Orlando Pride vs. Gotham FC: Three Keys to Victory

In a surprising turn of events, the Orlando Pride will host an NWSL playoff semifinal on Sunday, when the team takes on the visiting Gotham FC, which upset the top-seeded Kansas City Current in extra time during the quarterfinals. The Pride got to this point by knocking off the Seattle Reign 2-0, and instead of traveling to Kansas City, they will get to play the semifinals in the comfortable confines of Inter&Co Stadium. It’s a great opportunity for a Pride team that’s endured its struggles in 2025 to make back-to-back NWSL Championship appearances. Here are three things that need to happen for the Pride to have a good chance of seizing that opportunity with both hands.

Shut Down Esther Gonzalez

The Kansas City Current’s Temwa Chawinga won the NWSL Golden Boot this year with 15 goals, but Gotham’s Esther Gonzalez was hot on her heels with 13 tallies of her own. The Spaniard might well have overtaken Chawinga too, if not for an injury that limited her involvement down the stretch. Gonzalez is back and available though, and her 14 goal involvements in the regular season led all Gotham players comfortably, with Jaedyn Shaw’s eight claiming second place. While her scoring rightly catches the eye, Gonzalez offers a bit of everything in the final third, and if she gets the start then the Pride will need to pay special attention when it comes to limiting her involvement in dangerous areas. Gotham certainly has other players who can hurt you, with Shaw, Rose Lavelle, and Gabi Portilho chief among them, but the Spanish striker simply carries a different level of threat. She’s nominated for the NWSL MVP for a reason after all.

More of Last Week from Moorhouse

Pride goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse was absolutely fantastic in the quarterfinal win over the Seattle Reign. She made eight saves, some of which were truly superb, and helped the Pride safely weather a storm of 17 shots from the visitors. It was exactly the kind of performance that Orlando needed, especially from a goalkeeper who can be brilliant but is also prone to some inconsistent performances and errors. There was none of that on Sunday though, as the English shot-stopper played a clean game and helped backstop a defense that allowed some good looks at goal. With a Gotham team coming to town that just managed 15 shots and two goals against a Kansas City defense that only allowed 13 goals during the regular season, Moorhouse will presumably be called into action again, and the Pride are going to need a good showing from her.

Be Better Prepared for the Press

One of the reasons that the Reign managed 18 shots in the quarterfinal matchup was the Pride’s difficulty in dealing with the Seattle press. There were multiple occasions when the ball was turned over in Orlando’s own half because the hosts weren’t able to safely play through or over the pressure that Seattle brought, and the Reign were able to generate shots from plenty of those turnovers. Not having Barbra Banda to use as a long-ball release valve hurts, but the Pride need to find a way to adjust and safely break out of their own half, because you can bet that Gotham will have watched the game tape and seen how much Orlando struggled to do exactly that. Whether it’s putting two players up top to stress the Gotham back line with long balls or simply being more accurate with short passes on the ground, the buildup play has to improve.

There you have it, gang. Mute Gonzalez’s influence, get another strong performance from Moorhouse, and do a better job of playing through the press, and the Orlando Pride will have a good chance of getting through to a second straight NWSL Championship.