This might be the tightest knife fight in a phone booth the NWSL’s cooked up this fall, and if you love chaos with your pumpkin spice, Red Bull Arena’s about to be your spiritual home Sunday. NJ/NY Gotham FC and Racing Louisville: two teams separated by a slim two points, a whole lot of questions, and maybe the fate of their postseasons hanging in the balance. It’s fourth versus eighth, but that barely does this stakes buffet justice—think of this as the “Die Hard” of late-season showdowns: lots of suspense, everyone a little desperate, and you wouldn’t dare look away in the closing act.

Gotham rolls in ice-cold after a 0-2 loss to Kansas City, looking less like the title-chasing crew from last year and more like someone accidentally set their GPS for “anxious stalemate.” The attack? Averaging less than a goal per game over their last ten—like they’re running their offense through an allergy test. Rose Lavelle is still out there doing her Hermione Granger “wingardium leviosa” magic in midfield, but lately, even her spells have fizzled. Yeah, Margaret Purce lit up Portland a few weeks back and reminded us she’s still Gotham’s “get-off-the-couch” player, but the last two matches have been snoozers: a pair of 0-0 draws and that Kansas City loss where they got outclassed in their own kitchen. You know how in horror movies, someone always opens the basement door? Gotham’s attack lately is the basement: dark, creaky, and nothing good happens down there.

But you can’t talk Gotham without bringing up Esther González—the Spain star chasing the Golden Boot. She’s sitting on 13 goals, just behind Kansas City’s Chawinga, and while she hasn’t scored since mid-September, you get the feeling one goal could be like a Mentos in a Diet Coke bottle. Gotham’s offense, for all its recent droughts, has that “it could explode” feel at any second. If they’re going to do damage, it’ll be because Lavelle and Purce finally connect with Esther, who can sniff out chances even when Gotham looks flat.

Now, Racing Louisville: they are the NWSL’s answer to that underdog from every early 2000s sports movie—maybe not the flashiest, but they won’t stop running, won’t stop believing, and you’re pretty sure the coach is giving a halftime speech straight out of “Any Given Sunday.” They just stole a 1-1 draw in stoppage time against Chicago, courtesy of Bethany Balcer’s borrowed-toe magic, and let’s just say, this team will not die quietly. They’ve been up and down: two losses, then a two-game win streak, then the last-minute draw, but through it all they’re finding different ways to survive. Emma Sears is the heartbeat—10 goals, and every one of them seems to come with a little more “are you not entertained?” She’s found the net four times in the last five matches, and if Gotham doesn’t put a GPS tracker on her runs, she’s going to make them pay.

The tactical chess match here is delicious: Gotham, who want to control tempo, press high, and make this an elegant affair—think Pacino in “The Godfather,” cool and calculating. Louisville? They’re chaos agents, rolling with a midfield that’s full of engine-room types who relish the ugly stuff. Kayla Fischer and Janine Beckie are the wild cards, and if they can find Emma Sears in transition, Gotham might be chasing purple shadows all night.

Key questions: Can Gotham’s defense, which was pretty stingy until that Kansas City letdown, keep Racing’s attack from getting those scrappy, kitchen-sink goals? And can Gotham’s high-wire attack finally wake up, or will this be another “Sopranos” fade-to-black where nobody gets what they want, but the tension is the whole point?

Don’t forget the stakes. If Gotham wins, they hold onto playoff position and maybe even start dreaming again. If Louisville pulls off the upset, we might have to start talking about “Racing Magic” in the postseason, and suddenly Gotham’s season ends up as tragic as a Netflix show canceled after one season—so much promise, so little payoff.

Prediction? Flip a coin, honestly. But if Esther decides to write her own Golden Boot script, Gotham’s got just enough firepower to pull this off at home. Still, if Louisville’s hunger counts for anything, they’ll make Gotham earn every blade of grass, every breath, and every single second. Fasten your seatbelt and keep the remote within arm’s reach—this one’s got “instant classic” written all over it.