“A testament of our hard work”: Why San Diego Wave’s tactical changes were key to their NWSL draw at Orlando Pride – tactical analysis

Neither Orlando Pride nor San Diego Wave have been in great form recently in the NWSL, with four straight losses before the weekend seeing the Pride fall out of playoff contention whilst San Diego had won three and lost three of their last six games. However, owing to the ten wins and four draws picked up before this game, the Wave were on the brink of making history, with one more point being all they required to become the first expansion side to finish in the playoffs in their debut season.

With a maximum of six points still to play for, it looked highly likely that Casey Stoney’s side would achieve that aim. However, the weekend’s trip to Florida proved tough, with the Wave needing to dig deep in order to recover from a difficult start and seal a place in the playoffs, and this tactical analysis will break down why Seb Hines’ team kept them out for so long. The analysis will also look at how the Wave got themselves back into the game, specifically their tactical and personnel alterations.

Lineups

Orlando Pride, playing their final home game of the season, opted to make a number of changes to their starting lineup, with four new names in all as Hines rotated his squad. Full-backs Kylie Strom and Kerry Abello, Canada midfielder Jordyn Listro and former OL Reign forward Ally Watt all dropped to the bench, whilst centre-back Megan Montefusco switched from the back four to a defensive midfield role and fellow defender Haley Hanson was given a place in the midfield line. Into the team came Toni Pressley, who captained the side, and left-back Courtney Petersen, who both slotted into the back line, whilst Meggie Dougherty Howard and Brazilian Thais Reiss were given the wide midfield roles.

San Diego Wave, meanwhile, opted for just two alterations for this game, with star striker and 15-goal league top scorer Alex Morgan being “touch and go”, according to Stoney, and so only named as a substitute. She was joined on the bench by fellow forward Makenzy Doniak, with former England striker Jodie Taylor tasked with leading the line in Morgan’s absence and Mexico forward Katie Johnson starting just behind her, replacing Doniak.