Angel City Opens Its Fifth Season With Dominant Victory Over Chicago

Neither Alexander Straus nor Mark Parsons were astir erstwhile Angel City played its first NWSL crippled successful 2022. But they didn’t miss much; successful 4 years nan squad had 1 winning play and made conscionable 1 playoff appearance.

So Straus, successful his first afloat play arsenic coach, and Parsons, 15 months into his occupation arsenic sporting director, decided to raze nan nine and its sad history and commencement over. That break from nan past couldn’t person been overmuch clearer than it was successful nan opening crippled of nan team’s 5th play Sunday, 1 which ended successful a 4-0 rout of nan Chicago Stars.

Three of nan goals — from Evelyn Shores, Ary Borges and Maiara Niehues — came from players who weren’t connected nan roster astatine nan commencement of past season. Borges besides picked up her first Angel City assist.

The capacity was nan astir ascendant successful nine history and nan separator of triumph matched Angel City’s largest ever. It was besides nan team’s first season-opening triumph since 2022.

“There is simply a small spot of a caller beginning,” Straus said.

“We’re a wholly different statement than we were astatine nan extremity of past year,” Parsons added.

Angel City proved that erstwhile teen Kennedy Fuller opened nan scoring successful nan 33rd minute, dribbling up nan correct helping and into nan container earlier driving a right-footed changeable disconnected Chicago keeper Alyssa Naeher and conscionable wrong nan adjacent post.

Shores doubled nan lead successful nan 53rd minute, heading successful a Fuller area for her 2nd NWSL extremity earlier Borges, a Brazilian international, made it 3-0 13 minutes later, jumping connected a short extremity footwear by Naeher, past beating nan keeper cleanly pinch a left-footed changeable from nan halfway of nan box.

Niehues, different Brazilian international, closed nan scoring successful nan 70th infinitesimal connected a right-footed changeable from nan halfway of nan box. Iceland’s Sveindis Jonsdottir sewage nan assistance connected that goal. Of nan 4 goal-scorers for Angel City, only Borges is complete 21.

Angel City dominated nan lucifer statistically arsenic overmuch arsenic it did connected nan field, outshooting Chicago 17-7 and putting six of those shots connected target. Angel City keeper Angelina Anderson needed to make conscionable 2 saves to grounds nan cleanable sheet.

The announced crowd of 16,813 connected a beautiful sun-splashed day was nan smallest for an Angel City opener.