What we learned from Bay FC's debut win over ACFC, and other NWSL musings
Asisat Oshoala and Lysianne Proulx led Bay FC to a win in their inaugural road match in LA, but have they built a NWSL playoff contender?
As expansion clubs go, one of the NWSL’s newest clubs may have upturned their expectations in last week’s debut win.
World record transfer signing Asisat Oshoala kicked off her NWSL career with an absolute stunner of a goal, and Bay FC held the lead through an other worldly goalkeeping display.
Oshoala is simply living up to expectations, but Lysianne Proulx’s clean sheet was impressive, saving +2.1 expected goals, no doubt earning Bay FC an important 3 points on the road.
The question for Bay FC will become, is Proulx one of the best GKs in the league? If the answer turns out to be no, then Bay FC may still have some building to do in the summer.
Historically, there is plenty of evidence to predict that Proulx will come back down to earth sooner, rather than later. In the NWSL last season, only six keepers had a better PSxG-GA over the entire season, with only Abby Smith averaging over 0.50 per 90 minutes.
Proulx’s A-League stats tell the story of a player who was a perfectly average shot stopper with very strong distribution numbers, and while a change in system under a new goalkeeper coach can allow players progress to quickly, Proulx will have to prove that she can be a net positive keeper over multiple matches.
Some relief will come as Bay FC manager Albertin Montoya was not happy with the way the match played out, "It was definitely not the style we wanted to play", Montoya would respond after the match, citing the short preseason for his international players while implementing a tactical system from scratch.
If Montoya struggles to implement his system fully, Angel City FC proved that there is a way to expose Bay FC, and create plenty of chances but ACFC simply didn’t have the finishers on the day.
Both Kennedy Fuller and Sydney Leroux contributed over an expected goal for Angel City, and forced Proulx to show one of the better goalkeeping displays of the past few seasons.
It's uncharacteristic for Angel City, the squad finished 3rd in the league last season while only outscoring their xG by .2 goals, an indication that they can usually finish their chances as expected.
For her part, ACFC manager Becki Tweed preaches patience in over analyzing week 1 results.
“It's Game 1 of a long, long season.” Becki Tweed would reflect after the match, “We have to remember this is Game 1. I think we all get caught up in acting like the first game is the be all or end all. This is game one of a long, long season and we have to use this game as a huge learning point.”
One thing is for sure, the rematch on June 22nd at Paypal will be a must watch.
North Carolina Courage have returned
Sean Nahas’ North Carolina Courage will surprise some clubs this season. It is true that the Dash are far from full strength but the style in which Nahas’ Courage ran over the Dash to a 5-1 win in Cary.
The Courage are full of star power, a full restocking of the cupboard after losing Debinha and Diana Ordoñez in the same offseason a year ago.
With Kerolin still recovering, the squad hummed along behind offseason acquisition Ashley Sanchez, and 4 goal contributions from the bench including a Victoria Pickett assist and a Bianca St. Georges brace.
The Courage managed 8 shots on target, with 5 of those shots equating to a “Big chance”, and played some gorgeous attacking soccer in the process.
Ashley Sanchez seems built for Nahas’ attacking scheme, creating 3 chances, completing 2 take ons, and mixing it up in 6 duel attempts. Despite 0 direct goal contributions, Sanchez continues to be one of the more underrated players in the league.
The real early test for the Courage will be next weekend as they host the defending NWSL champions, Gotham FC, but they’ll be sure to tell you that they can’t look past heading out to Utah this weekend.
Washington Spirit’s troubling start
The obvious caveat here after Matchday 1, but the first look at the new Washington Spirit was not a pleasant one.
Some of that can be written off as starting on the road in Seattle, extremely hostile territory, over 2,758 miles away from home.
Trinity Rodman’s absence was also strongly felt in the absence of the aforementioned Ashley Sanchez, but the Spirit only managed 2 shot attempts to the Reign’s 14 while none of their opportunities could be registered as a “Big Chance”.
The Spirit welcome Bay Fc in their home opener this weekend, a big test for two clubs with plenty of questions swirling around the matchup.