Phoenix Rising shows signs of life in manager Juan Guerra's first win

As stoppage time ticked into the 99th minute, Juan Guerra could not keep still. Moments earlier, the fourth official had called for five minutes to be added on. And yet, those elusive three whistles — the ones that would signal a 2-1 win for Phoenix Rising over the Rio Grande Valley Toros — seemed as if they would never come.

So Guerra, in search of his first win as Rising manager, paced the touchline. He checked his watch every few seconds. He begged with the fourth official.

Then, after Ben Lundt thwarted one last Toros shot at the far post, the whistles finally came. In front of Rising’s bench, Guerra turned and hugged three assistant coaches at once.

If Rising’s season is going to turn around, it has to happen now. With Wednesday’s result, that door stayed open, if only just a crack.

Under Rick Schantz, the season was careening towards the club’s first missed playoffs since 2016. By no means does a managerial change assure that won’t be Phoenix’s fate. What it does do is breathe hope into a season that has had very little of it.

For that hope to turn into something more, though, Rising had to turn the optimism surrounding Guerra’s appointment into results on the pitch. Hence, the cruciality of Wednesday night.

“For us, mentally, it means the world,” midfielder Luis Seijas said. “We've been struggling a lot the last month and for the group, for our families, for the club, for the owners, for Juan, first win at home, it was huge.”

On the night, Seijas was Rising’s key man. In the 16th minute, he found space in the box and powerfully headed home a chipped cross from Santi Moar. Then, in the 67th minute, he ran onto a cheeky backheel from Aodhan Quinn and placed a sidefooted shot from 25 yards out inside the far post.

“From the first shots I took, I felt it,” Seijas said. “I felt it the right way. So I knew I was sharp today.”

Seijas embodies Rising’s hope for new life over the season’s final two months. At the beginning of the season, he was one of the club’s most critical players, scoring five times in the first 10 games. But in mid-June, he fell out of favor, starting just four times over Schantz’s final 10 games.

Afterwards, he stopped short of criticizing Schantz, saying, “I don’t want to compare.” Still, his praise of Guerra’s consistency stood out. Throughout Rising’s persistent struggles, Schantz often tinkered with tactics and formations.

“We are going to that identity of Juan's,” Seijas said. “That's important. You don't change patterns from one day to another.”

Despite the win, though, not everything was positive for Rising.

In the 41st minute, they suffered from the type of sloppiness that has marred much of their season. On a play that Guerra described as “part of the process,” Lundt lazily let a pass slip away from James Musa, who seemed not to be paying full attention. RGV winger Christian Pinzon took full advantage, smashing past Lundt.

Rising’s second half response, though, made it easier to take that bad with the good. The good, on Wednesday, was nearly everything else about Rising’s defensive performances.

Outside of a few lapses in the last 10 minutes — most notably when Emilio Ycaza hit the crossbar after a bad turnover by Arturo Rodriguez — Rising’s back line held RGV in check. Only three times, including on the goal, did the Toros have shots with a 10% chance of scoring, according to Opta.

“These guys have too much heart,” Guerra said. “Their heart doesn't fit in their chest.”

Theo Mackie covers Arizona high school sports and Phoenix Rising FC. He can be reached by email at theo.mackie@gannett.com and on Twitter @theo_mackie.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix Rising show signs of life in Juan Guerra's first win