The position battle that will determine the NWSL semifinal between the Chicago Red Stars and FC Kansas City is clear- Christen Press and the Chicago forwards versus KC’s central defenders.
“Christen Press is a very talented player, she’s probably one of the best when she gets in the box or right around the box, she’s so incredibly dangerous,” said Kansas City FC Defender Amy LePeilbet following the most recent meeting between the Red Stars and KC.
“Even when you’re tight she still gets a beautiful shot off. She’s a tough one. I always love playing her because as a defender you love a challenge. She makes you be her best.”
Christen Press likewise praised the KC center back pairing after their last meeting.
“That was not fun, they’re terrible to play against, both of ’em and I was against Amy for most of the night and I think she had the best of me for most of the night, I told her that after the game,” Press said.
“I think that as a forward it’s good to play against the best, it leaves you wanting to be a lot better. They’re excellent center backs, they’re confident, step up and win a lot of balls, and make it difficult for forwards,” she continued.
Match FYI:
- TV INFO: Chicago Red Stars vs. FC Kansas City, FOX Sports 1 & FOX Sports GO, Sunday, Sept. 13 (1:30 PM ET)
- Talent: Jenn Hildreth, Kyndra de St. Aubin and Julie Stewart-Binks are on the call for the first semifinal from Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Ill.
“Kansas City’s got Rodriguez and O’Reilly and LePeilbet and Holiday and Sauerbrunn,” said Red Stars Manager Rory Dames.
“Every time they do their introductions it takes ten minutes because they rattle off all of their international caps. The pressure’s going to be on Kansas City, it’s not going to be on us. They’re the defending the champs, they’re going to be feeling it.”
Players to Watch:
Red Stars-
With 10 goals in 11 games this season, Christen Press leads the NWSL with a .90 goals per game average. FC Kansas City will focus their game plan around her when the two teams meet in the NWSL semi-final. Press scored both of Chicago’s goals when the two teams played to a 2-2 draw in Chicago on August 1st. She’s a finalist for NWSL forward of the Year and MVP.
Solid Goalkeeper Karina LeBlanc gave an emotional send-off to her home fans last weekend, and you’ll know she be ready to extend her farewell tour as long as possible.
Also, the Red Stars have the best rookie crop of any team in the league. Johnston won NWSL Rookie of the Year last season, and Chicago has two of the three finalists for the award this year.
“I think our rookies have shown that they’re the three best rookies in the league,” said Dames.
Obviously, Julie Johnston will be as important an individual player in this match as any, and we have a whole separate feature on that coming linked (goes live Friday at 8 am)
KC-
Amy Rodriguez isn’t just on the USWNT, she’s also on Bill Simmons’ “Reggie Cleveland All-Star Team.” (As is the author of this post for that matter) Rodriguez is KC’s leader in assists, goals and shots. She is the focal point of their offense.
Goalkeeper Nicole Barnhart had more clean sheets than anyone in the NWSL by a large margin this season and she’s a favorite to win league Goalkeeper of the year.
LePeilbelt and Sauerbrunn form quite possibly the NSWL’s best center back pairing. You could easily have made an argument that Sauerbrunn was the USWNT’s best player this World Cup. Then they have USWNT stars Lauren Holiday and Heather O’Reilly to boot.
Potential X-Factor:
To beat the reigning champions and advance to the NSWL title game in Portland, the Red Stars will need additional scoring options beyond Press. Canadian International and Winger/Forward Adriana Leon has to become one of those scoring options. Leon, who holds down a very key position in Chicago’s attack, will play a significant role in determining how far the Red Stars advance in the tournament.
“She’s definitely going to play a role in the playoffs,” Red Stars Coach Rory Dames said.
Here’s more on Leon’s role in the offense and what kind of impact she might have in this contest. Maybe Leon doesn’t have the flashiest statistics in the whole world, but another reason to think that she’ll be an x-factor come playoff time is the fact that she’s done it before, and in a similar role.
As a freshman in 2010, she came off the bench to score Notre Dame’s lone goal in their 1–0 victory over Stanford in the 2010 national title game.
Prediction: Red Stars 1, KC 0
Or maybe it’s 2-1 Red Stars. I do know it will be low scoring, and I expect Christen Press and the Red Stars to continue this positive momentum
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and writes The Sports Bank.net, which is part of the FOX Sports Engage Network. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes to the Chicago Tribune RedEye edition. He also appears regularly on numerous talk radio stations all across the country. Catch him Tuesdays on KOZN 1620 the Zone.
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