Gary Gibson
What a game! From jubilation to heartbreak. Gotham gets a road point against a stacked Orlando pride team. This game had everything. Can't wait to break it down fully on the next podcast.
Here are three quick things we learned looking back at Sundays match in hot Orlando.
The first thing we learned is that Gotham can compete against anyone. Orlando came into the game undefeated and had all their international players returned to the starting lineup. Gotham, missing both Lloyd and Purce confounded Orlando for most of the match. Gotham's possession and passing acumen had Orlando chasing most of the game and by the 60th minute most Orlando players looked visibly frustrated. Once Gotham settled into the game they gave up few chances and Marta and Morgan were quiet throughout much of the match.
The second thing we learned is this team has depth. While Orlando, as pointed out earlier returned their same starting lineup they've used all season Gotham has been rolling out different combinations of players across all lines and getting results against good teams. Although we're all holding our breath waiting to hear news on monaghan's injury it was good to see talented players like Brianna Pinto make her debut and hopefully Thiney will be integrated into the squad soon.
Lastly, Lee can flat out play! What a revelation she has been. I said numerous times on the Podcast that the missing piece for this team is a number ten who can find those pockets of space and slow down this attack. Sodam was finding space in between the lines and giving Orlando's defensive mids trouble all game. Her movement was pulling Orlando's defensive structure apart and allowing space for viens to get on the run and Onu to create havoc going forward. With the inclusion of pinto and the return of Purce this will be a scary, scary attack with Lee pulling the strings.
Stay tuned for a special podcast where we interview a Gotham FC player. Due out Wednesday.
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