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Appreciating the Gopher Attack: Big Ten’s Leading Offense

10/19/2021

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Picture
(Photo credit: Jeremy Olson)
Remember when the Gopher Soccer team scored two goals in their first four games and we made the *bold* prediction that the offense would click and they’d likely score a goal a game or more the rest of the way? Well it turns out that was the undersell of the decade. In the 11 games since, Minnesota has scored 25 goals and now lead the Big Ten in scoring in conference play. Wait, what?! Yea. It’s true. So let’s drink this in and just take a moment to appreciate the breadth and depth of the Gophers attacking prowess — specifically their 12 goal craze over the last four games. 

Honestly, I’m mostly just going to list the goals here (and not do much analysis) because I really want you to appreciate how many different ways this team is scoring and attacking. All last spring and during the first few games of this fall, corner kick engineering (very clearly operating an entire offensive possession with the sole goal of eventually kicking it off an opposing defender) was maybe the single most common kind of possession in the final third. It wasn’t a *majority* of what the Gophers were doing, but it was definitely maybe the most common of many different outcomes. And the problem was that, back then, they were almost never actually converting those corners -- at all. 

Compare the offense I described above -- which, again, was essentially *this* team just 6 weeks ago -- to what you see below: an absolute cornucopia of offensive combinations and chances on goal. I have said many times that this year’s team has shown more game to game progression than maybe any Gopher team I’ve covered the last five years, and there is no better example than games 1-4 (2 goals, offense described in previous paragraph) and games 12-15 (12 goals, works of art in the final third).

GOOOOAL @GopherSoccer by @izzybrown52!

It's @patricia_w18 with the assist and we have a 2-0 lead with 20 minutes to go in the first half pic.twitter.com/aiNLgoOrRp

— Equal Time Soccer (@EqualTimeSoccer) October 3, 2021

​Penn State
  • 1) Corner kick. Donovan shields ball, feeds Langdok, who crosses from right corner of 18 yard box and Patricia Ward finishes off the bounce
  • 2) Ward gets a steal, works toward goal, crosses from about 6 yard box straight across the goal and Izzy Brown heads it home after a patient run, staying in space for a cross (shown above)
  • 3) Big ball from Boman in the Gopher side of midfield and Buisman runs on, first touch by the keeper, scores on an open net (shown below)
  • 4) Ward gets a solid cross off from just outside the left side of the 18 near the end line and it’s deflected in for an own goal
​

WHAT A GOAL

It's @kennabuisman15 with the amazing goal rounding the keeper

Assist by @kenzie_langdok

It is 3-0 to @GopherSoccer vs @PennStateWSOC pic.twitter.com/ZYm1guPcG0

— Equal Time Soccer (@EqualTimeSoccer) October 3, 2021

Purdue
  • 1) Gray earns a PK with a dangerous run on the right side of the box, working the endline toward goal and tackled Boman finishes PK
  • 2) Langdok cross from about 10 yards back of right corner of 18 yard box, Baker flicks perfectly to Van Loon who finishes with her off foot.
​

Can anyone stop @kennabuisman15?

Doesn't look like it. □ pic.twitter.com/0MnjkDQJ8Y

— Minnesota Soccer (@GopherSoccer) October 15, 2021

Illinois
  • 1) Illinois players passes back to keeper but Buisman charges the ball, blocks the keeper’s clearance and is free on goal
  • 2) Buisman charges the Illinois defender and takes it before she can pass back to keeper, works across the box right to left, ball on strong foot she slots it low right post (shown above)
  • 3) Gray settles an attempted clearance in opposing 18, slots it back to Langdok who’s about 10yds outside the right corner of the 18, who fires a rocket just under crossbar (shown below)
  • 4) Multiple chances on goal for MN and Illinois unable to clear it so Baker hammers it home from inside the 6 yard box
  • 5) Simple give and go by Ansley to give it up near right corner of 18, move toward end line, get it back, fire a shot from right at where the end line meets the 18
​

GOAL!!!@kenzie_langdok with a BANGER!!!@GopherSoccer up 3-0 with 5+ min left to play in the first half. I mean, just, that shot… pic.twitter.com/wO8K4ftrrU

— Equal Time Soccer (@EqualTimeSoccer) October 15, 2021

​
Northwestern
  • 1) Quick counter from midfield, Boman jumps passing lane, finds Buisman wide left who crosses, keeper saves it toward right of 18 where Langdok finishes strong on the run (shown below)
    ​​

GOAL!!!@kenzie_langdok with a BANGER!!!@GopherSoccer up 3-0 with 5+ min left to play in the first half. I mean, just, that shot… pic.twitter.com/wO8K4ftrrU

— Equal Time Soccer (@EqualTimeSoccer) October 15, 2021

​Key take-aways

Here’s what we’ll leave you with in terms of themes to take-away from this experience:
  • Langdok is playing confident as hell (and working that right wing)
  • Buisman is playing confident as hell (and playing havoc defense)
  • The Gophers are necessarily “pressing”, but they are counterattacking after jumping passing lanes (Ward, Boman, Buisman, etc) so they’re kinda doing elements of pressing
  • Despite all this talk about scoring, remember they also got two straight shutouts
  • THIS TEAM IS SO DAMN FUN
  • Gophers play AT Iowa Thursday. Home against Nebraska on Sunday. If they win out I think there’s a small chance they could actually host a Big Ten Tournament game...
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