Angel City Football Club Falls to Kansas City Current After Hard-Fought Matchup
NWSL Angel City FC

Angel City Football Club Falls to Kansas City Current After Hard-Fought Matchup

Published on October 7, 2025 under National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
Angel City FC News Release


LOS ANGELES - Angel City Football Club (ACFC) lost 0-1 at home tonight to the first-place Kansas City Current, following a goal by forward Michelle Cooper.

The first half saw Angel City hold the Shield winners not just scoreless but shotless. On Angel City's end, the first quality chance came in the 17th minute, when defender Evelyn Shores forced a turnover in midfield and made a short diagonal pass into the path of forward Riley Tiernan's run. Tiernan received the ball and took an angled shot from a few yards outside the penalty area, but it went just wide of the far post.

Angel City had another look in the 33rd minute, following a free kick by forward Jun Endo. Endo's service hit the wall and bounced to the 18-yard line, where midfielder Hina Sugita took a strike, which goalkeeper Lorena collected.

In the 43rd minute, ACFC came close again. Defender Gisele Thompson made a sideways pass into the penalty area, which forward Sveindís Jónsdóttir received. Jónsdottir turned and dribbled past her defender to find a window of space, but her shot lacked power, and Lorena again easily saved.

The hosts had a pair of attempts to start the second half, one by Endo in the 49th minute and another by midfielder Nealy Martin in the 56th minute- both from a few yards outside the penalty box.

In the 60th minute, the Current scored the go-ahead goal. Forward Haley Hopkins made a run up the left and sent a short lateral pass to the penalty spot, where forward Michelle Cooper was making a run and tapped the ball into the back of the net.

ACFC had their best chance of the night in the 62nd minute, when midfielder Kennedy Fuller dribbled past her mark in the penalty area to put an angled, left-footed shot on frame. Lorena dove to deflect the shot with one hand, which then harmlessly hit the post.

A stoppage-time free kick by midfielder Maiara Niehues, which curled just over the crossba,r was the last opportunity for the home team, with the final whistle blowing a few minutes after.

Angel City is at home again next Sunday at 2:00 pm PT, taking on the Houston Dash. The game will be broadcast on ESPN, with radio on iHeart and KFWB.

POST-MATCH QUOTES

ACFC Captain and Defender Sarah Gorden

On tonight's performance against Kansas City Current:

"It was really disappointing. We controlled the flow of 65 percent of the game as the possession stats say. We broke them down. We just didn't find that final thing to put the ball in the back of the net. We had one defensive breakdown and they capitalized on it.

"So I'm really disappointed right now because I feel like we deserve more out of that game. It's been a tough year and I'm really feeling that right now, but I am proud of the group for coming out and putting on a good performance, playing football, and doing what we trained to do. It's just that final defensive thing and final offensive thing that we were lacking tonight."

On what the team is taking away from the last two games:

"We're putting together a team. We want to play 'pretty football,' and put on a performance for our fans. And we are building that. You saw that tonight."

ACFC Midfielder, Kennedy Fuller

On Hina Sugita joining the team:

"She brings something completely different to our team, especially in the midfield. She's fun to play with, she sees the field quickly. Her passing is beautiful, her vision is beautiful, and her movement is really good. Being able to add that depth into our team is super important.

"Our goal is to bring in some of the best players. When we start to grow our players, we keep growing and it makes us better. We get to train against that every single day. That's our goal. In the next couple of weeks, we're going to continue to do that."

On the loss and how the team can grow from it:

"I feel like that's part of the game, but you want to have fun. You play the best when you're having fun. And I think we're starting to see little sparks of that. And so I'm happy for our team. Obviously, we lost and we're upset about it, but we're growing, and we're gonna grow, and it's really fun to play when we're in that mindset."

ACFC Head Coach, Alex Straus

Thoughts on tonight's match against Kansas City Current:

"Today we looked the way we're going to look going forward. It was the best display of our style and the identity that we are building. We played a great game. We were patient, we made them chase the ball, and this is by far the best team in the league, and we are not at the moment. We need to play like this every time, then we will win more games than we lose. I'm very proud of that performance and the way that they played.

"It's very disappointing that we ended up with zero. We deserved a lot more today. I'm not saying we didn't do that, but I really believed that we were going to win at halftime. But [Kansas City Current] is dangerous. They get one shot on goal, and it goes in. But that also says something about the team.

"I know that if we can perform like this going forward, we will win a lot of football games. I'm proud of the players and the way that they looked, and at the same time, we also need to address the weaknesses. That will change because I will not accept that going forward, we cannot win anything if I accept that, and if we fix that, I believe we're not far away from competing against this team."

On Hina Sugita and her debut performance with ACFC:

"She's amazing. She changed the texture of our game; she can turn in the midfield, and she plays between the lines. She can play forward, and also wins the ball back for us a lot. She had a big chance, she should have scored, but she's an amazing player. She fits the way that I want to play football. She's a good combination player, and we see her a lot on the left side with Jun and Miyabi."

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