Match Preview: Chicago Red Stars vs. Houston Dash
SeatGeek Stadium | Bridgeview, Illinois – Saturday, September 17 at 8:00 PM ET
Players to watch:
Chicago forward Mallory Pugh put on an absolute clinic in Chicago’s win over the Current on Wednesday night, scoring twice and adding in assist as well. This marked the third game this season she has tallied multiple goals and an assist with no other NWSL player having done this more than once in 2022. Overall, Pugh has 10 goals and leads her side in that category, while forward Ella Stevens (4) and midfielder Amanda Kowalski (3) are the only other players to have tallied more than three goals on the eyar so far. Perhaps most impressive though, is the fact that Pugh has scored her 10 goals in just 13 appearances, 10 of which were starts.
Against Angel City on Sunday, attacker María Sánchez scored an absolute belter from 23.3 meters out. This stands as the farthest away from goal a player has scored in the league since Marta’s near-midfielder strike for the Pride against Kansas City in June last season (44.5 meters). Along with Sánchez, both forward Michelle Alozie and midfielder Sophia Schmidt have found the back of the net in the side’s two consecutive draws.
Match facts: The Chicago Red Stars have a second consecutive home match for just the first time in five weeks as they host the Houston Dash at SeatGeek Stadium on Saturday night. The Red Stars will attempt to build on two wins in the last three games (D1), while Houston is seeking to make it three games unbeaten with a result on the night.
Chicago is fresh off a 4-0 dumping of the Kansas City Current in the middle of the week, also the second 4-0 victory in the club’s last three games. Prior to its 4-0 win over Louisville on August 27, the Red Stars had just two other instances in which they won by or more goals while keeping a clean sheet in the team’s NWSL history (198 games).
Houston enters the game having collected an impressive 17 points on the road (W5 D2 L2), though, the most points collected by any NWSL team in away games this season. The Dash have already surpassed their previous record for most points collected on the road in a season (14 in 2019).
However, Chicago has owned the matchup against Houston prior to this season, losing just three of the 20 league games played (W10 D7). But in July of this year, the Dash beat the Red Stars, 4-1, the largest margin of defeat for Chicago in the history of the fixture.
