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Alejandra Martin
Washingtonspirit.com
Boyds, Md., (7/3/20) – The Washington Spirit will face the Portland Thorns in their upcoming 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup game this Sunday, July 5, where the Spirit will be looking to get their second win of the tournament.
We broke down some of the important stats to keep in mind ahead of what could be a vital match as the teams are seeded for the knockout stages of the tournament.
Nielsen leads the Spirit with the highest number of successful passes completed in the tournament with a total of 100. The centerback has recorded the highest number of successful passes in both matches for the Spirit with 49 against the Red Stars and 51 against the Courage. Against the Red Stars, Nielsen had a 90.7% passing accuracy and 92.7% against the Courage.
The 26-year-old has enjoyed her involvement in the Spirit’s build-up play, as she has misplaced only nine passes over the course of two matches.
With 53.8%, the Spirit have the second-highest percentage of shots on target by any team in the tournament, behind only the Houston Dash. On the contrary, the Portland Thorns have only managed to hit the target on 35.3% of their shots, giving them the second-lowest percentage thus far.
DiBiasi has created the highest number of chances for the Spirit through the first two matches of the Challenge Cup with four, including one against the Courage after being subbed on in the 59th minute. The 24-year-old midfielder has created a chance every 30 minutes and 15 seconds of play in the tournament, making her the fifth-most frequent player to create chances among players with 60 minutes played.
During the 2019 NWSL season, the Spirit and the Thorns uniquely each earned a 3-1 win over the other and battled to a 0-0 draw during their final encounter. Between the three matches, the Spirit and the Thorns amounted for a total of eight goals, with four for each team. The eight goals scored by the Spirit and Thorns is the second-highest cumulative goals between Washington and an opponent, with 13 goals between the Spirit and Orlando taking the top spot.