It wasn’t so long ago that Gotham FC, formerly Sky Blue FC, were the perennial butt of all NWSL jokes. The club lurched from one crisis to another, even going as far too flirt with extinction in 2018.
There have been continuous off the field issues over recent years, particularly between 2017 and 2019, ranging from poor working conditions to considerable financial discrepancies. The training facility reportedly lacked running water, working toilets and unkempt changing rooms. The club even went as far as advertising for volunteer first team coaches. Players even reported having to take post-game ice baths in wheelie bins. The club regularly neglected its duty to find appropriate housing, reportedly placing players with families who expected them to work as full-time au pairs. The whole rap sheet was rather a lot longer, but you get the picture.
There’s a very different narrative playing out in The Garden State now, however. Scott Parkinson is quietly leading something of a revolution at Red Bull Arena. Since Tammy Murphy took a more active role as co-owner (the First Lady of New Jersey co-owns the club alongside husband Phil, Steven Tamares and Ed Nalbandian) things have improved markedly.
Sky Blue FC, the NWSL team whose majority owner is New Jersey governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy), is a disgrace—and that’s a crisis for the whole league.
For all of Planet Fútbol TV Episode 57, go here: https://t.co/LgalcLFafEpic.twitter.com/AA49dwj4wD
— Grant Wahl (@GrantWahl) January 23, 2019
The club has come a long way since 2019; the days of the off field mishaps that plagued the club until around 2019 are seemingly behind them. Gotham are steadily becoming more of a force to be reckoned with each passing year.
The League Table Never Lies… Except Maybe It Does?
In all honesty, last year’s 5th placed finish was a little disingenuous. Their overall play probably deserved a higher finish. They were genuinely one of the best footballing teams in the NWSL. Whilst they may have been inconvenienced by the mid-season departure of head coach Freya Coombe (to Angel City), they were able to hold true to their philosophy. Gotham are a very good possession-based team. Their pass completion rate of 79.5% was league leading; no team came close to matching their 11,907 overall passes.
This is a team that had an uncanny ability to maintain possession and use that approach to dominate the ball and pull opposition defenders out of position, as they probed for openings. This allowed the likes of Carli Lloyd, Ifeoma Onumonu and Midge Purce to flourish by darting into the spaces opposing defenders vacated. Their only real issue, was that Lloyd (now retired), Onumonu and Purce seemed to be the only ones capitalising on this. Outside of their 21 goals (9, 8 and 4 respectively) no one else really contributed. This was a big problem for Gotham, and one that Parkinson (pictured) will need to address in 2022.
Too Many Draws In 2021
Overall, they probably didn’t win as many games as they should’ve done. They chalked up 11 draws, going 8-11-5 on the season. For context, the next highest number of draws was 7; Kansas City, the Orlando Pride and Racing Louisville tied for that particular honour. For context, turning 4 of those draws into wins, and thus equaling the 7-draw record, and they finish at the top of the standings. Goals are the solution for Gotham. Their total of 29 goals in 2021 was some way short of Portland’s total of 37. If they can find a way to score more goals and share those goals more equally amongst the team, they have a real chance to contend for both the Championship and shield. Stop it, I’m serious. And here’s why.
Going From Strength To Strength In Defence
Defensively speaking, their numbers stack up. Their defence was miserly throughout 2021, their 21 goals against represented the second-best record in the NWSL. They’ve since bolstered that back-line considerably. The loss of Kailen Sheridan (San Diego Wave) has been offset considerably by the acquisition of Ashlyn Harris from Orlando. Michelle Betos is there too. Ali Krieger also reinforces a defensive line that already boasts the likes Caprice Dydasco (pictured), who I believe to be the league’s best full-back, and Gina Lewandowski.
Midfield Improvements
The defensive line isn’t the only area of the team that has seen considerable improvement during this off-season. The signing of Kristie Mewis (pictured) is arguably one of the signings of the off-season so far. Mewis has proven herself to be one of the best midfielders in the NWSL. She’s also really good at sportsmanship… Had to throw that in there. There were 1 or 2 reports suggesting a move to London, where she could be closer to her partner, Chelsea’s Sam Kerr, was in the offing. In light of those rumours, Gotham’s acquisition of Mewis has been seen by many as quite the coup. Capable of scoring and creating goals, as well as using her combative approach to win the midfield battle for her team, she could help elevate Gotham to the next level.
See what I mean? This is a roster that’s already packed with talent; I mean just look at some of those names… Allie Long, McCall Zerboni… Michelle Betos… That’s without going anywhere near the explosive attacking play of Onumonu and Purce. Gotham have all the ingredients to be serious contenders. The question is, can they add the ruthlessness needed to stamp their authority on this league?
If all goes according to plan, we could be about to see a new name on the NWSL Championship trophy.
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*All statistics courtesy of nwslsoccer.com
Written by Dan Berridge
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