On Saturday morning, El Paso Locomotive will be welcoming Detroit City FC to the league. It will be the first time these two meet on the field after having their U.S. Open Cup meeting placed on hiatus in 2020. The long-awaited contest between these Eastern and Western Conference foes will be broadcast nationally on ESPN at 10:00 a.m. MT.
It will be the first time El Paso Locomotive FC will grace ESPN, but not the first time Locomotive has been on a national broadcast. The Locos have held a national spotlight four times in the past, playing matches on ESPN Deportes. By now, the Locos are used to having their game showcased to millions of homes across the country. Saturday morning’s match is another game to pick up three points but the squad does recognize it as a chance to show what El Paso is about.
“Whether it’s nationally televised or on local tv that’s not what we worry about,” Locomotive Head Coach and Technical Director John Hutchinson said. “We worry about ourselves. I think it being nationally televised is great. It’s great to be a part of that, but I know these boys don’t look into that. They just look into how we want to play, what we want to do and focus on us. Yeah, it’s going to be awesome. Hopefully, some players raise a hand and put on a great performance. If a young kid gets a chance to play then hopefully we can showcase our Academy, showcase our first team, and people can see what we are trying to do here in El Paso.”
Focusing on themselves has been the key to success in the 2022 USL Championship season. Hutchinson noted that the first four games of the season feels as though they happened long ago in another season. In the last 10 games, Locomotive has earned six wins, three draws, and one loss. The incredible record is a result of the character in the locker room and the hard work on the training fields week in and week out.
The week leading into Detroit City FC has been no different.
After training on Tuesday morning, Hutchinson said the focus was on themselves and areas where the staff felt like the team could improve. After the match in Phoenix, the staff felt like the squad lacked penetrative forward runs, especially in the second half. For the week going into Detroit, Locomotive training was all about possession, creating more chances, and being more dangerous.
Hutchinson has the expectation that Detroit City will apply pressure from the opening whistle. With good players that work hard for each other and a Head Coach that has set them up for success, Locomotive is keenly aware that Saturday will be a difficult match. Detroit City FC has only lost once in their home field of Keyworth Stadium, a 2-0 loss to Sacramento Republic last week. DCFC has had a relatively successful freshman year in the USL Championship, taking on some of the best the league has to offer and currently sitting in fourth place in the Eastern Conference.
Saturday is set to provide an exciting test for the Loco brand of football and a nearly full squad of players for the first time in weeks.
After an international window that featured three El Paso Locomotive FC players as Defender Shavon John-Brown and Midfielders Eric Calvillo and Christiano Francois featured for Grenada, El Salvador, and Haiti, respectively. The three competed in the CONCACAF Nation’s League, representing club and country, but have now returned to El Paso and we can expect to see them with the squad for Detroit City FC.
Loco’s newest addition, Midfielder Liam Rose, has also touched base in El Paso, bolstering the squad. Coach Hutchinson is taking his time with his former teammate, however, easing him into the squad as opposed to throwing Rose head first into the fray. It’s no secret that the Loco brand of football is fast paced and aggressive. With Rose just joining the squad, the technical staff is giving Rose time to acclimatize to the team, the El Paso heat, and the altitude.
Finally, players like Midfielders Sebastian Velasquez and Emmanuel Sonupe are back from injury, leaving the Locomotive injury report at the smallest it has been since April. Velasquez had played 45 minutes against Phoenix Rising FC to ease back into squad rotation, and Sonupe will be available for selection against Detroit City FC.
With the First Team nearly back at full strength, the team is ready to take on the national stage once again. After the match against Detroit City FC, Locomotive will officially be half way through its 2022 USL Championship campaign. The Locos will be playing for three points to keep itself in a good position for playoffs in October.