Going into the beginning of this Chicago Red Stars season, common knowledge ran with the idea that the first five games were going to be hard. Sam Kerr, the brand-new centerpiece of Chicago’s offense, was always slated to be off the roster until the end of Australia’s World Cup Qualifying in the Asian Cup (many congrats to Kerr and the Matildas in a successful qualifying campaign, and a second-place finish).
The going got progressively more tough however as Chicago lost starter after starter from either USWNT play or pre-season injury. The Red Stars got some reprieve when Yuki Nagasato returned from the hamstring injury that left her hobbled for the first few weeks of regular season, but they lost Stephanie Mccaffrey to illness, and the injuries to Casey Short, Julie Ertz, and Vanessa Dibernardo proved to be more long-term.