Rose is back
From her ankle boo-boo
The rain fell down
And Gotham did, too.
The return of star midfielder Rose Lavelle, meant to spark Gotham during a patchy run of league form, instead provided just a silver lining on a gray and rainy Saturday afternoon during a 2-1 home loss to the Kansas City Current.
It was the first appearance for Lavelle — the fan favorite who had been sidelined from Gotham (3W-3D-5L) and the U.S. women’s national team following offseason ankle surgery — since Nov. 16.
“All the hard work she’s put in with the medical team, the high-performance team, the coaches, has been amazing, but especially her,” Gotham head coach Juan Carlos Amorós said this week. “We can see her finally with her teammates, where she belongs, doing what she loves — which is playing for her team, for Gotham in front of our fans.”
The cheers for Lavelle started in the 31st minute when she rose from the substitutes’ bench to begin warming up beyond the goal line.
At halftime, she shared a hug with Liberty counterpart Breanna Stewart, who joined the crowd at what’s now known as Sports Illustrated Stadium for the team’s annual Pride match.
Lavelle entered in the 74th minute to a sustained round of applause, and wasted little time getting on the ball and showcasing her trademark saucy dribbling. Minutes later, she sent a left-footed shot just wide of the top corner.
She also applied the pressure that led to a Current own goal deep into stoppage time.
The day of mixed emotions ended with the ceremonial presentation of the CONCACAF W Champions Cup, the regional club title Gotham won last month, further underscoring where the team is caught at the moment.
There’s another trophy to be proud of and show off, affirming the club’s ambitions to be relevant on an international level.
At the same time, there’s the reality of the standings: Last year’s NWSL semifinalists finished the afternoon in ninth place, outside of playoff position, and faced the prospect of sinking as low as 12th (out of 14) by the end of the weekend.
They are winless in their past four NWSL matches (0-1-3), a stretch dating back six weeks to an April 26 victory over the Washington Spirit.
They have scored just 13 goals in 11 games, despite a wealth of attacking options, and have a goal differential of plus-1.
Kansas City (9-0-2) is the best team in the league and quickly showed why.
Gotham conceded in the third minute off a giveaway by Emily Sonnett, allowing Temwa Chawinga to spring Michelle Cooper for a quick strike. The visitors doubled their lead in the 11th minute on a blink-of-an-eye move up the right side, this time Chawinga converting off a cross from Cooper.
Gotham twice appeared to have pulled one back in the second half, only for both goals to be disallowed. In the 49th minute, Sonnett headed in Sarah Schupansky’s corner kick, but Sonnett was whistled for a foul on the set piece.
In the 63rd minute, Esther González was judged to be offside after collecting a loose ball in the box and slotting home what would have been her league-leading eighth goal of the season.
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