Christopher Hanewinckel-US PRESSWIRE
On Saturday, the top team in the league will
host the Flash for a third time with hopes to continue their five
consecutive game winning streaks.
Sky Blue continues to
steamroll their competition in NWSL. Last week, SBFC recorded the NWSL's
biggest win. The 5-1 victory against Boston had contributions from
Taylor Lytle, Danesha Adams and Lisa De Vanna, with the latter two
scoring two goals apiece.
This score line is unlikely to
be produced again due to the special circumstances of Week 8, as all
Canadian and American national team members were called away. SBFC took
advantage of a disorganized Boston squad that was missing their pivotal
players. Competing against the Flash on Saturday will be a challenge.
The last meeting between both teams resulted in Sky Blue's first loss of
the season but since then Sky Blue has produced five consecutive wins
and four consecutive clean sheets.
WNYF are a scoring threat as
Abby Wambach is tied with Sophie Schmidt as the top leading goalscorer
in the league. The Flash are a creative side and have an abundance of
great shooters such as Carli Lloyd, Samantha Kerr and McCall Zerboni,
but Sky Blue's Jim Gabarra has developed an impenetrable back line.
Caitlin Foord's runs down the
flank act as a catalyst for SBFC to create offensive plays. If Foord can
connect with Kelley O'Hara or Katy Freels then the home team may record
their sixth consecutive win. Freels and O'Hara are creative on the ball
and find pockets to seed passes. SBFC's top three goal scorers will be
prime targets on Saturday.
The Flash defense is not as
technically trained on the ball as SBFC but their physicality on the
field could suppress De Vanna's movement into the box. However, O'Hara's
quick feet and control of the ball could provide her or De Vanna with
an opportunity on goal if she can penetrate the box or blast a the ball
20 yards out.
A setback could affect the
overall performance of SBFC's offense. Following O'Hara's ankle injury
in Week 7 against FCKC, it is uncertain whether she play for the home
team on Saturday. If she cannot, this could disadvantage SBFC
offensively. She knows how to drive the ball up the field and link up
with Schmidt or De Vanna, without her creativity behind the ball the
team may encounter difficulty pushing the ball forward and finding the
back of the net.
没有评论:
发表评论