bay fc's all gas no brakes summer makeover

During and after the NWSL x Liga MXF Summer Cup several teams below Bay FC on the table at the time were in hustle mode. Utah finally became convinced that signing quality players would improve the team, Seattle Reign addressed major weaknesses, and Rahsing Louisville mashed their ‘make a deal’ button several times. Those teams were sending a signal: a playoff spot is within reach, and they’re going for it.

This meant that Bay FC, who were initially quiet over the same period, had a target on them. In truth at the break several people (it me, I am people) were surprised that they were even in a playoff spot. Head coach Albertin Montoya had been dogged in his demand for expansive, slow buildup soccer, which frequently put his central defense—center backs not known for their speed—in bad situations.

The tradeoff I guess was supposed to be that if they can work the ball around to find the right moments, big money signings Racheal Kundananji, Asisat Oshoala and Deyna Castellanos would do the rest. This did not happen. Like at all. Prior to the break they’d scored just 19 goals and conceded 28. It wasn’t just fluke stuff either, they were conceding the league’s fifth-worst xG per 90, 1.34.

Now that the summer break is over though, something has changed. It’s a small sample size, but over the stretch they’ve improved to conceding just .92 xG per 90, fourth best in the league (better than the Washington Spirit). Their own xG has flip flopped as well, going from 1.15 to 1.6 per 90.