NWSL Best XI of May: Temwa Chawinga Shines
In a league built on fine margins and furious pace, May belonged to the finishers, the organizers, and one unstoppable force from Kansas City.
The NWSL unveiled its Best XI of the Month for May on Friday in New York, a lineup dominated by the relentless scoring of Player of the Month Temwa Chawinga and the iron spine of an unbeaten Utah Royals FC side that also delivered Coach of the Month honors to Jimmy Coenraets. Eight different clubs broke into the elite group, but the rhythm of the month had a clear beat: goals, clean sheets, and a Utah team that refused to lose.
Chawinga leads a ruthless front line
At the sharp end of the XI, Temwa Chawinga once again set the standard. The two-time reigning MVP tore through defenses with seven goals in six games for Kansas City Current, a production rate that felt inevitable every time she picked up the ball in the final third. Defenses knew what was coming. They still couldn’t stop it.
She’s joined up top by two more forwards who turned May into a personal highlight reel. For Orlando Pride, Barbra Banda matched her minutes with a ruthless efficiency, scoring six goals in six matches and giving Orlando a constant outlet in transition and in the box. Mina Tanaka completed the front three, the heartbeat of a Utah attack that spread the wealth. Tanaka scored twice and added three assists, central to a Royals front line that boasted eight different goalscorers during the month. Her movement and vision stitched together an unbeaten run that reshaped Utah’s early-season outlook.
Midfield engines drive the tempo
Behind them, the midfield trio reads like a who’s who of creators and controllers.
At North Carolina Courage, Manaka Matsukubo turned six May outings into a statement of intent, delivering three goals and two assists. She drifted between the lines, dictated tempo, and made sure the Courage always carried a threat from deep.
Kimmi Ascanio, just 18, played like she belonged among the league’s seasoned operators. The San Diego Wave midfielder racked up 13 tackles across six matches, then punctuated her work rate with her first goal of the season. It was the kind of month that suggests this won’t be the last time her name appears on a Best XI list.
Rounding out the midfield, Kansas City’s Croix Bethune reminded everyone why she claimed the 2024 Midfielder of the Year award. A goal and three assists in May underscored her dual role as creator and finisher, knitting together a Current side that could hurt opponents from anywhere.
Defensive steel and a rising Utah core
The back line tells its own story: clean sheets, consistency, and a Utah spine that refused to bend.
In goal, Mandy McGlynn anchored a Utah Royals defense that posted three clean sheets in six matches. She brought calm behind a back line that rarely flinched under pressure, a steady presence for a team building its identity on resilience.
Ahead of her, Kate Del Fava embodied that identity. The Royals center back logged 16 tackles and six interceptions across six games, and hit a major personal milestone with her 63rd consecutive start for Utah, a streak stretching back to the club’s 2024 re-launch. Reliability doesn’t usually make headlines. This month, it had to.
On the flanks and in the heart of other back lines, three more defenders stood out. For Denver, Canadian fullback Janine Sonis turned defense into a weapon, scoring braces in back-to-back games in the middle of the month. Few fullbacks in the league can flip a match quite like that.
In Portland, Sam Hiatt remained a key pillar for the Thorns, helping them lock down three clean sheets in May. Her positioning and timing gave Portland a platform to build from the back, the kind of quiet dominance that allows attacking talent to roam free.
Gotham FC captain Tierna Davidson added her own twist: leadership, defensive stability, and a long-awaited goal. Gotham kept clean sheets in three of their four May matches, and Davidson chipped in with her first goal since 2019, a moment that underscored her influence at both ends of the pitch.
Utah’s rise and a league of contenders
Threaded through the XI is a clear pattern. Utah’s unbeaten month didn’t just earn them three individual selections and Coach of the Month for Jimmy Coenraets; it signaled a team arriving with purpose. A goalkeeper in form, a center back ever-present, a forward orchestrating an attack with multiple scoring threats — that’s the foundation of a contender.
But this Best XI isn’t about one team. It’s a snapshot of a league where an 18-year-old midfielder can crash the party, where fullbacks hit braces, and where established stars like Chawinga, Banda, and Bethune keep raising the bar.
The NWSL Media Association, a group of writers who track the league week after week, pulled together this XI based on what unfolded in May. The result is a lineup that looks less like a ceremonial list and more like a team you’d pay to watch under the lights.
If this is what May looks like, the real question is simple: who can keep this pace when the stakes climb even higher?
