Super League Tactical Takeaways, Week 12

Breaking down every USL Super League cafter a packed matchweek

There’s only a month and change left in the first half of the Super League season, which feels utterly insane. As we approach the winter break, a few clubs are really hitting their strides, and Week 12 was a showcase for teams that have been tactically decisive ahead of the winter break.

What factors swung all four games last week? Let’s dig in.

Brooklyn FC (1) - Spokane Zephyr (0)

Another week, another suffocating Brooklyn defensive outing. Jess Silva’s side held Spokane to just 0.2 xG on Thursday night; they’ve allowed less than 1.0 xG in seven of their last nine games with back-to-back matches against Carolina serving as the exception.

This wasn’t the Zephyr team that looked so imposing to start 2024, largely due to Emina Ekic’s absence with Bosnia & Herzegovina, Sophie Braun’s stint with Argentina, and the continued presence of McKenzie Weinert on the bench rather than in the starting unit. Still, Brooklyn was ready to compress on drops from the forward lines and got stellar outings from Sasha Pickard and Leah Scarpelli at the full back spots yet again.

Pickard (one takeaway in the attacking half) and Scarpelli (two such takeaways; seven recoveries) were stout in their defensive block, but they were equally effective at pushing up in the press. At times, Brooklyn would flex a winger in their 4-1-4-1 up next to striker Luana Grabias like a second forward to match the numbers of Spokane’s dual center backs. To replace, you’d see one of Pickard or Scarpelli step up into more of a 3-1-4-2.

Arcing defenders up the sideline limited Spokane’s options. The flanks were open, but the single pivot held down by Taylor Aylmer was equally risky. It was too easy for Aylmer to be clamped down by Brooklyn’s No. 8s - Jessica Garziano and Mackenzie Pluck - for a quick turnover. Throw in bursts from Sam Kroeger out of the No. 6 spot in Brooklyn’s midfield, and you were in for trouble. That was never clearer than on the game-winning goal.

Almost all of Zephyr’s best chances came on the break, and that 0.2 xG number undersells how composed and dangerous they looked exiting their defensive block. Spokane wanted to possess with two center mids upfield, but they defended in a deeper 4-2-3-1. If Marley Canales or Aylmer, the defensive double pivot, could get a touch after a Brooklyn turnover, they could hit a receiver upfield and spark a break before the hosts were settled.

Take the example here. Spokane has advanced the ball beyond the “front five” in the Brooklyn press, with a pass from Aylmer (circled in gold¹) hitting Katie Murray (looped in white, just above Aylmer) between the lines at the No. 10 spot.

Murray’s reception draws the right back up and inside, allowing Aylmer to curl her run toward the sideline and break behind. Meanwhile, striker Emma Jaskaniec serves as he next rung up the ladder. She’ll receive from Murray, ride out pressure on her back side, and play Aylmer through.

You see the situation once Aylmer receives anew beyond the defense, but there’s a problem. The “front four” in the guests’ 4-2-3-1 is uniformly in front of the Brooklyn back line. Aylmer looks for a cross, but no one has advanced into the box to pay off that possibility. Ultimately, this sequence ends with a cutback to Murray and a shot off target from the edge of the box.

Spokane had a number of sequences like this. Whether it was Canales initiating and Jaskaniec operating as the cutback receiver, or if Natalie Viggiano was pulling the strings down the middle after second-half substitutions, there were a number of well-worked breaks that ever had a payoff.

Because of her hold-up role, Jaskaniec completed twice as many backwards passes (10) as forward passes (five) on the evening. You saw it in the play above, but she was constantly under the thumb of Allison Pantuso out of the Brooklyn back four. Even when Jaskaniec could operate more like a No. 9, Spokane didn’t get enough wide movement on the overlap to generate service. Zephyr didn’t even attempt a shot in the final 40 minutes.

Spokane isn’t the first team to run into Brooklyn’s buzzsaw defense, and they certainly won’t be the last. The entire rest of the fall schedule for Zephyr comes on the road, and that won’t help to fix an attack that just can’t click into place.

Dallas Trinity (1) - Fort Lauderdale United (0)

It was probably a safe to assume that Fort Lauderdale would improve upon last week’s loss in Brooklyn where they attempted just four shots across 90 minutes. Not so much! Shifting into a 5-3-2 to match Dallas’ still new-ish back three, Tyrone Mears and co. mustered just two shots on Saturday to suffer yet another loss.

Almost immediately after kick-off, Fort Lauderdale earned a half chance by going long from outside back Reese Klein toward wing back Sh’nia Gordon, who found a gap behind her opposite number for Dallas. That was an exception to the overall rule. Trinity’s 3-1-4-2 press did splendidly to match United’s three central defenders and deny long passes. Forwards Allie Thornton and Lucy Shepherd were always there as a front two, but they’d get support from the ball-side wing back to complete the set.

You see Fort Lauderdale try and build through the middle here, passing from their holding mid to a low-swooping Addie McCain. The problem? McCain doesn’t have an inch to breathe as she’s closed down by Amber Brooks out of the No. 6 spot.

This play says a lot about Dallas’ success and their guests’ failures. That McCain, United’s leading scorer, had 28 touches in the defensive half and zero in the box is damning. That Brooks ended up with 11 ball recoveries - for in the attacking half, only one in the defensive third - evidences Trinity’s shutdown chemistry in the center of the park.

Still, let’s see the play out. Upon receiving, McCain immediately passes back towards Klein on the right side of the back three. That’s the trigger for Chioma Ubogagu, the left wing back, to advance. Her step give Dallas a front three of their own, one designed to match United’s build-up look.

Klein will ultimately punt this ball away, averting any sort of danger for Trinity. The timing of wing back close-downs was key to replicating that pattern all day. Ubogagu and Julia Dorsey (the right-sider) only combined to attempt three tackles. They didn’t register a single interception. Even so, their positioning made life excruciatingly difficult for Fort Lauderdale as they initiated.

United couldn’t match that same intensity in their own press. Dallas center backs Jenna Winebrenner (62 passes; 78% accuracy on attacking half entries) and Hannah Davison (68 passes; 69%) found it easy to dribble through or around the opposing front two and initiate. Upfield, No. 8s like Sam Meza were keen to receive on skip passes or make clever runs to the sidelines over the wing backs to keep possession moving.

Great stuff from Dallas in the end. Pauline MacDonald has proven to be a shrewd operator so far in 2024, and Trinity look like a legit title threat because of it.

Tampa Bay Sun (3) - Lexington SC (1)

Sometimes a scoreline can be flattering. Tampa Bay only put up 0.9 xG against Lexington on Saturday night, and they actually were outplayed by the expected numbers. That said, all that matters is the final margin, and the Sun’s 3-1 victory was a result of intentional changes that left their side much better off in possession.

You’d loosely call the Tampa Bay shape a 4-2-3-1, but interchange was as common as ever against a much more static Lexington side. That setup allowed the Sun to overload the right side with particular sharpness. Between a drifting Carlee Giammona and more classic right-siders like Sydny Nasello and Natalia Staude, the hosts constantly had the numbers to break through.

Not to fast forward, but you see that sort of targeted overload here, moments before Tampa Bay’s 85th minute winner. This play actually began a few ticks earlier with Jordyn Listro (a center mid) curling around the right side and attempting to cross. Lexington cleared, but only as far as a waiting Staude (the right back; circled in yellow with three blue-shaded mids) on the edge of the area.

Above, there are four Tampa Bay players in position post-recovery. Nasello is to Staude’s left, and her presences freezes a defender on the edge of the area. Listro and Ashley Clark (Giammona’s attacking replacement off the bench) sit to Staude’s right and serve a similarly distracting function. From there, Staude will give-and-go with Nasello to enter the box, cross to Ceclie Floe Nielsen on the weak side, and give the Sun their winner.

There’s so, so much to like about the goalscoring move, and Listro’s initiating carriage is a primary highlight. The midfielder has grown more and more adventurous as the weeks have carried on, culminating in her standout performance against Lexington.

Listro’s roving movement and ability to step up into the right half space did wonders to break down the Lexington 4-1-4-1, leveraging the room behind their primary midfield line. Her contributions from the double pivot (seven recoveries, three interceptions) alongside fellow center mid Jade Moore (two for two on tackles) were equally crucial at denying line-breaking service into Madi Parsons.

Still, Lexington wasn’t short of standout plays, and they won the xG battle for a reason. Sarah Cox had a strong 80ish minutes in net before the end of the game, and her aggressiveness while coming off the line stemmed the Tampa Bay tide quite often. In the press, llowing No. 8s like Emma Johnson to piston upfield asked important questions and limited the Sun’s flow.

I also loved the performance from Courtney Jones at right back. She didn’t hesitate to step up as an aggressive underlapper, make bursts up the sideline, or initiate from deep. Her distribution (91% overall accuracy, 85% on passes into the opposing half) kept Lexington stable and featured occasional boldness, as in the 64th minute when she played a bursting Shea Moyer in over the top.

Still, credit Tampa Bay. They looked as positive as they have all season, and they allowed their depth players to come in and make a difference. We knew this roster was talented in the preseason, and it’s starting to show consistently.

DC Power (0) - Carolina Ascent (1)

Carolina is living a charmed life at the moment. This is a team that’s doing the work needed to stay unbeaten, but the road to that point hasn’t been a cakewalk.

Sunday’s 1-0 win over DC Power featured a penalty conversion for the Ascent and a penalty miss for the Power. The guests were outshot three times over. Meagan McClelland (second in the USL with 2.7 goals prevented on the year) was forced to make three saves And yet, another Carolina win was the result.

Still, I want to be positive about DC after another very solid performance. A few moments play out differently, and they’re suddenly on a winning streak. Indeed, the Power’s patterns out of the 3-2-5 in possession impressed yet again.

I’ve mapped out a sequence from the 8th minute here, one that evidenced the Power’s ability to break Carolina’s 4-4-2 down. You’ve got a few dynamics on display. Start with the front line, where Mariah Lee (the leftmost forward) makes a darting run toward the sideline, forcing the center backs to split. That move opens a lane for Jorian Baucom, the other forward, who could then slice between the two Carolina central defenders.

As Lee takes up that position in the left channel, proper left winger Anna Bagley curls underneath with the ball. In the act, the right-footed Bagley attracts the attention of three-quarters of the Ascent midfield. Suddenly, Carolina has committed the majority of their low block to a very limited area of the pitch. By the Bagley looks up to pass, only Renee Guion - the penalty converter and left mid - remains to shore up the weak side.

Guion’s attention is divided. Charlie Estcourt (right winger) and Katie Duong (center mid) flash into the center right behind the brunt of the Carolina midfield. They’re potential passing outlets on one hand, but they also serve to pin Guion at the same time.

Amidst all the distractions for the Ascent, right wing back Susanna Friedrichs has a clear lane to overlap and receive on a switch from Bagley.

That’s what happens, right? Right?

Not so. Instead, Bagley plays a driven pass somewhere between Estcourt and the borderline-offside-and-definitely-without-any-forward-momentum Baucom. Everything up until the pass is great. The pass selection itself? Not so much.

DC had a lot of moments like that. The triple threat of Estcourt, Baucom, and Friedrichs was legitimately very good on the right, but the final connection lacked. Part of that fact owes to Vicky Bruce’s performance as the left-sided central defender. Bruce came up with two tackles, four interceptions, and five clearances in a textbook definition of a shutdown outing.

Carolina struggled to dissect the Power’s defensive 4-4-2 going the other direction. Touches for Mia Corbin and Taylor Porter in the pivot almost always came while moving backwards; there were few opportunities to turn upfield and progress play. The Ascent completed just three straight-line passes from the middle third into zone 14, and they were forced into immediate backpasses more often than not.

Still, you only need a moment to change a game. The Ascent earned a free kick in the 19th minute as Lee tried to chest a ball down and turn for a wide-open counterattacking opportunity. The ensuing free kick also got handled, and that allowed for Guion’s penalty.

Carolina just has a knack for generating those moments and winning games. We can debate if that manner of success is replicable, but we can’t debate their place atop the table.

Photo Credit: Tampa Bay Sun / Twitter

1. Spokane’s branding whatnot dictates that this is “Palouse” gold. Palouse isn’t a shade; it’s a name for a chunk of eastern Washington and the abutting section of Idaho. The more you know!