Gotham FC advance to NWSL semifinals in front of record-breaking crowd

Gotham FC broke new ground in their 2-1 NWSL Championship quarterfinal win over Portland Thorns on Sunday afternoon. To start, it was the first playoff game played at home in franchise history. In addition, an announced crowd of 15,540 spectators were in the stands – although at times it felt as though it was double – setting a new club record. But the main result from the fixture was something quite familiar for the Bats, namely reaching the semifinal for the second year in a row.

After a scoreless first half, and an unsuccessful VAR appeal on a possible penalty in the 58th minute, Lavelle delivered a ball right to the feet of defender Tierna Davison to open up the scoring. But, a conceded foul from defender Jess Carter on the edge of Gotham's box, led to a Thorns rebuttal from substitute forward Reilyn Turner just eight minutes later. While on the brink of extra time, Lavelle put home a beautifully squared ball from midfielder Delaney Sheehan to seal the deal at home and put the finishing touch on this cracker of a game.

The Goths are now headed to Washington DC to face Trinity Rodman and the No 2 seed Washington Spirit on Saturday, November 16, after they achieved a similar 2-1 result — also scoring the deciding goal in extra time.

For Portland Thorns supporters, the loss became even more distasteful after watching in horror as Olympic gold medalist Sophia Smith went down in the second half and was subsequently subbed off in the 90th minute with a limp and assistance from a trainer to leave the pitch. It was confirmed post-match by Thorns head coach Rob Gale that Smith has been suffering "chronic ankle fatigue" since the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.

The Bat Signal

Gotham FC supporters came out in numbers on Sunday for their club, breaking the home game record for attendance at 15,540 spectators.

Chants were had. Disgust with the referee's decisions were bellowed. But the crowd stood by their team even after a frustrating first half that saw many chances created, but only one shot on target with nothing to show for it.

"Today, the environment that the fans brought was amazing. It made a difference," head coach Juan Carlos Amorós said. "Every attack, you could hear the roar. Every challenge, you could hear the roar. That gives you an extra boost."

For Davison, the match marked her first match back since October 12th, when she suffered a hamstring strain. The crowd showed its love for the 2019 NWSL College Draft first overall pick, filling Red Bull Arena with cheers after she scored her first goal for Gotham to take the lead. However, the crowd proved to be an obstacle for communicating with her squad at times.

"Sometimes you just have to yell to get someone's attention," Davison said. "It's almost like moms having a sense of their own child's voice even amongst a crowd, is like we have a sense for each other's voice amongst crowds, because we're kind of attuned into that."

Instant Reaction: Gotham’s Galacticas deliver

Gotham FC advance in the NWSL Championship thanks to big-name signings who helped transform last year’s overachieving club into a polished team that play the technical, progressive soccer we all love to watch.

Hudson River BlueOliver Strand

Where was Sophia Smith?

Smith, who ranks third in goals, assists, and shots on target in the NWSL, was kept to a minimum on Sunday. Gotham's game plan of maintaining possession in the attacking half and then pressing hard to recover the ball frustrated Smith early on, with little attacking build-up plays generated from the Thorns.

Along with the heroics of right-back Mandy Freeman and the rest of the Gotham back line, Smith finished the match with only a single shot, which was off-target. Smith had just 35 touches, and was dispossessed 12 times.

We saw a flash of Smith's world-class ability in the 41st minute. With a through ball from Thorns' midfielder Sam Coffey on a dangerous counter-attacking opportunity, Smith continued down the pitch, caressing a beautifully weighted touch past Gotham goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger, who came off her line early. But Smith's triumph was called short when the assistant referee raised his flag to signal offside.

"We have certain standards that we have within our team to be the best defensive team in the league. Be the most attacking offensive team in the league," Freeman said. "We want to put our foot on the gas pedal for the entire game and I think we do a pretty good just accomplishing that."

While putting their foot on the gas pedal is exactly what the Bats did in their quarterfinal win, the intense play style took a toll on the players looking visibly fatigued within added time on the prospect of an additional 30 minutes awaiting them.

Along with the demanding role that full-backs Freeman and Carter had for a majority of the match, moving high up on their respective flanks and joining in on the attack, it comes as no surprise that both players were replaced by the end of regulation.

Depth is Key

The play style that Gotham utilize is highly effective, but extremely taxing. Full-backs running the length on the sides of the pitch and then pressing to recover when possession is lost; midfielders having to maintain possession like their life depends on it, but then fight to get the ball back in the same manner. It's a lot. It's fun to watch, but keeping the ball for a majority of the game in your attacking half can be draining both physically and mentally if nothing comes of it.

That's just what happened in the first half of this game.

Gotham FC | Average Positioning vs Portland Thorns

Gotham spent most of the game on the front foot and deep in the Portland half. As you can see from the graphic above, fullbacks Carter (27) and Freeman (22), spent a significant time forward and around the halfway line with the mission of not only maintaining possession in their attacking half, but also nipping any counters from the Thorns in the bud as soon as possible. If they couldn't, they were forced to sprint all the way back into their own half as quickly as possible.

But Amorós's team are well equipped to play this way due to their depth. Oh, Carter has a booking and looks a bit fatigued? Freeman isn't tracking back with the same hunger as she was thirty minutes ago? No worries! Brazilian international Bruninha and United States international Jenna Nighswonger can come on and provide some fresh legs, as they did on Sunday.

"I think we've seen players step up when they were needed, and that's what this team is all about," Davison said. "It is truly a super team, because like, one through 25 is bought in and is ready to go whenever they're needed."

While the super-team title can add pressure, it definitely has its perks as Gotham are witnessing the deeper they advance into their 2024 playoff run.

7 Gotham FC players selected for USWNT

As if you needed any more proof that the Goths are now a Superteam.

Hudson River BlueOliver Strand

Next Up: Washington Spirit

Gotham will be tasked with facing a side that they not only failed to beat in both matches during the regular season, but that held them scoreless both times. Additionally, the energy pulsing from the home crowd as they played Portland will be against them when playing on the road at Audi Field next weekend. Washington packed their stands with 19,215 in attendance for their quarterfinal match against Bay FC, a complete sellout. Nonetheless, Lavelle and Gotham are buzzing for the challenge.

"[Washington Spirit are] really, really dangerous in transition, have some really dangerous players. Trinity [Rodman], obviously, is a huge one that you have to stop," Lavelle said. "So I think it's just another challenge, but we're excited for it."