2019 NWSL Regular Season – Week 13

Chicago Red Stars vs North Carolina Courage

SeatGeek Stadium. Bridgeview, IL

July 21 at 5:00 PM CT

CHICAGO — The Chicago Red Stars return to SeatGeek Stadium to face NWSL leaders North Carolina Courage on Sunday, July 21st at 5:00 PM C.T. 

Where to Watch

TV: ESPN 2

Stream: WatchEspn, ESPN App, Yahoo Sports

Sunday’s game will be the NWSL’s Game of the Week, presented live on ESPN2. Additionally, fans can stream the game on WatchESPN or Yahoo Sports

Opponent Form

North Carolina is at the top of the NWSL standings after a 2-0 victory over Reign FC last Saturday. The Courage have gone on a five-game unbeaten run since the start of June, only dropping points once and outscoring opponents 13-4 during that stretch. Kristen Hamilton is on fire, scoring a hat-trick on two separate occasions including a four-goal performance against the Houston Dash two weeks ago. 

Storylines

Spotlight: Sunday’s game marks the return of the U.S. Women’s National Team Players to their respective NWSL teams. Julie Ertz, Alyssa Naeher, Morgan Brian, and Tierna Davidson will be back for Chicago while North Carolina welcomes Abby Dahlkemper, Crystal Dunn, Sam Mewis, and former Red Stars Jessica McDonald. In total, 14 players who represented their country at the World Cup will be present at a SeatGeek Stadium expected to host a Chicago women’s pro club attendance record of more than 10,000 on Sunday, with the game available to the national audience on ESPN2. 

The One: Chicago forward Sam Kerr was one player who set the World Cup alight last month, becoming the first player born outside of the U.S. to score more than three goals in a game. Against the Courage, Kerr has also been the one constant thorn in the side of the reigning champions. She has five goals over the last two seasons in matchups against the Courage, including three in 2019. In their last meeting, Kerr was directly involved in every goal of the Red Stars 3-1 win over North Carolina, scoring two goals and providing the assist on the other. 

Why Wait: Against Houston last week, Katie Johnson’s seventh-minute goal allowed Chicago to hold on to the early lead and get three points on the road. It was the sixth game this season the Red Stars scored in the first 15 minutes of the game. It was a similar story for Chicago against North Carolina back in May when Yuki Nagasato and Sam Kerr linked up to give the Red Stars the lead in the 13th minute. 

She Wolf: Defender Casey Short continued her great run of form last Saturday against Houston. She won possession more than any other player on the field while getting the second-most touches on the night. Consistently great this season, Short was named to the NWSL Team of the Month for June and became the only player this season to earn a place in every team of the month in 2019, solidifying herself as one of the NWSL’s best players. 

Goals Don’t Lie: Sunday fans will watch three of the top four leading goalscorers in the NWSL. Kerr leads all players with nine goals in eight games, with North Carolina’s Kristen Hamilton (7) and Lynn Williams (5) not far behind. The Courage’s Jalene Hinkle is tied for the league’s highest assist total with four. The people she shares a spot at the top with? Teammates Williams and Merrit Mathias along with Chicago’s Yuki Nagasato. With all these offensive threats topping the charts, it should come as no surprise that both teams are two of the three highest-scoring teams this season, and goals is a near expectation for matchups between both sides, as their last six games have produced 17 goals.