Red Stars v Racing Pre Match Thoughts
Courtesy USA Today Sports Images
Racing look to extend some of momentum they gained with a last gasp point in Kansas City this Saturday in Chicago. The schedule will start to ease up after this match to some degree, but there are no easy matches in the NWSL. Racing will look to kick start a run of points with a good result against the Red Stars.
Both Chicago and Louisville are comfortable playing without the ball, but the Red Stars are REALLY comfortable conceding possession to their opponents. They have a league low 41.1% possession rate, which is sometimes indicative of getting early leads. However, in the Red Stars case they have scored first in only 4 of their matches. They did go on to win all of those (the Spirit, Thorns and Royals also have perfect records when scoring first). The Red Stars have also clawed out 4 points when they haven’t scored first which also puts them slightly above the league average. Their 16 points so far this season has them in a fairly comfortable playoff position. The less said about Racing’s numbers when scoring first the better. Racing also hasn’t won a point when conceding first (the two times is have happened).
Racing still has a bit of an injury problem, but I never like that as an excuse. Jae Howell was being evaluated at practice today, but the safe bet is that she will be listed on the injury report and won’t play. Until last season Howell had never dealt with what she considered to be a very serious injury. I think (but don’t know for sure) that her current issues probably extend back to last season’s injury. This is really starting to concern me. At the beginning of the season, I was glad that Racing brought in some midfield depth this season precisely because I was concerned about Jae’s availability. At no point do I feel like Jae has been rushed back too soon, but only she knows for sure. Regardless, this team needs to figure out how to play without her for extended periods of time because that has simply been the reality since last fall.
The duo of Wright and Erceg will likely need to be extra aware of Chicago’s counter attacking ability. Wright might have some inside info on how to play against Swanson, Hocking, and Schlegel who have 10 goals among them in this campaign. I really look forward to matches where neither team is particularly adept at maintaining possession because I think those matches tend to be pretty open as long as the scoreline is level. Houston and Louisville played an entertaining match earlier this season under similar circumstances and even though it ended 0-0 it was entertaining and full of chances.
Coach Yanez mentioned the dreaded “peaking” concept again in practice today. I don’t have much more patience for more non-peak performance. I am not a huge fan of quotes and proverbs, but this one resonates with me: The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The next best time is today. I will steal this and propose: The optimal time to be playing your best football is always. This next best option is starting now. Time has almost run out to drop any more points and have a realistic shot at the playoffs. I also tend to think that setting a target to make the playoffs is aiming low. The “top four” should now be the bare minimum goal for every team in this league.
