Michigan overcomes foul trouble in victory over Oakland

Committing fouls is counterproductive in soccer as it gives the opponent a free kick and opportunity to score.

On Sunday afternoon, the Michigan men’s soccer team committed its fair share of fouls, racking up a total of 12 during the game. But despite the high number of fouls, the Wolverines ended up snagging a 2-1 victory over Oakland by executing on defense.

“The strategy number one is don’t give away too many fouls,” Michigan coach Chaka Daley said. “We give away too many cheap fouls.”

The Wolverines committed their first foul less than four minutes into the game by junior midfielder Rocky Perez on the Golden Grizzlies’ half of the field. While the foul didn’t award Oakland with a free kick, it did give the Grizzlies control of the ball. Even as Oakland advanced their possession into Michigan’s half of the field, the Wolverines’ defense didn’t break. 

But Michigan’s defense couldn’t hold forever, and the Wolverines’ undisciplined play finally came back to bite them. In the 40th minute, Michigan committed its fourth foul of the first half, setting up a free kick just outside the box. While the Wolverines batted the initial kick away, the Grizzlies capitalized on the golden opportunity, scoring on a rebound to tie the game going into halftime.

Halftime could’ve been a chance to reset and clean up the penalties, but fouls continued to plague the Wolverines after their careless first half. They committed seven more in the second half, setting up even more chances for Oakland to capitalize and take the lead.

As the second half clock drained down, Michigan continued to commit fouls, serving up possession on a platter. But the Grizzlies’ five shots in the second half posed no threat to the Wolverines, as their stout defense prevented those shots from landing on goal.

“I think that style stands out on how well you’re defending,” Daley said. “They missed the frame. It goes over. Shot total doesn’t mean any shots on goal.”

And Oakland continued to increase its shot total throughout the half. Even though Michigan continued to lose offensive possession from the fouls, its defense worked overtime to keep Oakland’s shots at bay from the net ultimately making the ball go out of bounds and allowing the Wolverines to regain possession.

In the 77th minute, a yellow card was committed on freshman midfielder Kamau Brame while the ball was on the Grizzlies’ side of the field. Oakland’s offense attempted to capitalize on its ball possession with two consecutive shots. Michigan’s defense was able to pressure the Grizzlies enough though for both shots to be wide and easily miss the net. While both shots were not a threat to Michigan’s slight lead, the Wolverines knew it needed to minimize committing fouls to secure the win.

While the season is still very early, Michigan has shown so far that its defense effectively thwarts opponents’ offensive opportunities. On Sunday, that allowed the Wolverines to overcome their multitude of miscues.

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