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Current 3 Racing 3 Post Match Thoughts
Courtesy USA Today Sports Images
The narrative of this match would have been much different if Savannah DeMelo had not scored a very, very late equalizer. Now Racing needs to kick on and make it mean something.
The most encouraging part about last night was how Racing hung in and got a point against a lead-leading team that played a really solid match. Kansas City pressed hard to get all 3 points and Racing just wouldn't let them have them without a fight. This is definitely a point won and earned.
I can't overstate the importance of Savannah DeMelo playing up to her abilities, especially with the roster being so thin. There are absolutely things that drive me nuts sometimes about how she plays, but those are often the things that when she gets them right make her the player she is. She is a self-indentfied dribbler, and sometimes she over dribbles. However, she used this tendency to absolutely grab the game and snatch it away from the Current. This team will go as far as she carries them. That is a heavy burden, and we will see how long she can continue to carry it.
The defensive line is in danger of playing too many minutes. Racing cannot go through another season without rotating just a little bit at left back and right rack. Milliet has had a couple of sub par matches in a row and Pickett doesn't need to play every minute either. It's hard to make a defensive sub when you are trailing, so sometimes I think you just need to have a plan to do so regardless of score.
Sears put in her 2nd 90 minutes in a row and looked none the worse for wear. I think she may have secured her starting spot. Personally, I haven't seen enough from Bahr to think that Wright just doesn't walk straight into the team once fit. Racing played a player short in their squad due to a late scratch of Motlhalo. This is at least the second time this season that Racing fielded a short bench. I believe that they were both on the road, which can happen from time to time. However, with Pikkujämsä out for the season Racing probably do need to sign another player.
After the trip to Chicago, Racing has a run of matches with teams that are currently out of the top six. That should be a prime opportunity to close the gap that still exists between Racing and the playoff positions.
Current 3 Racing 3 Player Ratings
I’m not quite sure why the match was still going, but Racing get a late equalizer. Racing should count themselves lucky, but sometimes you would rather be lucky than good. Regardless, it's a fantastic point.
Lund-6: Got close on the penalty. I thought it was better from her.
Pickett-6: Struggled a bit defensively but was good in attack as always getting an assist.
Erceg-7: Not sure if her goal will stand to strict scrutiny but got the contact that caused it.
Wright-7: Solid effort from Arin.
Milliet-5: Lost possession in a dangerous position for the Current's 2nd and the 3rd deflected off of her.
Flint-7: Looked bound and determined to get a yellow and got one.
DiGrande-6: Does well as a backup, but Racing misses Howell.
DeMelo-7: Scored a classy equalizer at the death.
Fischer-5: Got caught on the ball for the penalty though it may not have been completely her fault.
Sears-7: There is absolutely no way she meant that goal but won’t care.
Bahr-5: I think it's time to ask why she is an automatic starter.
Turner-6: Produced a fine effort that Franch needed to save.
Current v Racing Pre Match Thoughts
Courtesy USA Sports Images
Louisville and Kansas City meet on Saturday evening with a 13-point gulf between them. The Current are at the top of the league and Racing finds itself in a familiar spot near the bottom of the table. This trip is an opportunity for Racing to turn heads or reinforce their league reputation as an also-ran.
For me, Kansas City’s performance this year encapsulates the most frustrating part of my four years of Racing fandom. The Current have seemed to turn things around in a rapid fashion. There is definitely an argument to be made that the Current way underperformed last year, and that hiring a big-name coach sped along their progress. That doesn’t necessarily make me feel any better about where Racing sit at this moment in time. I asked Bekki to pose the question on the latest Butchertown Rundown episode to assess where Tom and Kaitlyn (but unfortunately, we didn’t get to hear Bekki’s own take) stood on the scale of “Trust the Process” vs. “Law of Holes” scale. I would categorize their attitude as mostly in the “Trust the Process” category and I would have to agree with that for the most part. The concerning part for me was that the concept even popped into my head and neither Bekki, nor Kaitlyn, nor Tom thought it ridiculous enough to dismiss from the outset. I think Bev is doing a fine job. I think the attitude of the players is upbeat and correctly so. The piece that bothers me it that maybe I don’t have realistic expectations.
Frequent and long-term visitors to this site know where my soccer fandom was born and where my deepest loyalties lie. I am not going to rehash any of that, but it did get me thinking “this is what it must be like to be a Crystal Palace fan.” That club has a long, but not necessarily successful history. Their most recent teams have been prone to moments of absolute brilliance and have featured some very, very good players, but they never are consistently what I would classify as “good”. No sane person without of some kind of connection to South London would ever think it was a good idea to be a Palace supporter. Therefore, their club is characterized by fiercely loyal, but long-suffering fans who are mostly from South London. It you asked me to summarize what I thought their club identity was in a single sentence I would say this: It is a club that can be dangerous on their best day, but they are hardly ever going to threaten to win any kind of major trophy.
I don’t want that to become the identity of this club. However, lacking any other option, I would have to say that through what I have seen so far, my assessment of Crystal Palace kind of sums up this team too. Honestly, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. I will gladly attend every home game and write about every match they participate in. I just can’t imagine any scenario in the near future where this team wins a major honor. I hope someday very soon they prove me wrong. For me, proximity is the main reason I support this club. They really haven’t given me any other one yet.
With that huge bummer out of the way, I do have to say that the attitudes of the players and coaches in this club couldn’t be better, at least in public or in the media. They have had a rough start to the season that was somewhat masked by an undefeated run but have kept a positive attitude. However, this isn’t the Disney Channel, so that doesn’t always work. Another minor bummer…the team just can’t seem to get healthy. The news is as good as it can be on Borges, but even if an optimistic June timetable works out for her, she would likely head off to the Olympics with no real chance to find her form. Davis is participating in practice, but I do not believe she is near contact yet. Once she is fully fit, it will probably take at least a month for her to find some form. Coach Yanez has definitely not been dealt the best hand when it comes to injuries. In Racing Louisville’s pre-match media today, Bev shared this on the squad depth when I asked her if we had seen her best XI: “You have to have belief in the whole group because opportunities will present themselves and you need the confidence of those players to be able to step in and execute.” I think the squad has shown its depth and there really hasn’t been a huge drop-off. Maybe the results point to the tiniest bit of drop in quality (or the realization that you would have gotten a similar result with everyone available.)
I will stick with the bummer theme to hopefully get it out of my system. I am not a fan of the “peak at the right time mentality”. It implies to me that non-peak performance is acceptable at points. I think Racing missed huge opportunities at the beginning of the season to pad their point total. One would much rather experience a dip in form with some padding in the table when it comes to placement and points. Unfortunately, Racing didn’t take full advantage when they got leads and now the table is rather daunting. The playoffs are always going to be a crapshoot (Gotham had dreadful pre-playoff from last season) and 3 points in the first match count just the same as 3 points in the final match. Louisville might have dug themselves an early season hole too deep to escape. The good news is that there is still time to turn things around.
Let me say this about the mentality of “peaking”. I think it’s soft. I prefer the mentality of “constant and continuing excellence.” I realize the nobody starts there, but it’s the mentality that the top clubs in the world have. They can recover from dips in form because the can mentally picture success either through their own experiences or through the club’s history. The odd thing is that I would classify Lou City as having a true winner’s mentality. There are people in the combined Soccer Holdings group that clearly have it. I just wish they could bottle it and donate some of it to Racing. I hold out hope that Racing gets there, but as I frequently attest, I just haven’t seen evidence of it yet.
Racing 1 Spirit 2 Post Match Thoughts
Courtesy USA Today Sports Images
While Racing fought hard in the second half to try to find an equalizer, the early mistakes doomed them and now there should be a real urgency to turn things around. The overall health of the team is concerning to me, but the players who are fit should be doing more to get results.
For the first time this season, I think Bev got things wrong. Coach Björkegren was constantly criticized (although not necessarily by me) for sticking too long with his starters. I think at least one of the following things are true: 1) while Racing are putting 9 players on the bench, not all of them are actually ready to go into a match, 2) Bev got caught up in the momentum of Racing’s first 15 of the second half and couldn't bring herself to pull some of the starters for subs, and/or 3) she made the correct decision to leave on the players she did, but it wasn't enough. I would have wagered heavily that there was no way that Howell or Clegg were getting on the pitch on Friday. After the match when she was asked about Kanu, she deflected the question to basically say that she was happy with the players on the pitch. I believe Pickett and Sears were gassed by the 85th minute and subbing in either Kanu or Goins for Sears and Pokorny for Pickett would have been prudent. Let's just say that in my opinion transparency with the media isn't one of Bev's top concerns, so oftentimes we are left to speculate on things. Personally, I think she got too caught up in the match and missed her window for subs. After the 80th minute passes, you start to worry if the subs you make can get up to match speed quickly enough to make a difference. I am starting to get a rather unpleasant feeling of déjà vu in that while there are nominally 20 players on the matchday squad, the number who are healthy AND trusted is much lower. Björkegren ran last year’s team into the ground by August because he didn’t trust his squad. At this rate, I think we could see a repeat if some players don't get back to full fitness soon.
Missed penalty aside, this was DeMelo’s most complete game in a long while. She was everywhere on the pitch, especially in the 2nd half. We all know that she is an excellent free kick taker, so seeing one go close and another go in shouldn't have surprised anyone. For me it was her on the ball movement that seemed to be back to her early season form from last season. She looked confident and controlled. Now, she is never going to be my top choice to take penalties. Her penalty in this match was pretty poor and it isn't the first time she has taken a bad one. Unfortunately, I don't have a suggestion for who should take over, and that is the real problem. If I am being honest, I thought the penalty was soft, so I won't dwell on the miss too much.
Lund has had some nervy moments and questionable decisions this year. Additionally, she has gone down for treatment at least of couple of times in matches. Whether it is a physical or mental issue with her, she definitely hasn’t been at the top of her game. She wasn’t at fault for the first goal and made a fine save just before the second one, but could have done better on the ball that Milliet inadvertently put in. She had a bizarre miskick in the first half that she just got away with, and she made a frankly terrible pass to Erceg in 2nd half stoppage time that I am still not sure why Ratcliffe didn’t at least attempt to put the ball into the empty net. Lund’s reputation is that she is supposed to be good with her feet, but this season she has over relied on them, and they have oftentimes let her down. Racing’s margin of error for victory isn’t big enough to overcome too many goalkeeping mistakes.
Speaking of mistakes, this match reminded me of error-prone days that I had hoped had passed. Off the top of my head, you had 2 bad touches from Lund, an own goal from Milliet, a missed penalty for DeMelo, but maybe the most egregious one was not marking Bethune on the corner from which she scored. DeMelo tried to close he down, but there is no way she should have been given that much space to begin with. DeMelo did better marking her on the next corner, but it makes me wonder if it was a missed assignment on the first one.
Racing 1 Spirit 2 Player Ratings
Racing dug itself too big of a hole but fought galantly. It's hard to fault the effort but there were too many early mistakes.
Lund-5: Looks to be a bit off her game if I am to be completely honest.
Pickett-6: As always good going forward.
Erceg-6: A decent effort from the captain.
Wright-6: Continues to grow into the team.
Milliet-5: Not her best match, but the own goal was only partially her fault.
Flint-7: Helped Racing control large sections of the match.
DiGrande-6: Had a decent effort on goal.
Fischer-6: Had an interesting game as a winger.
DeMelo-8: She had her second really good performance in a row, but has to get her penalty conversion percentage up.
Bahr-7: Getting more involved in attack.
Sears-8: Put in her first 90 minutes and was really quite excellent.
Racing v Spirit Pre Match Thoughts
Photo Courtesy of David Mucker
The Washington Spirit (donning their stupid and pointless kits) return to Lynn Family stadium to face Racing on Friday evening. The Spirit are almost always good value for the money and play in entertaining football matches. After beating Racing 3 out of 4 times in Louisville’s first season (with a memorable win from Racing on Ekic's super strike thrown in) there has been nothing to separate the teams. The script has typically been the Spirit starting strong and Racing fighting back to equalize (with the sole exception of a Nadim opener canceled out by a Hatch equalizer). The moral of the story is that you are never really out of match when facing Washington.
The Spirit this season are kind of the anti-Racing. They have zero draws and score more and concede more than Racing. I like their attitude of “damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead”. This philosophy has put Washington in the top 4 so far. Racing, to me at least, tend to go with a “safety first” approach, especially when they get a lead. Both teams are coming off of a loss, so both will be looking to avoid a second straight one. It will be interesting to see how each team approaches the first 10 to 15 minutes in this match.
Howell and DeMelo could be available, but we likely won't know for sure until the lineups are announced. Borges seems further away from returning. For the first time in a while, I find myself struggling to pick out Racing’s best XI, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. However, some of that is down to not being able to evaluate players and connections due to injuries. I have a hunch that it is going to be “one of those years” where each match will have a key player or two who are unavailable (this is above and beyond Elli P's SEI). Racing's depth has held up so far, but I don't think anyone wants to see it stretched further.
In her media availability on Wednesday, Bev talked about not dwelling on the loss or going down “a very dark rabbit hole” to analyze what exactly went wrong. In my opinion, one of Bev's key strengths is maintaining a positive attitude. Let's hope that translates to the players. Historically, Racing is prone to long bouts of malaise when the results start to not go their way. Friday will be a good test for her and the team.
Orlando 1 Racing 0 Post Match Thoughts
Courtesy USA Today Sports Images
Racing were bound to have a game like this sooner or later. If I am being honest, I have to say that overall, I came out of Sunday's match more impressed with Orlando's performance versus disappointed in Louisville’s. That being said, there are definitely a few talking points to hit on from a Racing perspective.
We all knew that sooner or later Racing’s streak of never trailing would come to an end. If I had to grade their response, I think I would give it a solid C. They didn't panic for sure and stuck to game plan. On the other hand, there didn't see to be any real sense of urgency to turn things around either. I definitely didn't see anything that conjured images of “running through a brick wall.” That's honestly fine at this point in the season. This team is on a journey but it's way too early to tell if it is a destination towards the playoffs or another road to nowhere.
We are 7 matches into the season now which means I will be writing my “1st quarter of the season” review this week. I expect to have more to say there, but so far I would say that their has been marginal improvement in the club. It might take a full season with Bev at the helm to reap the results of any real change. There will be more to come on this.
It think the impact of Racing missing both DeMelo and Howell really showed in this match. Fischer and DiGrande were fine individually, but the added loss of Borges meant that the connections just weren't there. Who knows if the result would have been different, but their absences were crystal clear.
Sears for all of her strengths isn't quite ready to put in 60 or 70 minutes of defending. I like her as a number 9 who would have less defensive responsibilities. Bahr isn't getting enough touches, so I wonder if something different up front might be a wise idea. When Kirsten Wright is fully fit, I think she goes right back into the 9 slot.
Emily Sams will always kind of be the one that got away for Racing. She was excellent for Orlando and was the player of the match in my opinion.
Pride 1 Racing 0 Player Ratings
Orlando jumped out fairly early and Racing never really looked like they were going to get the equalizer. All in all, you would have to say that Orlando was clearly the superior team on the night.
Lund-7: Kept Racing in the match with some fine saves.
Pickett-7: Delivered some of Racing's best opportunities from corners in the first half.
Erceg-7: Took the sting out of Banta's shot to keep it 1-0.
Wright-6: Tried some longer attacking passes with mixed results.
Milliet-6: Didn't really connect with Sears who was surely a last minute replacement.
DiGrande-7: Subbed in well for Howell.
Flint-6: Would like to see her touch improve in matches like this.
Fischer-6: Had a decent effort on goal saved.
Kanu-6: Was a little bit off her game in this match.
Bahr-6: Didn't have many chances, but did have Louisville’s best chance in the second half.
Sears-6: Was just okay in her first start, but her touch when receiving the ball needs to be better.
Orlando v Racing Pre Match Thoughts
Courtesy Chris Humphrey
Racing’s all-time record is now 17W-29D-28L. For the first time since Racing drew in its inaugural NWSL league match the club has more draws than losses in its overall league historical record. Congratulations, I guess. This year’s vintage of Racing Louisville is still in the unique (but not as helpful as it could have been) situation of never having trailed this season. If Racing are going to stay in the playoff hunt this season, they will surely need to top their best ever return of 6 league wins last season. That means that they will likely need a win percentage of at least 30% in their remaining matches. That doesn’t seem like an impossible or even improbable hill to climb, but they would have to demonstrate form better than any other Racing squad has ever consistently shown. I am a big believer in “form”. Put more mathematically, I would never expect (but also never rule out) a run of data in a time series to which I hadn’t witnessed a similar pattern before. However, I would say that winning at least 6 more matches is about equally likely to happen as to not happen. It’s still early in the season but based on what I have seen so far, I wouldn’t rule out a playoff run but I also wouldn’t plan on one yet either.
Speaking of plans, I get the sense from talking to Bev Yanez over the last few months that she doesn’t necessarily like to “plan” for adversity. I asked her on Wednesday, if she was “anxious” to see how the team responded when they inevitably trail in a match at some point. She flipped her answer on me and said that she focused on putting the team in positions to not be trailing. She likes the positive “mindset” by asking players to be “brave” when they go into matches. Let’s be frank here. Racing hasn’t really faced any real adversity this season. They sure have faced disappointment a few times, but that is different than adversity. The problem is that when you don’t face adversity, sometimes you mistake disappointment for adversity. I think there is a clear difference in mentality between “holding on” to a lead and “fighting back” to equalize or even overtake an opponent. Whether you like it or not, you build memory based on your experiences. Racing definitely has quite a bit of collective memory built up around not holding on to leads. In their history they really only have a small number of instances of fighting back to win from behind. I’m not saying they can’t do it and if somehow, they go through a continued stretch never trailing, I would put my money on getting more wins. At some point they will fall behind, and if 0-0 is the scoreline where you see the team’s true style, 0-1 is the scoreline where you first start to see their true mentality.
I believe that there is a pretty good chance that neither DeMelo nor Howell play on Sunday in Orlando. Luckily Racing has the depth to overcome this. I have to think DeMelo is closer to returning than Howell. Howell’s removal seemed semi-precautionary, but repeated leg muscle injuries are hard to manage. I have full confidence in DiGrande and maybe just slightly less confidence in Fischer, but she is certainly capable of slotting in for DeMelo on a good day. Dropping Borges into midfield is an option too. A less experienced bench means we could see more minutes for Motlhalo.
Gotham 1 Racing 1 Post Match Thoughts
Courtesy USA Today Sports Images
I very much want to write the post where I declare that Racing is in the upper echelon of the league now. I thought I might get to write that post for a grand total of 2 minutes yesterday. The way that Racing set up in the match was nearly perfect. It was the ideal “snatch and grab” scenario (although Racing really wasn’t outplayed at all). They snatched it, but the grab was beyond them.
I feel like the art of goalkeeping is evolving. For the tops teams in the top men’s leagues in the world, it is almost quaint to think of the goalkeeper’s role as that of a shot stopper. They frequently are involved in build-up play and are becoming more part of the proactive effort on defense rather than the last line of it. A huge part of that is grabbing dangerous passes out of the air, before they become a problem. The key to this skill is to do it with 100% conviction. I’ve rewatched the botched grab from Katie Lund several times, and while it may be harsh to put all of the blame on her for not catching it, once you decide to go for it and don’t get it I feel like you have to take the blame whether you merit all of it or not. In real time it looked like one she should have grabbed. After rewatching it, maybe Wright got in her way a bit. Ultimately, the correct decision there may have been not to go after the ball since Wright seemed to be in a good position. We don’t know what the communication was, and I really don’t care to dwell on it by trying to find out later. Either way, it resulted in two points dropped and I still wait to write the piece that says maybe this team has learned their lesson because obviously they haven’t.
What does this team need to do with Emma Sears? I can’t quite decide if she is so effective because she is used as a sub or would be just as good if she started from the first whistle. She is so good at running at the defenders when they are tired, but could she be used just as effectively to make them tired? Luckily it isn’t a question that is yearning for an immediate answer. I will tell you one thing…I wish she would have signed a 3-year contract instead of a 2-year one. That run was other-worldly. Turner’s name is on the scoresheet and her finish was delightful, but it was made by Sears.
DeMelo left Sunday’s game (although not immediately) with a head injury. She is being assessed in New Jersey before returning home. It appeared that she went through some kind of head injury evaluation on the pitch before deciding that she couldn’t continue on. Sometimes head injuries are difficult to assess right way, so Sav showed real maturity by not just continuing on because she was cleared. Jae Howell also left the match early and Bev stated in her post-match press conference that the team is being cautious with her calves. Based on how the team managed her at the tail end of last season and the beginning of this one, I would expect her to miss some time (but that is just based on past observation and not any real information). Luckily, Racing has some midfield bench strength and Borges could be moved back into midfield for a bit if needed.
Zoomed in, this definitely feels like 2 points dropped, but zoomed out I don’t really think at point at Gotham is a bad result. Racing still has never trailed this season. The most frustrating part is that it seems like the Soccer gods make Racing work and earn their goals and gift goals to the other teams through mistakes. It seems that way but in reality, there is plenty of evidence in Racing’s history that simply points to the fact that they just aren’t good playing with a lead.
I hate the amount of stoppage time that is given in these matches. There were more than 17 minutes in yesterday’s match when you take both halves. The quality and intensity of play in second half stoppage time was vastly different from the rest of the match. I personally think Racing’s plan yesterday worked to a tee. They essentially shortened the match to a 10-minute period. It’s just too bad that the late goal wasn’t late enough.
Gotham 1 Racing 1 Player Ratings
The game really only came to life in stoppage time. This is one that Racing really should have won “smash and grab” style but a point isn't a bad result.
Lund-4: Have to grab that ball.
Pickett/Erceg/Wright/Milliet-8: All four defenders put in an excellent performance worthy of 3 points
Flint-7: She was the only starting midfielder to make it to the end of the match. Put in another really good shift.
Howell-6: Went off early with what appeared to be a lower leg problem.
DeMelo-6: Left with what may have been concussion-like symptoms. Prior to that did a decent job holding up possession.
Kanu-6: Missed a big chance to put Racing ahead.
Borges-6: Still getting up to speed.
Bahr-5: Wasn't involved much.
Sears-8: Changed the match. Her run on the goal was world class.
Turner-8: Found herself in the right place to score.
DiGrande-6: Subbed well for Howell.
Gotham v Racing Pre Match Thoughts
Coming off its first win of the season, Racing looks to keep the momentum going against Gotham in New Jersey on Sunday. It is way too early to be looking at the NWSL table, so keeping focus on the upcoming opponent should be the team's only concern. Racing put in an excellent performance on Saturday put not a perfect one, so there is still room for growth.
I thought it was pertinent to give Bev’s full answer when I asked her about the moments where the team switches off like the end of the half against Utah: “I think it's unrealistic to say that there won't be moments like that. No team is perfect, it just doesn't exist. No person is perfect. We all wish it, but it's not the case. I think for us when those moments occur (we ask) is it just one line? Is it one player or two players, but not the third the 4th the 5th? It's how quickly we can stop it because at the end of the day everybody's executing to their ability and for the right reasons. They're trying to make the right decision in the moment. It just can't be a domino effect, or a trickle effect. (It’s about) how quickly can we recognize that it wasn't the right decision, and we all have to go stop it.” I think you could easily argue that the overwhelming majority of goals can be traced back to a mistake by the other team at some point. Bev’s suggests that mentality is the key here and I agree.
For as well as Racing played on Saturday versus Utah, Gotham is an entirely different opponent. They haven’t played consistently well yet, but proved last season that their form can turn on a dime (good or bad). Gotham thoroughly outplayed Racing in Columbia and if Racing put in a similar performance to that one, it will be a long Sunday afternoon in New Jersey. However, Gotham are at the bottom of the league when it comes to goals/match (.5) and FotMob’s ratings of their performances puts them near the bottom too. Racing needs to capitalize on Gotham’s lack of form before they get any momentum.
This is the point of the season where I start to track performance based on which team scored first. I like to put together a chart that places team on an X axis and Y axis that contrasts the number of points that they get when they score first and the number when the other team scores first. I can’t do that yet this season, because Racing has yet to trail at all this season. The team has played 450 minutes without trailing in a match. They are the only team in the league that hasn’t trailed in a match. That is a fairly decent accomplishment.
As a team Racing is getting healthier, but one player did miss Thursday’s practice with a “head cold”. It isn’t a major concern.
The team will be making a “quick trip” to New Jersey. They will fly out on Saturday and are scheduled to return Monday morning. A direct flight to Newark makes this one of the easier road trips.
Racing 5 Royals 1 Post Match Thoughts
Courtesy Elizabeth Shaw
Racing put in its most complete performance on Saturday and ultimately cruised to a 5-1 victory over the short-handed and frankly over-matched Utah Royals. It was the sign of a superior team taking care of business, which is something that should never be taken for granted in the unpredictable NWSL.
It was clear how much the victory meant to the players and the coaches, and to celebrate it in front of a record crowd made it extra special. If you could bottle a feeling and an experience in order to reproduce it on demand, I believe you could do a lot worse than picking yesterday’s match. Now, comes the grind. I think if Racing have gotten over the proverbial “hump”, now is the time to show that they know how to grind out results when they need to do so. I think it would be foolish to expect Racing to head to Gotham and pull off another 4-goal victory. However, getting all 3 points isn’t beyond them and shouldn’t be beyond them in any upcoming match. The importance of this match was getting the victory to prove that is could be done. Hopefully the mental hurdles are cleared and now the focus to turn completely to replicating good performances.
While this was Racing’s best performance, it certainly wasn’t perfect. Sometimes coaches have to dig deep for coachable moments in victories, but I don’t think that is the case here. I have been really pleased with Uchenna Kanu’s performance so far this season, and she had another good game yesterday. However, she switched off for a moment when the match approached halftime and it cost Racing a goal in my opinion. The Royals had just won possession back and Kanu wasn’t tremendously out of position, but her slight hesitation to track back to help Pickett on the left side meant that Carson was isolated when the ball was played to Utah’s right side. Pickett was left deciding which player to cover and she slipped when trying to cover both. A fine finish from Griffitts meant that Racing went into halftime at 1-1. It shows that you can’t shut off even for a moment if you want to win in this league. Fortunately Racing showed its class, and this moment became a footnote rather than the story. It is still a moment that is coachable, and I expect that next time Uche will be where she needs to be.
DeMelo finished her best game in a long time as Racing’s all-time leading scorer. I think that this match was a good reminder of her best quality which in my opinion is being in the right place at the right time. She is still trying to do too much in my opinion, but by scoring her first goal in a while and seeing new names on the score sheet maybe she can get back to her very best. She was excellent in the second half after having a rather pedestrian first half. Perhaps the biggest sign of her continued maturity was avoiding a second yellow after Encarnación gave her a final talking to. After that final warning she played in a more controlled manner and scored twice. I think there is a lesson in that more measured performance.
It will be interesting to see how Bev uses Turner and Sears going forward. I liked the double substitution of the rookies with the score level and with the opponent being Utah. I’m not sure how that would go in the same situation with say the score level and Racing on the road against North Carolina. I think Bev likely wouldn’t play it any differently, as coaches tend to like to show faith in their players. Being more of a pragmatist, I think I would go with the substitution of DiGrande a bit earlier on the road. In fact, I think on the road I would have gone with Baggett over Goins or Motlhalo on the bench. The good news is that Bev has actual decisions to make versus having no real options.
Goals make matches fun and all four goals from open play had something to like about them. I think Sears’ goal was my favorite, but the mirror image goals from Kanu and Turner aren’t that far behind. Pickett and Milliet both had excellent matches, so it was good to see them rewarded with assists. Lo was so close to scoring herself, and if that one would have gone in, it would have been the best of the bunch. The Milliet/Wright combination was the most frequent passing combination for Racing in the match. It’s good to see the right side of defense gelling as much as the left side.
Racing 5 Royals 1 Player Ratings
Photo Courtesy of NWSL
Racing ended up winning comfortably and hopefully this is the start of better things to come. Utah was overwhelmed in the 2nd half, but Racing was the impetus for it.
Lund-7: Made some solid saves and her defense let her down on the goal she allowed.
Pickett-8: The outer backs ended up with bookends assists. It's hard to pick which was better.
Erceg-8: Commanding at the back.
Wright-8: Made some key interceptions and looks to be back to her best.
Milliet-8: Unlucky not to score to go with her assist.
Howell-8: Jae and Taylor kept Utah penned in well.
Flint-8: Keeps improving and the Racing midfield looks really solid now.
DeMelo-8: It was her best match in a while, so hopefully this kickstarts a good run of form.
Kanu-8: Scored on a beautiful header. Her improvement has been so important.
Bahr-7: Her shot led to the first DeMelo goal.
Borges-7: Looked really solid in her first start.
Bonus: Turner/Sears-7: Nice goals from the rookies.
Racing v Royals Pre Match Thoughts
Racing will host its first “Thunder Over Louisville” match this weekend against the new version of the Utah Royals. It will be a rather unique match on Saturday, and I don't think anyone really knows what to expect. I have to admit that I am not a huge fan of fireworks unless I am setting them off myself. Let’s just say that I am probably fortunate to only have had temporary hearing loss from my earlier adventures with explosions. All of that to say that I have never attended “Thunder” in person. Therefore, I have to rely on other people’s experiences to let me know what to expect. Everyone I have talked to expects the air show to continue into game time, so I guess let’s go with that. If that ends up being the case, it will be interesting to see if fans (and players) can keep their eyes on the pitch at all times. It’s already projected to be a record crowd, and I hope that Racing’s puts on an entertaining enough display to win over some new converts.
On the pitch, this is a match that Racing needs to win. Utah being an expansion team on the road, should be vulnerable especially with the added distractions. Ary Borges put in the type of cameo in the last match that makes you think that she may be up for a start in this match. Racing should also focus on trying to improve its possession in this match. Regardless of how much possession that Racing has managed, too much of it has been frantic and disjointed. This could be an opportunity to start to get things right in the attacking third with possession. This will hopefully be the second match in a row with a Howell/Flint/DeMelo midfield, so I think we can expect some improvement there.
In her press conferences, Bev Yanez has been really positive in her comments about the team. I expect that to continue regardless of the outcome on Saturday, but this team needs 3 points in order to start getting some momentum. I think it’s fair to point out that a team doesn’t even have to be league average in points production to make the playoffs this season, so just making the playoffs won’t be seen as much progress in my eyes. Racing has played well enough in spells to make the top-four their collective goal. I think when we get about 10 games into the season, we will see how close they are to that goal. The immediate goal for this match should be to jump out to a lead and put the Royals away early. However, matches in this league have the tendency to surprise you.
Paige Monaghan returns to Louisville, and I hope she gets a warm welcome during the lineup announcements. She was a bright spot on the team last season, and I know that the team hated to lose her. After the whistle blows, Racing needs to make sure to lock her down and not let her turn into another Savannah McCaskill, who seems to relish scoring against her old team. Paige has the added bonus of scoring on Racing before she joined Big Purp, so I am sure she will be extra incented to do so again.
Racing 0 Wave 0 Post Match Thoughts
Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Shaw
Four draws in four matches isn’t the ideal way to start a season, but Racing fought back from a lackluster first half to make the second one much more entertaining. The team still needs to find a way to put two good halves together, but a squad that is getting healthier in attack gives Coach Yanez some options as the season progresses.
I mentioned in my first player rating post of the season that I likely needed some time to figure out how to evaluate Taylor Flint. She doesn’t necessarily play like a traditional midfielder, so that took some getting used to from me. I still stand by my earlier ratings of her performances, but now knowing what to expect and what not to expect allows me to more fairly rate her performances. I don’t think any reasonable person can disagree that her performance last night was clearly her best yet. Earlier in the week, the club tweeted out a graphic demonstrating her “impact” in the first few matches. Being that it was messaging from the club, it was clearly slanted to show the statistical categories where she excelled. Even so, I was surprised that she was at the top in so many categories. I tend to think of a midfielder’s role as a player that stiches things together, but Taylor’s strengths are clearly in disrupting things. Once I wrapped my head around that, I saw her most recent match much differently. Don’t get me wrong, she is still learning how to stitch herself into the possession fabric of the team, but when it comes to disrupting the opponent, she is clearly becoming a true force. If she can continue to improve her offensive touches, (and they were clearly better in this match) she could be an even bigger force.
Savannah DeMelo on the other hand is still looking to find her form. She is the team’s offensive engine, but a couple of times in the match she slowed down things when speed would have been more prudent. If we are honest with ourselves, she hasn’t been the same since her absence from the team to play in the World Cup. It’s difficult to say if one thing has anything to do with the other, but the drop in form has been noticeable. Racing needs her to recapture her early career form. She will never be a liability on the pitch, and the team is clearly better with her on the field, but she has to learn to play with this group of players because at the moment her teammates are getting into better scoring positions than she is. Perhaps her early success led to her feeling that she has to do too much. Honestly, if she gets her head up a little more when she is on the ball, she will be fine.
The crowd was really good last night, but it took some questionable officiating to really get them involved. Flint’s goal was correctly ruled offside, but there were some other baffling decisions that disrupted the flow of the match. Personally, I don’t think they were enough to impact the outcome, but you would always rather be unaware of the officiating crew that blatantly aware of them.
The first half attack for Racing was anemic, so it was good to see Bev pull the trigger on a halftime sub with Sears entering for Turner. Things immediately got better, and Sears had a couple of good looks early in the second half. Borges had a brief cameo and was close to scoring but a fantastic save from Sheridan prevented a storybook return. I guess the message is that the attacking options off the bench look to be good enough to change matches.
Racing Wave Player Ratings
Racing are still looking for their first win but put in a really good 2nd half performance after a rather lackluster first half.
Lund-6: Wasn't called into action much but was there when she was needed.
Pickett-7: Shiowed her attacking prowess well in this match.
Erceg-7: She had an odd moment early in the second half conceding a bizarre corner but was solid otherwise.
Wright-7: I’m sure she will take a clean sheet in her first start
Milliet-7: Managed an early yellow card well.
Howell-7: Looks to be fully fit and confident now. I would still like to see her pull the trigger on a shot every now and then.
Flint-8: Correctly denied a goal, but even without that had her best performance yet. If she continues to improve at this rate she will be a force of nature by mid-season
DeMelo-6: Still yet to reach the heights she did early in 2023.
Kanu-6: None of the starting forwards were terribly involved, but she put in a decent shift.
Turner-5: Got no service but didn't create much either. She was subbed at half and Sears immediately contributed more significantly.
Bahr-6: She was the last of the starting forwards to be subbed off, but didn't have much impact while shen was on.
Racing v Wave Pre Match Thoughts
Have I mentioned before how much I hate international breaks?
Anyway, this time it likely helped Racing out quite a bit. Excluding the announced SEI to Elli Pikkujämsä and the shorter-term injury Kirsten Wright, Racing is getting closer to having a full complement of players available. Against Portland, Racing didn’t even have enough healthy players to fill out a full bench. Without getting into specifics, let’s just say that the availability report should be much rosier for Racing. For the reigning Shield champions the Wave, their availability report could be longer with players returning from international duty or deciding that they have better things to do than be with their teammates in Louisville. The other good news is that we can finally say good riddance to this frankly dreadful week of weather and look forward to a nice evening on Saturday.
On the pitch, Racing simply has to pull out a win or two in the next few matches. The team definitely hasn’t put together a solid 90 minutes yet, and one could argue that they really haven’t put in much more than a solid 45. Carson Pickett, Marisa DiGrande, and Bev Yanez all talked about the competition for minutes on the squad (partly because I asked them directly about it). Actually, Carson brought up that nobody is promised minutes. Personally, I would like to see DiGrande get more minutes, especially if Racing is in the lead again. Holding a lead is a learned skill and other than the back line, Racing still has a lot of players that don’t have whole lot of experience winning in this league. Carson talked about the responsibility of the back line when it comes to protecting a lead, but also said that protecting a lead is difficult when the back line gets pinned in. It’s okay to defend with a lead and its even okay to defend deep with a lead, but you have to be super organized and super composed. I haven’t seen Racing demonstrate much defensive organization outside of the back line and I definitely haven’t seen much composure yet this season. The other school of thought is to try to make it 4-0 once you get up 2-0, but let’s not kid ourselves about that. The margins are too fine in this league for teams to win many matches 4-0 so you are likely going to have to learn to get wins in close matches.
I have to say that watching practice on Friday that Bev is coaching her heart out. I still have full confidence in her abilities. However, I was once in my twenties and let’s just say that I am a better listener now than I was then. I think the message that is being communicated is the right message. Bev told the media on Friday that she spent the long plane ride home from Portland “reframing” the performance. Even with the disappointing result, there were positives in her mind and if you treat learning as a process, then the mistakes that cost them the win are part of that process. The next step will be to learn the same lessons while getting the full 3 points.
One final note: I asked Bev about Millie Clegg since it was my first chance to see her fully participate in practice. One of the things she said was that she was always smiling. That’s a good sign, but I think it might be some time before we get to see her on the pitch. Racing’s attacking depth looks pretty good, so I personally think we could see her during the Olympic break, but that isn’t a given. That could change, but for now I don’t think there is any real need to rush her development.
Thorns 2 Racing 2 Post Match Thoughts
Courtesy USA Today Sports Images
Racing fail to hold a lead (again) and only pick up a point (again) in what is already starting to become a too familiar pattern. The current style seems set up well to score quickly from transition, but it’s hard to see any other great advantages yet.
If Racing is going to continue to jump out to early leads, then it going to have to learn how to find a way to possess the ball. In its history, Racing has never been a great “in possession” team but seems to have taken a step back this season. What is evident is that they are a dangerous attacking team when the moves are in transition, or the opportunities are taken quickly. After going up by 2 goals, Racing basically spent the rest of the match defending. There were a few longer passages of possession late in the second half after it looked like the Thorns might have expended all of their energy trying to make a comeback. However, from basically the 7th minute to the 80th minute it was one-way traffic for the Thorns. When Racing did win possession, most of the time it was unfortunately deep in their half where a long ball was the only way out. On the rare occasion that Racing was able to string a few passes together, the positive movement was really only made with the intent of adding a 3rd goal. Maybe I am alone in thinking this way, but there is value in just keeping the ball in your opponent’s half without immediately making a move toward goal. Sometimes, and especially with a lead, there is value in taking the speed out of the match and attempting to pass the ball around just to keep yourself from running back constantly on defense. Racing’s game management with the lead has never been great and hasn’t really shown any sign of improvement under Yanez (yet).
Uchenna Kanu has shown such improvement that the greatest tragedy of the season so far is that she hasn’t had a match-winning performance. She has done everything in her power to try to will the team to a win, but things haven’t worked out. Her commitment on defense has been great too.
Elli Pikkujämsä went down with a worrying injury. She will be further evaluated in Louisville today.
Racing gets to go back to the drawing board during this week without a match. The team is still missing key players, but I am starting to wonder if the players missing are the problem. I will be watching the possession numbers in the next match to see if the coaches can figure out a way to try to possess the ball more in the next few matches.
Thorns 2 Racing 2 Player Ratings
Racing just can't quite figure out how to close out a match. They simply have to find a way to keep some possession when they have a lead.
Lund-5.5: I thought she was completely at fault for the first goal by not picking up the ball when she decided to try to clear it with her foot. She did make a couple of good saves after that.
Pickett-7: Kept Portland's attack at bay on the wings.
Erceg-7: Was brilliant in the first half, but only average in the second.
Pikkujämsä-6: Went off injured and it didn't look good. She had a solid match prior to that.
Milliet-7: Just like Pickett, kept any outside attack from Portland locked down.
Howell-7: She had a fabulous first half, but Portland had more joy through the midfield in the second.
Flint-7: I thought it was a much improved match from her. She is starting to get the hang of midfield.
Fischer-6: I thought she had a rather odd performance. It wasn't poor, but she tended to dwell on the ball longer than necessary, which isn't her strength.
Kanu-9: Fantastic again. Her defensive work rate was so impressive to match her 2 terrific goals. What does she have to do to have such a great performance be a match winning one?
Turner-7: Had a fantastic assist on Kanu's 2nd.
Bahr-6: Not nearly as involved as Kanu. Switched sides with her in the first half to try to get a bit more into things.