EL PASO, Texas – El Paso Locomotive FC (4-West, 9-6-5, 32 points) begin their three-game road trip with a visit to H-E-B Park for its last Copa Tejas match of 2023 against Rio Grande Valley FC.
HOW TO WATCH EL PASO LOCOMOTIVE FC AT RIO GRANDE VALLEY FC – SATURDAY, JULY 29, 2023 @ 6 P.M. MT – H-E-B PARK
Stream: ESPN+
Watch Party: The Union Draft House Sunland (730 Sunland Park Dr Ste A)
Be sure to follow @eplocomotivefc on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for live updates of the match. Additionally, fans are encouraged to download the team’s official mobile app on the Apple App Store or Google Play for instant access to mobile tickets, team content and match notifications.
ALL-TIME SERIES
Having met just two weeks ago in a 1-1 draw at Southwest University Park, this is the final regular season meeting between the two Western Conference sides in a stadium where Locomotive have yet to win a match. At H-E-B Park, El Paso has a 0W-3L-1D record, with the draw coming in last season’s 0-0 meeting.
As a result of the recent draw in El Paso, the overall series record stands at 3W-4L-3D, skewing in favor of the Toros. A win for El Paso would not only put them back in the win column and end a four-game winless streak against RGV, but also go down in club history books as the first win at H-E-B Park.
EL PASO LOCOMOTIVE FC (4TH WESTERN CONFERENCE, 9-6-5, 32 PTS)
Head Coach and Technical Director Brian Clarhaut acknowledged the fact that despite recent form, El Paso is still creating many more opportunities than its opponents to get ahead in its matches. According to Clarhaut, there’s enough in the attack to win matches and with a bit more improvement in the final third, Los Locos will get back on track.
“We know what we’re capable of doing, we’ve done it previously,” Clarhaut said. “We’re hitting a little bit of a bump in the road, which is natural during the season, but we need to get back on now and it starts against RGV this weekend.”
Last time around, forward Aaron Gomez proved to be the difference-maker as he helped El Paso rescue a point with his diving header in the 88’. He now has the second-highest number of overall minutes contested across all competitions with 8,153, surpassing former defender Richie Ryan’s 8,105 minutes, and will once again look to help El Paso up top to create chances.
RIO GRANDE VALLEY FC (11TH WESTERN CONFERENCE, 5-6-9, 24 PTS)
RGV will be without two key players on Saturday against El Paso because of red card suspensions – defender Frank Nodarse and midfielder Robert Coronado.
Nodarse is RGV’s leader in defensive clearances (60), interceptions (37) and tackles (34) while Coronado has been a staple in central midfield, making an appearance in every regular season match as one of the club’s top passers as well as contributing two assists and a goal. Their absence may be felt on Saturday as Locomotive aim to break down their possession and create chances.
ADDITIONAL INFO
The full 2023 regular season match schedule can be found HERE. All USL Championship regular season and playoff games will be available to stream on ESPN+ in 2023. All Saturday home games will be simulcast on KTSM.com and Estrella TV 9.2 (Cable 1244).
All tickets for 2023, including Individual Match, Season Tickets and Pick Six Membership are on sale now and are available for purchase online at eplocomotivefc.com/tickets, within the official mobile app, calling (915) 235-GOAL or texting (915) 666-2005. You can also call (915) 235-GOAL for more information on Group Outings and Premium Suites. El Paso Locomotive FC does offer military discounts, which can be purchased HERE.
To check out the 2023 promotional schedule, click HERE.
In need of gear to rep your Locomotive and El Paso pride year-round? Visit the official El Paso Locomotive FC Team Shop online HERE, in the team’s official mobile app or visit the physical retail store (1 Ballpark Plaza, El Paso, TX 79901) Monday through Saturday between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m.