BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Bethlehem Steel FC was impressive in its big 4-1 win against the Richmond Kickers on Sunday to close the opening week of the 2018 USL regular season. Bethlehem finished the week at or near the top of the league in numerous important statistics, posting the second-highest possession mark of the week with 60.7 percent of the ball in the victory.

Holding the edge in possession doesn’t always get a team a victory, as Nashville SC, North Carolina FC, and Fresno FC found out in opening-weekend defeats. But it wasn’t just the volume of possession that was key to Steel FC’s victory, with the manner in which the side used it that made the biggest difference.

Bethlehem completed almost 500 passes of the 608 it attempted in the contest, a completion rate of 82 percent, with the high-pressing nature of the team’s style earning it the ball in advantageous positions. Compared to Richmond, which attempted 392 passes at an accuracy rate of only 71.9 percent, and the distinction between the two performances is clear.

While Chambers did plenty of legwork, the combinations Steel FC was able to produce overall might have been the most impressive aspect of their win. The side’s final goal scored by Brandon Allen came from a seven-pass move that opened up the Kickers’ defense and allowed the 2016 USL Rookie of the Year to take advantage.

By moving the ball wide, and keeping the short, positional passing going on the left wing, Bethlehem drew the Richmond defenders to the ball. The Kickers’ defense was completely drawn in by the movement, with four defenders guarding Bethlehem two wide players. Winger Santi Moar pulls play back to the middle for a wide-open Mike Catalano, who eludes one man and then breaks the Kickers’ back line with an accurate pass to Allen. The forward has to fight off a challenge by the goalkeeper after getting in, but still manages to finish from tight to the goal line.

The key to playing this passing style is patience and Bethlehem executed it perfectly against Richmond. It’s easy for this style to not work perfectly, as attacking players can get impatient and rush to get forward, which in turn can lead to an easy challenge that breaks down the play. Bethlehem was perfectly patient, measuring its passes to draw out space and finding the right openings to strike in a dominant win.