Racing v Pride Preview

Courtesy Connor Cunningham

With a victory on Saturday, Racing Louisville can eliminate the Orlando Pride from playoff contention. If Racing do come away with a win or draw, they will have done so with several key players out:

D ADDISYN MERRICK (OUT/SEI)

F NADIA NADIM (OUT/SEI)

D GEMMA BONNER (OUT)

F SAVANNAH McCASKILL (OUT - SUSPENDED)

D JULIA ASHLEY (QUESTIONABLE)

McCaskill is out due to a one game suspension for an accumulation of 5 yellow cards this season. This likely means we will once again see Emily Fox (newly recalled to the USWNT) in midfield again. I asked her about her favored position after practice on Thursday and she said that she enjoyed the midfield even though she's only played there twice for Racing. She was also pretty clear that she would play wherever the need dictates, both for Racing and the USWNT. It will be interesting to see if she ends up playing completely different positions for club and country going forward.

Once again the biggest test in my opinion will be how Racing performs without Bonner anchoring the defense. If previous matches are an indication the answer is “not well”. Maybe with a little more match time together the group will play more as a cohesive unit. The availability of Julia Ashley could throw a monkey wrench into those plans. In fact, if Ashley isn't available, Coach Sanchez may decide that he needs Fox out wide. If that is the case, I think we could see Olofsson and Otto play 90 minutes together.

Coach Sanchez said something interesting after practice yesterday in regards to playing time. He basically said that even though Racing are eliminated from the playoffs, playing time is still earned on how the player is performing in practice. I think at least for this match that Coach Sanchez will start his best available XI.

Obviously the other big news from this week is that Louisville will be hosting the NWSL final. Racing is expecting a potential record crowd on Saturday evening. Attendance has been really good this year, but a sellout or near sellout of Lynn Family Stadium for the final would do a tremendous amount of good for both Racing and LouCity. If CBS can show a full Stadium on Saturday, November 20th it will be a great potential recruiting tool for players both on the men’s and women’s team. Tickets are on sale now and I encourage anyone who can to buy tickets. The pricing is very affordable!