HARRISON, NJ – Gotham FC suffered a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Angel City FC in their return to Red Bull Arena.
In front of an energetic home crowd, Gotham FC looked to create an energetic pace from the first whistle. Playing with good energy, the new shape and confidence instilled by interim Head Coach Hue Menzies was apparent. After setting the tone early, a floating shot in the 12th minute from inside the box by Ifeoma Onumonu seemed to put the home side ahead. However, the chance did not put Gotham FC on the board, leaving the match at a stalemate.
Not long after that Angel City FC kicked their attack into high gear, starting with a rocket off the foot of veteran Savannah McCaskill in the 16th minute. The visitors kept their foot on the gas with relentless pressure for the rest of the first half. In the 24th minute, Simone Charley drove into the box and New York native Cari Roccaro put the ball away nothing her fourth tally of the season to make it 2-0. Their final goal came from Claire Emslie in the 31st on a long-distance strike to make it 3-0 going into the break in favor of the Los Angeles club.
Interim coach Hue Menzies commented on the multiple chances his team created in the first half. “We have to take care of our opportunities. We probably haven’t had this many shots in front of goal all year. We got take advantage opportunities we’re working so hard to get. It’s exciting football we’re playing, we just need to get the ball in the net,” said Menzies.
The NJ/NY side started the second half hungry, eventually pulling within two via a Paige Monaghan goal in the 52nd minute. Finding the ball inside the box off a broken play, Monaghan buried it into the goal for her third of the season.
Gotham FC fought to establish themselves in the second half, however Monaghan’s goal would be the only one as the team fell 3-1 to Angel City. A disappointing result in front of a lively group of home supporters, Monaghan remarked on the team’s performance. “We can think of all the things that didn’t go our way, but at the end of the day that's just not who we are and it's not who we want to be,” she said.
This setback places Gotham FC at 12th in the league table, while Angel City FC sits right outside the playoff picture in seventh.
Gotham FC will continue their home stand in September as they welcome the North Carolina Courage to Red Bull Arena on September 4th. Fans can purchase tickets at GothamFC.com/Tickets.
