PORTLAND, Ore. — “What is your backup plan? Your plan B?” Coaches don’t get asked those questions as much as you’d think. After all, when was the last time you saw highlights of a press conference where a reporter asked, “and if that doesn’t work?” Instead, media sessions tend to explore the strengths and weaknesses of the plans we see on the field. Those tend to be complicated enough.
In today’s Portland Thorns media availability, though, Mark Parsons talked about his plan B for the Thorns. Speaking ahead of Portland’s Sunday match at Providence Park against Kansas City NWSL, the team’s head coach also, if implicitly, explained why we haven’t seen any formation changes this year, and aside from some game-to-game tweaks that account for opponents, we haven’t seen significant changes in his team’s style.
“[W]e don't change to have a plan b, plan c,” Parsons explained, building to the topic after being asked about his team’s focus on closing matches strong. The way the team closed their match two weeks ago, against the Orlando Pride, had left the team disappointed. The team still won, 2-1, but the 95th-minute goal the team conceded is the only one they’ve allowed during the Olympic period.
“Individuals weren't happy with their action within tactics,” Parsons shared. The Orlando goal was less about problems with Portland’s plan A, from the players’ point of view; more about how plan A was executed at that moment.
“We were just doing some uncharacteristic stuff,” Parsons said. “We wanted to improve that. The players were absolutely so committed to doing that … They felt that the standard just dropped at the wrong time, and yeah, a stunner. Other teams will go, ‘it's a great goal,’ but we had four, five six moments where we weren't doing what we should be doing.”
The Thorns kept a clean sheet in their game after Orlando, last Saturday in Houston. Their 1-0 victory marked the first time since 2015 that they recorded a shutout on the road against the Dash.
“I love what the players had taken that on in preparation for Houston,” Parsons said, “but more importantly, in preparation for this week: continue to strengthen our practical approach in moments of closing out or chasing a game.”
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This feels like part of the reason the Thorns aren’t worried about a plan B; at least, they’re not worried about one yet. Though the team is in first place in the NWSL, they still seem to have room to grow within the current approach. While that hasn’t stopped other teams from incorporating a second formation or incorporating a stylistic approach that might catch opponents off guard, the Thorns are doubling down on what works, implying that growing more within their current approach is more valuable than trying to be two things at once.
“I want to be honest with you,” Parsons said as a point of emphasis, “that there is a real relentless pursuit here to continue to be the best version of ourselves. You do need to adjust to maximize your advantages or hide your disadvantages in the final moments of games, because the game often changes, but we don't change to have a plan B, plan C.”
“We want to make plan A as unbelievably good as possible.”
Kansas City has seen Portland’s plan A twice before this season, losing at Providence Park in both the spring Challenge Cup and on their June 20 return. If the third time in Portland is a charm for the NWSL’s newest team, they’ll register their first win since the club was relocated from Utah this winter. Else, Portland could be six points up on the league at the final whistle.