Entr’acte
Photo by Elizabeth Shaw
Act I is over.
The interlude is complete as well.
On the interlude…
Interruptions to the seasons are a bit like the weather. There are many things that can be said about them, but little to be done about it. Racing ended its first act as well as a team could (or as well as this team ever has). It hopes to carry of the momentum it built and well…things aren’t looking as good as they could.
I am always going to temper my enthusiasm. It’s in my nature. Here is what I saw during the break:
Three subpar performances that may or may not be worrisome: There are plenty of reasons not to be too concerned about the results against Lexington, São Paulo, and Palmeiras. First of all, nothing was really at stake (The Women’s Cup is nice to win, but it isn’t on the to-do list for the season). There was much rotation in the matches (except where they absolutely needed it as it turned out). Unfamiliar foes can make for tough opponents. All fair points. On the other side, at times Racing’s players looked as if they hadn’t played together in months, not weeks. I think all three of Racing’s opponents started slowly in the matches which lead to some over dribbling and trying to beat opponents one on one or one on two in some cases. Racing is not going to dribble its way through many NWSL teams. The resulting passing and connections seemed to lack cohesion. Several times simple passes just didn’t come off. That isn’t something you want to see heading into your 14th match of the season. The mid-summer break is a reality, so the teams that manage it best will get a short-term boost. Racing didn’t give me a warm and fuzzy feeling here.
Racing’s plan A has improved, but their plan B hasn’t: Bev in Bev style stated that Lo Milliet will be out “tomorrow”, but we all know that she is out for a while. Allie George self-reported on TikTok that she is going out on loan. I now count 21 players on the active roster and 2 of them, Barón and Borges, are definitely still in South America for the Copa América final. Racing has to have 22 “active” players on its roster, so I can guarantee you that either Lo will not be listed as SEI or George’s move will not be announced, or both. Regardless of any roster shenanigans to stay in the good graces of the rules, Racing is short especially on defense. They are also short in the technical staff department with Carmelina Moscato leaving for a head coaching in Saudi Arabia. Soccer Holdings, if you remember, is an organization that thought it was a good idea to not have a nominal head coach for decent stretch of the season. In my opinion, they were very fortunate to have that decision work out well and have been acting like “anyone can fill in” is a legitimate type of plan since then.
Racing runs lean. They are allowed to run lean. I am also allowed to absolutely blast them when I think it’s going to backfire on them. Losing Lo weakens both the attack and defense. That they don’t have a nominal right back available to fill in seems like a very “Racing” thing to me. They may get one quickly and Sonis may fill in fine (I hope she does). However, this loss and the loss of Moscato expose the fine lines. My opinion: since Racing employs a small coaching staff, part of the reason that the staff if hyper-focused on playing a certain way and sticking to it is that they aren’t staffed to design, teach and practice a counter strategy. For example: something I like to call the big club strategy, where teams consistently play and set up differently when they play the best of the best. It takes resources to focus on a multiweek strategy. Maybe Racing has spent the last 3 weeks preparing for KC and that is why they looked poor in the interim. I doubt that. I don’t think much foresight exists in the club’s DNA, yet. I think they will roll out Plan A against KC on Friday and will take the result that it gives them.
Things are improving, just maybe not at the rate they need to: Racing signed Taylor Flint long-term (A plus) and have been marketing the heck out of this weekend’s match (the numbers will dictate that grade). Those are both great things and what they need to be doing. One match will not decide a season, but it might define it. The expectations are both low and high for the match against the Current on Friday evening. Any points would be a good result. The spotlight is shining on Racing. I wish they were just a little more prepared for their close-up. For all kinds of reasons, the crowds haven’t been very big for Racing (they have still been “good” from an atmosphere perspective from time to time). They need a good and big crowd on Friday. Soccer Holdings is throwing everything at this one. I would feel better if they had a reliable history of mobilizing support. The big attendance matches have been planned way in advance or have other appeal or both. This is a test for the organization off the pitch as much as it is on the pitch.
Act II gets off to a start on Friday and I hope it is an entertaining as Act I. The new back line will have to gel quickly. Bathany Balcer will need to find her form out of the gate. Kayla Fischer will need to do the good Kayla things and ditch the bad Kayla ones. I still think Racing needs another reliable defender. O’Kane will need to keep up her form for the second half of the season. I guess what I am saying is that a bunch of things need to go right…right now. The sense of urgency will be the thing to watch for me on Friday. Racing needs to carry forward momentum that I fear it has lost. If they have, they will need to rebuild it quickly.
