Dash 0 Racing 0 Post Match Thoughts
Courtesy NWSL/Jordan Prather
There were plenty of encouraging signs and a few not-so-good ones in the 0-0 draw against Houston on Saturday evening. Coach Yanez is still looking for her first win, but if Racing keeps getting as many opportunities to score as they did against Houston, it will come soon enough.
Reilyn Turner got off 8 shots in the first half, 6 of them on target. However, the match would have been totally different if she had stayed onside for the goal that was ruled out or if she would have buried her excellent opportunity in the sixth minute (.539 xG). Across the board, Racing needs to be more clinical in their finishing. The team has yet to have what I deem a really clinical striker in its brief history. However, I do think Turner and Sears both have that capability in them. Above all, forwards shouldn’t ever be hesitant to shoot and neither Reilyn nor Emma is hesitant at all. They just need a few more minutes under their belts to develop that killer instinct. For as many chances as Turner had, only the first couple had the potential to really trouble Campbell at all. However, a lesser keeper maybe lets one of the lower probability shots in. Campell won the Goalkeeper of the Year last season for a reason, and it really showed last night.
I thought the defense played really well last night. Other than the early opportunity for Ordonez and the late one for West, none of Houston’s shots were anything more than speculative. Albeit based on a small sample of 180 minutes so far, Racing may need this type of effort more often than not. The way that Racing play may not be set up to possess the ball for long stretches of time. The commentators on the NWSL+ broadcast both stated that they thought Racing “dominated” the first half. I understand why they felt that way, but Houston had 59% of the possession in the first half even if significant portions of it were in their own half. My assessment of the current state of affairs is that Racing simply isn’t going to hold on to the ball for large sections of time. I don’t think many fans like 0-0 draws, but to me they really show a team’s nature. Goals change matches and there is goal-related momentum in any score draw or win/loss. I think you see a team’s true nature when the score is 0-0. Right now, Racing’s nature is to press and attack quickly. I am not sure how sustainable that is. It’s one thing to press and keep your opponent’s 60% possession in their own half, but you are still expending more effort on defense than you are on offense. By the end of the match, Pickett looked exhausted. Erceg went down for a brief period with a knock. I don’t think that you can play without the ball for so many large portions of the 90 minutes and be consistently successful.
Last season, it drove fans crazy that Coach Kim waited so long to substitute in matches. Last night, Houston made 4 subs before Racing made their first one. That will be a trend to watch. I don’t think it had anything to do with squad depth. Speaking of depth, I thought Fischer deputized well for DeMelo, but she was running on fumes at the end.
I am still wrapping my head around Taylor Flint. I thought she was excellent defensively. Her presence in the box both defending and attacking on set pieces is a real asset. However, there were a few times where her passing decisions were baffling, and her first touch was frankly awful. I definitely liked her better playing alongside Howell (who was a half-step slow to start but got better as the match progressed), but I don’t like yelling at my TV, and I found myself doing it more often with her than any other player. She is still finding her way, and I don’t think she is close to unlocking her full abilities.
Coach Yanez has talked about “peaking at the right time” and I get that mentality when the championship is won in November. However, you need points to get you to that position. These two matches feel like 4 points dropped already and Racing definitely doesn’t need to fall into the pattern of playing well and only getting a point again this season. For the team’s psyche, I think they need to amass some points soon, so they don’t start to think “here we go again”.
