Racing Challenge Cup Preview
Courtesy Connor Cunningham
I hesitate to write a full “Season Preview” column at this point, but there is a game this week. I guess the definition of “season” depends on what you think of the Challege Cup, especially the 2022 edition. This will be the third iteration of said cup competition and it’s the first iteration where its purpose isn’t entirely clear to those involved, thus it might serve different purposes to the teams involved. For the San Diego Wave and Angel City FC, it will be the inaugural foray into NWSL action, so I assume San Diego will treat it as a way to see if any fans are going to show up and Angel City will treat it as they treat everything: as a chance to promote their brand. It will be interesting to see if winning is part of that brand as much as showing off 3-year-old owners or having their practice field be an hour away from their stadium during a period of soaring gas prices. Teams that are considered favorites for the league title (Thorns/Reign/Spirit in my mind) might use it as an extended pre-season camp. Chicago, Kansas City and North Carolina might use it to forge new identities. For the rest of the teams (Houston/Orlando/Gotham/Louisville) it might be their best shot at a trophy. However, you’re here for Racing (or because someone retweeted my completely biased and probably unfair criticisms of Angel City) so let’s focus in on what we know as of Monday for Racing Louisville.
What we know:
As of Monday, Racing’s roster consists of 19 active players with Cheyna Matthews being listed on the roster, but out of action for the season due to her pregnancy.
Coack Kim Björkegren will coach his first match for Racing on Friday.
Racing named a group of captains today that include Gemma Bonner, Emily Fox, Jess McDonald and Nadia Nadim. Unless they’ve changed the rules (entirely possible because the NWSL hasn’t released 2022 Competition Rules yet), you can’t have 4 captain armbands for a match.
What we can likely assume:
Racing will sign more players that are in camp before the start of the season, and the three most likely in that category are Parker Goins, Charmé Morgan and Emily Smith. Sydney Cummings could be signed as well. I am a big fan of Parker Goins, but she might struggle to make many gameday rosters in her first year due to the new depth in midfield and attack. There aren’t too many natural center backs on the roster, so that increases Smith’s and Cumming’s chances.
Racing will sign at least one international player, likely a center back. Don’t expect a full influx of international talent after the European season ends like last year, but Racing still needs help on the back line, especially experience in the middle. I will have a little more on this in the “Things to watch” section.
The team will almost certainly set up in a 4-3-3 formation. Coach Björkegren’s line-ups so far in scrimmages that have been open to the media have been in that formation, so it’s fair to say that it will be the preferred formation for the opening match. Racing don’t have enough experienced center backs in my opinion to use a back 3 unless it is to protect a late lead.
Gemma Bonner wears the captain’s armband in the first match. McDonald probably wears it at some point during the Challenge Cup. McDonald talked about the diversity in the set of captains on Monday, which is a positive. I am a bit old-fashioned when it comes to club captains, so I am biased toward having a single club captain. However, I doubt that it causes many if any issues on the field. On the pitch, Bonner will organize the back and McDonald the front regardless of who is wearing the armband. To me it’s more that it’s unnecessary to have 4 captains.
It’s anybody’s guess:
Everybody like to complain about the lack of a schedule, but it will eventually come (Wednesday looks probable), so here are some other things I would like to know but have no clue as to their likelihood.
Will Racing have a new Away kit this year? I guess it’s possible that it could debut after the Challenge Cup, but in all probability if there is going to be a new kit it will have to come before their away trip to Chicago. Last year the kits were announced 2 days before the first match, so I guess there is still hope for a new one.
Who will be in the Starting XI? I think there are 7 locks barring a last-minute injury: McDonald / Kizer/ Olofsson/ Howell/ Fox/ Bonner/ Lund. You can probably pick two out of Ekic/ Salmon/ Davis and two out of Merrick/Smith/Martin. I expect the rest of the signed players minus a goalkeeper to make the bench. We might see a surprise inclusion of a non-rostered player, but I say that’s 50/50. All of this goes out the window if the competition rules allow for more than 18 on the roster, but I haven’t seen those published yet.
How will Racing treat the Challenge Cup? Most coaches will tell you that they want to win every competition that they play in, but they all rate some competitions above others. Coach Kim said today, “For me it’s always important to win.” However, he conceded that Racing isn’t the finished product in his mind yet either. I believe Racing’s strategy will be to get cohesive minutes for their likely starting XI. This means that winning the cup (or at least the group) is also on the table. More established clubs that are looking to manage minutes or evaluate players may play it differently. In Racing’s group, I think Kansas City could go either way. They could rest stars or want to see them play together. Houston has won it before, and I think would be happy to win in again, so I think they will go for it to some degree. I can’t imagine Chicago doing anything other than trying to get the train back on the track.
Things to watch:
For the last few weeks, I have been thinking about center back combos. When you fill out a team sheet, knowing the two (or three) names that go there has to be a comforting feeling. Having to put effort into identifying those names every match I imagine feels the opposite. More than any other positions on the field, the center backs work as a combination and a set. When those two are known and their teammates know what to expect from them, it makes the entire team run smoother. I bring this up because I don’t think the long-term center back pairing is in place for Racing yet. Merrick could play alongside Bonner, but the team is probably better with her out wide. Martin played with Bonner quite a bit last year, but I have seen her being played out wide in the recent scrimmages. My biggest concern is how this might impact Jae Howell. If Howell has to provide more cover in front of a shaky back line, it will limit her opportunities to drive forward. My suggestion is to dedicate 5 -10 minutes watching Howell specifically when Racing is defending to see how she reacts. This might tell us early on how the season will go for her.
If Emina Ekic gets the start, keep an eye on her. She has looked more aggressive in scrimmages this year on the left wing. The Fox/Ekic combo could be where Racing finds the most joy in attack, so look for McDonald to slightly favor the left side in transition as well.
CeCe Kizer sometimes inexplicably gets lost in the shuffle when people are discussing Racing. Keep an eye on her interplay with Olofsson in the #8 position in this first match to see how Racing attacks through the middle when in possession.
By the way, if any Angel City FC fans clicked on this article, they probably didn’t make it to the bottom, so I retract my earlier caveat. Those criticisms are totally fair, and I hope Angel City lose every match unless it somehow benefits Racing.
