Saturday provided the struggling Washington Spirit a rare opportunity to capture some much-needed momentum and build on last week’s 3-0 victory in Chicago. The Spirit had won back-to-back games just once since the beginning of August, a period in which they’ve labored for goals and wins alike.
That continued against Angel City FC as Washington lost its fifth home game and failed to score for the fourth time in that stretch, succumbing to a 1-0 defeat at Audi Field in D.C. An improved Spirit performance came to nothing after Angel City substitute Maiara Niehues’ long-range strike found the top corner in the 88th minute.
While the Spirit got forward and created a few half-chances, Angel City produced a moment of quality Washington couldn’t in another gut-wrenching home defeat that all but ended the Spirit’s National Women’s Soccer League Shield hopes.
Washington dropped to third place with the result and, while the Spirit remain in a strong position, the team incorporating plenty of new faces admitted it is in a race against time to fix its poor form and lack of goalscoring with only four regular-season games remaining.
Trending
“It’s challenging because obviously you need time to build. You bring new players, they need time to know each other, to play together, to get training sessions and also to adjust to the competition,” coach Adrián González said. “It is a process that you need time, but right now we don’t have time, and we are trying to build those connections as quick as possible, knowing that we are taking risks too because we are running out of time.”
Washington (14-8-4) has earned just 10 points in nine games across August and September this season, scoring 10 goals and conceding 12 in that stretch — a far cry from what the Spirit accomplished at this stage of their last two seasons, in which they finished second and parlayed their strong form late in the year into runs to the championship game.
The Spirit went unbeaten in nine matches across August and September last year, earning 17 points, scoring 16 goals and conceding only eight in that time. Washington also finished the 2024 season strong after returning from the Olympic break, losing just two of its last 10 games.
“It’s super disappointing. This used to be a fortress for us. This is a place where we take pride in being good and offering a win or a good performance for our fans,” defender Gabrielle Carle said. “I don’t think this was a bad performance today. … We’re struggling to score at home, but we have the talent. We have the team to do it. We just need to figure it out.”
The Spirit are in the unique situation of incorporating players who are either returning from injury or entirely new to the team into important roles so late in the season. New signing Clara Luvanga, who started training with the team on Thursday, was the latest to make her debut after coming off the bench in the 66th minute Saturday.
The Spirit’s new striker showed promise, but will have very limited time to adapt to the league and her new teammates if she’s to make an instant impact this season. Washington’s sputtering offense could certainly use one, as it has struggled to produce any consistent attacking threat outside of star forward Trinity Rodman.
The Spirit have been shut out in four of their last six home games while their starting forwards have struggled. Sofia Cantore hasn’t scored or assisted in her last seven matches, since Aug. 8, while Rosemonde Kouassi has gone without a goal contribution in her last 12 Spirit games, since May 2.
The Spirit have also started a different midfield trio in six of their last seven games since Leicy Santos’ injury, although Saturday’s group of Hal Hershfelt, Andi Sullivan and Monique Ngock played well, helping the Spirit progress through Angel City’s press and advance the ball into dangerous areas.
Ngock and fellow recent midfield arrival Mélissa Bethi have produced promising moments so far, but they haven’t had much time to develop chemistry with their new teammates. That’s been exacerbated by the constant chopping and changing in midfield, which has largely been out of necessity due to injuries and suspensions.
“[We’re] super excited to get those players, and they’re going to be so good for us. But I think we all understand that there’s a reality that we first need to learn how to play together,” Carle said. “We all want to learn together. We just have a very short window to make it work.”
Despite its recent struggles, Washington still sits third in the NWSL standings, just one point behind second-place San Diego Wave FC. Another second-place finish would ensure the Spirit home field advantage for the entirety of the playoffs, as Washington is hosting this year’s championship game.
González also said on Friday he’s hopeful Santos will be able to return soon, which would provide a massive boost. Santos scored five goals and registered four assists in 17 matches this season before her injury.
“I think it’s easy to freak out, but we’re doing the right things and we’re creating moments. We just need to execute those,” defender Tara Rudd said. “[We’re] just trying to stay composed under pressure and really not let the outside noise get to us. We’re still in a great spot on the table right now. … Hopefully that calms us down going into the next game.”