NWSL Challenge Cup 2022: How San Diego Wave used their attacking expertise to beat Angel City – tactical analysis

San Diego Wave met Angel City for the NWSL Challenge Cup’s fourth fixture and the match saw the locals beat their opponent with a 4-2 final score. First of all, it should be said that the 2022 season is going to be the first-ever NWSL season for both teams. Actually, Angel City are holding the 4^th spot in a group containing San Diego Wave, OL Reign and Portland Thorns. They only got 1 point in 4 matches and that’s a worrying overall result. Yet, the players and the coaching staff shouldn’t feel bad about this as it is only the start of the season. They should consider the NWSL Challenge Cup as a pre-season preparation for the NWSL since these games can show everyone’s weaknesses and give the head coach a concrete idea of what to fix and what to focus on in the near future. On the other side, San Diego Wave are third in the group with 4 points in 3 games and a match left to play. Therefore, if they win their next game, they will be able to hold the second spot alongside Portland Thorns.

In this tactical analysis, we will focus on San Diego Wave’s attacking and defensive performance while spotting what needs to be improved and what should be consolidated. The analysis will also explore the reasons that led to Angel City’s loss despite being able to score two goals.

Line-ups

San Diego Wave opted for a 4-2-3-1 formation with the Canadian international goalkeeper, Kailen Sheridan, a defensive line composed of former Portland right-back Christen Westphal, ex-Manchester City Women centre-back Abby Dahlkemper, 2022 draft pick Naomi Girma and former Washington Spirit defender Tegan McGrady. In front of them, former Orlando Pride’s Taylor Kornieck and Kristen McNabb played as central midfielders while former Chelsea, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich’s Sofia Jakobsson and Alex Morgan played on the wings and Kelsey Turnbow was used as an advanced playmaker just behind the experienced striker, Jodie Taylor, a player who had several adventures at big teams like Arsenal, Lyon, Portland Thorns, OL Reign and Orlando Pride.

Angel City started the game with a 4-2-3-1 formation including Bosnia’s goalkeeper DiDi Haracic, Jasmyne Spencer, Vanessa Gilles, Madison Hammond and New Zealand captain Ali Riley in defence. The midfield was made up of Dani Weatherholt and Cari Roccaro while former Racing Louisville player Savannah McCaskill started as an advanced playmaker behind ex-Portland Thorns striker Tyler Lussi. Moreover, Japan international Jun Endo and former Manchester United Women forward Christen Press were played on both wings.

San Diego Wave’s performance

San Diego Wave had a very good start of the match since they were the first to attack, exploiting the fact that they were playing at home in order to put extra pressure on their opponent in their own half. That was clearly noticeable in the first 20 minutes in which they succeeded in creating a couple of chances before scoring the first goal of the match. It was an action that started from the left wing in an attempt to serve Morgan who was waiting inside the box before deciding to ask for the ball and move to her left at the last second in order to escape from marking. That intelligent movement enabled her to anticipate the defender’s clearance attempt and collect the ball successfully. At the same time, she saw Taylor and Jakobsson asking for a cross on the far post and therefore she quickly opted for a cross instead of going for a shot, since she was also surrounded with opposing players. Taylor then knew how to deal with the cross accurately after a first saved attempt, scoring San Diego Wave’s first goal and exploiting a marking error from Angel City.