NWSL Week 11 Recap- Utah trip over own feet again, Seattle frustrate San Diego, and Chicago robbed in LA

No Week 10 Recap two weeks ago. My apologies. I somehow managed to make it through nine weeks without missing an NWSL match, but all good things come to an end....and I don't like to do recaps for game weeks where I can't get to at least 75% viewership on. Since my bye week was followed by last week's NWSL bye week, we've had a full two week break from the recaps. But it's Week 11, and we're BACK.

1. Utah's self-destructive nature strikes again

   I don't really know what to say anymore about this Utah side. Truthfully, their more self-destructive tendencies feel more self-immolative than anything. Like a sacrifice to whatever NWSL gods demand insanity on a Friday night.

   
   

   With the exception of Cece Kizer, Utah are as near to full health as we have seen this season. Winger Brecken Mozingo has sneakily emerged out of the darkness of her rookie campaign and has been playing at a high level for nearly a month, scoring in each of her last three matches. There are more and more moments over the course of Utah's matches that look like the Royals of the end of 2024.

   
   

   Sadly, none of the good matters when a) Your defenders can't defend, and b) you make back breaking mistakes at the frequency Utah does every week. Utah's propensity for errors building from the back was a staple of my recaps for five weeks or so before I got bored of posting clips of misplaced passes every week, but, needless to say, the issue has not been fixed. After playing through Louisville's vaunted press fairly well early on, Utah started to panic in the latter stages of the first half, particularly CB Lauren Flynn who looked completely out of her depth most of the night.

   
   

   Here's Flynn panicking and spraying a ball across her box straight to Sears.

   Here's Flynn rocketing a ball off the ground to Kate Del Fava, who Sears robs easily before failing to put away a simple 1v1:

   
   

   and here's Ana Tejada's second yellow. It will likely be lost to time that this came with the game very much in the balance and with Utah starting to build momentum. You can see the frustration from the giveaway manifest itself immediately in game-losing stupidity:

   At this point, the mistakes are a feature rather than a bug and I'm not sure how they get fixed.

   
   

2. An Emma Sears adjustment

   I really liked Bev Yanez's decision to shift winger Emma Sears to the left side against Utah. Sears has been the source of much of Louisville's end product this season, having tallied six goals on just 3.3. xG after her howitzer against Utah found the top corner on Friday night.

   
   

   Even without the benefit of hindsight on Sears' goal, the adjustment made a lot of sense. Utah's starting RB Janni Thomsen is really only a defender in the sense of where her name appears on the lineup graphic. With Ally Sentnor playing as an inverted right winger, Thomsen tends provide most of the attacking width for Utah on the right side. Putting Sears, Louisville's most dangerous attacker, on the side where Utah leaves the most space in behind is the kind of common sense adjustment managers all too often fail to make. Here's one example of how putting Sears on the right benefited Louisville, Sentnor dropping inside to receive the ball and Thomsen bombing forward on the overlap before a bad pass from Sentnor is picked off and sets Sears free. Sentnor recovers well to fix her own mistake, but these were the spaces Sears found throughout the first half.

   
   

   Sears switched back to the right side when Ella Haase came on in the second half, but the initial adjustment had done its job.

   
   

   Good job by you, Bev!

   
   

3. Seattle force San Diego out of structure

   I have remarked a few times over the last few weeks about Laura Harvey's success in game planning against the league's top sides in 2025, and she did it again against the second place Wave on Friday night despite starting a depleted eleven missing Sam Meza, Lynn Biyendolo, Maddie Dahlien, and Angharad James-Turner.

   
   

   Seattle's gameday tactics rarely look pretty, but Harvey has done a good job at mixing up the tools in Seattle's win ugly toolset. This isn't just your run of the mill park the bus: The Reign pressed the Wave high early with the youthful exuberance of Maddie Mercado, Nerilia Mondesir, and Emeri Adames running in front of Seattle's holding two of rookie Sally Menti (does Seattle just have the ability to spawn Sam Mezas out of thin air?) and Ainsley McCammon. The Reign won the ball in their attacking third at least five different times in the opening 15 minutes with only their own lack of attacking threat stopping the press from yielding the game's opening goal. Seattle simply refused to let San Diego play through the middle of the field, pressing with five players centrally and relying on the wingbacks to cover San Diego's wide players. Teams don't typically press in the same shape they attack in, but Seattle was running a really interesting 2-1-2 press to cut off the balls into midfield. Here's a screenshot of the static shape press, followed by a video of it working in live action. I like this clip because it shows how welll Seattle's left side is passing on their assignments: Shea Holmes (25) is initially marking Kimmi Ascanio, before passing Ascanio on to McCammon (16) to pressure Lundvist. Under the pressure from Holmes, Ludkvist forces a ball into Ascanio who turns it over.

   

   The Wave struggled to cope with Seattle's five-back without the dynamism of Gia Corley. This was the first game where the double pivot of Savannah McKaskill and Kenza Dali have looked legitimately overwhelmed, the NWSL's two leading progressive passers failing to find outlets not named Delphine Cascarino. After an extremely nervy first 15 punctuated by a number of dangerous giveaways, San Diego began to experiment with a few different builds. Both Perle Morroni and Hanna Lundkvist had spells inverting to provide a third option in the midfield and push McKaskill higher, but had limited success doing so. Despite the Wave finishing the game with 62% of the ball, the field tilt actually showed Seattle with more control, which is, frankly, how it felt watching live. The Wave simply never got into their typical rhythm.

   

   via @NWSLstat on Bluesky

   For all the praise I've given the Reign's structure, Seattle still don't generate chances and rely on above average finishing to get results, and above average finishing is exactly what they got in the second half. First, local kid Menti struck a long range effort just out of the reach of Kailen Sheridan from 30 yards before Adames tied her defender into a knot before blasting a lefty rocket into the top right corner. The Wave never got control of the game after Adames scored, rarely threatened Claudia Dickey outside of a wonder save from a Cascarino strike in the 77th minute, and Seattle left Snapdragon with three points in the most Reign fashion possible.

   
   

4. KC finish their work early, take the rest of the day off

   If one was to ask me "what does the typical Kansas City Current game look like," I would point directly to Saturday morning's rainy clash against Gotham. Kansas City are nearly unstoppable when they score first, and even more so when they score twice unanswered. This is pretty much how you want the game flow to look when you get an early goal:

   

   Kansas City are the only team that has exhibited virtually no flaws when they have their full strength attack. Even without the newly capped Lo Labonta next to Claire Hutton in midfield, Kansas City didn't have many issues with Gotham's tepid midfield that only got less effective with Ella Stevens forced off early with an injury. The Current did a really good job of staying tight on Gotham's wing duo in the press, specifically early on. Instead of giving Midge Purce and Geyse respect and room to run at FBs Hailie Mace and Ellie Wheeler, Kansas City pushed its two hyper-aggressive FBs right onto the back of the Gotham wingers, winning the ball multiple times early on and preventing the overlaps Gotham likes to run with Lily Reale.

   
   

   I'd also like to mention Michelle Cooper, who doesn't always get the plaudits playing opposite Chawinga, but has become a really high level winger in her third pro season. Cooper leads the league in expected assists per game at a remarkable 0.95 per 90. Yes, nearly ONE expected assist per game, nearly double the next closest player (Washington's Rose Kouassi at 0.54). Combined with her +1.6 goals over expectation mark and her stellar defensive work rate, Cooper has turned herself into, quite simply, a really damn good player.

   
   

5. Rose Lavelle shows her value

   On the Gotham side, if you wanted visual confirmation of what everyone knows -- Rose Lavelle changes everything for Gotham-- Lavelle's 20 minute cameo in return from her latest injury should be sufficient evidence.

   
   

   I've covered Gotham's ongoing quest to find a true ball-carrying midfielder in 2025 without the injured Lavelle and the now-departed Yaz Ryan a few times. We've seen a lot of rookie Sarah Schupansky amd Gabi Portihlo when healthy, a sprinkle of Ella Stevens, a touch of Mak Witham, and a dash of the newly-healthy rookie Sofia Cook. Sometimes, however, you just need your best players available and it will be interesting to see if Lavelle, if she can stay healthy, can move Gotham from a mediocre attacking side (Gotham rank 9th in npxG and 8th in shot creating actions) into one that can challenge the NWSL's top five.

   
   

   Lavelle has her own unique brand of genius that makes her so special whenever and for whomever she steps on the field. For Gotham, however, it is specifically her ability to receive the ball on the half-turn trigger attacking sequences up the field that has the potential to jump start their tepid attack. Within minutes of coming on, Lavelle had twice gotten her defender off balance and played Geyse into space.

   Gotham, for all their ills, still have one of the NWSL's best defenses and one of the best strikers in Esther. With Midge Purce in the process of rounding into form, I won't be shocked if Lavelle's presence is sufficient to get them moving in the right direction.

   
   

6. Some quick notes on Houston vs. Orlando

   - I often watch a full strength Houston and come away feeling like they look better than their mediocre-across-the-board metrics would indicate. Yaz Ryan has been mostly awesome. Rookie Maggie Graham is fun. Delanie Sheehan has been a really good add. Ryan Gareis and Evelina Duljan are exciting. It just feels like they're a few pieces short of a full puzzle. Striker is the obvious spot, and even moreso after Diana Ordonez signed with Tigres last week, but I'd like to see them find a Tarciane replacement at CB along with a more dynamic six to put next to Sheehan. It's the first year of the rebuild, so mediocrity will do for now, but I'd like to see Houston's new look front office be aggressive this summer.

   - I feel the opposite about Orlando. The metrics indicate that they're still a championship level side (and they probably are), but they are now two last minute winners and a last minute equalizer from being a full ten points behind the Current. I ain't convinced.

   - Part of my skepticism on Orlando comes from the issues I've had with their double pivot. Orlando played 2024 with a consistent pairing of Angelina and either Haley McCutcheon or Morgan Gautrat. In 2025, McCutcheon has been a mainstay, but it's been either Gautrat or youngster Ally Lemos -- who I think has largely struggled-- next to her. I'm not entirely sure why Hines took Angelina, who may have been the league's best central midfielder in 2024, out of the middle, but it doesn't feel like Orlando is the same well-oiled machine without her presence in the center of the park.

   - It's impossible to know for sure with the camera angles we have available, but I'm not totally convinced Yaz Ryan was offside on this delicious whipped ball in the 65th minute from Ryan Gareis. Far too close to overturn and I don't feel strongly either way, but she looks just about on to me on a play that would have totally altered the course of this game.

   

   

7. Bay's 4-4-1-1 mid block

   It was interesting to hear the broadcast crew for the Portland-Bay match on Saturday describe Bay's tactical shift from a 4-3-3 to a 4-4-1-1 as one meant to juice the attack --something Bay coach Albertin Montoya himself has also mentioned-- because it's been one, as far as I can tell, that has done much more to enhance Bay's structure than push the side forward. Bay have been a marginally better attacking side by xG generated over a small three game sample since the shape switch after getting battered 4-1 by the Current a month ago, but I haven't observed a noticeable difference in Bay's attacking efficacy over those three matches. Bay have scored more goals but their npxG/90 since the switch has remained under one, consistent with where they've been all season. Similarly, Bay have averaged an almost identical number of shots on target per match, and their possession numbers haven't really changed. There really is no evidence --over that small sample size-- that this team is a better attacking side than they ever have been.

   
   

   The switch to the 4-4-1-1 has, however, solidified what had been a relatively porous defense and midfield group. The move from Kiki Pickett (who had been mostly excellent) as a lone six to a double pivot of Caroline Conti and newly-arrived rookie Hannah Bebar has allowed Bay to drop its wide players back and sit in a mid-block as they did Saturday against Portland. Bay rarely press, but they do make it extremely challenging to play through the midfield. Below is a screenshot of what Bay's 4-2 mid-block looks like in action.The Thorns did themselves no favors, frequently dropping only one of their three central midfielders to pick up the ball from defenders and leaving the second of their Sam Coffey/Hina Sugita duo high, but credit to Bay, who were extremely sturdy throughout and forced the Thorns to play exclusively through the wide areas.

   

   
   

8. Rob Gale does it again (derogatory)

   With Deyna Castellanos out with a back injury and Jessie Fleming having played two games over the international break, the time seemed ripe for Thorns manager Rob Gale to run the common-sense lineup that Thorns fans everywhere (me, I am Thorns fans everywhere) have been clamoring for: A front three of Caiya Hanks wide left, Reilyn Turner or Pietra Tordin at the nine, Mimi Alidou wide right as a Yaz Ryan-style half winger and Olivia Moultrie underneath as a straight 10.

   
   

   Nope! Gale instead went with Hanks, Alidou as a false nine, and Payton Linnehan wide right with Moultrie underneath, electing to leave both of his natural strikers on the bench. It didn't work. Portland lacked a pivot point up top throughout, their only dangerous chances coming via the effervescent rookie Hanks, who looks destined for stardom. Alidou struggled to get on the ball and her propensity for well-timed late runs into the box from her natural ten role were neutered by the fact that she was asked to play as a more traditional nine. To make matters worse, Gale had unbalanced his rotation by starting all three of his three most dynamic wing options, meaning that Turner was once again asked to play as a right winger when she subbed on late in the second half. With Bay sitting back in their mid block after taking the lead through Alyssa Malonson's early screamer, Portland repeatedly bashed their heads into the wall trying to play through the midfield and generated next to nothing the entire second half despite Gale making the adjustment and bringing Tordin on for Linnehan at half time.

   
   

   Every time I feel like I'm being too hard on Gale --the Thorns have been reasonably successful relative to my low expectations coming into the season-- the guy shows himself completely incapable of starting the game with the correct lineup on the field, or making any sort of stylistic adjustment against a team playing a relatively basic defensive system; the match against Bay looking disturbingly reminiscent to Portland's CCCL exit at the hands of Tigres two weeks ago. AmI wrong? Am I too close to the situation as a fan? Should I be more lenient on our guy?

   
   

9. Chicago gets jobbed again

   Sorry y'all, more ref talk. Skip if you'd like.

   
   

   In the 68th minute of Chicago's clash in LA, minutes after Ally Schlegel unleashed a rocket that hit Angelina Anderson's top right corner to give Chicago a shock lead, Stars LB Taylor Malham found Schlegel again inside the Angel City penalty area. Her effort was deflected up and off the hand of ACFC LB MA Vignola before falling to Anderson, who fumbled the ball into the path of Schlegel under pressure from Ludmila, the Chicago striker finishing into an empty net. Referee Brad Jensen did not call the hand ball, but DID manage to hallucinate a foul on Ludmila as she went moved towards goal, either for pulling back Megan Reed or impeding Anderson as she tried to collect the ball. There was no foul. Ludmila did not foul Reed and certainly did not touch Anderson; the Angel City keeper simply fumbling the ball away into Schlegel's path. The ensuing VAR check determined there was no handball on Vignola --a call I was mostly fine with despite Vignola's hand being up away from her body-- but was not, crucially, able to review the ghost foul called on Ludmila because Jensen had blown his whistle before Schlegel's shot crossed the goal line.

   
   
   
   

   This is an unforgivable error from any referee in the era of VAR: You simply cannot make that specific mistake. VAR is there to have your back if you miss a call, and it almost certainly would have done so had the referee swallowed his whistle for another half second. After the VAR debacle, a Vignola goal leveled the score at 2-2, Shea Groom (!) curled an effort just off the post in stoppage time, and Chicago lost two points despite putting in a mostly good performance on the road.

   
   

   Special shoutout to both Malham, who worked her socks off and was excellent all match, and rookie Manaka Hayashi who had some nice moments in her first pro start. Chicago are still a long ways away from being a ways away: Their two goals came via a fluke deflection from a Nadia Gomes cross and Schlegel's belter, but they defended well, had some nice attacking sequences, and did well to come into the game in the second half.

   
   

10. Let's talk Michelle Kang

    I think everyone is mostly on the same page about the Jonatan Giraldez-Spirit-Lyon-Kynisca situation, but it's very much worth mentioning nonetheless.

    
    

    Rumor broke late last week that the Spirit manager, less than a year into his tenure in Washington after his high profile luring from Barcelona, would be accepting the newly vacated position at the freshly rebranded OL Lyonnes, another of Kang's Kynisca empire, and notably one of the most decorated clubs in the world.

    
    

    Kang has, broadly, done a lot of good in women's soccer, but this is one of many reasons why one should never deify billionaires. Unless Giraldez specifically requested to be considered for the Lyonnes position without any prompting, it is hard for me to call this anything but an embarrassing, bush league, overall BS move from the Spirit owner, a move only made worse by a refusal to hold a separate press conference, a limitation on the number of questions permitted to be asked about their departing coach, sticking Giraldez into the fire after Washington's match on Sunday, and the fact that she stated in a 2024 Forbes interview that "Kynisca would not sacrifice one team to make another team successful."

    
    

    We may never know the exact percentage split for who made the move happen. It is somewhat possible that, despite stating publicly that he was happy stateside, Giraldez wished to return to Europe, that he was unhappy with the political situation in the United States, that he wanted the chance to coach a legendary club with massive resources, or even that he was running from the NWSL grind. If it was entirely his choice --which I find doubtful -- c'est la vie. Unfortunately for Kang's PR staff, "doubtful" is probably not a strong enough word to use, given it seems clear that, well, it wasn't all his choice. In a quote from this excellent Jason Anderson piece on the situation, Giraldez straight up says that he was contacted by Kynisca leadership and that "I had to say yes to lead that project....It's about us all together as an organization: owner, CEO, and then the sporting director."

    
    

    So yeah. There really is no other way to interpret this than what evidently happened: Kang yanking her prized manager from the Spirit and plunking him down in central France. Aside from making her comments from the Forbes interview look like a bald-faced lie, it's a PR disaster for her organization, and makes it clear that she and Kynisca are no different from the City group, Red Bull, or any of the other international multi-club ownership groups that plague the modern club soccer world.

    
    

    Soccer-wise, the Spirit will probably be fine. They have an excellent, talented team, an excellent fanbase, and promoted assistant and former interim manager Adrian Gonzalez, who is both well-respected and a skilled tactical manager who will keep continuity in DC. For the fans and players alike, however, it's hard not to see this as anything but being told by their yellow coat-clad owner that they rank second at best in the hierarchy. And that's a nasty pill to swallow.

Goal of the week: Sorry to a few worthy candidates, but Emma Sears narrowly edges Ally Schlegel for this week's honors: