Week 3 recap: Is it time to hit the panic button?

Wow, this was a rough one. Let’s start with the positives:

1. Gotham maintained their first clean sheet of the season

2. Gotham conceded a total of 0.11 xG

3. Gotham controlled the match, with 59% possession and the vast majority of the attacking momentum

But while all that was happening,

1. Center back Tierna Davidson suffered an ACL injury to her left knee in the 44th minute of the match. She will be out for the remainder of the season.

2. Gotham registered only 0.38 total xG this match, with 0.04 xG per shot, continuing to struggle to find the back of the net this season.

3. Gotham came away with only 1 point in a matchup that heavily favored them. The first two matches of this season were a 1-1 draw in really rainy conditions and a 2-0 loss against the top team in the league where they conceded zero goals from open play. This match is the first match that we could possibly use as a harbinger of things to come.

We wouldn’t be writing this newsletter if we didn’t care about this team, and while we do genuinely believe that it’s not time to panic (yet), the rest of this piece will inevitably reek of hope. But if you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you are also in that same boat with us, so follow along on this journey.

First, a recap of this week’s game

This weekend, Gotham played the Houston Dash at Shell Energy stadium on Friday night. The game ended in a 0-0 draw.

Coach Juan Carlos Amorós said in the post-match press conference that the team is “very, very proud of the performance in every aspect of the game—apart from, obviously, scoring that goal that will help give us the win.” He pointed to Gotham’s dominance especially in the first 80 minutes of the game, and the way they prevented Houston from taking shots on target. “I’m just gutted that we didn’t get the three points,” he said.

This is a game where the scoreline ended up being really accurate and true to the viewing experience. Gotham and Dash put up 0.4 and 0.1 xG, respectively, and combined for a total of 3 shots on target, the first of which came in the 69th minute. 

This game was kind of a drag to watch, but it didn’t have to be that way.

Ella Stevens and Esther led the game in receiving g+, with 0.222 and 0.117, respectively. For context, Esther led each of the last two games (where Gotham generated much higher expected goals (xG) values) with 0.319 and 0.231 receiving g+ in games 1 and 2. The two forwards had positioning and receptions that were nearly as valuable as their positioning and receptions in games where the team generated 1.3 and 1.1 xG and yet in this game, the team only managed 0.4 xG.

Gotham’s finishing woes continued this match, and with 1 goal for and 3 goals against in 3 matches, you might be wondering what Gotham’s future looks like after a dominant past two seasons in the league.

The state of Gotham — should we be panicking?

Gotham is three games into the season and still finds itself without a win, which can feel concerning for a team that has set such high expectations in seasons past. But when we look at four key factors, Gotham’s start of the 2025 season has actually been quite similar to its start of the 2024 season. Let’s dive deep into these factors, see how similar the seasons have been so far, and determine whether we can quell some of those fears with the information we have right now.

Factor 1: The previous season

Gotham finished the 2024 season in 3rd place overall, with 17 wins, 5 draws, and 4 total losses in the season, and was 4 points behind the shield winner. The team ended its regular season with a draw followed by 5 wins, and its post-season consisted of a win in the quarterfinals and a draw in the semifinals leading to elimination on penalty kicks. 

In 2023, Gotham finished in 6th place with 8 wins, 7 draws, and 7 losses, and was 6 points behind the shield winner. The team ended its regular season with a draw, a win, two losses, and a draw. The post-season consisted of a regulation time win, an extra time win, and a regulation time win to secure the championship.

Both years saw similar performances from Gotham when you factor in the parity seen in that specific season. 

Factor 2: The offseason

This past offseason, Gotham lost 12 players and signed 10 new players including loan signing Geyse. In the offseason leading up to the 2024 season, Gotham lost 12 players and signed 8 new players (9 if you include goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger who signed for the team a few weeks into the season). 

Both offseasons saw similar amounts of roster turnover, but in the 2024 offseason it was mostly depth players leaving through trades, loans, and anticipated retirements in order to free up room for a super team, whereas in the 2025 offseason Gotham was forced into a rebuild, with 7 players including key starters leaving as free agents or through requested trades. Gotham lost a significant number of their most important players, with the second-lowest percentage of 2024 minutes returning in 2025 in the league; the club retained players that made up only 56% of 2024 minutes.

Although the two offseasons were significantly different, both saw several new players arriving who had to learn Gotham’s system and adjust to playing together.

Factor 3: The start of the new season 

Gotham has started its 2025 season with a draw, a win, and another draw. These first three starting XIs featured an average of 4 players who were not regular starters for Gotham in the 2024 season. The positions with the most turnover have been central midfield, attacking midfield, and wing. Gotham scored one goal and conceded three goals in these matches. 

Gotham started 2024 with a win, a loss, and a draw. Gotham’s first three starting XIs of 2024 featured an average of 4.67 players who were not regular starters for Gotham in 2023. The positions with the most turnover were goalkeeper, central defense, and wing. Gotham scored two goals and conceded two goals in these first three matches. 

In both years, Gotham had to integrate new players into the system, a process that takes time. And this year, Gotham has the added challenge of rookies playing their first professional game who need to adjust not just to Gotham, but to professional soccer altogether. 

Factor 4: The rest of the season

Gotham’s 2024 season is better defined by separating its first 5 matches from its last 21 matches. In the first 5 matches, Gotham won 1, lost 2, and drew 2 matches, scoring 3 goals and conceding 5. In the last 21 matches, Gotham won 16, lost 2, and drew 3 matches, scoring 38 goals and conceding 15. It took this new side with a new defense and new attacking line 5 matches to find their footing in 2024—we should hold off at the very least until this point in the 2025 season to start sounding alarm bells, if not longer. 

In 2024, Gotham had to deal with new pieces in the attack and the defense. However, in 2024, the players connecting the defense to the attack remained mostly the same, and with the midfield being such a key and complex component of Juan Carlos Amorós’ system, this was a key to Gotham’s success that season. 

Gotham’s defense in 2025 is quite similar to its 2024 defense, with players that have a whole season of playing together under their belts (save for newcomer Lilly Reale, for whom this hasn’t seemed to be a problem so far). Center back Tierna Davidson’s recently announced ACL injury (which will take her out for the rest of the season) will definitely be difficult for the team to overcome, but the defense does still have some of that aforementioned continuity. Gotham’s midfield, however, looks quite different this year than it has in years past, and the team has a few new regular starters on the front line, so it might take a while for the team to click and start scoring goals. 

“Juan keeps reiterating that this is a process, and it's just step by step,” said Sarah Schupansky, who started her third game this season at attacking midfielder.  “I think we needed to be a little bit more effective in the final third tonight, but with time that will come, and getting to know each other a little bit better, and combining it around the box. We're doing all the hard work, so now we just gotta finish it off.”

In the meantime, however, we can be fairly confident that Gotham will not be conceding a ton. 

“If you're looking at metrics, our Orlando game was really, really good in terms of in-play defense,” said center back Emily Sonnett. “We work a lot on the defensive side of the game. So to be able to build again off the Orlando game into this, we're only seeing strides in terms of that.”

Next, the NWSL regular season will pause for an international break where 7 Gotham players will attend camps for their respective national teams. Additionally, Lilly Reale and Sarah Schupansky will attend the U-23 USWNT camp, marking Schupansky’s first call-up within the youth national team system.

Gotham plays next on April 13th, when they will face off against the North Carolina Courage at home. The Courage currently have two ties and a loss, while not facing any particularly challenging opponents.

A lot can happen in two weeks; Geyse may have arrived by then, Midge Purce could possibly be back, and there may even be a new signing, with Davidson’s injury freeing up a roster spot and salary cap space.

For now, as Amorós said, the team is just taking it “step by step.”