Life as a goalkeeper can be difficult.
Factor in life as a young goalkeeper and things could get very challenging.
Angelina Anderson joined Angel City Football Club as a third-round draft pick in 2023. Through her first two seasons, she made just seven appearances. By her third year, she had secured the No. 1 position.
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This season, she has taken another step in her career. She’s credited it to her confidence level.
“I would say it’s much higher,” she said of her self-belief after Sunday’s scoreless draw against Gotham FC. “It’s a positive feedback loop of performing well and gaining more confidence and performing well again and gaining more confidence.
“I’m still a young goalkeeper and the last few years have been up and down for me. And this year, I had to make a lot of changes of how I approach the game and how I approach my day-to-day and how I look at the game, my mindset and everything. And I’ve made a lot of changes and it really seems like it’s paying off.
Anderson is in the top 10 in the NWSL in saves (62), third in save percentage (75.6), tied for fourth in clean sheets (six) and fourth in goals against average (1.05). Her continued improvement has helped Angel City turn into a formidable defensive unit. Through Sunday’s scoreless draw against first-place Gotham FC, Anderson and Angel City have allowed just 20 goals, the third-fewest total in the league.
“I’m impressed with by Angelina and her process of working,” ACFC interim coach Leif Smerud said. “I think the mental game is really important and that’s where she’s done a really good job. Today (Sunday) she got rewarded with a fantastic save, but also a good game, another good game.
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“She’s eager to learn and develop, she’s improving her game with her feet and on the ball as well, so, really, really happy with her.”
It might be easy to forget that Anderson is just 25 and in only her second year as a No. 1 goalkeeper. She talked Sunday about making changes to her game and life.
“For me, I think I was doing too much at max capacity and as pro athletes you always think, ‘What more can I do? How can I do more and better?’ … For me, I actually really needed to strip things down and realize that my baseline is already here to work and to be the best,” she said. “I felt like I was doing too much and it was almost paralyzing me. So I had to strip it down and focus on the basics and honestly just trust that I know how to do this and I’m good and can be good.
“It’s been a really cool learning moment for me. The last few years have been up and down and it’s been really, really cool for me to kind of go through that journey and I feel confident with where I’m at now, but I’m also not naive to the fact that there will be more challenges ahead, so I’m excited for when those come too.”
Wednesday’s game against North Carolina (10-7-3, 33 points) is the first of three consecutive on the road for Angel City (7-7-5, 26 points), followed by Boston Legacy FC on Monday and Racing Louisville FC on Sept. 5.
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ANGEL CITY FC (7-7-5, 26 points) at NORTH CAROLINA COURAGE (10-7-3, 33 points)
When: 5 p.m. PT Wednesday
Where: First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park, Cary, North Carolina
How to watch: CBSSN