The Back Four: All-Vibes Team, March Edition
Breaking down major stories from Week 4 in USL League One and the USL Championship
Welcome in to The Back Four!
Before we start, be sure to check out Backheeled for a massive deep-dive into all things USL Championship. I’m comparing Ray Serrano to fine Italian cars, connecting FC Tulsa to Robert Frost-inspired epigraphs, and giving you the tactical lowdown on all 24 clubs. You can also find This League! there for an audio and visual dive into the week that was.
Without further ado, let’s get to it.
Vibes XI
I could make a classic “team of the month” with high-performing players, but where’s the fun in that? As the calendar turns from March to April, I want to recognize players that emerged for other reasons during the first month of the season. This is a starting lineup of guys that provided surprises, underpinned their team’s system, or simply exceeded my personal expectations.
Darwin Espinal (FW, Richmond)
Richmond’s second-place position in the table might be inflated by a front-loaded schedule, but they’ve still made meaningful improvements to get there. Darwin Espinal’s contributions from the left wing are a major catalyst for a team that’s playing faster and more direct in 2025. Espinal’s got two assists already, but he’s also putting up 2.5 shots per game. He’s doing damage on the dribble, succeeding on nearly 30% of his take-ons while drawing 2.0 fouls per game. A longtime difference-maker in NISA, Espinal has immediately become a USL star anew.
Anton Sojberg (FW, Monterey)
I was as wrong as possible about Monterey’s chances in 2025, and Anton Sojberg represents all the potential that went unrecognized. Sojberg, signed from the Faroe Islands, came to Seaside with just 17 goals in more than 90 career appearances. He’s doubling that scoring rate in the USL.
The 24-year-is also making 5.6 recoveries per game, which is partially boosted by some minutes in the central midfield but is still colossal by an attacking players’ standard. Monterey, as a team, is ceaseless in their pursuit of the ball, and Sojberg ties their 4-4-2 together.
Karsen Henderlong (FW, Naples)
So, yeah, Henderlong might end up being on the actual all-league team. The former IU star has been unbelievable for FC Naples and underpinned their hot start.
Consider Henderlong’s three goals so far:
Madison is forced into a backpass that runs past its intended recipient, and Henderlong pounces. Though he’s impeded by the opposing goalkeeper on his first touch, #9 keeps probing until he gets a second look at goal that comes good.
The Naples press forces a rushed pass from the back that’s recovered at midfield. Henderlong receives in zone 14, rides out backpressure to initiate a give-and-go, and left-foots a shot into the bottom corner.
Naples goes long over the top against Spokane, where Henderlong’s pressure helps to force a turnover. He snakes to the far post, beats his man, and gets a right-footed rebound finish.
Heady pressing, back-to-goal play, and multi-footed finishing? You couldn’t ask for much more. Naples might be a defense-first team, but Karsen Henderlong is the star piece that makes them whole.
Jay Chapman (CM, Detroit)
While Detroit ended the month on a bitter note, that doesn’t negate how strong their attack looked against teams like Colorado Springs and Miami. Jay Chapman, a Michigan State grad with Torontonian ties to Danny Dichio, has driven those successes from the center of his side’s 3-4-1-2ish shape. Something of a journeyman – and a player who I often (and foolishly) dismissed when deployed like a No. 10 – Chapman has relished that deeper-seated deployment for Le Rouge.
The 31-year-old is connecting on 53 passes a game this year, but he’s also completing 70% of his long balls and winning 63% of his duels. All three marks are in the 87th percentile or better. Even against Louisville, Chapman did as well as you’d hope in the face of a fierce press. He’s legit, and Dichio knows how to maximize him.
Sofiane Djeffal (CM, Lexington)
Reunited with his old college coach in Lexington, Sofiane Djeffal is illustrating why he was one of the standouts of the early months of the 2024 USL season. Back then, the midfielder looked press-proof in Orange County and seemed like a breakout star. The rest of the campaign didn’t go to plan, but now he’s completing 93% of his passes, creating 1.5 chances per game, and pitching in 3.5 takeaways per 90 minutes under Terry Boss.
It’s easy to focus on Speedy Williams for LSC, but Djeffal is every bit as important to their flexible shape. As Lexington bends into their 3-2-5 attacking look, Djeffal is the stabilizing piece in the middle that keeps the proverbial trains running.
Collin Fernandez (CM, Spokane)
I had a very fun discussion on the Spokane Soccer Show just before the season to preview the Velocity, and I was caught flat-footed when the inimitable Benji Wade sung the praises of Collin Fernandez in his team’s midfield. I’ve liked Fernandez in places like Tulsa, but I hadn’t noticed how good of a ball-stopper he’d become at the League One level.
Over the weekend, Fernandez made four recoveries against Greenville and selflessly understood how to keep the attacking moving – more on that momentarily. In the opener against Knoxville, he was responsible for eight recoveries and put in five tackles. That level of activity from Fernandez has underpinned a Spokane team that’s less possessive and, therefore, withstanding a bit more pressure in 2025. He’s up to the challenge and then some.
Pedro Guimaraes (LB, Orange County)
You could look at the stat sheet for Pedro Guimaraes — two chances created, one completed cross, etc. — and assume that he’s been unspectacular through three matches. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Guimaraes has made his money by making a slew of underlapping runs that drive defenses mad, allowing fullback-turned-winger Ryan Doghman to do his thing on the sideline in Orange County’s 4-4-2ish shape. That the 17-year-old has been so heady is unbelievable, and it’s why he’s probably on his way to Europe in the not-too-distant future.
Jacob Erlandson (CB, Loudoun)
Abdellatif Aboukoura is rightly stealing much of the shine for Loudoun, but who’s getting him the ball? It’s been a team effort to feed the young star, but Jacob Erlandson’s left-sided distribution has been massive in Virginia.
Erlandson, who signed for Loudoun last year after a stellar stint with Columbus in MLS Next Pro, is taking 77 touches per game this season and constantly driving passes into the feet of Aboukoura and Kwame Awuah up the left side. He’s also winning more than seven duels a game and dominating in the air. You can overlook Loudoun’s defense at your own peril, but this is a wonderfully solid unit, and Erlandson is at the center of that mix.
AB Cissoko (CB, Tulsa)
FC Tulsa gave up 1.41 goals per match in the league last year on their way to yet another playoff miss. With AB Cissoko stepping in as their captain and the line leader of Luke Spencer’s back three, they’ve given up just one goal in five matches so far. That’s stark improvement versus 2024, and it’s why Tulsa earned four separate 1-0 wins in March.
Cissoko has won every single tackle he’s attempted so far in 2025. He leads the USL in blocks. By any metric, he’s been the man, and it’s all come while anchoring a back line that typically wants to stay high-ish in support of the press.
Connor Evans (RB, Greenville)
My lazy default when a college player signs for a USL team is to glance at their numbers and assume they’ll just come off the bench until further notice. Connor Evans belied that expectation from the jump in League One, showing wonderful maturity up and down the right flank for Greenville from their season opener onward.
Evans’ ability to push forward from right back in a shifty 3-2-5 or to provide width as an out-and-out winger has been key for the Triumph. He’s tied for second in League One with six chances created, but he’s also adding 2.5 tackle attempts per game. Using the rookie as my right back here might be cheating, but I won’t be a formation stickler for my made-up lineup, and Evans deserves the plaudits
Johan Garibay (GK, Knoxville)
It’s never easy for a backup goalkeeper to get the call, but Johan Garibay never misses a beat in Knoxville. With One Knox evolving into a somewhat more open side under Ian Fuller, Garibay has come up big with four saves on five shots faced in open play thus far. Per American Soccer Analysis, he’s prevented 0.12 goals above expected.
Against Texoma a few weeks back, every single pass Garibay played went long, and that’s by design: he’s helping to establish Knoxville as a team that dominates territory, and he’s providing a backstop when they fail to do so.
New Mexico and Marlon Vargas
I’ve been pretty vocal about my concerns relative to New Mexico in 2025, and a tight win against Miami where United’s shot count was nearly doubled maybe isn’t the best result to galvanize a change in thinking. Perversely, that’s exactly what Saturday’s 1-0 victory is doing for me.
Start with the arrival of Marlon Vargas. He’s fifth in the league with 1.3 xA to date, two-thirds of which has come in open play. He got the all-important assist against Miami, but it was everything else – the receptions between the lines in tight spaces, 10 passes into the final third, and utter control over the left halfspace – that impressed me the most.
Vargas lined up as the No. 10 in Dennis Sanchez’s 4-2-3-1 on paper, but the attacking shape was more of a 4-1-4-1, fullbacks bombing up like wingers notwithstanding. To achieve that shape, New Mexico was markedly devoted to splitting their defensive mids (Ousman Jabang and Gedion Zelalem) into high and low positions. The former mostly pushed upfield, whilst Zelalem sat low and completed 49 of his 54 pass attempts.
That balance – Vargas running the show, Jabang gliding next to him – was exactly what I’ve been looking for from United.
You see an example sequence here divided into three key moments.
In the first screengrab, two trends are on show. Firstly, Jabang and Zelalem (circled in yellow) are executing that vertical split while Kalen Ryden possesses at the left-central defensive spot. Secondly, fullback Jalen Lindsey pushes high up the sideline in complement to a narrower McKinze Gaines (looped in black) in order to stress Miami’s back four. The hosts struggled to get the requisite wide support to defend New Mexico’s fullback-winger interplay; this is a very intentional positional arrangement.
When Ryden hits Lindsey on the flank, a Miami center mid has to rotate out to the sideline. Miami’s winger isn’t getting low, so an all-important central player has to make the move: now, Jabang and Vargas have a double against the remaining member of the pivot. That’s on show in the second picture.
Finally, Lindsey swings the ball to Jabang in the left channel, where he instinctively keeps the ball moving and finds Vargas in zone 14. Suddenly, New Mexico is possessing through their best creator in the most dangerous area of the pitch. It all owes to Sanchez’ positional tenets and the speed of ball movement.
On the broadcast, the excellent Ricky Lopez-Espin noted how New Mexico needed to make the ball work for them in possession. This is exactly what he meant – it’s fluid and fast-paced. This play ends with Vargas getting dispossessed before he can swing to Luiz Fernando in a one-on-one, but it’s still exemplary.
So yeah, New Mexico “only” got a 1-0 win in Miami. Don’t let the scoreline fool you: process matters more than output in March, and I’m buying what United are beginning to sell.
Tinkering Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is an enigma. They entered the weekend with 45 shot attempts through three matches, the best mark in the USL. They’ve dominated possession, averaging a 59% share in a given game. And yet, this team has two losses and a squeaky win over Miami to show for it.
Some of the problem is good-ol’-fashioned bad luck. Manuel Arteaga hasn’t scored yet. As a team, just 22% of the Rowdies’ attempts have ended up on target compared to 34% last season. This team’s three concessions have been the result of sloppy mistakes more than anything else.
Is there room for concern? Sure. Tampa Bay grossly underperformed their xG in 2024, and many of their concessions were similarly rooted in one-off miscommunications. What looks aberrational is worrying when it’s actually a trend.
Even so, I’m still here for the Robbie Neilson model, especially if the 4-2-3-1 he debuted against Miami is the new go-to. Tampa Bay may’ve built their offseason around high-profile defensive additions, but a shape with one less center back in the mix might be the thing that cures their offensive ailments.
The crux of the 4-2-3-1? Interplay between Nick Moon, Cammy MacPherson, and Woobens Pacius.
MacPherson began 2025 in a very Lewis Hilton-esque role, anchoring the pivot of a formation starring three center backs. He showed flashes of inspiration upfield in that deployment, but Neilson’s choice to utilize his fellow Scotsman in a more advanced spot did wonders against Miami. In essence, Tampa Bay got the best of both worlds, and you see that above.
At the start of the play, the Rowdies are working out from the back after having dispossessed their hosts, but they’re doing so in the face of a fierce counterpress. Enter MacPherson, who drops deep to provide an outlet in the face of the aggressive opposition. A slick one-two featuring #5 allows Tampa Bay to work wide and break the pressure; simultaneously, Pacius pushes upfield like a proper striker.
The right wing is vacant because of that run from the Nashville loanee, so MacPherson steps up. Belying that “center mid” stereotype, he pushes into the channel, takes on a defender with the ball, and whips in a cross that’s ultimately deflected wide.
The big takeaways? MacPherson’s flexibility, Pacius’ forward movement, and their innate ability to trade lanes with one another to confuse defenses.
Add Nick Moon’s two-footed brilliance to that tempest of combination play, and you’ve got a real threat. The screenshot you’re seeing above evidences that fact. Here, Moon (looped in green) is cutting inside as MacPherson (marked with a “1”) slides outward.
In the act, the Scotsman pins Miami’s right back and prevents him from rotating low into the box without leaving a player wide open on the edge of the area. The upside? That means Pacius, having snuck narrow yet again, is one-on-one against a slower center back and can dive toward the net to receive from Moon.
If you’re a Tampa Bay fan, you’ll remember the rest: Pacius makes that run, Moon hits him, and a terrific right-footed finish brings the Rowdies level.
Tampa Bay still needs to cut out some of their more facile mistakes at the back, but the new formation did wonders upfield a few weeks back. How Neilson elects to align his team with Charleston and Loudoun on deck to start April is the big question, but there are really positive portents for sustained success if the 4-2-3-1 is his answer.
Cha-cha-cha
Charlotte and Chattanooga’s Friday matchup featured teams on opposite signs of the “new signing” coin. The Independence enjoyed real bursts of inspiration from loanee Alfredo Midence, who made his debut after a loan down from Lexington in the Championship. Meanwhile, the Red Wolves’ deployment of Alhassan Alhassan in the lineup and Zahir Vasquez off the bench yielded no shots on target and 0.26 xG.
Midence is proven goods at the League One level, and while he’s shaking off some rust, I’m already fired up about his prospects under Mike Jeffries. That’s not to say Chattanooga should be dismissed out of hand. Alhassan, in particular, underpinned what was a strong defensive showing in the press.
The ideas are still gestating for Scott Mackenzie’s side in an attacking sense, but their defensive 3-4-2-1 helped to limit the hosts to just eight total shot attempts. Indeed, the Red Wolves are conceding just 7.5 shots per game in League One play so far, which is a very good number.
Against the Independence, the balance and connectivity shown by Jonathan Filipe, Matt Bentley, and the debutante Alhassan atop that defensive shape did wonders to slow the hosts down. It’s a double-edged sword that Alhassan completed as many passes (nine) as he won duels (also nine), but it is evidence of the Ghanaian U-20 star’s instant buy-in.
Paired with Michael Knapp and Ualefi’s early dominance in the second-ball battle, that organized pressing gave Chattanooga a real sense of solidity where it counted. Less good? The Red Wolves’ inability to break down Charlotte’s defense.
The Tennesseans very clearly made defensive balance the priority, so you’d rarely see their wingbacks push upfield. Again, double-edged sword: the Independence couldn’t make too much headway up the channels, but players like Jordan Ayimbila felt hemmed in and Chattanooga’s attack flailed because of it.
Jeffries set his side up in a 4-4-2 as a baseline, though more of a 4-1-4-1 often prevailed in the face of the opposing pivot. Either way, Charlotte did well to corral longer passes and control territory. Once they regained, the Independence were patient, allowing their brightest attacking pieces to build chemistry on the fly and innovate in terms of their movement.
Midence was revelatory, completing all but two of his passes while going three-for-four on the dribble. He had a tendency to tuck inside or take deep touches, allowing teammates like Omar Ciss and Luis Alvarez to roam upfield and make runs behind pinned Chattanooga defenders – and not to loose right back Clay Dimick on the overlap. Charlotte stayed structured in their own half but looked free further upfield
You see a prime example above in the embedded clip. When Filipe stutters in the press, Chattanooga is momentarily vulnerable and cedes a pass into the Lexington loanee’s feet. Midence’s move draws Knapp from the pivot, meaning that Ciss can push behind into the midfield gap. It’s a very tidy sequence, and it nearly ends in an assist for Ciss.
As that play evidences, the Independence weren’t quite efficient enough in the final third. Ciss went one-for-four on passes in the attacking zone, for instance. Alvarez, ever the risk-taker, went 25-for-40 overall, inclusive of nine incompletions in the final third. I note those numbers not to criticize either player — getting touches and finding space near goal is great! — but to note how Charlotte can improve. They did well against an organized Chattanooga back five, but now they need to sharpen up.
Spokane settles in
Soccer is a sport of moments, and there’s an easily-imagined world where Greenville walks away confident winners in their duel against Spokane from the weekend. The Triumph, attacking in a 3-4-3 with Evan Lee stirring the drink from the defensive line, did well to spread the Velocity out early on, and two Connor Evans-sparked chances in the opening 10 minutes nearly freed Ben Zakowski up to convert a brace.
That’s not what happened. Instead, Spokane held firm, trusted their somewhat re-styled 2025 system, and found the necessary ball movement to put the South Carolinians to the sword. It’s ultimately a deserved result for a Velocity team that’s been unlucky so far this season, and it’s a credit to unsung returnees like Pierre Reedy just as much as new faces like Lucky Opara.
I tend to think of Spokane as a possession-first team, but they’ve made their money this season with quicker breaks and more direct attacking sequences. That didn’t change at Paladin Stadium, where Leigh Veidman’s side got four goals on a meager 36% share of possession.
Definitionally, if you aren’t dominating the ball, you’re probably forging your chances in transitional moments. Spokane did just that to earn their lead and keep on adding to it.
The screenshot here comes moments after Andre Lewis has taken the ball away from Greenville up the middle. With a number of attacking players having pushed high, including defensive midfielder Carlos Anguiano, the Triumph are temporarily in a 3-1-6 and can be overloaded in the central areas as the Velocity break out.
You see that alignment above. Lewis and Collin Fernandez can lead the charge through the counterpress into Luis Gil’s feet at the No. 10 spot. While Gil will face backpressure from the remaining No. 6, Chapa Herrera, he’s got the optionality to dish left toward Pierre Reedy or right to Shavon John-Brown, all while Neco Brett waits to turn and go at the defense.
No, this sequence doesn’t come in an innately dangerous area, but it’s representative of how the Velocity succeeded at creating overloads on the break, finding space before Greenville could recover back.
Same idea here, but within the attacking half. In this case, Spokane is at the business end of a side-to-side break, but the same principles are prevailing. This time around, it’s Lewis receiving in a dangerous pocket wide of the Greenville pivot, where he isn’t being closed down by a Triumph player.
Ahead of #77, Opara, John-Brown, and Gil are overloading a backtracking Tyler Polak. No matter who Lewis hits, the permutations of combination play are numerous and dangerous. This sequence is actually a harbinger of things to come: this exact scenario powered Spokane’s first goal, as I broke down in the USL Tactics Show this week.
The upside for Greenville? These plays feel correctible. More responsive closing from the wing (i.e., from Ben Zakowski) or pivot would deny the Velocity access to the overloads in either case. It’s a feather in the cap of Spokane that they worked quickly enough to take advantage, but the 4-0 scoreline shouldn’t be a cause for panic in South Carolina.
Notes on Westchester
Westchester SC is still finding their footing, but I liked a lot of what I saw in their away win to Texoma this weekend. You could see Andrew Jean-Baptiste and Tobi Adewole learning their lessons early — Texoma’s goal was equally due to “who’s supposed to be stepping up?” miscommunication as to Solomon Asante’s terrific chipped hockey assist — but the overall performance was promising.
In their own right, Texoma moved from the 3-4-3 we saw in the Open Cup a few weeks back towards more of a diamond-tinged back four. I didn’t quite love the wonkiness of JP Jordan and Ajmeer Spengler as the outside shuttlers in the midfield, but I liked the experimentation as a concept. That said, WSC found it far too easy to bait-and-switch that shape, overloading the half spaces or forging wide one-on-ones with surprising ease as a result.
That fluidity for Dave Carton’s side was ceaseless and impressive. Westchester ran a 4-4-2 in theory, but it often looked like more of a wonky 2-3-5. The New Yorkers only completed 180 passes but still felt comfortable and intentional in possession.
What movement patterns stood out? Juan Obregon showed a willingness to drop from the No. 9 spot to get touches. Noah Powder constantly tucked inside from the left wing to open up Samory Powder’s brotherly overlaps. Stephen Payne ( who made seven recoveries) did yeoman’s work at right back, knowing when to sit deeper and let Jonathan Bolanos cook.
Bolanos had an especially impressive performance for my taste. His touches on the end of longer outlet passes were consistently clean, and he put on a masterclass of body positioning to activate his right foot even when tucking inside with leftward runs. Bolanos’ energy and the vivacity of the Westchester shape forced Texoma to get deeper and deeper as the match wore on. The dam broke with Adrian Forbes’ side pinned too low to stop a lovely Conor McGlynn finish off a late run to the edge of the box.
We all came into 2025 with high expectations for WSC, and this was the first match where the expansion side felt truly superior from wire to wire. I’m amped to see where it all goes.
Quick Hits
In other news this week…
I love Gennaro Nigro, even if I couldn’t find room for him in my team of the month. He’s so sharp about his decision-making on the left, but he’s also winning a bonkers 4.7 tackles per game right now. Great player.
Stray Greenville thought: Richard Kind would play Rick Wright in a biopic.
Expect an Abdellatif Aboukoura piece this week. Relatedly, Nicholas Murray had a splendid sit-down with Ryan Martin over on the league site that you simply must check out.
I was lucky enough to see Kind Hearts and Coronets at a local rep theatre over the winter, and Ealing Studios’ 1940s and ‘50s comedies – especially those starring Alec Guinness – have become my cinematic comfort food. They’re all like 90 minutes or less, super sharply written, and have enough of a social thrust to go beyond “popcorn flick” territory. The Brits outdo us on the cultural front yet again.