Marija Banušić, Kansas City Current and why Casey Howe could answer Northern Ireland's goalscoring issues - your women's football roundup
Weeks that see both domestic and international games take place are never short of drama, and this last one has been no exception to that rule. Wherever fans have looked for their women’s game fixes, there has always been something going on, with cup competitions to take in as well as leagues either kickstarting into life or in the closing stages.
With so much to take in all around the world, this newsletter will ensure that you have everything that you need to stay right up to date with the very latest goings-on, with a selection of on-field analysis points and carefully selected reading and listening material included for you to peruse through at your leisure.
3 key talking points….
Why Marija Banušić will be a key player in Napoli’s relegation battle
For Napoli, the 2023/2024 Serie A campaign has gone largely as expected, with many predicting that they would finish either at the foot of the table or second bottom, with the latter meaning that they would need to compete in a promotion/relegation play-off match against Serie B’s runners-up to decide their fate.
However, what was perhaps not expected is how much Napoli have been able to compete with sides up and down the division, with them not necessarily picking up points but regularly competing on the field with their opponents and making life a lot harder for them than some might have thought them capable of.
It is that fight that they will need to maintain as the season enters its final rounds, with them currently four points clear of bottom side Pomigliano and so at the moment avoiding automatic relegation, and one player who will be key to any hope that they have of staying up is Marija Banušić.
Having joined from Parma last summer, she has been really lively as the weeks have gone by and has given Napoli a dynamic presence whenever they have been in possession, with her ability to run into space both giving her teammates targets to find and keeping opposing sides on the back foot, and AC Milan at the weekend were the latest to struggle to contain her.
https://twitter.com/ConJClancy/status/1597390485152153601
Napoli might have lost to Milan in the end, but there was plenty to like about how they approached it and the way that they took the game to their opponents. With Banušić playing such a key role in that, it appears that any hope that they harbour of avoiding an immediate return to the second tier will rest on her staying fit and available for each outing.
Kansas City Current might be flying in attack – but their defensive issues continue to stand out
With four rounds of the 2024 NWSL campaign now completed, every team has had a chance to demonstrate what they are capable of delivering this season, and its Kansas City Current who currently lead the standings after picking up three wins and a draw so far.
However, whilst that and the efficient nature of their attacking play will bring a lot of positivity to their fans after the disappointment of last season, it does hide some of the more negative aspects of their play so far, one of which has been their inability to register a clean sheet and the fact that they have conceded eight goals across those four matches, which is the second highest number so far.
https://twitter.com/JeffKassouf/status/1771725509430288693
There are a number of reasons that they have been so easy to score against, with questionable tactics and individual mistakes both to blame, and set pieces have proven to be particularly problematic for them to deal with, as the goal scored by Esther González for NJ/NY Gotham at the weekend demonstrated.
For an in-depth look at Kansas City Current’s defensive issues, have a look at my recent article for Total Football Analysis here:
At the moment, Kansas City’s ability to win games rests solely on their ability to outscore their opponents, which is fine at the moment given that they have been clinical when in promising positions. However, any coach knows that attackers have off days and that those are the games when the defenders will need to be at their best, and that could be where they struggle at the moment and is where they could see valuable points slip through their clutches in any potential title bid.
Casey Howe could solve Northern Ireland’s goalscoring concerns
Ever since Tanya Oxtoby took over as Northern Ireland manager in September 2023, she has been working to make gradual changes to her side’s playing style in a bid to make them as efficient an outfit as possible both with and without the ball.
For a look at Tanya Oxtoby’s tactics with Northern Ireland, have a look at my article for Total Football Analysis here:
Whilst there has been a lot to admire about them so far, there are still a few key areas that need to be looked at, and one of those is their lack of goal threat at times and their inability to turn dominant performances into wins as a result of a lack of end product.
This has been a particularly big concern in some of their more recent outings, with both their Nations League play-off first leg match with Montenegro and their opening Euro 2025 qualifier against Malta ending in stalemates and both seeing Oxtoby and her players lament their lack of a clinical edge when inside the final third.
"Malta were fantastic tonight. They were really organised and came with a game plan. We knew what they were going to do but it doesn't make it any easier to try and break it down.
That's a new challenge for us. They are obviously ecstatic with a point and so they should be. We need to be better and take it as a compliment that teams are starting to do that against us.
But we also need to be understanding our timing and movement in the final third, and how we can disrupt that a little bit better."
Northern Ireland head coach Tanya Oxtoby, speaking after the goalless draw with Malta in April 2024.
However, fans should not perhaps be too worried about this, with it appearing that they may already have a cure in their ranks to remedy this ill in the shape of Casey Howe, who is someone that many rate highly and who looks capable of scoring plenty of goals whenever the ball comes to her.
This was evident to those who witnessed her display for Athlone Town at the weekend, when she found the net twice and from different angles, showing her composure with each one and demonstrating that she has the ability to be a target player and one who converts opportunities that come her way.
“One of the best things about Howe is that she is direct. Once the balls lands at her feet, she shifts her body and pumps her legs so quickly to get ahead that opposition defenders are often left stuck in the mud. This drives her team forward at pace and openings up goalscoring opportunities.”
Written on the League of Ireland website, previewing the new campaign in February 2024.
There is no doubting that she has all of the raw qualities that any goalscorer needs to succeed, with timing, spatial awareness and confidence all things that she has in her locker, and there are certainly a number of reasons to be hopeful about her future.
Read all about it….
Wor Bella - there has been a lot recently about the forgotten stories of the women’s game from decades ago, largely because of the emergence of so many stories that have sparked so many people’s interest in the women’s game before the FA’s ban on it. One of The Guardian’s edition’s last week of it’s twice-weekly newsletter Moving the Goalposts highlighted a play that looks at the tale of the munitions workers in the First World War who played football outside of their working hours, and it is a very interesting story, as Louise Taylor explains.
Malmo’s rise up the Swedish pyramid - also on The Guardian, there is an article by Nick Ames on the rise of Malmo in the Swedish game, with them featuring in the Elitettan (the second tier) this season after promotion and looking to get into the Damallsvenskan at the earliest available opportunity. The article also looks at how Nordic countries are looking to regain their place as one of the stronger areas in the global women’s game after losing it over time, and is well worth a read.
Robert Vilahamn - whilst a lot of attention has been given to the battle for the WSL title and the recent struggles of Chelsea, one coach who has largely gone under the radar and yet who is being backed by many to be a potential Coach of the Season contender is Tottenham Hotspur’s Robert Vilahamn. Speaking to The Athletic’s Charlotte Harpur ahead of their FA Cup semi-final win, he detailed how he got to his current role, and it is a fascinating insight into one of the brightest coaches in the women’s game.
Lend me your ears….
Is Emma Hayes’ season unravelling? - for all of the latest from the women’s game, it is well worth listening to the latest episode of The Athletic’s Full Time Europe podcast, with detailed analysis not only of the FA Cup games but also what it means for each team that took part in them, plus there is a really interesting conversation with a player and a documentary maker currently producing a film about the Manchester-based Corinthians club, who were again around before the aforementioned ban.
That’s all for now - back next week!!