ACFC navigates distressing week ahead of today's match
Like much of the country, the Angel City Football Club has tried its best to focus on its job after Tuesday's mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
No players were made available during its weekly media call. Coach Freya Coombe took time to chat with the media Thursday afternoon.
“It's devastating,” Coombe said. “I think I share the same sentiments that most of the country do in terms of being in favor of some level of common sense gun laws and gun reform and hoping that there is action that's taken now to work toward this.
“It's obviously another example of just a devastating situation.”
An Angel City FC spokeswoman said the team will honor the victims in some way before today's game against NJ/NY Gotham FC (5 p.m., Paramount +) at Banc of California Stadium.
Before Friday's Washington Spirit-Orlando
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Today: Angel City FC vs. NJ/NY Gotham FC, 5p.m., Paramount+
Pride game, both teams observed a moment of silence.
“Obviously it's not an easy thing to see in the news and it has affected the group, as it should. It should affect all of us, but we've got a great group of humans that really feel the tragedy and the injustice that's happening,” Coombe said.
“We've also got a professional group of athletes that know that they're here to do a job and will continue to focus despite the distractions.”
For Angel City (3-1, 9 points), the on-field focus this week is a team that's familiar to Coombe.
Coombe was named the interim coach of Sky Blue FC in September 2019. The interim tag was removed three months later and the team rebranded to NJ/NY Gotham in 2020.
With Coombe's contract expiring, Angel City hired her as coach before the end of last season.
“It seems far away right now in terms of being at the club,” Coombe said of Gotham. “I think this season, with all of the challenges of being an expansion team, a day feels like a week and a week feels like a year. So being at Gotham feels almost like a million years ago, but I think for myself, I'm very excited to face them and looking forward to see other members of the group.”
Work in progress
Through four games, Angel City has scored just four goals and one was an own goal. The club has been involved in three consecutive 1-0 games.
“For us to grow, we need to continue to develop these relationships in terms of how players are starting to get to know each other and connect and combine with each other,” Coombe said. “I think we've got some more intricate play to come with greater combinations, some flair. I think we've seen it in moments and flashes, but we need to continue to work on the final pass and the goals will come.