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Angel City FC’s Julie Ertz grateful to join ‘special’ team

April 28, 2023

Julie Ertz’s Angel City FC debut might have ended with a loss, but it left the club with a what-if moment.

As in what if she had a full week of training to acclimate with her new team and surroundings. Ertz went 70-plus minutes in last Sunday’s loss against San Diego Wave FC.

“I’m so grateful to be here,” Ertz said. “I think the first word is absolutely ‘unbelievable.’ That’s the first word that comes to my mind.”

Saturday, Ertz will have her second game for Angel City as the club visits the Portland Thorns (7:30 p.m., Paramount+).

“I felt like she looked calm under pressure a lot, which I think translated to the rest of the team,” Angel City coach Freya Coombe said of Ertz’s debut. “I felt like they were a lot calmer on the ball as a result. Even when pressed, I think that she was able to deal with pressure really well and just play out of it calmly. And I think having her leadership in the center, to direct, is huge for us.”

Defender and captain Ali Riley believes the club will only grow the more time Ertz has on the field.

“We’re able to play a different style because we have her there,” Riley said. “We were able to win the ball back higher up the field. We had players playing the roles that they should be in, like Sav (Savannah McCaskill) being closer to the goal, having Alyssa (Thompson) and Claire (Emslie) being able to go 1v1 on the wing.

“We have players more comfortable in their positions and a lot of that is because we have the presence of Julie now, allowing players to be more attacking. I think we played a style of football that we’ve been aiming for.”

Angel City had high hopes of last week’s three-game homestand, but emerged with just one point. Angel City rallied to draw with Racing Louisville FC and lost their Challenge Cup game against OL Reign (2-0) and the first league matchup with Wave FC (2-0).

After Saturday’s game against the Thorns, they will face OL Reign on Wednesday in a Challenge Cup game in Seattle and return home against the Kansas City Current on May 7. It is a busy stretch, but one that gives Ertz more time to adjust to her new team.

“This team is special,” she said. “I knew it from the second I came in. This is a winning culture. This team wants to win. Every game they’re trying to figure out what it is. We need to continue to grow. It’s early in the season, which is great. Now it’s holding each other accountable both individually and collectively.”