Gotham FC vs Club América preview: A semifinal south of the border

Off the back of some poor results in NWSL play, NJ/NY Gotham FC travel down to San Nicolás de los Garza, Mexico to play Club América in the CONCACAF W Champions Cup knockout stage. This will be the first of two semifinals with the other taking place later that day between Tigres UANL and Portland Thorns FC. The winners of the semifinals will play in the final on Saturday while the two losers will play in the third place match earlier that day.

For Gotham, this provides a potentially well needed change of scenery and situation. The club has only managed one win in their last five games which has seen them drop from third to eighth in the NWSL standings. This tournament however could provide a much needed boost for the club. Winning the title means winning two games in a row and could really help this team get back to the form seen from them last season.

For América, they enter in much better form than Gotham. They have three wins from their previous five matches and have just finished their Liga MX Femenil Clausura season at the top of the table with 41 points from 17 games. They also have the travel and rest advantage with four more days of rest and around 1,500 less miles to travel.

This game could also be a good way for Gotham FC to exercise some demons. Depending on how the semifinals go, they could face Portland in the final, a team that they lost 4-1 to earlier in the season. Beating the Thorns for a trophy would be more than enough to wash the bad taste out of their mouths from that loss and potentially forget this recent troubled run of league results.

Gotham FC vs Club América preview

Date

Gotham FC will play Club América on Wednesday, May 21.

Time

The game is scheduled for kickoff at 7:30 PM ET.

How to watch

The fixture will be streamed on Paramount+.

Location

The game will be played at Estadio Universitario in San Nicolás de los Garza, Mexico.

Weather

Scattered thunderstorms are forecast for the area throughout the course of the match with the percentage chances fluctuating between 40-60%. Temperatures will be around 81 degrees at kickoff and drop to the mid-70s by the end of the game. Humidity will also be around 70% throughout the fixture.

Injury report

For CONCACAF games, teams are not required to publish an official injury report. Sofia Cook (thigh), Tierna Davidson (SEI - knee), Shelby Hogan (D45 - thumb), Rose Lavelle (ankle), Gabi Portilho (hip), and Jéssica Silva (ankle) all appeared on the injury report for last Friday's San Diego Wave FC game. After Friday's game, head coach Juan Carlos Amorós said that all players, except for Tierna Davidson, will travel with the team to Mexico for these two games.

Players to watch

For Gotham, watch out for Midge Purce. She is slowly getting back to full fitness and has seen a consistent rise in minutes over the last five games. Of course the last time Purce played in a big knockout game was the 2023 NWSL Championship game where she assisted both goals in a 2-1 win that saw her earn Championship Game MVP honors.

For América, watch out for Angelique Saldivar. The 18 year old had 12 goals and five assists in 22 games in the Liga MX Femenil Clausura season that just wrapped up. Saldivar will not only want to help América win a trophy, but this will be a great opportunity for her to showcase her abilities in the pursuit of a potential move abroad.

Prediction

In knockout games like this one, they can live in their own vacuum with a lot of the context not really mattering. Expect a close game regardless of the outcome, but the prediction is a 2-1 win for Gotham. Expect Purce to get on the scoresheet for the first time in 2025 and Esther González to break her three-game goal drought. For América their one and only goal will come from the previously mentioned Saldivar.