When the last game is over tonight, four teams will have played 3 home/3 away (Portland, FCKC, Chicago, North Carolina); three teams will have played 4 home/2 away (Washington, Seattle, Boston); and three will have played 2 home/4 away (Houston, Orlando, Sky Blue). This suggests that Houston, Orlando, and Sky Blue may be stronger than the table indicates (Sky Blue #1 on the strength chart?); Washington, Seattle, and Boston may be weaker than the table indicates (Washington in an even deeper hole?); and Portland, FCKC, Chicago, and North Carolina are just about right.
Seattle is back to the 4-3-3 which is good as a 3 back against Orlando's front line is a mistake. No need to overload the midfield against Orlando. Here's the Starting XI for College Night presented by @IZZE. #LetItReign #SEAvORL pic.twitter.com/CdPMkbMhgX— Seattle Reign FC (@reignfc) May 22, 2017
I like the H/A look at things, but before we crown NJ the top of our power rankings, remember that they've played half of their matches against the bottom three teams (or bottom two, if ORL wins tonight) and haven't played a single match against another team currently in the top 4. I think, like when we said not to read too much into HOU's win over DC, we might want to hold judgement on NJ just yet. I totally agree that DC is in a big hole, though. Which also makes it worth pointing out that DC's only win so far was against NJ, so another knock on NJ there. At the very least, NJ is 1-1-1 against teams currently on eight points.
I just was thinking I should take a look at who has played whom, as that's clearly a factor too. Good points!
[SEA-ORL] 03' 0-0 Kopmeyer's in the shade, as Orlando must look directly into the setting sun. 03' 0-0 Kawasumi breaks away down wide right to 3m, ground cross to 5m right post for Yanez poked away by Kennedy. Harris shields her eyes from the setting sun
12' 0-0 PbP guy calls her "Rapiñoe" 15' 0-0 Kawasumi crosses to #2 Nairn's chest at arc top right, spinning half-volley try sails way over. PbP guy mistakes her for #12 Edmonds?
24' 0-0 Harris gk, comes up lame, holding right hip/side. Stoppage. Labrum? Isaiah Thomas winces ... 26' 0-0 Orlando subs in (1 of 3) #40 Caroline Stanley for #24 Ashlyn Harris. 40' 1-0 Rapinoe right ck, headed away toward box top right. Tap pass down wide right to Rapinoe, she whips another cross to 7m center. Stanley comes out and punches away -- into Corsie's chest at 9m 1/3 left. Corsie scuffs a shot toward left post, mishit without power, slow spinner -- to Yanez still standing at 1.5m left post, she turns and pokes it in. Somebody's still on the goalline keeping her onside.
51' 1-0 Orlando left throw-in at 12m, played to Fields(?) at box left foot, she loses it over. 52' 1-1 Kopmeyer rushes to set up the gk, takes it quickly to arc tangent left -- strands Fishlock in a bad come-back race vs. Camila. Fishlock tumbles down, Camila pokes ball to Marta breaking alone through box top arc left to 10m, simple left foot shot across mouth into back right low. Afterward, Fishlock expresses rare rage at Kopmeyer, with the bunny-stomp. This bodes ill ...
This is the year of the draw for teams that I like ( Seattle, Man U ). Kudos to Orlando as I thought they were the better team this match. Not sure how this was possible but the Reign midfield got outplayed. The bright side is that Johnson again had an impressive showing with the minutes that she got. Full game analysis will be provided later in the Reign thread
I would say that the Seattle-Orlando game epitomized the phrase "hard fought." Rapinoe and Marta both showed flashes of temper -- and temperament. Those two are tough competitors. After taking about 100 free and corner kicks Rapinoe was tired near the end of the game. Seatlle needs someone else to take corners and free kicks and throw ins in for her at times....She does everything except serve the gatorade. . Katie Johnson once again looked good in her 20 minute stint. Orlando weathered the storm in the first half and came back strong in the second. Character building for the team. I picked Orlando to finish last this year -- but that prediction was before Orlando acquired Marta. Orlando might try to find a system so Marta doesn't drop back so far on defense and focus more on getting the ball to her going forward. But maybe that's impossible with Orlando's players. .... . .
As others have said, its not just NWSL and the WNT. The back three has been a trend in soccer for several years now. Even Klinsmann with the MNT fiddled with a 3-5-2. Quoting from this 2016 article on Chelsea using a three back, the most basic answer for "why?": "Nearly all tactical developments are an attempt to unpick a prevailing orthodoxy. And so whether it succeeds or fails, the 3-4-3 is merely the latest page in football’s rich chronicle of call and response, revision and counter-revision: a game that winds and wanders, but steadfastly refuses to stand still." But for coaches, I hope they arrive at it for the same reason Conte did (quote from same article): "I won two championships with 4-2-4 at Bari and Siena. Then I started that system with Juventus, went to 4-3-3 and eventually arrived at 3-5-2 because I had players better adapted for that system. But it's not my ‘preferred’ system. My preferred system is the one that permits my team to win.” [italics mine]
Here's a table that might help with checking the validity of the point standings. Take it with a grain of salt. Opponents Points is the total points of the opponents a team has played to date. It's a "strength of schedule" measure. As the season progresses, it will become a better measure. As an example of why Opponents Points can be inaccurate this early in the season, NJNY has played the weakest schedule so far, based on its opponents total points. So, its possible its 10 Points is artificially high, which then would affect the Opponents Points of everyone that's played NJNY.
In 2014, with Rapinoe mostly injured (if I remember well), Kawasumi was taking most of set-pieces. Since Naho remains a "more-than-decent" crosser (understatement), I wonder if she couldn't take at least CKs from the right-side, without stepping too much into Megan's role in the team. You're right that Rapinoe can't do anything, I guess.
Who's joking? We are talking Riley here. He has a history of umm... creative rosters and formations. he's the guy who decided Portland didn't need Macdonald after a season where she lead the Thorns in scoring with only 13 caps ( third in the league) and traded her for a 13 draft pick. ( he kept Morgan, who always seemed injured for the Thorns and managed to show up for 4 games but played a full USWNT schedule.) he traded that pick for future picks, so Portland got nothing. She was pretty bitter about that, which makes her playing for him now a bit odd. And now this... And who knows what his interaction with Paladino and the other two guys is, but he's the same guy who came to Portland and said he'd rather win 6-5 than win 1-0 in his first press conference. You have to wonder what he thinks of the role of defense.
Ok, with that context putting Macdonald on the back line makes a lot of sense! Just forget defenders. 11 CAMs!
That worked really well for Maradona in South Africa. He even had Carlos Tevez a fullback. He apparently also thought you could give 5 goals and win.