Coming back from a long break, this weekend, the Chicago Red Stars are looking to re-ignite their campaign at home against the Seattle Reign. Here is a full Week 9 preview.
The Chicago Red Stars had been having a rough go of it since Sam Kerr left for France. But with a long break behind them, it is time to look ahead toward the second half of the season. Their first game back will be against the Seattle Reign, who are unbeaten since their run-in with the Red Stars earlier in the season.
Although there has been a long break since the last game, Brook Elby and Arin Wright are both listed as questionable. I don’t think that coach Rory Dames will want to risk either and we may see them take the bench to start.
On the Seattle end, they came back from their break earlier than everyone else, playing against Washington last week. It should be noted that there was only a single substitution used for the Reign in that game, meaning some of these players may still be a little fatigued.
Speaking of the Seattle Reign, their form since facing off against Chicago has been fairly impressive. In the five games since, they have gone unbeaten with two wins and three draws. While it doesn’t seem that important, this is still a Reign team playing without their main star, Megan Rapinoe, and now without main goal-scorer, Jodie Taylor. In their absence, multiple players have stepped up.
At the striker position, Bethany Balcer has been a very solid force for the club, scoring three goals so far this season. Since Taylor left for the English national team, Balcer has been the focal point of the offense and has handled her position well. In the playmaker role, Jess Fishlock was superb against the Spirit, in which she was integral to Seattle’s play and scored the equalizer. These two are likely to play a crucial role for Seattle again this weekend.
When it comes to the Chicago Red Stars, the team is still lacking in the goals department. They have not scored since Sam Kerr went to the World Cup. And that’s not for lack of firepower. Yuki Nagasato and Katie Johnson are two solid goalscorers and Michele Vasconcelos started this season on fire. But it’s just not happening. Something has changed.
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Just this past Wednesday, the Red Stars made a trade with Sky Blue FC for attacker Savannah McCaskill. McCaskill set records in college for the University of South Carolina and was an absolute beast during her time on loan with Sydney FC, scoring five goals in her 13 games played. In the W-League Grand Final, she scored two goals to beat Kerr’s Perth Glory.
I’d actually been waiting for the Red Stars’ next game with Sky Blue so I could talk about her, but now with this trade, she will be playing for Chicago. Although she was only acquired this week, there has been talk that she might be ready to start, meaning that even more attacking support has arrived to try to break the team out of this slump. If they are to overcome a stubborn and in-form Seattle side, the Red Stars will need it.
Projected XI:
Chicago Red Stars (4-3-3): Emily Boyd; Zoey Goralski, Sarah Gorden, Katie Naughton, Casey Short; Danielle Colaprico, Yuki Nagasato, Vanessa DiBernardo; Michele Vasconcelos, Katie Johnson, Savannah McCaskill
Seattle Reign (4-3-3): Casey Murphy; Theresa Nielsen, Megan Oyster, Lauren Barnes, Stephanie Cox; Morgan Andrews, Jess Fishlock, Beverly Yanez; Kiersten Dallstream, Bethany Balcer, Ifeoma Onumonu
How To Watch:
Sunday, June 23rd, 5:00 PM CDT; At SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview, IL, on NBC Sportsnet Chicago, and online with the Yahoo Sports App