Traveling is great, but it is always nice to come back home. After a disappointing road trip to end their 2016 NWSL regular season the Washington Spirit are back home. Although the weather will likely be less than desirable it should certainly still be a warm reception for the side on Friday when they host the Chicago Red Stars at the Maryland SoccerPlex (8pm FS1).
Considering that the Spirit lost to the Red Stars last Saturday night on the road one would certainly expect tensions to be higher than normal for a playoff match. Chicago (9-6-5, 33 points) defeated Washington 3-1 on Saturday night at home, knocking the Spirit (12-3-5, 39 points) out of the top spot in the standings. The two sides split the season series with the Spirit defeating the Red Stars 2-0 at home back in July.
If the Spirit have any designs on making it to the NWSL Championship match they are going to need to solve the Red Stars defense. Chicago ran a high line against the Spirit on Saturday giving Christine Nairn and Diana Matheson very little room to find Crystal Dunn and Cheyna Williams in dangerous territory. Defenders Julie Johnston and Stephanie McCaffrey have shown consistently throughout the season that they are two of the best defenders in the NWSL and put on a clinic against the Spirit last week. Finding space in between them is the Spirit’s chief goal on Friday night.
The good news for Washington is that they will have Estefania Banini back for a full match. Banini made an appearance late in Saturday’s game and very clearly looked like she was shaking off the rust after having sat out a month due to knee surgery. When she was healthy this season Banini was one of the Spirit’s best attacking pieces, scoring five goals and tallying one assist. Even if it is a super substitute role Banini has shown this season that she can break through defenses using her strong dribbling skills and excellent first touch.
On the other side of the pitch it will be interesting to see how the Spirit defense and goalkeeper Kelsey Wys handle the pressure early. The Red Stars broke through early at home thanks to an excellent goal by Christen Press. Midfielder Vanessa Di Bernardo was instrumental in breaking down a normally very composed Spirit defense, knowing when to hold on to possession and when to make passes into dangerous areas. Her work, coupled with the holding play of Sofia Huerta, hae made the Red Stars an effective attacking side. They might not always score three goals in a match (their 24 goals scored was tied for third-lowest in the league this season), but if they get a lead they certainly know how to hold it.
The first fifteen minutes of this match will be very telling of the Spirit’s chances of advancing. If they can hold off the Red Stars early on and fight back the nerves of their first-ever home playoff match, then they should have a good chance of advancing. But much of it depends upon finding holes in Chicago’s defense. If the Spirit get behind early they will have to play to the Red Stars advantage. That might lead to a long, wet night at the SoccerPlex.
Beer of the Week: Flying Dog Brewing Company’s Double Dog IPA
A difficult match deserves a strong beer and there aren’t many beers stronger in the area. The Double Dog IPA is 11.5% Alcohol By Volume. Need I say more?
Enjoy the beer and enjoy the playoff match, #SpiritFam. Oh, and make sure to send your beer picks to @SeanMaslin on Twitter.
