Oakland Roots Boost Attack With New Signing | OneFootball

On Saturday evening at the Oakland Roots post-match press conference, head coach Ryan Martin dropped this nugget: “We still need another attacker… especially with [Danny] Tréjo out… if things go as we hope and plan, my bet would be that there would be an addition soon.”

Tuesday afternoon this posting came across my algorithm.

Ryan is evidently a man of his word.

Bruno Lapa is a 29 year-old Brazilian who primarily plays attacking midfield. He attended Wake Forest University before signing with Birmingham Legion in 2020. In 2023 he bounced over to Memphis 901 and stayed with them until they folded in 2025. A year in South Korea’s K2 League with Ansan Greeners followed, but he returned to the USL with FC Tulsa earlier this year.

His stats are modest. Birmingham was his best showing, with 20 goals and 11 assists over 67 matches. His contributions with Memphis were also decent: 16g/9a over 65 games. Since 2024 his output has dropped significantly, with only one goal and one assist from 53 matches. He only played in 10 league matches for Tulsa before this trade, logging 840 minutes.

Mid-Week Western Conference Ties

There are three mid-week ties featuring Western Conference teams, the results of which are bound to shake up the table. We discuss each one below.

FC Tulsa vs. Sacramento Republic

Kickoff at 8:30pm ET / 5:30pm PT @ ONEOK Field, Tulsa OKTulsa features in the first of those Western Conference mid-week ties. Lapa’s old squad will be duking it out for supremacy against their neighbor in the table: Sacramento. Tied on 26 points, Republic currently holds the tie-breaker edge courtesy of their 2-0 win back in March. Tulsa will look to make that square, plus get the all-important three points, with a win. Both teams are defensive juggernauts, with the fewest conceded goals in the West (16 for Tulsa and 15 for Sacramento), which means this could be a one-goal affair, or a nil-nil draw. 

El Paso Locomotive vs. Monterey Bay

Kickoff at 9:00pm ET / 6:00pm PT @ Southwest University Park, El Paso TXMonterey is, once again, down in the cellar of the Western Conference. El Paso are clinging to the final playoff spot on 22 points (tied with Phoenix and Vegas) and know that a win tonight keeps them in that position and drawing them level with Colorado Springs and Lexington. Los Locos know that Monterey is a good squad to face when you want to turn momentum  around. They need that, after being shutout in three of their last five fixtures.

Las Vegas Lights vs. Oakland Roots

Kickoff at 10:30pm ET / 7:30pm PT @ Cashman Field, Las Vegas NVBruno Lapa is a longshot to feature in the Roots fixture against Las Vegas Lights tonight. Despite twelve more games in the season, this tie has the gravity of a must-win. Roots’ have slid seven places in the Western Conference, from 4th to 11th, in a span of six games. The good news, however, is a shift in fortune and two straight wins could just as easily propel them back up into the playoff spots. Last week’s fixture against Pittsburgh represented a squandered opportunity; they cannot afford a sixth loss in a row here.