Written by Jesus Figueroa
@ThisFunktional
Angel City FC head home with its first win of the season to end a turbulent three game road trip.
A heavily contested match up against the Chicago Red Stars at SeatGeek Stadium ended with Angel City winning 1-0 after a free kick from forward Claire Emslie, number 10, that was sent towards defender Megan Reid, number 6, ricocheted off the foot of Chicago defender Maxi Rall to get passed Red Star’s goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher. This was the first time Reid saw playing time this season.
Defender Sarah L. Gorden, number 11, looked in fantastic form as she stepped her game up playing at another lever. Showcasing her speed and understanding of the game, Gorden quickly moved play forward out of Angel City’s half and connected consistently with open players in good positions. This was one of Gorden’s best performances with consistent game play, great distribution, and immaculate defending.
Defender Jasmyne Spencer, number 3, got her first start of the season and played her 175th game in the NWSL. Spencer was a key part of possession with several hard fought plays to goal and some key passes to create dangerous goal scoring opportunities.
Forward Alyssa Thompson, number 21, continues her run of great games with another wonderful performance. Pairing up with Spencer, Thompson was able to play fast paced and create chances from the right wing with a few goal scoring opportunities which were slightly off.
For the first time this season, goalkeeper DiDi Haračić, number 13, took the pitch. Haračić made some incredible saves, especially to close out the game, but the Red Stars never looked like a threat for Haračić.
Midfielder Clarisse Le Bihan, number 29, came on as a sub to see her first minutes of play this season and looked to be quite active on the pitch. Le Bihan quickly made an impact winning possession and fighting hard to push play forward.
While the Chicago Red Stars were a difficult team and were very physical, as evident with Maddison Curry, number 27, having to play the majority of the game with her head bandaged up after suffering an early injury, Angel City kept their form, moved the ball around, kept possession, and looked formidable each and every time they had a touch on the ball. Game play was contested, but Angel City found ways to challenge the Red Stars defenders and create problems for Naeher.
Angel City heads home to face the North Carolina Courage on April 21, at 4:30 p.m. PT
