to do video analysis and help the team prepare for these games even throughout the adversity we've had are encouraging for what the future holds."
