- Neither team has a win this season
- OL Reign sits ninth in the NWSL table
- KC is in 11th
OL reign will take on the visiting Kansas City Current in a National Women’s Soccer League match between two teams struggling early in the season.
Both teams have only played four matches thus far, but the combination of their early form and results have created worry in both camps.
OL Reign vs Kansas City Odds
No odds were available at the time of writing.
OL Reign vs Kansas City Information
OL Reign and the Current will be playing in an NWSL regular-season match Wednesday at 10:00 p.m. ET on Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington.
OL Reign vs Kansas City Betting Picks
OL Reign
The team finished second in the NWSL last season, claiming 42 points from a possible 72; as a result, many women’s soccer league predictions had them placed high up the table.
However, their early 2022 schedule has not been as kind, as they have three draws and one win in their first four matches. Their two most recent results came in goalless draws, as the team looks especially helpless in the attack.
Of course, it is still early, but the team needs to start to round into shape soon or face having to overcome a massive gap between them and current league leaders, San Diego Wave FC.
Tziarra King has scored two of the team’s three goals this season, while the other belongs to Rose Lavelle. Both of King’s goals came in a 2-2 draw against Racing Louisville FC three matches ago, and the team needs more of these inspired performances to start to climb up the table.
Reign likes to set up in a 4-2-3-1 formation that connects their defense to the attack; the two holding midfielders serve as the links and are charged with plugging the gaps in transition and also carrying or spraying the ball to the attack when coming out of defense.
The wide midfielders have the important job of tracking back but also bombing forward when attacking, while the lone out-and-out striker serves as a constant target during the build-up play.
This formation is the most widely used in the world and offers the most balanced in theory, but it can struggle against teams applying tons of pressure or setting up in the same structure, which essentially forces the gamer to become a deadlock.
Here’s how they lined up in their last match: Phallon Tullis-Joyce, Samantha Hiatt, Alana Cook, Lauren Barnes, Sofia Huerta, Rose Lavelle, Jessica Fishlock, Quinn, Bethany Balcer, Angelina, Veronica Latsko.
Kansas City Current
The Current has done even worse than the Reign thus far, taking just one point via one draw from four matches, meaning they lost the other three.
KC finished dead-last in the NWSL last season with just 14 points, one-third of the total the Reign had, and they are off to a similarly disappointing start this year.
Nationals Women’s Soccer League odds do not like the Current because of these performances, both past and present, and it seems like they are a long way away from being able to seriously compete against the higher powers of the division.
Their lone win came against the Orlando Pride in a 2-2 thriller, during which Kristen Hamilton’s 91st–minute goal and supposed winner was canceled out by a Toni Pressley 96th-minute penalty kick.
The Current is among the minority of teams that do not use a 4-2-3-1 or a similar formation, as they tend to prefer a 3-4-3; this can work in one of two ways, as it can either make teams extremely offensive or extremely defensive, depending on the manager’s instructions.
The wing-backs, or midfielders, depending on how high up the pitch they are positioned, have huge influences on the proceedings, as they can leave the defense exposed if they do not hustle back after attacking.
Regardless of their effectiveness, the double-pivot in central midfield typically struggles to impose itself because of how out-numbered it is, meaning teams often do not see much of the ball.
This was the Current’s starting lineup in its last match: Adrianna Franch, Taylor Leach, Elizabeth Ball, Kristen Edmonds, Maddie Nolf, Victoria Pickett, Desiree Scott, Alexis Loera, Elyse Bennett, Addie McCain, Kristen Hamilton.
OL Reign vs Kansas City Betting Predictions
The Reign, despite failing to meet its lofty expectations, has been able to incur points in three of its four matches and has been playing better than the Current. They also had a clear-better season in 2021, putting a recent precedent on their side.
The Current was unlucky not to win their match against the Pride and have potential but have not turned that into results— for that reason, betting women’s soccer league predictions are right to side with OL Reign.
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