Orlando Pride’s defense could win them an NWSL Championship

Photo copyright Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images.

ANSAS CITY, MO. — There was a small but significant moment early in the first half of the Orlando Pride’s National Women’s Soccer League semifinal match against the Kansas City Current. The Current won the ball and reset their buildup at the halfway line with their center backs. Claire Hutton dropped deep to provide a passing option, but upon receipt of the ball, quickly passed it back to Kayla Sharples. The sequence ultimately concludes with a ball over the top that Orlando right back Cori Dyke intercepts.

The backwards pass from Hutton to Sharples may not even register when watching the game live, but it serves as a key example of Orlando’s defensive approach all season. Neither Marta nor Barbra Banda press the backline, despite their high position. Neither striker directly presses Hutton when she receives the ball. You wouldn’t catch Gotham or Kansas City defending so “passively” (quotes intentional). And yet, the Pride won the Shield and will vie for a trophy in the NWSL Championship on Saturday.

Nobody conceded fewer goals than the Pride and Gotham this season, and yet each had radical differences in how they approached out-of-possession tactics. No playoff semifinalist allowed more quality offense in the attacking third and attacking half, respectively, as Orlando did throughout the year. Only the Chicago Red Stars made fewer on-ball defensive actions in the attacking half among all eight playoff teams.