This was a game that every NWSL fan had been waiting for, and it was played out with playoff-level tension. If this is any indication of what the postseason will bring, it’s going to be something special.
It was a great game. Kansas City lost at home for the first time this season. Orlando won with one man down. Both Chawinga and Banda added points. I love the NWSL.
— Claire Watkins (@ScoutRipley) July 7, 2024
In the end, Orlando overcame a first-half red card from Carrie Lawrence to secure a 2-1 victory at a packed CPKC Stadium and remain unbeaten.
This game unfolded in a surprising way. The Pride had the early momentum, but an early Chawinga yellow card on Lawrence seemed like a harbinger for the Current. Orlando came in with a strategy to contain Chawinga (keeping Lawrence at home, swapping Julie Doyle for Adriana, and starting Lawrence on the right wing for defensive purposes) and that strategy looked shaky after just 14 minutes.
Kansas City was clearly nervous because they were able to win even when their opponents were not giving them transition chances. If Kansas City could send Chawinga into space again, Lawrence would have had to choose between risking a second yellow card or letting his MVP candidate slip away. Seb Hines would no doubt have been considering a substitution, worried about the possibility of receiving a second yellow card.
But Lawrence changed all that just before half-time, lunging hard at Chawinga when a heavy tackle was not even necessary. Either way, it would have been a highly dramatic moment, but it came just after the teams had traded goals, with Chawinga promptly responding to Barbara Banda’s opener in the 37th minute.
This is where Hines earned his paycheck. If it’s 1-1 away, the crowd is roaring and the opposing team’s lineup is full of elite attacking players, common sense would dictate that you settle for a 4-4-1, drop deep, waste time, kick the ball out whenever possible and use the halftime to plan for the long term.
Instead, Orlando was quick to respond. The Pride switched to a 4-3-2, taking a significant risk by introducing Adriana as a second forward to support Banda. Then Orlando full-backs Emily Sams (who moved to great effect at right-back after her red card) and Kelly Abelo both provided a bit of a surprise when they overlapped extremely high in the final minutes of the first half.
In other words, Orlando was down to 10 men against the only team in the league that could challenge their claim to be the best team in the NWSL, and they opted to send one more player forward as well as bring their fullback into the attack.
It seems completely counterintuitive, but it worked brilliantly. Adriana’s willingness to dive into midfield when necessary allowed Orlando to match Kansas City in terms of midfield numbers, whose 4-2-3-1 often played like a 4-2-2-2 in theory with two wide forwards. The Brazilian star made it difficult for the Current to link up with Loel Lavonta and Claire Hatton, and everyone in a Pride shirt was willing to make the extra run to close the gap in space.
The Current were shaken by it all, with a red card and a 63rd-minute penalty from Marta giving the Pride an advantage in xG (0.25 to 0.22) and shots (7 to 4). Orlando knew exactly what they had to do, took the risks and played to win.
Sure, the sequence that led to the penalty kick was bizarre, but Orlando’s courage should have been rewarded in some way. The choices made in terms of form and aggression left Kansas City perplexed, but the immediate execution of such a bold plan speaks volumes about Central Florida’s state of mind these days.
“We came into this game wanting to win. [had] “It doesn’t matter if we have 10 men or 11 men, we always feel like we have a chance to win,” Hines told reporters after the match. “We showed right after the red card that we were good enough to go for the second goal, we showed we can do it.”
Coaches say things like this from time to time, but it’s rare to see it backed up by the kind of tactical courage Orlando has shown, and even rarer when the opponent is as good as their current team.
With the lead, Hines looked to be more aggressive rather than simply instructing his team to reduce risk. A double substitution was made in the 70th minute, and the Pride’s formation changed back to 4-4-1, but crucially, Allie Watt added speed to the forward line. Orlando adopted their more traditional formation at this point, dropping their line back, but with Watt and Banda joining the fray, their long-ball outlets were a real threat to keep KC at bay.
Banda came close to making it 3-1, but Orlando finally opted in the 90th minute to park the bus, as most teams would do when down to 10 men in these circumstances. Rather than facing 30-40 minutes of intense pressure that would require flawless box defence, the Pride controlled the game in such a way that they only had to survive stoppage time and protect their lead rather than a draw.
“Okay, thanks everyone. We should celebrate. See you!!”
Might be a great way to end a post-match interview 😂 pic.twitter.com/Uz34e6OsQK
— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) July 7, 2024
Orlando won it, and celebrated their win so far in the 2024 season like they had a trophy. Marta, who had given himself all, physically and mentally, to fuel this performance, was overflowing with emotion by the end of the game. This game, just over 60% into the longest regular season in league history, meant something.
The Orlando Pride have never looked like they did this year, and this win proves they have a chance to join the ranks of the greatest NWSL teams of all time.
