BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. - Typically, one shot does not add up to two goals. But that is what the Chicago Red Stars surrendered to St. Louis Athletica on Saturday.
A couple of unfortunate defensive circumstances cost the Red Stars late in the first half as St. Louis won, 2-0, in Women’s Professional Soccer action at Toyota Park. The Red Stars dropped their third straight as they concluded a five-game home stand in front of 4,461 spectators.
“We lost the game in two moments,” Red Stars head coach Emma Hayes said. “It’s crucial that we identify what those problems are once a goal goes in. … We need to get on the same page and have a collective focus.”The Red Stars (2-2-3) now hit the road for four straight games and won’t be back home until June 21 against the Boston Breakers.
Chicago and St. Louis (2-2-2) were both shorthanded Saturday because of training for a national friendly between the U.S. and Canada a couple of days later. The Red Stars were without midfielders Carli Lloyd, Megan Rapinoe and Lindsay Tarpley, and defender Marian Dalmy. St. Louis was without goalkeeper Hope Solo, midfielder Lori Chalupny, and defender Melissa Tancredi on the Canadian Women’s National Team. Lloyd injured her left knee Saturday in a scrimmage, will miss the U.S.-Canada friendly and could be out for two weeks, the Red Stars organization said.
For the first 25 minutes on Saturday, Chicago’s defensive play denied some of St. Louis’ creative chances, and the Red Stars’ offense had some good opportunities from its front line. But in the 25th minute, the Chicago defense allowed an own goal as St. Louis took a 1-0 lead. And it went downhill from there for the Red Stars.
With the first goal, the St. Louis attack came from the left side by Eniola Aluko. She struck the ball, and it bounced off of Chicago defender Ifeoma Dieke and over the outstretched hands of goalkeeper Caroline Jonsson. Athletica’s second goal developed when the ball was crossed into the middle and Kendall Fletcher took a shot that bounced to Aluko, who drove the ball into the net for a 2-0 lead in the 41st minute.
St. Louis goalkeeper Jillian Loyden, normally the backup to Solo, came through with some big-time saves Saturday. In the 17th minute she turned away a Cristiane header. And in the 38th minute, Loyden skied straight up to bat away a Karen Carney strike.
Next up: The Red Stars hit the road for a 9:30 p.m. (CST) match against the Los Angeles Sol on Wednesday, June 3.
SlideTackles.net thoughts: The start of the game looked promising for the Red Stars. And Cristiane’s and Carney’s first-half shots were exactly the type of chances you want.
Coach Hayes touched upon the mental focus during Saturday night’s press conference. And this team needs to make great strides when it comes to not getting rattled by something that happens on the scoreboard. The last positive chance in the game was Carney’s shot in the 38th minute, down 1-0. St. Louis scored a few minutes later to pad its lead and the Red Stars hardly made an impact in the offensive third the rest of the way.
Chicago missed the trio of midfielders with the WNT. They are much stronger at handling the ball. They are much better when it comes to winning 50-50s. Frida Ostberg (pictured above) clearly was running all over the place to try and do her part. Brittany Klein tried to claw with the St. Louis midfield, but she struggled in one-on-one situations, whether she was battling for a 50-50 or trying to protect the ball.
Ultimately, that downgrade in midfield play has a trickle effect on every third of the field. Perhaps more offensive sets would have been generated. And the pair of defensive setbacks could have been averted with the entire squad there.
But, St. Louis was in the same boat with several players out of the lineup. It boils down to whether a team’s depth can fill a void, and the Red Stars came up short. In my opinion, there were very few glimpses that stood out from some of the new starters on Saturday. Jill Oakes appears to have some potential. She displayed some versatility on the field and appears to strike the ball well.
The Red Stars now see themselves tied with St. Louis for fifth place. And with a four-game road trip on the horizon, the Red Stars have their work cut out when they battle the top team in the league, the Los Angeles Sol.
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