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For every game but one this season, a familiar shock of blond hair atop a 6-foot-5 frame marshaled the middle of Syracuse’s back three, directing his teammates, bullying opponents off the ball and serving as the Orange’s last man back in defense. 

But against Virginia, Buster Sjoberg stood on the sidelines in a parka and neckwarmer, giving out water bottles to his teammates. 

After playing hurt against North Carolina in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament quarterfinals, Sjoberg didn’t play against Virginia in the semifinals. Without Sjoberg’s hulking presence in the Syracuse back three, Virginia scored two goals from point-blank range and notched 15 shots – the second-most the Orange have allowed all year aside from a September contest with UConn, the only other game Sjoberg missed. 

Though No. 3 Syracuse (13-2-4, 5-1-2 ACC) squeaked past No. 11 Virginia (10-4-4, 5-1-2 ACC) with a Lorenzo Boselli 84th minute equalizer and a perfect showing in the ensuing penalty shootout, the Orange’s normally stingy defense allowed two goals for just the second time this season. Flanked by Olu Oyegunle on his left and Abdi Salim on his right, Christian Curti took Sjoberg’s spot in the middle of the backline just as he did against UConn. But especially early, Syracuse missed the Swede’s defensive chops as the Cavaliers stayed toe-to-toe with the Orange for much of the match. 

SU allowed 10 shots in the first half alone – more than it has allowed in half of its matches this year. Sjoberg’s absence was felt from the beginning. Usually, the Orange control the ball in the opening 15 minutes and hardly allow their opponent any possession, let alone time on the ball in the box. But in the first five minutes, Virginia tested the Syracuse net three times in addition to another attack that was called back due to offsides. Philip Horton even scored in the sixth minute, but it was also called back for offsides.

In the play following an SU clearance on a UVA corner, Paul Wiese hooked a long cross into the box. Axel Ahlander got on the end of it and flicked it to Andreas Ueland, unmarked at the top of the six-yard box with Salim and Amferny Sinclair on either side. The 6-foot-1 Salim can jump higher than anyone on the team, but he was caught flat-footed and couldn’t stop Ueland. Without Syracuse’s 6-foot-5 Swedish centerback there to stop him, Virginia’s 6-foot-5 Norwegian centerback easily flicked the ball past Russell Shealy to tie the match at 1-1. 

Curti admitted that Sjoberg’s height would’ve helped against Virginia’s strong set pieces. Shealy called Sjoberg a “really good horse in the back for us.”

Although the first half ended with the two sides deadlocked, Syracuse began to control much more of the play in the second half. But in the 66th minute, completely against the run of play, Horton got the ball on the wing in a threatening position. Once Oyegunle gave him a foot of space, he fired a cross in and Shealy dove to deflect it out. Alfonso pounced on the rebound and gave Virginia the lead. 

But as soon as the Cavaliers went ahead 2-1, they didn’t register another shot for the rest of the half. A lot of this was due to dropping lots of men back in defense, but Syracuse’s backline grew tighter and hardly allowed Virginia any possession. 

Curti has played all over the field for the Orange this year. He’s a natural centerback, but he’s mostly played wingback and defensive midfield this year. His high school club coaches said that he played every position but striker, and McIntyre joked after the game that Curti wanted to step into goal for the penalty shootout because “that’s the only position he hasn’t played.”

In the middle of the back three, Sjoberg is constantly barking positioning orders at teammates and Curti said he wanted to maintain that level of communication.

“Yeah, that’s probably the biggest part of that role,” Curti said. “You see the whole field, like you and Russell (Shealy), so you kind of have to almost play chess.”

Oyegunle said Curti was instrumental in helping him and Salim’s positioning throughout the match. He said Curti was vocal about letting him know when a defender was in his blind spot and also helped him tuck in on throw-ins. 

As the second half bled into the first and second overtimes, Syracuse remained relentless in its pursuit of a game-winner, while Virginia’s rare opportunities on the ball were often stonewalled by SU’s backline. UVA managed two shots in the extra time period, and both resulted in straightforward saves by Shealy.

“Christian is a natural leader,” Oyegunle said. “He talks when people need him. I hear him all the time… Him being in the middle there was really helpful. He pulled the strings for me and Abdi.”

It remains to be seen whether Sjoberg will be available on Sunday against Clemson in the ACC Championship. McIntyre called his status day-to-day. But Shealy is confident that if Sjoberg can’t go, Curti will be able to step up in his place again. 

“I don’t think the level dropped,” Shealy said. “He demanded. That’s what we need.”

Published on November 9, 2022 at 11:19 pm

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