The Midway Point Recap and Best XI

Just past the NWSL season's midway point, we've learned a lot, both about where the league is headed this season and where it's headed in the long term. For the first time in the NWSL's history, we have a clear delineation between the teams that have taken advantage of the NWSL's new TV deals, a higher salary cap, and new eyes; and the teams that have not.

Through 14 weeks, the NWSL is finally stratified: The clear top four NWSL teams -- Kansas City, Orlando, Washington, and Gotham-- are those that made the largest improvements to their rosters in the offseason, spent the most money, and have the most creative and adaptable coaches in the league. Kansas City's new look front line of Temwa Chawinga and Bia Zaneratto has wrecked havoc on the rest of the league, putting the Current well on pace to shatter the record for most goals in a season currently sitting at 54 courtesy of the 2019 North Carolina Courage. Orlando brought in Barbra Banda and Angelina, and have the undisputed (at least in my mind) COTY in Seb Hines. Washington went big game hunting in the offseason, bringing in former Barcelona coach Jonatan Giraldez....and have overachieved under his assistant while they wait for Giraldez to arrive. The Spirit also brought in Casey Krueger, hit big on both first round picks Croix Bethune and Hal Hershfelt, and have a pair of big name European signings on the way in Atletico's Colombian attacking midfielder Leicy Santos and former Manchester City CB Esme Morgan. Gotham have been ravaged by injuries all season and still find themselves in fourth place in large part due to their incredible depth: The New Jersey side brought in Rose Lavelle, Crystal Dunn, Sam Hiatt, Tierna Davidson, Ann-Katrin Berger, and Ella Stevens since they won the 2023 NWSL title, putting themselves firmly in position to repeat.

The pool of NWSL 1.0 and 2.0 heavyweights that have not improved sufficiently on or off the field --notably the Thorns, Reign, Wave, and Courage-- have some catching up to do. The Thorns and Reign have semi-excuses with their respective ownership situations clogging up the outgoing spend for years, but find themselves having to play catch up with clearly substandard coaches and a dearth of roster talent, though the Thorns are in a much better situation than their neighbors to the North. The Wave rested on their laurels after winning the Shield in just their second year in the league, failing to add sufficiently to their core duo of Jaedyn Shaw and Naomi Girma as Alex Morgan's professional career fades slowly into the San Diego sunset, going as far to fire manager Casey Stoney to much criticism after their slow start. The Courage are in a slightly different (better?) spot than the other three --they have the coach, are missing their best attacker through injury, and have invested wisely and consistently to address holes-- but are still a clear tier below the top four in terms of top-end talent and depth.

The bottom half of the league has never felt so far from the top, which is a VERY GOOD thing for a league that has had too much parity for its own good for far too long. Louisville, Houston, and Utah are stuck in purgatory: They lack the reputation, crowds, and ownership needed to attract the best players and don't have the necessary coaches to elevate substandard rosters. Angel City is a horrifically-run celebrity club whose FO runs the club like a kid on a FIFA Career Mode video game save; reliant on old stars past their prime and kids not quite ready for prime time in the first place. Chicago is on their way up under manager Lorne Donaldson, but is so short on talent that it feels like they're still a year from being a year away. Bay FC will be better than they are currently, but it's fair to say that they have had a much rougher start to their fledgling existence than many (myself included) expected.....and just had their GM resign months into the season.

Before we get into the Best 11, let's compare my season preview power rankings to the standings. Current standings first, rankings from my pre-season preview power rankings in parentheses:

1. Kansas City Current (Gotham FC)

2. Orlando Pride (San Diego Wave)

3. Washington Spirit (Portland Thorns)

4. Gotham FC (Orlando Pride)

5. Portland Thorns (North Carolina Courage)

6. North Carolina Courage ( Bay FC)

7. Chicago Red Stars (Kansas City Current)

8. Racing Louisville (Washington Spirit)

9. San Diego Wave (Houston Dash)

10. Angel City FC (Seattle Reign)

11. Bay FC (Angel City FC)

12. Houston Dash (Racing Louisville)

13. Seattle Reign (Chicago Red Stars)

14. Utah Royals (Utah Royals)

Takeaways?

• I should have trusted my gut instead of Casey Stoney re: the Wave.

• Vlatko has done a remarkable job at getting Kansas City to gel so quickly.

• Same goes for Adrian Gonzalez and the Spirit.

• Patting myself on the back for my belief in Seb Hines and Orlando.

• I drank the Bay FC KoolAid BIG TIME. My bad.

Best XI:

A few rules for the Best XI:

1. No bending of positions allowed. All players must at least be capable of playing in the position they fill in the XI.

2. All representatives must have played at least 900 minutes (65 minutes/match) to qualify

Striker: Barbra Banda, Orlando Pride

Remember Rule 2? Well, I'm breaking it right away because a first half NWSL Best XI without Banda ain't a legitimate Best XI. Banda has taken the league by storm since her arrival, cruising to the top of the Golden Boot race and elevating Orlando into true Shield Contender status. I mean, WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS?

A few more stats:

• Banda averages 1.22 G/90 and 0.61 A/90. That means she's averaging almost two goal contributions per 90 minutes. Framed in another way? Banda is averaging more goals per 90 minutes than half the league's teams: Utah, Houston, Seattle, Angel City, Gotham, and North Carolina.

• The chart below (thx McLach App: free customizable data vis is a game changer!) shows shot creating actions per 90 along the Y-axis and non-penalty along the X-axis. Banda nearly breaks the chart.

Left Wing: Sophia Smith, Portland Thorns

Amidst Banda-mania, Temwa Chawinga's incredible start to life in KC (more on her shortly), and the Thorns' rollercoaster ride of a first half; Sophia Smith's remarkable start to the season has almost gone under the radar. Still just 23 years old, Smith has absolutely carried the Thorns in 2024. Sometimes the raw production speaks for itself, and the Thorns striker currently is joint top of the Golden Boot race with 10 goals, and second in assists with six. For all the snarky "she's too selfish" comments, Smith has noticeably improved her vision and decision making from her first three years in the league and, despite still needing to improve on the technical passing side, is making progress there as well. Long story short: She's been really, really good in a Thorns side that has failed to give her the types of elite sidekick (especially since Morgan Weaver's knee injury) the other top strikers have. Smith hasn't been as dominant relative to the rest of the league as she usually is --that's what happens when the league improves!-- but rest assured, she's leveled up yet again. The chart below shows how much work she does with the ball at her feet, showing goal creating actions next to completed take-ons per 90.

Now get her some help, Thorns!

Right Wing: Temwa Chawinga, Kansas City Current.

Kansas City's hot start of the season has been the story of 2024, and Chawinga has been the key piece. I wasn't sure what to expect from the world's leading goal scorer when Kansas City signed her- Her career stats were outrageous, tallying over 130 goals in about as many appearances between Swedish club Kvarnsvedens and Chinese club Wuhan Jianghan. Would the level translate, or was the Malawian just a flat track bully?

Well, through half an NWSL season, Chawinga is certainly a bully, just not of the flat track variety. Her counting stats are ridiculous, but her main impact is the absolute fear of god she puts in opposing defenders. Chawinga is a menace. She never runs out of energy, is arguably the strongest attacking player in the league (poor Nicole Payne will be seeing Chawinga in her nightmares for about a year), and has a supreme defensive work rate. She's fit perfectly into coach Vlatko Andonovski's high pressing(!) vertical system, and has made for the perfect tall-smol (though she's anything but small) forward duo with Brazilian Bia Zaneratto when Bia has been healthy. Home run of a signing for the Current.

The 10: Croix Bethune, Washington Spirit

Anyone who watched Bethune in college over her time at USC and Georgia knew she was the most talented player in a draft lacking a clear national team caliber talent. When healthy, Bethune was one of the most enjoyable college players to watch in recent memory, her smooth, upright style combined with more sauce than you can imagine making her an intriguing professional prospect......but one with some major injury concerns given her three ACL tears before graduating college.

We'll see if the knee issues return (sure as hell hope not!) but Bethune has put together arguably --no, definitely-- the greatest NWSL rookie season of all time in 2024. Through 14 games, Bethune has been the Spirit's best player, posting an absurd five goals and eight assists. Bethune is not only the runaway rookie of the year, but is at least IN the MVP conversation as well; and if not for the Smith/Chawinga/Banda trio, would be getting some real consideration for the award itself. Watching Bethune play is one of the best neutral viewing experiences in the league: She's not only incredibly talented on the ball, but has a penchant for a big goal and is a fantastic ball-striker. The closest stylistic comparison is probably a slower Rose Lavelle, and Bethune, who has already climbed onto the fringes of Emma Hayes' USWNT roster, looks set to be Lavelle's heir apparent on the national team level.

The 8: Ashley Sanchez, North Carolina Courage

Anyone who has consistently read my NWSL recaps this season or talked to me about women's soccer at all will know how big of an Ashley Sanchez fan I am. Sanchez is a curious player: Mega-talented, but limited in the roles she can play. She's neither strong, nor particularly quick, making the range of attacking systems she can fit into relatively narrow. Many would probably call her a "luxury player." When the news broke that Barcelona manager Jonathan Giraldez would be taking of the Sanchez's Spirit squad, I was excited to see Sanchez thrive in a more fluid, possession oriented system where she could use her creativity and on-ball ability to effect the game at a higher level than she had in Mark Parsons' diamond.

The Spirit didn't agree, trading her away to the Courage in order to make space for Bethune, but Sanchez could hardly have ended up in a better place than North Carolina. Under coach Sean Nahas, with whom she had worked with as a US youth prospect, Sanchez has thrived: Nahas' famously short-pass, possession-oriented, slow-build style has been the ideal fit for Sanchez, who has emerged as the hub of the Courage attack. With the Courage 's limited attacking personnel, Sanchez's ability to make something out of very little has been key: Her creation metrics --measured via expected assists and progressive passes in the chart below-- are, almost literally, off the charts, particularly impressive given the Courage's complete lack of vertical threats. With the addition of Australian winger Kortnee Vine and the possible return of Kerolin before the end of the 2024 season, Sanchez's league-leading quantity of passes into the penalty area will have legitimate receivers, and the goal creation numbers should rise to the level of the chance creation numbers. It's been an excellent start to life in North Carolina for Sanchez, and one that has seen her return to some of the form she exhibited in her first two seasons with the Spirit.

The Six: Claire Hutton, Kansas City Current

If I'm being honest, there are probably players -- Taylor Flint, Sam Coffey, Angelina before her knee injury-- that might deserve this spot a little more than Hutton based on body of work. With that said, it's hard to overstate the impact the 18 year old rookie holding midfielder has had on the league's best team through the first half of the season, and her crucial role in filling one of the only gaps on the Current's roster impressed me enough to give Hutton the spot.

Hutton certainly has a pedigree -- signed at 17 by the Current, has played at multiple youth national team levels, captained the U19s, was on track to attend UNC etc-- but I think it's fair to say that she hadn't garnered quite the noise or popularity of some of her youth national team contemporaries including her own teammate Alex Pfeiffer and Angel City midfielder Kennedy Fuller. One of KC's biggest questions going into the season was who would play at the six. Would Lo Labonta drop back and play an unfamiliar position? Was Desiree Scott fit (or capable at this stage of her career) of continuing to fill the role?

Coach Vlatko Andonovski made it clear in pre-season that he was going to give Hutton the job, and that she had earned it with her play in training. A series of glowing remarks in preseason was followed by Andonovski playing Hutton every minute of the first seven matches of her pro career. Hutton is a six in the truest sense. Her positioning is impeccable, she's a clean and confident passer, is calm on the ball, and snaps into tackles when she needs to. In a Current team loaded with attackers and attacking midfielders, Hutton has had to take a lot of the defensive load in midfield. Her stats reflect that load: She's in the 97th percentile for tackles and 86th percentile for interceptions by a midfielder. She's also not afraid to get forward and have a go from range, but arguably the most impressive accomplishment is how seamlessly she's fit into an extremely difficult midfield role. In a USWNT pool lacking holding midfield talent behind Coffey, I have to imagine we'll see Hutton make her mark sooner than later.

Right Back: Casey Krueger, Washington Spirit

When Krueger left Chicago for the Spirit in free agency, everyone with a brain knew how good a move it was for the Spirit. Krueger --a natural RB who has also played CB-- has played primarily left back for Washington, and excelled. I've written about the Ashley Hatch conundrum in Washington, as the Spirit have virtually played without an effective left wing for much of the season. Krueger has been the reason why this has worked, bombing up and down the left wing while closing down gaps defensively. Krueger's counting stats don't stand out like most of the other players I've included in this Best 11, but this is my "eye test" selection. Don't be mad, I promise it's justified.

You know who else has been impressed by Krueger? Emma Hayes, who awarded Krueger the last USWNT Olympic roster spot.

Left Back: Marie Müller, Portland Thorns

I'll direct you to my analysis of Müller from a month ago for more detail on the areas she's excelled at (and struggled in) this season, most of which remain true: https://www.theeaststandnwsl.com/post/nwsl-week-9-interlude-the-xfun-three

Long story short, she's been the best LB in the league, period. There are left backs that have better attacking metrics (Izzy Rodriguez) and left backs that are more traditional defenders (Krueger), but Müller has been the most complete left back in the league. She's an aggressive tackler, an excellent game-reader, and is up there with Jenna Nighswonger as the most technically proficient fullbacks in the league. Müller has room to improve as a pure defender -- she has one of the highest per 90 rates of getting beaten off the dribble in the league-- but she's been arguably the Thorns' most consistent non-Smith player, and probably the most underrated of the league's flurry of international signings in the offseason.

Fun fact: Müller has over two more tackles and interceptions per 90 than any other FB in the league. That's good!

Left Center Back: Gabrielle Robinson, Kansas City Current

One of the biggest tragedies of the 2024 NWSL season was Robinson's season-ending ACL injury in the last week of May. Robinson, after an at-times very rocky rookie season, had established herself as one of the most complete central defenders in the league through 10 weeks in a Current defensive unit that had cut out of large portion of its defensive struggles from the year prior (well, except set-pieces. Let's not talk about those). Amongst all center backs, Robinson leads the league in tackles and interceptions per 90 while getting beat off the dribble at an astonishingly low rate for a player who seemingly couldn't keep a player in front of her in 2023. Robinson also has the highest progressive pass rate in the league at CB, showing off a vastly improved passing range. If there was a "most improved player" award, Robinson would be a firm candidate to receive it....but she'll have to take this midway point Best 11 spot as a consolation prize.

Right Center Back: Tara McKeown, Washington Spirit

This spot could have gone to a few players --Emily Sams, who didn't meet the minutes threshold; Sam Staab, brilliant so far for Chicago; Naomi Girma, still the overall best defender in the league by a mile-- but Mckeown is one of the players that has impressed me most this season. In an almost bizarre turn of events, the converted striker has been turned into one of the league's best 1v1 defenders. You can find clips of her stuffing all three of my Best 11 attackers in space over the course of the season, and she is second in the league in tackles won per 90 minutes.

Perhaps logically given her former position, McKeown plays center back like she's thinking from a striker's perspective. She's a fantastic anticipatory defender which helps her win those individual duals in space and cut off passing angles to forward runners. Outside of Naomi Girma, there are very few defenders who read the game like McKeown does- A remarkable trait given this is her second year playing the position. McKeown is also good in the air for her size, winning 83% of her aerial duels and has been dangerous going forward on set pieces throughout her time at CB. It will be interesting which of the Spirit's two CBs (if either) cede their place to new signing Esme Morgan when she arrives in DC, but McKeown has, in my mind, locked down her spot in a very effective 11.

GK: Ann-Katrin Berger, Gotham FC

There's really not much to say here. Berger has been objectively the best keeper in the league since joining from Chelsea a few months ago. Some stats Berger leads the league in:

• Post shot xG- Goals against (probably the most important keeper metric) and PsxG-GA/90.

• Save percentage.

• Goals against per 90.

Poor Cassie Miller :(

Midway Point Second 11: Jane Campbell, Izzy Rodriguez, Naomi Girma, Sam Staab, Gabby Carle, Taylor Flint, Sam Coffey, Vanessa Dibernardo, Claire Emslie, Mallory Swanson, Trinity Rodman.