Amorous: The Players Are the Protagonists in the NWSL Final
Gotham FC coach Juan Carlos Amorós has stated that “the main characters” will be the ones to decide the NWSL Championship on Saturday against the Washington Spirit at PayPal Park.
We coaches try to create the scenes so that the players respond to situations in a similar way. But, in the end, it’s an unpredictable game, and that’s where they take responsibility.
Juan Carlos Amorós
Trinity Rodman of the Washington Spirit is the central figure of Saturday’s final, not only for her team, but for the entire NWSL. Her contract expires next month, and she is rumored to have more lucrative offers from teams in England and the USL Super League, a league that the NWSL cannot currently match due to its salary cap.
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Rodman has had little participation since suffering a sprain of the medial collateral ligament of the right knee last month. She returned to the field in the last five minutes of last week’s semi-final victory. Spirit coach Adrián González stated that Rodman is “available and ready to compete”, but did not specify how much the American international could play.
Rodman participated in the Spirit’s training session on Friday with a black sleeve over his right knee, as he has done in recent weeks. A day earlier, Rodman expressed optimism about his health.Trinity Rodman usando una manga negra en su rodilla derecha durante un entrenamiento del Washington Spirit el viernes.Rodman commented: “I feel great. Obviously, having another week is a positive thing. I am very grateful to be able to play those minutes last weekend. Everything has gone very well and I hope we do very well this weekend and I can play again, hopefully a few more minutes.”
The NWSL Championship on Saturday will be the 44th meeting between the Spirit and Gotham (formerly known as Sky Blue FC), the most matchups between two teams in league history. The two teams also faced off in last year’s semifinals, with the Spirit winning in a penalty shootout.
Gotham won the 2023 NWSL Championship as the lowest-seeded team (No. 6) in the playoffs, just like this year as the No. 8 seed. Gotham is also the Concacaf champion after winning the inaugural regional event in May.
The Spirit won their only NWSL Championship to date in 2021. They are in their second consecutive NWSL Championship after losing to the Orlando Pride in last year’s final.
After a relaxed training session on Friday, González highlighted that the Spirit plans to maintain its usual strategy. The Spirit’s season began with González as an assistant and with Rodman’s return from a back injury, among other absences.
Rodman’s health for Saturday remains a concern, and defender Gabby Carle will miss the match due to a hamstring injury suffered in the quarter-finals.
We take risks every day. We are going to do the same thing we have been doing. That is part of our identity, so we don’t have to change anything right now. The team knows what we have to do and the things that work.
Adrián González
Gotham has been less consistent this season despite winning the Concacaf title. They lost to the North Carolina Courage on the last day of the regular season, falling to the eighth and final position before defeating the Kansas City Current in the quarterfinals.
It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster season. We’ve had many highs, many lows, many crazy trips. But I think with all that, it has allowed us a lot of rotation in the squad. Many people stepping up, playing different roles. I think going through that kind of adversity during the season has allowed us to be ready for these moments.
