DC Power FC returns home to Audi Field tonight as they take on Fort Lauderdale United FC. DC Power is coming off a road win against the Tampa Bay Sun and hope to get a second straight against a team they saw just 18 days ago.

Fort Lauderdale United will look a bit different as they just signed former USWNT midfielder Allie Long, which brings an interesting dynamic to their lineup. Long hasn’t played in a couple of years, but she certainly will be quickly integrated into Fort Lauderdale’s lineup and present a new challenge for DC Power.

On DC Power’s side, they know they just need to focus on one thing at a time. They sit once again just three points under the playoff line in the Gainbridge Super League standings, and with four matches left, the urgency has never been higher.

“We have four games, those are four finals, but we got to take them one at a time and, if we were able to win our games, take care of business,” head coach Omid Namazi said during this week’s press availability. “We’re in the playoffs, it’s in our hands, but I don’t think it’s going to be smooth sailing. As I sit here and think about it, we’ll have our ups and downs, but then the other teams will have their ups and downs as well. We just hope to be better in the next four games than the teams that we’re going head to head against.”

The team also recognizes that with three of their four remaining matches being at home (three in a row, beginning tonight), they need to figure out how to get maximum points in each of those games. “Well, usually [playing at home’s] a boost, but we haven’t been really good at home, so that’s something that we’ve talked about,” Namazi said.

“[We] haven’t really made home our fortress,” Morgan Aquino remarked. “We want it to be a place where people can come and they’re scared to play because they know that we dominate. So I think that’s something that in the back of everyone’s mind know that we want achieve, we want it to be hard to [play us at Audi Field].”

They will also have to fight without some key players. Gianna Gourley and Susanna Fitch remain out due to injury, and Madison Murnan joined them on the injured list with an ankle issue. Alexis Theoret is close to a return and may make the matchday roster tonight barring any setbacks. But, the injury bug is not viewed as excuse and Namazi knows the next player has to step up and produce. “[So] far, the players that have been called upon on, they’ve been doing a job and have kept us in the playoff picture,” Namazi replied.  

They will need these three points to keep pace in the race for the playoffs, and they will need energy on the field and finishing their chances to get the win.

DC Power FC vs. Fort Lauderdale United

Location: Audi Field

Kickoff time: 7:00pm ET

Available streaming: Peacock