Amid the much-anticipated return of Midge Purce, Gotham FC returned to regular season play with a 3-1 win against the North Carolina Courage.
Gotham was looking lackluster heading into Week 4, two winless away games and a home opener loss trailing them ahead of Match 4. They didn't let that deter them, however, from a statement win today.
A break might have been what the team needed to regroup. Here are 4 Thoughts on Gotham FC's 3-1 win at Sports Illustrated Stadium.
1. Esther González: Gotham's savior
It seemed like both teams would be heading into halftime goalless until Esther González knocked in a beautiful header in the 43rd minute. Gotham was lacking inspiration, struggling to find any way around the Courage's back line. A pass from Ella Stevens allowed González to put an end to that, although they had to wait a tense few minutes of anticipation as the goal underwent a VAR review.
The Spanish forward didn't stop there. Six minutes later, a goalkeeper error from the Courage's Casey Murphy and a bit of confusion amongst the Courage's defense allowed González just enough space to score again. González managed to intercept a throw by Murphy, which led to a bit of a battle between the two as they struggled to regain possession. Despite a save from Murphy, González found a pocket to fire a shot away into the net. Talk about a way to end the first half.
2. Rookie moves
There were doubts about Lilly Reale heading into today's match. The rookie defender's first professional start against the Orlando Pride during Gotham's home opener ended in heartbreak after she scored an own goal just two minutes into the game. Safe to say it wasn't the start she was hoping for.
All those doubts were put to rest with a close-range header one minute into the second half. Reale was having a bit of trouble getting into the game during the first half, fouling near the end of the half. Though, to be fair, Gotham was struggling to counter against the Courage's sudden offensive pushes once in possession of the ball. Esther's goals were the spark Gotham needed heading into the second half, and Reale capitalized on that momentum, taking advantage of a touch from Bruninha following a corner kick to head the ball into the net for Gotham to take a three-goal lead.
3. Midge is back
It was a pleasant surprise to see Midge Purce back on the field following a nasty ACL tear in March 2024. It was a tough blow to the team and an even tougher blow to Purce, who missed out on the rest of the 2024 NWSL season as well as a chance to join the USWNT in their race for Olympic gold. Hopes were high for her return to the field following a statement released by Purce announcing she had resigned with Gotham for a new one-year deal. The wait was on once head coach Juan Carlos Amorós confirmed Purce would be available for substitution alongside Geyse ahead of today's matchup.
Purce made her 2025 debut in the 73rd minute as a substitute for Sarah Schupansky to the delighted roar of the crowd. Her return could certainly be marked as a success, as she came on like she never left, winning a free kick within her first few minutes on the field and attempting a run downfield to create a potential scoring chance. Here's to hoping to see more of Purce as she gradually makes her way back.
4. Defense, defense, defense
Gotham's defensive lineup looked to be up and down, if today's stats were anything to go by. A last-minute goal scored in the dying seconds of the game by the Courage's Brianna Pinto certainly didn't help. The Courage's 16 tackles to Gotham's 10 and 16 interceptions to Gotham's 12 don't really speak to what played out on the pitch.
The first half was trial and error as the Courage made more of an effort to push through gaps in Gotham's backline, taking more chances to shoot rather than pass. It was thanks to Ann-Katrin Berger that Gotham was able to walk away from that first half without conceding any goals. A block by Mandy Freeman via header in the middle of the first didn't hurt either, although it's clear that there are still some defensive gaps to fill as the team works to build upon the win today.
