Match Preview: Portland Thorns FC vs. North Carolina Courage
Providence Park | Portland, Oregon – Friday, August 5 at 10:30 PM ET
Players to watch:
Portland forward Sophia Smith scored her ninth goal of the season in the win over Louisville and is up to 16 goals over the last two NWSL seasons. That output is tied with Alex Morgan for the most goals by any player since the beginning of last season. Behind Smith is a talented cast of attackers Christine Sinclair and Hina Sugita, both of whom have notched four goals on the season.
North Carolina forward Diana Ordóñez notched the Courage’s first brace of the season in the club’s 3-3 draw with Washington. Ordóñez has five goals on the season, becoming the first Mexican National Team to have 5+ goals in an NWSL season since the league’s inaugural season of 2013 when both Mónica Ocampo (eight) and Renae Cuéllar (five) did so. The Courage have not struggled in the goals department, scoring 14 goals over their last six games, with Ordóñez scoring four times in that span. The only other players to have multiple goals in that stretch are midfielder Debinha and forward Brittany Radcliffe, both of whom have scored twice in the run.
Match facts: Portland Thorns FC hosts the North Carolina Courage in the second of two games across the league on Friday night, with the Thorns looking to keep their winning ways while North Carolina seeks its first win in five.
Portland extended its unbeaten run to nine games (W5 D4) with a 2-1 victory over Racing Louisville on Friday. The Thorns have scored 27 goals during the streak, which is the most goals scored in any nine-game span in NWSL history. The second-placed Thorns have also won four of their last six have outscored their opponents 7-1 in the last two games. Of all 12 teams in the league this season, only Portland has beaten their opponents by three goals or more on five or more occasions.
On the other side, after its 3-3 draw with the Spirit on Friday, the Courage have failed to win each of their last two games when scoring three or more goals (4-3 loss to Houston on June 19). Prior to the loss to the Dash, North Carolina had won all 26 league games in which it had scored at least three goals.
Meeting for the first time this season, North Carolina has won six of the 11 all-time regular season meetings between the clubs (D2 L3). The Thorns have a win and a draw in the last two matches versus the Courage and are looking for their first-ever three-game unbeaten streak in the fixture.
