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Game 1: Portland Thorns 1-3 Bay FC
Friday night's Amazon Prime extravaganza saw the return of gold medalists Sam Coffey and Sophia Smith to Portland after their triumph in Paris after taking the extra week of rest and missing (to the anger of some Thorns fans) the Thorns' engagement with Gotham the week prior. With Bay FC coming off a thoroughly dispiriting 3-1 loss in Utah to the suddenly rejuvenated Royals, this was a matchup of two teams in need of a win. Portland, after their hot start under now-permanent coach and head vibesman Rob Gale, find themselves in 6th place with a trip to DC on the horizon after collecting just four points from their last five NWSL matches.
While Bay put in their most compact and disciplined performance in quite a while, aided by the homecoming of brand new CB Abby Dahlkemper, this was a game the Thorns lost more than Bay won. Every issue Portland has had over the past year under both Gale and former manager Mike Norris showed up Friday night. Let's check them off one by one:
A refusal to play actual wingers on the wing. This has become a Gale specialty since Morgan Weaver's knee injury in May. The addition of Alexa Spaanstra has mitigated that problem somewhat, but Gale still elected to jam Olivia Moultrie on the right wing in order to fit his quadruplet of talented midfielders in the same starting 11. Moultrie was.....not good. She spent most of the game hanging out on the shoulder of a Bay defender, but her lack of pace in behind meant that she played more as a fourth central midfielder for much of the game.
Fullbacks playing too high and leaving the centerbacks isolated against wingers. Gale went with Nicole Payne on right side, presumably for two reasons: To allow Payne space to play as a winger when Moultrie inverted, and to match Rachael Kundananji's electric pace with some track speed of their own. There were three issues here:
Payne is still extremely raw offensively. She doesn't see space very well, is a poor passer and crosser, and panics when she doesn't have options available. This isn't her fault and she'll almost certainly improve, but it was extremely detrimental to the Thorns' build Friday.
Moultrie isn't a fan of tracking back. She noticeably didn't work hard enough to cover for Payne multiple times throughout the first half.
Payne, needing to provide the width to compensate for Moultrie providing none, was frequently caught up field, leaving Kundananji isolated 1v1 against Kelli Hubly. That's not a good matchup if you're a Thorns fan! Look how high the FBs are! It's virtually a two-back!
Gale returned to the 4-3-3, something Thorns fans hoped would remain a relic of the nighmarish Norris past. We've learned, both at club and international level, that Sam Coffey is not suited to play a single pivot because she lacks the athleticism to play as a lone six. So why has Gale gone back to the single pivot? It's beyond confounding!
4. A side effect of the 4-3-3 is that the Thorns don't seem to know how to line up in shape. There were countless instances Friday where the Thorns allowed this exact pass --arguably the most dangerous ball in soccer-- to be played. The reason this particular ball is so dangerous because it's what we call a "line breaking pass." It takes the on-ball defender (Smith) out of the play because the ball is gone before she gets there, and it takes both Coffey (why is she so high here?) and Spaanstra (presumably marking Bay's right FB out of shot) out of the play because they get bypassed. Why are the two 8s --Hina and Fleming-- so high already? This is a screenshot from a normal buildout from the back. This isn't a transition moment. So why is the entire Thorns midfield so out of position?
5. The most Norris-y of all is the Thorns elevating both 8s to join the front three in possession. Here are two more examples: In the first image, Spaanstra, Fleming, Smith, Hina, and Payne (out of shot to the bottom right) are ALL in a straight bank of 5 across the front line. Look at the space highlighted in green. Why is no one dropping to support? Why is Fleming on the back shoulder of Smith? Why is Hina running into the same area as Payne? Where is Moultrie supposed to go with this ball?
Here's another one, this time in video form: Look how high Hina starts this play, virtually as a second forward before getting frustrated with the wayward pass and throwing her hands up. Watch how Fleming takes off into three waiting Bay defenders instead of dropping and providing an option. Spaanstra is standing offside. Versions of this play show up all over Thorns tape, and it's the easiest explanation for why the midfield build is so ineffective: It's like a little kid kick-and-chase, except everyone runs away from the ball instead of towards it.
Bay, to their credit did some good stuff. Asisat Oshoala started after being benched the week prior and was excellent as a pivot, working tirelessly with her back to goal off long balls into the midfield. Kundananji was consistently dangerous down the left, while the Bay midfield trio of Dorian Bailey, Kiki Pickett, and Tess Boade worked hard out of possession. Dahlkemper has been an instant boon to the Bay backline, but it was the ex-Thorns Emily Menges who stood out in her return to Portland, making a number of crucial interceptions and last ditch tackles on Sophia Smith as the Thorns pushed forward. Bay's first two goals were both excellent back-post balls resulting in tap-ins for Dahlkemper and Rachel Hill respectively. FBs Alyssa Malonson and Caprice Dydasco filled the space left by the Payne on on the right and Reyna Reyes on the left, forcing Alexa Spaanstra and Jessie Fleming to leave their normal positions to cover. It's hard to find a more dysfunctional opponent than Portland at the moment, but Bay deserve credit for a sturdy performance in a harsh environment that pushed them back above the playoff line.
Quick Hits:
Goodness gracious is Katelyn Rowland having a tough season for Bay. After passing the ball directly to Sophia Smith for Portland's lone goal, she's made at least one borderline catastrophic error in each of Bay's last three games. She looks to be comfortably the worst keeper in the league at the moment.
Speaking of keepers, McKenzie Arnold made her debut for Portland and was assured in possession, spraying a number of excellent diagonals wide to Portland's wingers and FBs. With that said, after making an excellent save on a curling left-footed effort from Kundananji, she probably could have done better on Bay's third.
The Thorns need to find a Kelli Hubly replacement. Hubly, an average starting CB for much of her career, has dropped below the power curve. She returned to her error-prone ways tonight, attempting a 50 yard diagonal that she simply does not have in her toolbox that was picked off by the road side and duly finished by Joelle Anderson, ending any comeback hopes.
Game 2: North Carolina Courage 2-1 Kansas City Current
Remember last week when I expressed some concern over KC's recent performances?
While you never want to lose two straight matches to your primary competitors for the shield, it's fair to say that losing to the now 19-unbeaten Orlando Pride and the Giraldez-era Washington Spirit is far from embarrassing. For KC, however, it was less the dropped points and more the manner of said dropped points that was beginning to stand out. Last week, we highlighted both the two current biggest issues for KC (the inability to break down a low block and some increasingly worrying defensive fragility) and the biggest potential issue (losing starting six Claire Hutton to the U-20 World Cup).
If last week's 4-1 debacle in Washington brought the first two issues to the forefront, the second was clear for all to see Saturday in Cary. The Courage are not the team you want to play in your first game without your starting six- Sean Nahas' side comfortably lead the league in possession percentage, touches per match, and passes per match. Their lack of attacking options in behind have turned them into an even more possession-reliant side, Vlatko decided to insert Bailey Feist into the midfield and drop poor Lo Labonta back into the six. Labonta really should never should have been asked to replicate Hutton's coverage impact: Going into the match, I assumed the verteran would be be asked to sit next to Feist in a double pivot, but she instead took Hutton's role while Feist moved up the field next to Vanessa Dibernardo as a second 10. As a result, KC was thoroughly dominated in the midfield for large stretches, Denise O'Sullivan patrolling the center of a park like a lion on the prowl.
The Courage, on the other hand, have a case for the weirdest NWSL season of the year. North Carolina have accumulated 28 points through 18 weeks. 25 of those 28 points have come in the friendly confines of Cary, North Carolina. For a team with a bottom third attendance average and no clearly observable home field advantage, it's hard one to explain. Never have their home/road splits been more stark than over the past two weeks: After a horrendous performance last Sunday in Seattle against the floundering Reign, the Courage put in a mostly excellent display against one of the league's best teams.
Summer addition Cortnee Vine has added a little bit of much needed verticality to a Courage squad needing verticality in spades while Kerolin (who somehow played at the Olympics on her return from an ACL tear but hasn't been in the 18 in either post-Olympics NWSL match) completes her recovery. Nahas elected to play a front line of three actual attackers (whodathunk!), starting Vine up top between Victoria Pickett and Haley Hopkins with Manaka Matsakubo away at the U-20 World Cup. Vine's directness has been a boon for the Courage, who have been reliant on trying to pass the ball into the net or scoring worldies from distance. And it was Vine who scored the equalizer moments after Temwa Chawinga opened the scoring on the night for the Current.
Nahas has preferred Dani Weatherholt, a natural central midfielder, to German international Feli Rauch since the NWSL returned to action. The Courage have played in an unbalanced 4-3-3 all season anyhow, Rauch inverting in possession to add numbers to the North Carolina midfield. Nahas seems to have said "fuck it, let's just play a CM there and skip a step," and Weatherholt has been fine, keeping the machine moving solidly if unspectacularly. The Courage still lack width, even with Vine in the fold; It's a feature of Nahas' style. Playing against a Current midfield three lacking any real athleticism, O'Sullivan and Narumi Miura thrived, triangulating poor Feist and Labonta to death throughout the match. The Courage, who often prefer to keep the ball in the middle third, elevated their attacking line slightly in this one, completing 21 more passes than the Current in their attacking third and completely dominating the ball in the Current half.
While the Courage had the better of the play, neither team really generated much until the rain started coming down early in the second half. A slightly lazy touch by Courage CB Malia Berkley allowed the omnipresent Chawinga to pounce, the Malawi international taking the ball off Berkley's foot before rounding Courage GK Casey Murphy and finishing into an empty net in the 62nd minute for her league-leading 14th goal of the season. Moments later, however, Vine cut inside a soft challenge from Current LB Hailee Mace and finished into the upper right corner for the equalizer in the 68th minute. The Current had the better of the play for the remainder of the match after a lengthy rain delay --and should have scored when Alana Cook had her header saved off the line by Berkley-- but were handed their third consecutive loss in the 92nd minute when Courage substitute Brianna Pinto posted up Labonta off a throw, turned her far too easily, and perfectly replicated her teammate's upper 90 effort from 30 minutes earlier.
Quick Hits:
Nichelle Prince got the start on the wing instead of Michelle Cooper. Since striker Bia Zaneratto went down with a foot injury, the Current haven't quite figured out their front three, and that right side has been the (relative) weak point.
Debinha, while still extremely dangerous, doesn't quite have the juice of the Debinha of old. She was noticeably gassed early in the second half and hasn't quite been on the same page with Chawinga and Dibernardo.
Cook doesn't look to have improved on her poor Seattle form, struggling positionally throughout and looking shaky in possession. KC will need better from her down the stretch.
As I predicted last week, Andonovski's patience with incumbent keeper AD Franch ran out this week, the Current manager benching Franch for Germany vet Almuth Schult (who didn't look entirely confident in her own right).
Game 3: Orlando Pride 2-0 Gotham FC
Maybe it was just the contrast of watching Orlando delete one of the hottest teams in the league off the field the day after watching the Current slip up in North Carolina and just before Washington struggled in San Diego, but the Pride's performance against Gotham on Sunday felt particularly meaningful in the NWSL's tight shield race as we enter the final third of the season.
Of the NWSL's top four, Orlando has comfortably the most complete resume: They're third in the league in goals scored, second in cumulative xG, and first by a mile in goals conceded. In Marta, Barbra Banda, Adriana, and Summer Yates, they are the only side in the league to boast four different 5+ goal scorers. Oh, and they're seven matches away from becoming the NWSL's first invincible side, having gone 18 straight matches without losing.
Orlando's six point cushion at the top of the NWSL table is made more impressive by the fact that manager Seb Hines has rarely had a full squad to choose from- Banda showed up. four games into the NWSL season, Adriana and Marta have both missed three games due to injury, starting six Angelina missed nearly two months, CB Rafaelle has only played nine matches, and big offseason signing Morgan Gautrat has played just 10. Summer signing Grace Chanda was injured during the Olympics and hasn't set foot on the field in Orlando. This isn't the first time you've hear me say this and it certainly won't be the last: Hines is the best manager in the league because no one else has both elevated and developed players like he has. He's turned the talented but mercurial Summer Yates into a consistent attacking weapon. He's elevated mid-round college draft picks (Yates, Kerry Abello, Brianna Martinez) to starting caliber NWSL players, resurrected the careers of former first rounders and talented but underutilized internationals (Haley McCutcheon, Julie Doyle, Ally Watt, and Angelina), and slowly built up talented youngsters (Ally Lemos and Amanda Allen) while not relying on them entirely. Hines has rotated heavily, but his teams all play the same compact, disciplined, and fluid counterattacking style and the result has been where Orlando finds themself now.
The rest of the credit goes to Pride GM Haley Carter --recently rewarded with a contract extension-- who is responsible for one of the most textbook rebuilds you'll ever want to see. Since being appointed Pride GM in January 2023, Carter took a virtually talentless squad --only Marta, McCutcheon, Strom, and Doyle remain key contributors from Orlando's 2022 side that finished third from the bottom-- and, over the course of a season and a half, transformed it into a shield-leading side. She's added significant international talent (Banda, Adriana, Rafaelle, and Chanda), drafted brilliantly (Emily Sams, Ally Lemos, Cori Dyke, and Yates), and acquired Angelina and Gautrat via trade and free agency respectively. It's been a remarkable turnaround on the field for a franchise that had been the NWSL's whipping boy for years, but more than that, Carter has added stability internally- She's re-signed key contributors, been vocal about player safety, and spoken out about NWSL scheduling issues. For a fan of a side that currently....well, lacks stable leadership (more on that in a bit), Orlando should be the poster child of a small-market team looking to reach great heights.
Orlando's performance against Gotham was typically Orlando: The single-game xG finished 0.7-0.8, but Orlando always felt the better side (no, friends, no devil magic here- Just some elite finishing!). They suffocated Gotham's typically fluid midfield attack by sitting back and ceding possession while never quite feeling out of control. This sort of field tilt usually yields a pretty heavy chance and G+ disparity, but that's the thing with Orlando- They trust their system and it almost always works.
A sumptuous early volley by Adriana gave Orlando a lead to protect and protect they did, with Adriana adding their second later on. Gotham, still missing Lynn Williams (and, as ever, the explosiveness of the out-for-the-season Midge Purce), nonetheless put out one of their most healthy lineups of late, their trio of offseason free agency national teamers all starting. Gotham's worry relative to their top of the table competitors is that they still don't carry a tremendous attacking threat compared to the KCs, Orlandos, and Washingtons of the world, all of whom have terrifying pace on the counter. Gotham is really the only team of the top four that really wants to keep the ball. We discussed how KC struggles against a low block, and Washington mirrors Orlando's sit and kick mentality as well. When Gotham don't get an early lead and have to expose themselves a little bit, they can struggle- Their defensive record is second only to Orlando, but their offense has consistently struggled to produce without Purce on the field. Ella Stevens has done an inspiring job at keeping Gotham competitive up top and Yaz Ryan is a constant danger, but neither are the field-stretching threats that Chawinga, Banda, and Trinity Rodman are for their competitors. Gotham is 8th in the league in goals scored- They have scored 12 fewer goals than Orlando 14 fewer than Washington, and HALF as many as the Current's 41. If they want a chance at chasing down the Pride or passing Washington and KC, that will likely have to change.
Quick Hits:
Julie Doyle hit a screamer in second half stoppage time that would have made it 3-0 and was dubiously chocked off for offsides.
Portuguese international signing Jessica Silva made her Gotham debut late in the match.
Yates remains the surprise of the 2024 NWSL season for me. Delightful little player.
Emily Sams was imperious throughout, calmly snuffing out danger and passing through Gotham's press.
Adriana scored both Orlando goals and could have had a hat-trick. Amidst the Banda hoopla, Adriana has had a somewhat underwhelming season compared to last season's performance that saw her become a deserved MVP candidate. If she begins to heat up.....ho boy.
Player of the Week: Adriana, Orlando Pride
Goal of the Week: Ji So Yun's FK vs. Louisville @ 5:20 of the highlight package below.
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