Gotham FC vs. Chicago Red Stars preview: Summer Cup opener in the Windy City

After the international break which followed a 2-1 victory over Angel City FC, NJ/ NY Gotham FC, as well as the rest of NWSL and six of the best teams from Liga MX Femenil, will transition to the NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup. The Summer Cup is meant to be a way for NWSL to continue playing games and remain in the public consciousness while its teams' Olympic players are away. It is also a way to avoid impacting the regular season standings. This strengthens the league's ties with Liga MX Femenil as this will be the first time the two leagues will participate in an official competition together.

The format for the tournament can be found here. Gotham is in Group D with fellow NWSL teams Chicago Red Stars and the Washington Spirit. Mexican side C.D. Guadalajara Femenil rounds out the group. So, the Bats will begin the tournament with a fixture against the Chicago Red Stars.

Regarding the game, fans should expect to see faces on both sides who have barely played this season. Gotham will be without USWNT players Tierna Davidson, Crystal Dunn, Rose Lavelle, Jenna Nighswonger, Emily Sonnett, and Lynn Williams at the Olympics as well as Ann-Katrin Berger who is away with Germany. To help ease the burden, The Bats signed four National Team Replacement Players. Former Gotham players Nicole Baxter and Sabrina Flores return for this tournament while the team also adds Gabriela Cuevas and Mackenzie Pluck. Meanwhile, Chicago will be without Alyssa Naeher and Mallory Swanson as they are with the USWNT at the Olympics. As of now, they have not signed any National Team Replacement Players.

Gotham FC and Chicago have played once in league play this season on May 19 in New Jersey. The home team came away as the 2-1 victors thanks to a 90th-minute winner from former Red Star Ella Stevens. Here is a preview of their next match.

Date

Gotham FC and Chicago Red Stars will play on Saturday, July 20.

Time

The game is scheduled to kickoff at 5:00 PM Eastern, 4:00 PM Central.

Location

The match is set to be played at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview, Illinois.

How to watch

The game can be seen on CBS Sports Network and Paramount+.

Weather

Saturday looks like it will be a relatively cool July day with the weather at kickoff expected to be at 79 degrees. Cloud coverage is expected to be at 70%, humidity at 45%, and there is a 0% chance of rain.

Injury Report

The injury report remains unchanged from the previous game. Midge Purce (knee) and Abby Smith remain on the season-ending injury list (lower leg).

Esther González (foot), Svava Guðmundsdóttir (excused absence), Kelley O'Hara (knee), and Taryn Torres (thigh) continue to be on the injury report. In addition, the national team players mentioned above are clearly not available.

Players to watch

Even with Gotham FC missing seven players to Olympic duties, supporters can still expect to see plenty of familiar faces. Expect team top scorer Stevens to get the start as well as last season's championship-winning midfield trio Nealy Martin, Yazmeen Ryan, and Delanie Sheehan. But the main player to watch is Cassie Miller in goal. After starting the first few games of the season she was relegated to the bench after the arrival of Berger. Expect to see Miller on her game as she tries to show she deserves a starting role again.

For Chicago watch out for Sam Staab. Even when the National Team players are not away for international duty, Staab has a case to be one of the best center-backs in the league. After spending the first five years of her career with the Washington Spirit she was traded to Chicago this past offseason and has not skipped a beat since making the move. Still, arguably the best chance-creating central defender she has also continued her fine form defensively as well. After just missing out on making the USWNT Olympic roster, expect to see Staab with a chip on her shoulder with a feeling of having something to prove.

Prediction

Given the uncertainty of how teams will approach this tournament as well as what these teams will look like without their best players, this is a tough game to predict. This looks like it could potentially be a 1-1 draw with goals from Stevens for Gotham FC and Penelope Hocking for Chicago.