Akio’s goal saves day for Valour FC

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This article was published 05/06/2022 (1537 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

THERE was no shortage of drama at IG Field Sunday afternoon where Winnipeg Valour FC escaped with a 1-1 draw against FC Edmonton.

Valour forward William Akio saved the day by potting his first goal of the season in the dying seconds of the match. Akio’s goal was a near buzzer-beater as the referee’s whistle signalled the end of the contest shortly after the marker.

Winnipeg almost handed Edmonton its first win of the season, but avoided going scoreless in back-to-back contests and salvaged an important point.

“I’m not surprised, I know this group is going to fight all the time,” said Valour head coach Phillip Dos Santos. “It’s a group that goes through adversity and takes it and works and I think that’s something that we need to praise.”

Akio added while he’s happy about finding the scoresheet, the team wanted three points and a win Sunday.

“I’m happy I can get my goal, get my confidence back up and move forward,” he said. “But obviously three points is what I wanted.”

“It’s kind of frustrating, but we got to just take the positives out of this and move forward,” he added.

Valour needed an aggressive start following Wednesday’s match with Atletico Ottawa, where the losing goal was conceded in the 84th minute. The home side played the role of aggressors to a T in the opening half against Edmonton, but couldn’t buy a goal.

Defender Andrew Jean-Baptiste, who made his return to the lineup Sunday, saw a header sail wide in the 22nd minute. Akio followed that with a shot that was stopped by FC Edmonton goalkeeper Andreas Vaikla. A long attempt from Valour’s Brett Levis was also snuffed out in the 27th minute.

Dos Santos said the team’s training leading up to Sunday’s match helped them weather the storm, adding he expected nothing less from Edmonton. They worked on playing in tight situations, getting behind the line and creating scoring opportunities from short actions.

“I feel that for the majority of the game our preventative defending or the way we were positioned to deny a counter or to not allow them to exploit the space behind our back was good except for the moment of the goal,” he said.

Winnipeg’s energetic opening to the match saw them lead possession 64.7 per cent to 35.3 per cent in the first half. However, they’d soon find that dominating the early stages of the match doesn’t lead to being ahead on the scoreboard.

FC Edmonton midfielder Gabriel Bitar jump-started the action for his side near the 32nd-minute mark. Bitar stormed down the pitch and passed the ball through two Valour defenders to forward Mamadi Camara who capitalized on the opportunity.

Camara’s 32nd minute marker put Edmonton up 1-0 on its first shot and at one point looked like it’d be the lone tally.

“Possession means absolutely nothing in this game unless something’s done with it,” said FC Edmonton head coach Alan Koch. “You can see teams that have had 10 per cent possession in games win those games.”

The second half was much the same for Winnipeg, building to scoring chances with nothing to show for it until Akio’s tying goal.

Winnipeg finished Sunday’s contest outshooting Edmonton 12-6 and dominated possession 65.7 per cent to 34.3 per cent.

Dos Santos said approaching every game with equal importance will be key following the draw with Edmonton. He added that the club approached previous matches against top teams in Pacific FC and Cavalry FC with more urgency.

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“That’s something that I want us to reflect on because every game is important,” he said.

Winnipeg is winless in its last four matches following Sunday’s draw, with their last victory coming May 15. They’ll have an opportunity to get back in the win column June 15 at IG Field against Cavalry FC.

“We need to stay level-headed, we need to stay humble about ourselves and know that the day we… stop working we won’t win,” said Dos Santos.

Gavin.Axelrod@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: Gavin77axe