Preview/Match thread for Current vs Red Stars Challenge Cup

NWSL Challenge Cup Matchday 3

Who:  Kansas City Current (3-8-0, 9 pts) vs Chicago Red Stars (3-7-1, 10 pts)

When: Saturday, June 14^th, 2023 at 7:00 p.m. CT

Where: Chilcren’s Mercy Park| Kansas City

Watch:  Paramount+

Listen: KC Current Radio on the Kansas City Current app

The Kansas City Current (3-8-0, 9 pts) are home to host the Chicago Red Stars (3-7-1, 10 pts) at Children’s Mercy Park Wednesday night at 7:00 pm. This will be the third match in the Challenge Cup for both sides. The Current are 1-1 in the Challenge Cup with a 2-0 win at Houston and a 3-2 loss at Louisville. Chicago have lost both Challenge Cup games by a score of 2-0, on the road at Houston and at home versus Racing Louisville.

This will be the first home game in the 2023 Challenge Cup for Kansas City and comes at a time when they really need to start building momentum in both the Cup and the regular season.

The Current have dropped six of their last seven and the Red Stars are not much better with four defeats in the last six. Chicago did manage to win a pair of games with a 1-0 win over Orlando and a 2-1 win at Angel City before returning to Chicago to be thrashed by North Carolina 5-0.

The Current struggled against the OL Reign in their last match but did get a late goal to make it interesting at the end. Coach Caroline Sjöblom told the KC Soccer Journal, “The takeaway from last game is the second half, we wake up in the second half. The way we played in the second half against OL Reign, that is how we want to play from the beginning of the game. We have the players for it, to do it, and to execute it on the pitch. we just need to do it from the first second,”

A bright spot is that slowly players are getting healthy and one of those is Morgan Gautrat. The veteran midfielder enter the last match and will be available for this game. “She’s ready,” Sjöblom stated. “She is knocking on door for the starting eleven and we have more players that want to come into the starting eleven as well. So I have a bit of headache to chose the right starting eleven.”

Sjöblom  sounded optimistic for the match, “We are going to play in front of our fantastic crowd, in front of these fans and we just want to go. Everyone is convinced that we are so close to turning this around, we feel it. We just need to get that ball into the net and then things will change.”

Availability:

Kansas City Current

OUT: 

Hanna Glas (D45 – knee)

Lo’eau LaBonta (R Knee),
Claire Lavogez (SEI – knee)
Alex Loera (foot)

Addisyn Merrick (suspension)
Sam Mewis (SEI – knee)
Desiree Scott (D45 – knee)
Mallory Weber (SEI – knee)

QUESTIONABLE:

Chicago Red Stars
OUT:
Sami Feller (D45 – concussion)

Sarah Griffith (D45 – ankle)

Penelope Hocking (leg)

Yuki Nagasato (hamstring)

Mallory Swanson (knee)

QUESTIONABLE:

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Kansas City Current midfielder Morgan Gautrat – Gautrat was signed as a free agent from Chicago. With the veteran midfielder getting back to health, this will be the first opportunity to face her former team.

Chicago midfielder Addie McCain –  McCain will get a chance to face her former team as well. McCain appeared in 25 games for Kansas City before moving to Chicsgo.

Officials

Referee: Shawn Tehini
Assistant Referees: Christian Little,
Tim Wagner
4th Official: Sorin Stoica
VAR: Maggie Short
AVAR: Chad Lowman