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Game 1: Kansas City Current 1-2 Orlando Pride
This was the one we had been waiting for: The clear-cut top two teams in the league. Chawinga vs. Banda. Debinha vs. Marta (they kinda-almost fought in the first half?!?). Vlatko vs. Hines.
Kansas City and Orlando entered their duel top of the table clash level on 35 points and turbo-charged by their respective African strikers. Going into Saturday's match, Banda and Chawinga had combined for 22 goals and 10 assists through 15 weeks and left it upping their combined goal tally to 24. Aside from their two figurehead MVP candidates, the two organizations are different in most ways: Kansas City embodies the new era of the NWSL; their roster littered with expensive talent accumulated over the course of two years, a flashy new (albeit very small) woso-specific stadium, celebrity sightings at nearly every match, and managed by the former USWNT coach. Orlando, on the other hand, have largely flown under the radar until this year, stitching together smart, mostly low-cost signings with the remaining pieces from their previous era of dysfunction. Orlando's season is not necessarily a fairy tale --they have spent heavily on Banda and others-- but this is a roster that is very much greater than the sum of its parts.....and for that we must give credit to future 2024 manager of the year, Seb Hines.
Hines' starting 11 was almost startlingly aggressive given the opposition and the occasion. Until Week 13, the Pride lined up primarily in a double pivot (usually two of Angelina, Morgan Gautrat, and Haley McCutcheon) under Hines, meaning that one of Adriana, Banda, Marta, and Summer Yates was either injured or left on the bench. For the last four weeks, however, Hines has gotten more aggressive, "dropping" Yates and Marta into dual 8s in front of Angelina in a 4-3-3. I put dropping in quotation marks because they're not really dropping all that much, instead playing almost as dual 10s. I mistakenly thought Hines might return to the double pivot to try to clog up the midfield against KC, but he instead played Yates and Marta once again in front of the ever-steady Angelina.
Vlatko didn't pull any surprises, sticking with his double pivot 4-2-3-1. However, with Bia Zaneratto out with a foot fracture, Andonovski stuck Debinha up top as a false 9 with Claire Lavogez taking her place in front of Claire Hutton and Lo Labonta. Still without Vanessa Dibernardo, the Current's attacking patterns weren't quite as precise as usual, the three midfielders struggling to connect with the non-Chawinga attackers. Debinha in particular struggled mightily to get involved. After being left off the Brazil national team roster for the Olympics just days before, it has certainly not been an ideal week for Debinha, who has been one of the few Current players who has struggled to find her place early on in 2024. Part of this is certainly down to injury, but Andonovski doesn't seem entirely certain on how to fit the Brazilian into his wealth of attacking options. Something to monitor down the road.
Both teams hunted mismatches in the first half, Orlando sic'ing Banda on KC LB Izzy Rodriguez and KC targeting Orlando fill-in RB Carrie Lawrence. With McCutcheon not capable of going 90 minutes with an illness, Hines elected to go with Lawrence instead of Brianna Martinez. It was clear from Chawinga's first touch that Lawrence --like most of the league, to be fair to her -- wasn't up to the task. After Lawrence received an early yellow in the14th minute, Chawinga redoubled her assault on the Pride RB, demanding the ball whenever she was in Lawrence's vicinity. Orlando's midfield did a mostly very good job of stopping KC counterattacks (usually through well-timed cynical fouls), but when Chawinga spun the hapless Lawrence and finished beyond Anna Moorhouse, it surprised no-one. Chawinga's 39th minute equalizer (which came just two minutes after Orlando's opener via Banda) probably should have been the cue to replace the RB with either Martinez or McCutcheon, but Hines opted to wait until halftime to make a change and was duly punished when Lawrence slid in rashly on Chawinga and received a deserved second yellow just three minutes later.
I should have known better than to doubt Hines and Orlando, but a playing the entire second half of the match down a woman on the road in KC was a daunting task. But.....Orlando not only held their own in the second half, they were arguably better than the Current. They had the better of the play throughout the early part of the half and only took their foot off the gas after Marta panenka'd home the game winning penalty in the 63rd minute.
KC have had their fair share of defensive issues in 2024, but the second half was the first time that their offense has truly let them down. KC accumulated around one total xG in the second half, but that 1.0 cumulative xG came on 15 second half shots and 0.3 of that 1.0 xG came on one effort in the 92nd minute from RB Ellie Wheeler ......and you can do the math on what that means for the rest of the 14 opportunities. I've discussed how vertical KC's offense is and it has only become moreso with the introduction of Michelle Cooper on the right wing. Given the woman advantage and the fact they were playing at home, it didn't really feel like KC made Orlando feel the pressure in the second half, too often resorting to chipped balls in behind to Chawinga, who was marshalled by a slew of Orlando defenders throughout the second half. Bia is a big miss for the Current, particularly against low blocks. She not only has the physicality and technical ability to act as a pivot at the top of KC's attack, but is one of the smartest pure movers in the game, constantly drawing defenders away from Chawinga and the rest of the Current midfielders. Debinha is still an excellent player, but she's simply not an effective false 9- She wants to face up defenders, cut in from the wing, and create. Debinha's not Bia, but she's also a very different profile from Vanessa Dibernardo, who was another miss for KC on the night. It might not portend anything in particular, but it was notable how Hines took Vlatko to school down a woman in the second half. If nothing else, it was another tick in favor on the Orlando manager's COTY resume.
Quick Hits:
Marta was FIRED UP after (and during) the match. I don't know what youth serum she found, but she's looking more like, if not quite prime Marta, maybe the Marta of 5 years ago.
Speaking of Marta and her exuberant celebrations, there were some, let's just say salty fans who were not pleased with how she celebrated. With no due respect, stfu you whiny complainers.
McCutcheon remains one of the most underrated NWSL players. Able to play both in holding midfield and at RB, she did a supreme job --while sick!-- at shutting down KC in the second half.
Another player up for the occasion was Current teen six Claire Hutton, who looked ready to square up after multiple tackles, but kept her head and was arguably KC's best player on the night.
KC's defensive concerns remain. There is very little --if any-- top-end defensive talent in their back four. They're perfectly capable of outscoring teams, but BOY do they miss Gabby Robinson.
Game 2: Angel City FC 1-2 Gotham FC
Here's the thing: Sometimes you watch a soccer game where the difference between the two teams is clear in every way. A game where you can tell one team is well coached and the other is not. Where the talent gap is clear. A game where one of the teams had such terrible ownership that it just got bought by freakin Bob Iger and that's probably an improvement.
That was Gotham vs. Angel City at BMO Stadium on Saturday. Gotham was actually coming off a few disappointing weeks after their rapid rise up the table after some early season struggles, losing comfortably to the Spirit before allowing a late equalizer to the lowly Reign in Seattle a week later. Nonetheless, ACFC is arguably the league's best "get right" team at the moment: Rudderless even as they get healthier, manager Becki Tweed has steadfastly refused to make any major changes in either shape or personnel, the great Tweedaissaince of late 2023 nothing more than the new dictionary definition of "new coach bump." Not all of this is Tweed's fault. Angel City's cohort of owners refused to spend in the offseason --whether broke or unwilling to spend on a team about to be sold-- bringing in only a pair of 17 year olds, a veteran CM, and a young striker.
Admittedly, it is Tweed's absolute pigheadedness when it comes to that young striker --Messiah Bright-- that has been one of the most confusing under the radar subplots of the 2024 NWSL season. Starting striker Sydney Leroux hasn't exactly been the main source of Angel City's woes this season, but she's hardly been the solution either. She still does one thing well: She can hit the target when set up properly. Other than that? She doesn't offer much. She's not the mobile threat she was in her heyday, isn't going to create for others or herself off the dribble, and offers absolutely nothing in terms of ball-carrying ability. Someone who can create their own chances and does offer something on the dribble? Bright, who was one of the league's revelations as a rookie in 2023 in Orlando and hasn't sniffed a start for Angel City under Tweed. Cmon Becki, your job might be on the line. Mix it up a little.
The lineup Tweed did go with against Gotham was her usual 4-2-3-1, the rotating cast of underperforming central midfielders featuring Lily Nabet, Rocky Rodriguez, and Madison Hammond on the night. The central midfield has been arguably the biggest of Angel City's problems this season. When you salary dump a player like Amandine Henry to Utah when you're already lacking depth, this pass map below (pretty consistent for the 2024 iteration of ACFC) is what happens as a result. Rodriguez hasn't been what she was in Portland, struggling to justify the $300K price tag the LA side paid for her in the summer. Hammond and Nabet are fine role players, but neither should be starting. Without the only true 10 on the roster in Clarisse Le Bihan, the midfield lacked even an ounce of creativity, especially against the typically suffocating Gotham defense. As has become the norm in 2024, Angel City's best player on the night was 18 year old Gisele Thompson, who has quickly become the team's creative hub despite playing all of her minutes at fullback. She and Claire Emslie were responsible for most of Angel City's limited attacking moves, combining well down the left side against Gotham RB Mandy Freeman.
Gotham still isn't fully healthy, but they are getting much MORE healthy as the season goes on and their offense has began to click as a result. A healthy and firing Rose Lavelle will do that for you, but Gotham's true MVP in 2024 has unquestionably been forward Ella Stevens. Stevens was an interesting prospect coming out Duke, but it seemed her career wasn't heading anywhere particularly quickly in Chicago, despite being one of the lone bright spots in the darkness that was the last 2-3 years of the Red Stars franchise. Amoros, citing the trouble Stevens gave Gotham when they played Chicago, signed her as the most under the radar free agent acquisition of Gotham's offseason spree. Most assumed she'd be a nice depth piece for a team loaded in all areas, but especially up front where Midge Purce, Lynn Williams, Esther Gonzalez, Yazmeen Ryan, and possibly Crystal Dunn occupied locked in front line spots.
Clearly, not all has gone to plan: Purce is out for the season, Williams has missed most of the season, Esther has been injured for the last month or so, and Dunn has only started games occasionally. Stevens has been comfortably Gotham's best attacker, combining an effortless flair with a knack for finding herself in the right place at the right time. She's clicked with Lavelle in particular, the two finding a nice connection in Amoros' free movement system. Both are extremely intelligent players: Lavelle in particular is known for her fancy tricks and gliding past defenders, but she's also one of the smartest off-ball players the league has. Stevens is someone who thrives off the talent around her, and Amoros has given her the freedom to play a similar roll to Gonzalez, meaning she has the ability to pop up all over the field.
The game itself went essentially how you'd have predicted. Gotham bobbed and weaved through Angel City's error-prone midfield, scoring a pair of delightful goals off two Angel City turnovers. The first came on a gorgeous move after a loose Rodriguez touch was pounced upon by Nealy Martin, who fed Stevens with her back to goal, who in turn found Dunn, who then played the third one-time pass of the move into Lavelle who hammered the ball past Angel City GK Didi Haracic with her off-foot. The second was nearly as nice, Gotham playing what color commentator Jordan Angeli aptly called a "3 man weave" between Freeman, Lavelle, Stevens, and the eventual goalscorer Delanie Sheehan who tapped Stevens' no look square ball into an empty net.
Angel City had a few big chances inside the first five minutes and threatened briefly in the second half after Gisele Thompson drew a pen that was converted by Emslie, but couldn't really get anything going the rest of the match. This is a side that is oddly bereft of talent. The Thompson sisters are very clearly talented, but are still essentially babies. Emslie is a delight, but doesn't have anyone to get on the end of her magical left-footed deliveries. Sarah Gorden is both newly healthy and still awesome, and rookie Madison Curry has played well, but they can't patch over the holes left by the midfield and the other half of the defense. The two early season salary dumps --Henry and defender Paige Nielsen-- have predictably left the two biggest gaps in the Angel City lineup. We'll see if any changes are made during the summer transfer window, but this is a side badly in need of upgrades.
Quick Hits:
One bright spot for Angel City has been the play of 4th round rookie defender Madison Curry, who has performed well in whichever backline role Tweed has asked her to play. I've been high on Curry since her Week 2 debut against Orlando when she came on as an injury sub. From the Week 2 recap: "I was impressed with Angel City rookie FB Madison Curry in her limited minutes. Curry came on as Tweed looked to shut up shop late in the match and promptly won three straight isolated 1v1s in her own penalty area against Adriana and the pacy Allen." Since that early season cameo, Curry has only improved, particularly as a talented 1v1 defender who has shut down some of the league's best attackers in isolated duels. It's always cool when late round college draft players stick in the league, and Curry certainly looks to be one of them.
I'm sorry, but I most return to discuss Ella Stevens once again. Aside from re-creating the famous Dwayne Wade/Lebron James alley-oop photo with Sheehan on Gotham's second goal, she's had some of the most outrageous skill checks from any NWSL player all season. I mean....what is this?
And THIS!
Is Tweed on the hot seat? In a league where Casey Stoney just got fired, she's gotta be, right?
Jenna Nighswonger has gotten plenty of praise since entering the league last season, but it's important to remember that she was an attacking midfielder in college who has since turned into one of the league's best fullbacks. Great player.
Game 3: Portland Thorns 1-0 San Diego Wave
It's hard to have a worse few weeks as a soccer organization than the Wave have had as of late. Weeks after firing popular (though not on these pages!) manager Casey Stoney to almost universal criticism from the NWSL media world, the latest NWSL scandal broke, multiple former Wave employees alleging that SD's workplace environment was abusive. For anyone with knowledge of Wave President Jill Ellis' background, this was, though awful to hear, hardly a surprise. Ellis was famously terrible to her players during her tenure as USWNT manager in the mid-late teens in ways I won't go into, and was somehow hired to the Wave FO despite being named multiple times in the Sally Yates report on abuse in American soccer. The Wave's response to the initial accusatory tweet had distinct tints of Merritt Paulson's dulcet social media tones, denying the allegations without any investigation before threatening to sue their former employee. Not great!
Given Portland's own history with abusive workplace culture, it was somewhat fitting that the Wave's on-field journey took them to Providence Park to play the once-again-slumping Thorns. Portland's season has been a roller coaster: Their new coach bump is very much over, as coach Rob Gale's vibes and not much else approach has failed to compensate for the dearth of attacking options next to Sophia Smith. Portland's early season defensive troubles have mostly been remedied, but in their place have arisen some serious --and uncharacteristic-- attacking problems. With no Morgan Weaver, the Thorns had managed exactly one open-play goal (a meaningless consolation from Smith in the 4-1 home drubbing at the hands of KC) since May 24th. Let me say that again. Before Friday night, the Thorns had managed ONE OPEN PLAY GOAL SINCE MAY 24TH. It's not as though they have faced a murderer's row of opponents, either: Their cold stretch from open play has come against Seattle, Utah, and a struggling North Carolina team. Some of this is (possibly a lot of this) is down to roster talent. With no Smith or Olivia Moultrie (one of the only Thorns midfielders who likes to score goals), the ability simply isn't there. If the Thorns want even a chance at contending this season, they'll need some summer reinforcements.
On a stiflingly hot Friday evening, however, the Thorns looked closer to the Thorns of old. They accumulated 2.94 xG on the night, but failed to put one of those chances in the net until Izzy D'Aquila finally broke her home duck and finished off one of Janine Beckie's countless pinpoint crosses past Kailen Sheridan in the San Diego goal. The Thorns were once again plagued by the presence of Christine Sinclair, who seems insistent on making her teammates cover for her wherever she goes on the field. Whereas Marta has found a fountain of youth in Orlando this season, Sinclair has continued her slide down the opposite side of the mountain. Not only is she a statue defensively and in the run of play, she's not even finishing the chances that do fall to her. Multiple times she was unable to get close to a few of Beckie's sumptuous whipped crosses, and the one time she did get on the end of one shot right at Sheridan from the penalty spot. Poor Jessie Fleming played two positions on the night, covering Sinclair's abdicated pressing responsibilities on the wing while also playing as a hybrid 8/10 in Gale's 4-3-3. This pass map tells a thousand tales:
Speaking of Fleming, she had by FAR her best game as a Thorn, comfortably winning my WOTM. Her running, both in support of Sinclair and in general, was fantastic. As assistant coach Sarah Lowdon said in her post-match media comments, Fleming had an 80 minute load through the first 50 minutes of the game, relentlessly pressing the Wave whenever the opportunity arose. The running has been there the whole season for Fleming. What hasn't been there was the game control and technical excellence those of us who have watched Fleming for a decade assumed we'd get. It was very much there on Friday. Fleming flitted in and out of the midfield, demanding the ball from her teammates in ways we hadn't seen all season, pinging long diagonals to Beckie on the opposite wing, and finding half spaces deep on the field. It was an immensely encouraging performance from a player who has been, if not poor, certainly not at the level the Thorns have needed so far after her much ballyhooed transfer from Chelsea in the offseason.
For the Wave, it was same old same old. Some interim coaches change things up, but not Mr. Paul Buckle (lol). This was the same 4-3-3 Stoney has been trotting out for months, with some minor personnel chances with Emily Van Egmond taking Danielle Colaprico's place at the base of the midfield and Makenzy Doniak preferred on the right wing out of the trio of Kyra Carusa, rookie Mya Jones, and Doniak herself. Stoney never managed to get the best out of either Jaedyn Shaw or Maria Sanchez, and the rapidly declining play of Alex Morgan has meant that the Wave's attack has been even meeker than usual. Sanchez continued to ghost, getting put in jail by her impressive countrywoman Reyna Reyes at RB for the Thorns. Shaw had her moments as she usually does, but the lack of any movement around her makes her creative instincts relatively ineffective. There will, at some point in the next year, need to be a continuation of the conversation about Alex Morgan (USWNT striker) that hasn't quite permeated Alex Morgan (San Diego Wave striker).
Much like our conversation about San Diego's SoCal neighbors to the North, the Wave suffer from a poorly connected midfield and ineffective past-her-prime striker. Savannah McCaskill generally gets the brunt of the blame for the Wave's issues because she's an easy target given the star power of the players around her, but she simply hasn't been that bad individually. She's not a top level eight by any means, but she is the only Wave midfielder who wants to progress the ball and looks forward for her wingers. Whether that's a tactical issue (it is) is a different story, but the Wave's main problem is that their best players have underperformed and seem disconnected. We'll see who they go after with their next coach, but it hasn't been pretty under either Stoney or Buckle in 2024 (and, frankly, wasn't in 2023 either).
Quick Hits:
Janine Beckie played one of the weirdest games I can remember. She missed the goal entirely on one of the easiest chances you'll ever see and consistently gave the ball away with lazy passes and poor touches, but also created nearly every chance the Thorns had including the late winner.
Izzy D'Aquila's 84th minute goal came on the exact run that Sinclair was too slow to make the entire game, getting on the end of one of many pinpoint Beckie crosses.
CB Meghan Nally came on at half time for the not fully fit Isabella Obaze for her first action of the season and did a good job. She wasn't troubled by the Wave, but was assertive in the few challenges she did have to make and covered well.
It's probably time for the Wave to just start Melanie Barcenas. The teen has consistently provided a threat off the bench and jitterbugs around in an aggressive fashion no other Wave player really has.
The Thorns brought in Australian NT keeper McKenzie Arnold on a free transfer on Wednesday. Harsh on incumbent keeper Shelby Hogan, whose performances have improved after a rough start.
Player of the Week: Ella Stevens, Gotham FC
Goal of the Week: Lavelle's beautiful capper to one of the best team goals of the year (0:54 into the video)