Category: Opinion

The Unused Sub: We Are In This Together

Posted on by RJ Allen

I’ll leave a thorough recap of Wednesday night’s North Carolina Courage/Sky Blue FC match to the professionals here on this site, but goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan probably got her some Player of the Week considerations for her shift. Yes North Carolina won the match 2-0 but that scoreline could have been a rout if it weren’t for Sheridan.

IF I CAN BE SERIOUS FOR A MINUTE

As I write this, it’s been rather quiet in the world of WoSo (though here’s to a speedy & proper recovery to you Ashlyn Harris). We are still reeling from the Manchester Arena tragedy on Monday and finding ways to not necessarily “make sense” of what happened, rather doing something for lack of a better term, just … something. Whether the purpose is to overcome the grief or take their mind off it, we all have our respective ways. For a lot of us, sports is that agent, that vehicle to go to whenever something bad happens. Backline Soccer’s overlord RJ Allen wrote this beautiful piece on finding the beauty in the beautiful game.  Stop and go read her piece if you haven’t already. Don’t worry, I’ll wait.

Writing about the things that make us happy – whether it’s for therapeutic reasons or just for the hell of it – is a timeless practice and certainly writing about the sport we love sure applies. Everyone here on Backline Soccer loves the beautiful game and it’s nice to see their passion poured into the stuff that is on here. From recaps to interviews to episodes of The Scouting Report & The 123rd Minute, the people that make up Backline Soccer are here because they love it. They care about the sport as it is and where it can go, what it can mean to so many other people. The meaning of life is open to so much interpretation and I think that is the best way you can define it; the meaning of life is what you make of it. And what the people of Backline Soccer have declared is this site is a part of their life. We are here to connect with others through the commonality of loving the beautiful game. We are here because we are happy to be here. We are here because well, it helps us with living.

If you visit this site, it’s because you share a love for the game of soccer with us – thank you. Having something to love and enjoy and share it with people, I think is one of the pillars of the human experience and never forget that. Even in the face of tragedy. To suffer is human, yes, but to enjoy matters more.

FURT IS TWO GAMES BEING BACK TO BACK

  • Seattle Reign FC OVER Houston Dash
  • North Carolina Courage OVER Chicago Red Stars
  • Sky Blue FC and Orlando Pride play to a DRAW
  • FC Kansas City OVER Washington Spirit
  • Portland Thorns OVER Boston Breakers.

This week’s music video break is dedicated to everyone in Manchester, England. May the city and its people stay strong.

Song: “The Opener” | Artist: The Courteeners

The band’s frontman Liam Fray has said of this song as a love letter to the city he grew up in, Manchester, England.

Unsung Hero of the Week: Rapinoe Brings Purple Reign

Posted on by RJ Allen

In this weekly series, I will be highlighting a player from the weekend who was their respective team’s unsung hero, win or lose. A player who does the dirty work, does the little but important things in a game and someone who didn’t exactly fill up the stat sheet but found other ways to contribute.

This week I’ve chosen Seattle Reign FC forward Megan Rapinoe.

Rapinoe has been one of the original Seattle fan-favorites since 2013, when the National Women’s Soccer League began. Making 46 appearances while scoring 22 goals for the Reign, Rapinoe has been a key part of Seattle’s rise to the top of the NWSL over the last five years. But after tearing her ACL with the National Team in December 2015, Rapinoe’s appearances with her club team have been limited, and when she does take the pitch, she’s been a little rusty.

But now, I think we can all say with confidence: Pinoe’s back, baby.

Seattle 1-1 Orlando:

Throughout the first six weeks, Seattle has had a kind of Jekyll and Hyde feel about them, while Orlando’s start has been a little underwhelming, to say the least, until their surprise win over the NC Courage in Week 5.  So no one was particularly surprised as the match started and the Reign started out strong, dominating early possession. The Reign are considered one of the best clubs at home and currently have a 10 match undefeated run at their Memorial Stadium home. Orlando, on the other hand, have yet to earn a win in their last 13 away games.

One of the biggest difference makers for me in this match was the 31-year-old Rapinoe, who was vital in the Reign maintaining possession throughout the match and controlling the pace of the game.

One of the best parts about Rapinoe’s game is her passing ability. An early example of this was in the seventh minute of the game, when Rapinoe checked into space near the midfield, her back to the opposing goal, to receive a pass from Christine Nairn. With one last quick shoulder check on her defender, Rapinoe took a single touch with her right and sent a lovely ball towards Jess Fishlock, who was wide-open and charging into Orlando’s eighteen yard-box territory at the time.

In this instance, the Pride’s defensive back Alanna Kennedy was able to slide over just in time to force a crunching tackle, and both players got tangled up trying to win the ball. But what many people may overlook in watching the ball is how Rapinoe not only knew where Fishlock was running too in that split second, but gave Fishlock a real chance with her placement of the ball.

One reason it’s difficult to defend the Reign is because they are known as a technical team, they love the one-touch passing game and time and time again, they are synchronized moving up into the attack. This season, Seattle are working with a 4-3-3 formation, pushing Rapinoe up top with fellow veterans Bev Yanez and Nahomi Kawasumi.  The attack is supported by a well-connected midfield, composed of Fishlock, Christine Nairn and Rumi Utsugi. But the most important part of the Reign’s dominance on the pitch is that all the players mentioned above–Rapinoe and her teammates in the front and midfield–are interchangeable on the field.  Each one of them could swap positions on the pitch at any point and perform to Laura Harvey’s exacting standards. That’s how they create so many quality chances and in doing do, currently lead the league in Goals (15), Assists (10), Shots on Goal (39) and are second in Shots overall (73).

Rapinoe was busy all game long finding space and getting service to her teammates in critical areas. In fact, the lone goal for Seattle came off service from that special right foot in the 40th minute. After the second consecutive corner found its way back to Rapinoe out wide, she whipped in a tantalizing ball that sent Orlando backup goalkeeper Caroline Stanley out to the six-yard box to only land a weak punch that landed the ball at Rachel Corsie’s feet. Corsie, then, deflected the ball toward Yanez, who scored with a beautiful tap-in.

But remember. It all started with Rapinoe. With Rapinoe not giving up on the right side after a few minutes down in their end, making the decision to continue pressing forward toward goal and pressuring the Pride’s defensive with her service.

The goal–the point, the eventual draw–it all started with Megan Rapinoe.

While Seattle are sitting in fourth place with two wins, one loss, and three draws, they once again have the talent and leadership to make it back to a familiar place–the coveted NWSL Championship game. If Rapinoe can continue to find the back of the net (four goals so far in 2017, second in the league) while also finding opportunities for her teammates, it just may be Reigning in October.

Finding the Beauty in the Beautiful Game Again

Posted on by RJ Allen

The next generation is going to grow up having pretended to be Alex Morgan or Christen Press or Amy Rodriguez in their backyards.

They will be Hope Solo in goal when the sandbox is in and the monkey bars are out. It’s going to be Tobin Health they try to match trick for trick after watching her moves over and over on YouTube.

If they get bloody it will be Kelley O’Hara against China that springs to mind.

When they save a ball off the line it ill be Meghan Klingenberg’s name tossed around like a badge of honor. Julie Johnston is going to be their hero with a lion’s roar and fiery tackles. It’s going to be Carli Lloyd’s hat tick and Lauren Holiday’s perfect volley they try to imitate after each practice.

It will be Becky Sauerbrunn’s ability to do her job better than anyone else they remember. It will be Ali Krieger’s ability to move fluidly between defense and office that sets the bar. It will be Morgan Brian getting up from getting hit and never losing a step. It will be Megan Rapinoe’s celebrations that will be copied and built on and remembered.

Each generation looks to the one that came before it for inspiration. The 15ers put on one hell of a show, didn’t they?

I wrote those words–or something very close to them, because I can’t deny I did a little self editing–in the shadow of the World Cup win back in 2015.

Back then everything felt new. I was just some nobody on Tumblr, reblogging photos, and looking up stats, and talking about soccer late into the night with my friends. While I had followed on and off since 2004, it was all felt so different. It felt new and rejuvenated and, honestly, like nothing could hamper WoSo’s rising glory.

Fast forward to about two months ago and I felt lost. Numb really might be the better world. The off-season was coming to a close and the prep for the (historic) fifth season of the NWSL was in full swing here at Backline Soccer.

And yet, in general, all soccer was making me feel at the time was annoyed. Whether it was the unfortunate early exit of the USWNT from the Rio Olympics, the loss or retirement of longtime players at the international level, the long and seemingly never-ending grind of the CBA negotiations, or even just the way women’s soccer continued to be overshadowed in every corner by men’s teams and men’s leagues, I found myself burnt out on soccer.

While I love my job, while I love each and every day I get to work with the talented people here at Backline, I really didn’t feel any love for soccer at the time. I had to make sure we had 10 previews ready to go in short order on top of 10 preview TSR episodes. I was working 40+ hours a week on top of another 25 to 30 for the site.

Soccer was everywhere, all around me, and I couldn’t find the joy in it anymore.

And then I saw those words.

I saw the words I wrote back when I was just basking in the warmth of the World Cup on a long-deleted Tumblr. And for a moment I felt the numbness slip away and I let the magnitude of what happened in the summer of 2015 in Canada hit me again.

I turned on the Germany game that night. And I watched as the drama unfolded all over again. The feeling of that game, maybe one of my all time favorites, took away the numbness and brought back the beauty that I feel so deeply for.

Witnessing the moment between Solo and Sauerbrunn and Johnston after the “red card that should have been,” still caused my breath to hitch, my pulse to rise, my chest to tighten with the excitement and the wonder at what was happening on the field in front of me. Watching as the midfield worked together in a way we haven’t seen in well over a year was both delightful and a little painful. Seeing Morgan Brian stand after bashing her head into Popp’s still made me nervous for her as she went back in. Seeing Solo take an hour to get into goal for the PK all for Germany to have their first miss on this highest of stages is still hard to fathom. Watching as jack-of-all-trades Kelley O’Hara scored her game very first USWNT goal and sealed Germany’s fate made me cheer again, and I remembered how much I loved the beautiful game, the shock and the surprise of it. The way the entire world could turn upside down in less than a minute, a perfectly timed cut into the box and an extended foot just nudging the ball into the goal, and I could get caught up in it as if everything was happening again for the very first time.

When the game was over I put on the last few minutes of the final. Not the hat-trick, not Holiday’s perfect volley, not Tobin’s it-looks-so-easy goal, but the last few minutes. When everyone on that pitch knew they were about to finally reclaim a trophy the program spent 16 years fighting to take back.

Watching Ali Krieger fall to her knees on the same field that took her Olympic dreams away will never fail to bring a lump to my throat. Watching Carli Lloyd sink to hers, knowing she’d just written the opening line to every biography, interview, and introduction of the rest of her life, will never fail to make me smile. Watching Hope Solo finally summit the mountain she had never before quite been able to claim was satisfying.

And seeing Christie Pearce and Becky Sauerbrunn and Julie Johnston together brings me all the joy that someone who loves defense as much as I do can possibly feel.

After the game ended I put on the medal ceremony and just watched the joy of the women who’d just achieved one of their oldest and biggest dreams. Watched as players seasoned and rookie alike were awarded what was due, as all 23 women stood surrounded their captain, witnessing her lift it high and proud and so, so happy.

There’s a bittersweet hue to the images now, knowing how the next two years have shaken out. The cuts would soon happen, the new players who would come in and be added to the starting rotation while others would retire and fade into the pantheon where they belong. Rio was on my mind as I watched medals be placed around the necks of players who had not yet fought for and been denied their chance to become 2016 Olympic champions.

But as I sat there, screen black and cheers silent, I felt the numbness fade. I felt the worry about the season ease a little. And instead, I began to remember how much I loved all of this, the deadlines and the reporting and the podcasting, all of it. How much joy it brought to my life.

How much joy it brings so many.

My life was forever changed that day. My drive to become part of those who cover this sport grew out of that win. This seed of the idea of a site like Backline was planted that day even if I had no idea at the time. No idea how many friends I’d make and pieces I’d have a hand in creating and work I’d put in, none of that was real then. But it was all born that 5th of July.

There are a lot of dramatic things that happen in the NWSL and the USWNT. A lot of things I get mad online about, and mad on podcasts about,  and mad in writing about.  A lot of us do. Sometimes we need to step away from the trade rumors and the hot-takes and remember the beauty.

Sometimes we need to remember the moments that made us devote so much time and energy and passion into and remember the beauty. It only ever takes a few hours and a few replays of the moments that changed everything to remind myself just how beautiful it can be.

Soccer is a beautiful game, sometimes I forget that.

Orlando Pride: Sticking to the Plan Will Earn a Result

Posted on by RJ Allen

The Orlando Pride will head to the Pacific Northwest once again this week to take on the highest scoring team in the league, the Seattle Reign.

The Pride, coming off the team’s first win of the season, take a ten-match road winless streak to Memorial Stadium. Orlando’s last road win, which is also the only road win in team history, came against the Houston Dash – ironically in Week 6. The talk from the Pride going in to face the Reign is to focus on their game more so than worrying on what Seattle plans to do in the match.

The Pride have been able to find some consistency on the backline with the budding partnership of Alanna Kennedy and Toni Pressley. The number of goals Orlando has given up has been significantly reduced since Pressley fought her way into the starting XI.

When asked if she can further improve this season Pressley shared, “I think I have a few more levels.”

They will need to concentrate on communication to close down passing lanes from Nahomi Kawasumi, Week 4 Player of the Week, to United States Women’s National Team player – and current leader in the golden boot race – Megan Rapinoe and the rest of the high-powered Seattle offense. Last week Orlando’s lone defensive lapse gave Debinha the opportunity to keep the Courage in the match longer than the Pride would have liked, and a team like Seattle will make Orlando pay if they make any mistakes defensively.

The Pride will attempt to dictate the pace of the match against the Reign and utilize the pace of their strikers to challenge goalkeeper Haley Kopmeyer and her backline.

As Coach Tom Sermanni stated in his post-match comments on Mother’s Day, “We just need to make sure we get a defensive structure set up and sorted properly. If you look at our backline, four out of our five are all internationals so we’ve got a decent backline. And if we can get our tactics right, I think we’ve got the players who can exploit the lack of mobility that Seattle has.”

All eyes will once again be on the Orlando midfielders, as Monica is still working her way back from a bone bruise. Dani Weatherholt’s defensive performance and ability to distribute the ball forward has provided space to Camila to go forward as Kristen Edmonds has provide cover for her in the midfield.

As defensive leader, Ali Krieger added in the post-match presser, “If we are good and compact and organized defensively I don’t think that they’re going to have good opportunities but you have to have the ball to do that so hopefully we’re going to have more possession and we’re going to take care of that.”

Playing with the ball more will limit the chances Seattle has in pushing the ball into their attacking third. Additionally, the Pride will need to congest the midfield and passing lanes for the Reign.

If the Pride end up playing the long ball on top, the team will not be playing their game as they have claimed they need to do to get a result in Seattle. Sermanni will have several options at attack. One of his focuses this week, as he stated, is exploiting the lack of mobility on the Reign backline. This is where the tactics will have to be right, and the Pride may look to surprise Seattle with a new look on top, as scoring on the road will be vital to keep pace. Marta will look to create opportunities to Chioma Ubogagu, who can also keep possession of the ball, and Danica Evans, the rookie standout for the Pride.

Orlando has struggled to get results away from home, and this week’s opportunity will be a challenge for them. But the team is brimming with confidence, and if Sermanni’s game plan can give fits to Laura Harvey’s side like they think it can, the Pride will leave Memorial Stadium with a positive result.

The Unused Sub: The Power of Words

Posted on by RJ Allen

This week’s installment has a lot of words for once.

AND SO THE MALLORY PUGH ERA IS UPON US

It started last Saturday with The Decision 2.0. Mallory Pugh was on the NWSL Game of the Week pre-show and made it official that she was joining the Washington Spirit and thus embarking on her professional soccer career. I’ll spare you the brief chat I had with someone at my day job yesterday who read about Pugh’s decision. It was the tired trope of, “She should stay in school!”

Naw, kid, get your money when you can, when it’s hot.

Of course, by the time it was made official on television, everyone knew about it. And by Saturday night, people may have forgotten about it because her team the Washington Spirit got absolutely demolished by the Seattle Reign FC. After the Spirit claimed a penalty, the Reign went to 11 and went on a four-goal, ten minute roughshod led by Nahomi Kawasumi who set a NWSL single-game record with four assists. FOUR. To think in the short history of the NWSL, we’ve seen some bonkers lopsided scorelines, yet at best from those games, a player would only have two assists at most. Then you had Kawasumi go gangbusters and claim four for herself.

A lot of eyes are going to be on Washington’s matchup against FC Kansas City this weekend. Pugh likely will make her debut – it’s just a matter of how much time she’ll see on the field. How much of an impact will she bring; will it be immediate or will it take the rookie time? It’s easy for me being on the other end of the country to say this, let’s just sit back and enjoy the ride. Let’s try not to anoint her as the second coming of anything for women’s soccer.

Let’s just sit back and let Mallory Pugh soccer play how Mallory Pugh only knows how she approaches the game. She’s going to do some cool shit stuff, and she’s going to struggle. She might put the Spirit on her back and be enough of an impact to win a match for the team. She might be completely shut out and rendered invisible on a field. We’ll have plenty of time to over-discuss and over-analyze how the professional debut of Mallory Pugh went, if it is this weekend, but the bottom line is it’s going to be an exciting moment for her (most importantly), the NWSL, and everyone that follows it – fan and media alike. So let’s just sit back and enjoy the moment.

WE HAD A DISCUSSION ABOUT DOUBLE STANDARDS AND HOO BOY WERE JIMMIES RUSTLED

When it was announced that Reign FC defender Merritt Mathias was suspended (rightfully) for violent conduct on the field, for some reason it brought on armchair psychologists suggesting she has anger issues and should go see someone about it.

A few of us raised an eyebrow over this apparent diagnosing from Internet comments. Stephanie Yang did a guest piece in Sounder At Heart on the overall narrative that somehow, for whatever reason female athletes are held to some higher standard than male athletes. The idea that female athletes aren’t allowed to get angry, and that it’s a double standard. Oh boy, did some people’s jimmies get rustled at that idea and they doubled-down on that yeah, “Mathias should get her head checked.”

Let me be clear in saying this: STOP. DOING. THAT. PEOPLE.

When Mathias and Stephanie McCaffery or any other female athlete gets angry on the field, it could very well be that they are just getting angry/lost in the moment.

When a quarterback berates a receiver because they dropped the ball, no one ever says that the quarterback “has anger issues” or should “act with more class.” They say the cliche thing of, “Oh he’s just a leader demanding perfection from his teammates.” When a baseball pitcher throws a retaliation pitch because the batter in the previous meeting hit a homer off them, no one suggests they have a problem with holding grudges and “should go talk to someone about it.” They cite “the unwritten rules of baseball” that apparently state a pitcher is entitled to throw a 95 MPH fastball (which science says has the force impact equivalent to a gun) at the batter because “they admired the homer.”

Female athletes are allowed to show as many emotions as their male counterparts do and they should be allowed to display them, without some further discussion as if there’s some underlying element. And if that emotion is negative – let it be. DO NOT SPECULATE THAT IT’S RELATED TO THAT PERSON’S MENTAL STATE ESPECIALLY IF YOU DO NOT KNOW THEM PERSONALLY.

The fact that people doubled-down on it and thought it was okay is just baffling. It’s disingenuous and incredibly dangerous. Seriously, how would you feel if whatever you did for a living was subjected to internet comments and a moment or two where you lost your cool and got angry, those behind a monitor & keyboard, total strangers, were questioning your mental health like that? Not a good feeling yeah?

DON’T. DO. IT. PLEASE.

SO ABOUT NAHOMI KAWASUMI

When you make NWSL history like she did on Saturday night, you get Player of the Week honors. This is the fourth time in her NWSL career that she has won that honor and puts her solely in second place on the all-time list of winning that honor. Crystal Dunn has the most so far in the award’s existence with six. And yes, she won all six of those during the 2015 season – yep, that season from her was that magical.

I’m going make a bold prediction regarding this: Nahomi Kawasumi will surpass Crystal Dunn as the player with most NWSL Player of the Week Honors.

It could be the Japanese international that gets behind the wheel and leads the Reign FC offense the way Kim Little did for the three seasons she was here. Yes, the team as a whole needs to string consecutive performances where they’re an absolute buzz-saw and I think this weekend’s matchup against Orlando will be another one. And I think Kawasumi will play a big factor in that. If Kawasumi goes on a run in the league, last Saturday’s outing against the Spirit could be the genesis of it.

So yes, she’s at four NWSL Player of the Week honors after this week’s announcement and I think there’ll be at least three more weeks where she takes it this season.

If you’re a Reign FC fan, you gotta love the sound of Rollin’ with the Homi to hopefully back into the NWSL Playoffs.

HOW MANY MINUTES WILL MALLORY PUGH PLAY – ONLY A GAMBLING SYNDICATE IN ASIA KNOWS

Here are this week’s predictions:

  • Boston Breakers OVER Portland Thorns FC.
  • Sky Blue FC OVER Houston Dash.
  • Washington Spirit and FC Kansas City play to a DRAW.
  • North Carolina Courage and Chicago Red Stars play to a DRAW.
  • Seattle Reign FC OVER Orlando Pride.

That last game is going to be a doozy. I think this is where Seattle strings consecutive performances of being the buzz-saw that people will remember. Orlando will get a goal but in the grand picture, it won’t matter much as Reign will continue to be in onslaught mode. Can I gripe at the Sunday evening start time? It’s cutting into my WWE Pay Per View event watching – I’m going to go write to my congressman about it cramping my style; after I attend the match of course.

Anywho, here’s this week’s music video break.

Song: “Information” | Artist: Eliot Sumner

Unsung Hero of the Week: Broon the Broom

Posted on by RJ Allen

In this weekly series, I will be highlighting a player from the weekend who was their respective team’s unsung hero, win or lose. A player who does the dirty work, does the little but important things in a game and someone who didn’t exactly fill up the stat sheet but found other ways to contribute.

This week I’ve chosen FC Kansas City defender Becky Sauerbrunn.

The 31-year-old has been with FCKC since the first year of the club’s existence back in 2013 and has appeared 57 times. And for all that time, the Blues captain has been one of the most underrated and underappreciated players in the women’s game. Everyone knows she’s good, but people don’t quite seem to get just how good she is. Commonly referred to as Broon by fans and media alike, she is quiet, steady, reliable, and hard-working: the sort of player any club or country in the world would love to have.

FCKC 0-0 Portland

Kansas City and Portland each had significant players out due to injury, with Tobin Heath still out for the Thorns and Desiree Scott being added to FCKC’s lengthy injury list. Knowing this, I gave Portland the slight advantage going in. I also had a feeling that it would be a defensive battle, as each team has only given up three goals in five games, tied for best in the league. Portland obviously has a dangerous club on paper, led by Christine Sinclair with a star-studded supporting of Nadia Nadim, Allie Long and Amandine Henry, and more. But Sauerbrunn and her backline held each of these players in check and as a team, Portland mustered just 9 shots total with only two on goal.

Sauerbrunn just doesn’t let anyone get by her. She is calculating, organized and extremely patient in her play. Broon doesn’t have a ton of speed, but has a way of positioning herself to more than make up for it. Where many players would need to race somewhere at top speed, she sees things developing and puts herself in position well in advance of the play. She also rarely gives up free-kicks in dangerous areas, a testament to her awareness and here calm style of play.

An example of her ability to read the game so well was showcased in the 15th minute. Portland were on the quick counter with Haley Raso and Sinclair charging forward into the Blues’ final third. Sauerbrunn tracked 30 yards to snatch a pass that Raso was looking to thread in for Sinclair, cutting off the threat and sliding a cool pass to her keeper Nicole Barnhart. If Sauerbrunn hadn’t read that pass and timed her interception perfectly, Sinclair would’ve had plenty of green in front of her for an enticing 1v1 with Barnhart.

When watching her play, it’s almost as if Sauerbrunn has a magnetic connection with the ball, stopping passes through the middle, long balls over the top, and tough crosses alike. She leads the NWSL with 36 clearances, and you could see plenty of them this weekend. Overall, Portland has a height advantage over FCKC, but every time the ball was served in, Sauerbrunn and Yael Averbuch rose above the crowd to head it away. 

While the offense continues to struggle, it’s safe to say that Sauerbrunn and her defense are already in mid-season form.

The captain moves so gracefully around the pitch and her tackling ability is just as pretty to witness. One instance of it came in the 49th minute, Portland again were on the counter. This time it was Lindsey Horan and Raso executing the break. Horan drew three FCKC defenders to her as she charged into the middle of the 18-yard box. She sprayed a pass to her right that found Raso 10 yards from Barnhart, and wide open. But she wasn’t open for long, because Sauerbrunn raced to cover the space and then executed a clean tackle on Raso who must have been stunned to see such a good opportunity snuffed in the blink of an eye. It was a remarkable tackle, and one that I’ve seen her make hundreds of times. 

And that’s the essence of Sauerbrunn. She does the amazing so often that we grow accustomed to it. But we shouldn’t let that consistency dull our perception of her brilliance.

Sauerbrunn is constantly working on her game and sharpening her skills, and in my opinion, she has become the best center back in the women’s game since stepping onto the world stage in 2008 for the United States Women’s National team. If Sauerbrunn and FCKC can continue this solid defensive play while somehow finding a match to ignite the attack in the coming weeks, Kansas City could very well make it back to the playoffs this year.

The Furt & the Fabulous, Episode 1

Posted on by RJ Allen

Welcome to the Furt and the Fabulous. A new series that looks at the highs and lows in the world of WoSo. Each week I will be giving 2 to 4 Furts (the bad stuff) and 2 to 4 Fabulouses (the good stuff).

The Furt

Furt #1: USSF Interrupts the NWSL Season . . . Again . . .

In a season with no Olympics or World Cup USSF has decided to host a second four-team tournament. After the USWNT came in 4th out of 4 teams in March during the SheBelieves Cup, they’ll now be trying their luck against Japan, Australia and Brazil. 

As Jordan Small reported last week,

The U.S. will open the tournament on July 27 in Seattle when they take on Australia. They will then travel to San Diego to take on Brazil on July 30. The tournament will wrap up on Aug. 3 when the team takes on Japan at the StubHub Center in Carson, California.

I have nothing against the USWNT playing these three teams. I am against them doing it in the middle of the NWSL season, forcing the national team players to miss at least one game after the tournament, likely another one before (if past history is any indication), and possibly more for recovery.

Furt #2: NWSL Attendance is Starting to be Concerning

https://twitter.com/CaptainWOSO/status/863952071757885440

We need to start being worried about attendance.

I am not one to be an alarmist when it comes to attendance in general. But even I can’t look at less than 1,800 people at a game featuring two popular teams and not be worried.

Yes, it’s May.

Yes, the games are during the day and not 7 pm.

Yes, some of the bigger Portland stars and Amy Rodriguez are MIA.

But this is not something unique to this weekend. Numbers are down across the league and across the weeks. And teams are seeing dips in attendance rather than rising numbers.

Seattle had 3,521 tickets sold opening weekend and now, in the fifth week, pulled 500 less. And yes, I know the Sounders are out-of-town playing Chicago this week. But did 500 joint Sounder/Reign fans make the trip? Doubtful.

What worries me more is FC Kansas City, who sold 3340 tickets opening weekend but pulled just 1,796 against Portland this week. Even with ARod out that is not a great sign for the two-time champs.

I don’t believe this is all Lifetime putting the game of the week on at 4 pm Eastern time. It likely doesn’t help, but there’s something more going on here, and we should be getting a little concerned.

The Fabulous

Fabulous #1: The Homi Assists 4 goals and Scores 1.

Nahomi Kawasumi is good at soccer in case anyone had forgotten. Four assists in a month of soccer is pretty damn good. Four assists in one game is a level of vision and talent that shows just how great this World Cup winner really is.

The Homi set up goals for Christine Nairn in the 20th minute and Bev Yanez in the 35th minute. Then, after what I can only assume was a Popeye can of spinach at halftime, she assisted Megan Rapinoe in the 71st and Lindsey Elston 8 minutes later in the 79th. And, to top it off, she also threw in a goal of her own in the 68th minute, just to mix things up a bit.

Plus, some of Naho’s work led to this very gifable moment.

Fabulous #2: Kerr and Galton Score a Pair of Beauties 

There are few things that make me as happy as Sam Kerr doing Sam Kerr things all over the pitch, except maybe Sam Kerr and Leah Galton doing their thing together.

With Kelley O’Hara out of the match a lot of the pressure was put on Kerr and Galton and company to get the 3 points on the road for Sky Blue.

And oh boy did they deliver.

Poor Lydia Williams was left out to dry more often than wash in the summer, but it took some excellent work to capitalize. And both of these shots would be near impossible for any goalkeeper to stop.

6 Takeaways From NWSL: Week Five

Posted on by RJ Allen

After five weeks of play in the NWSL, we’ve seen that anyone can beat anyone. Just look at Orlando beating North Carolina. How many of you called that one? But perhaps the biggest news of the weekend was Washington adding Mallory Pugh to their roster. Now we could go on all day, but we know you’re here for our takeaways. Here’s what we took away from week 5 of the NWSL.

Where has Adriana Leon been all this time? – Leigh Nieves

Leon has been an undeniable stand out for the Boston Breakers in their first 5 games coming away with 2 assists and 1 goal thus far. Which may not seem like an impressive number, but a simple eye test would tell you that she is a completely different player from the one we saw for the Western New York Flash in 2016. She seems to be a part of every attack, her passing is much more precise, and her connections with Rose Lavelle and Natasha Dowie seem to be flourishing. Although most of the attention this season has (rightly so) been on Lavelle, the rise of Leon has been interesting to witness.

FCKC needs to score more – Leigh Nieves

I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but FC Kansas City hasn’t scored much since they unexpectedly lost Amy Rodriguez from their starting line up in the first game. In fact, they’ve only scored one goal in their last four match-ups bringing their season total to a whopping 3 goals. Fortunately though, they’ve also only allowed 3 goals. FCKC’s defense actually is having a vintage season. Nicole Barnhart is playing strong, Broon is Broon, and with the talent of newcomer Christina Gibbons, their backline is seeming pretty solid. Their attack is another story. It’s problematic that even with the addition of Sydney Leroux, they can’t seem get anything in the back of the net when they need it most… Is this a sad time that I bring up how much we miss Heather O’Reilly?

Nahomi Kawasumi is the real deal – Jordan Small

We’ve seen Nahomi Kawasumi play for the Seattle Reign off and on for years now. But Saturday’s performance vs. the Washington Spirit was unlike any we’ve seen before. With four assists and a goal of her own, Kawasumi helped the Reign offense explode for six goals. Kawasumi and midfielder Christine Nairn worked well together this week, combining for the opening goal this weekend. Teams should be afraid to play the Reign in the next few weeks as the partnership of Megan Rapinoe and Kawasumi on the wings has started to heat up.

Lost in it all, a streak is over – Jordan Small

It has been a quite a while since we saw Kassey Kallman sitting on the bench. Since 2014, Kallman had played 4,018 minutes straight in the NWSL. That streak came to an end on Saturday when she was subbed out in the 59th minute. If she was not hurt, this sub seems wrong. The Spirit were torched down the left side after Kallman came out. Spirit head coach Jim Gabarra will have a difficult decision to make next week when Kansas City comes to town.

Attendance still an issue – Luis Hernandez

It’s hard to pinpoint the cause for the drop in attendance this year. Critics will point the finger to the change in match time to accommodate the broadcast on Lifetime,  and it’s true that plays a factor into the numbers; however, that’s not the sole reason. The schedule has run into Easter and Mother’s Day and surely within each individual team market there are extenuating circumstances. Take both Orlando’s week five attendance of 5,260 and the best of the week Houston at 5,369. In both markets, the men’s side hosted an MLS match the day before the women’s side took to the field. Mother’s Day certainly affected people going to these matches, especially for the Pride playing on Sunday. Additionally, it’s blazing hot in the stands. Bottom line, attendance is lower than last season, but it isn’t going to be fixed this year. Hopefully, the league has been and will continue studying the problem and make corrections to boost numbers.

Randy Waldrum might be what’s wrong with Houston – Luis Hernandez

19-37-14. Take it in because that’s the record Randy Waldrum has since being appointed coach of the Houston Dash since leaving Notre Dame to take the job. Known as a successful college coach, Waldrum hasn’t been able to translate that success at the professional level. Additionally, as he was coaching the Dash, Waldrum also took the unpaid position as national team coach for Trinidad and Tobago in 2014 and was let go in early 2016. The Dash haven’t developed and progressed under his leadership even as the team talent level grows. Talent can only take you so far in this league, a quality manager makes those adjustments to get the most from the players on the roster. Waldrum’s post match comments after the lose to Sky Blue FC started to indicate he may be losing the locker room. I think he makes it to the end of the year, but perhaps Dash fans this is as good as it gets until Houston decides to go a different direction.

Well, those are our takeaways from week five of the NWSL. Can this league get any crazier? Will they finally figure out how to work these streams? Tune in for week 6 of the NWSL to find out. What did you think about week five? We would love to hear from you in the comments below or find us on twitter @backlinesoccer.

 

The Unused Sub: When Silly Soccer Boys Tweet

Posted on by RJ Allen

You know what seems very unnecessary? That upcoming “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie.

SO ABOUT LAST WEEKEND

Well, last weekend sure had two matches stand out for different reasons, didn’t they?

Washington Spirit/Sky Blue FC was a barn-burner with seven goals. I think most of us are still recovering from all that back & forth action. Then you had the first installment of the Cascadia Rivalry in 2017 with Seattle Reign FC/Portland Thorns at times resembling a demolition derby that here and there had some moments of soccer. I get it being a rivalry and wanting to come off the block swinging, but Seattle sure had some piss & vinegar in them on Saturday night. Maybe – probably – because of what happened to them in Boston the week before, they came out surly. It was a blessing and a curse, with the highlight of the blessing being that absolute fireball Jess Fishlock blasted. Rightfully she won Goal of the Week honors because of it.

On the flip side, it sure was a physical match that had both coaches Mark Parsons & Laura Harvey yelling at various times at the officials. Four yellows were issued where there surely could have been more, and probably should have been. I don’t know – I’ve always looked at rivalry matches as being something unique and tough for a match official to preside over. Obviously you don’t want to let it get out of hand and run the risk of a brawl or serious injury happening, but you don’t want to call it Tupperware-tight, and you’ve got to give them the respect to let them play. The next two installments in the regular season will happen at Memorial Stadium and I imagine the context of last weekend’s installment will be remembered by whoever is officiating those ones.

And I am in full agreement with Reign FC head coach Laura Harvey that last Saturday’s match would have made for great TV.

JEAN-MICHEL AULAS IS THIRSTY & MERRITT PAULSON OBJECTS

Stop me if you’ve heard of this before: Jean-Michel Aulas, chairman & owner of Olympique Lyonnais is thirsty again.

This prompted Portland Thorns FC owner Merritt Paulson to tell Aulas to get his drink elsewhere.

All sports teams owners are egomaniacs and it’s all to our entertainment. Most, if not all, people here in Seattle get a kick out of it whenever Paulson tweets something because within five minutes he will delete it; hence it’s surprising his tweets to Aulas are still standing. Aulas would probably stop short of tampering to try and get players to join his women’s superteam. You know what – it’s all funny to me. It may not make sense to a lot of us, but you can’t accuse them or any other people of their ilk that they don’t care about their investments. Everyone just has a unique way of expressing it. It may not make sense to plebeians like you and me, but if you had their bank accounts, yeah you’d probably act a little bit off too. That said, I did like Paulson objecting and basically telling Aulas, “Come at me bro.” He cares about his players and wants to keep them in Portland, as he should. Much like Aulas cares about constantly trying to get talent to come to Lyon and the NWSL definitely is producing some talent. Some are just hilariously vocal about displaying their devotion to the team they own like Paulson and Aulas, while others aren’t. This may be the first time we’ve seen Paulson interact with Aulas, but certainly won’t be the last.

Would a friendly between Lyon and Portland Thorns be entertaining? Absolutely.

You know what would be just as entertaining if not more – Aulas & Paulson throwing hands.

Oh and I would not be surprised if Allie Long was playing for Lyon in the near future. Maybe after the 2019 World Cup.

AFTER A SEVEN GOAL-FEST, WATCH THIS WEEKEND BE SCORELESS DRAWS

What’s with Saturday’s games kicking off at the same time? Oh well.

Sky Blue FC OVER Houston Dash.
I really want Houston to get the results here because I really want to believe (and be confirmed) that they are better without a certain midfielder playing overseas at the moment. That said Sky Blue just seems hungry for revenge after that barn burner they had against Washington and will want to take it out on someone. Unfortunately that is Houston. However if Houston gets the result here, I would not be bummed about getting this prediction wrong.

Seattle Reign FC OVER Washington Spirit.
FC Kansas City and Portland Thorns FC play to a DRAW.
North Carolina Courage OVER Orlando Pride.
Chicago Red Stars and Boston Breakers play to a DRAW.

With that out of the way, here’s what you all came for, this week’s music video break.

Song: “Stayin’ Alive” | Artist: Say Lou Lou

Don’t Be Surprised When the Orlando Pride Beat The Courage

Posted on by RJ Allen

As many have noted, the Orlando Pride winless run of 12 matches stretching to last season is in danger of tying the Washington Spirit’s streak of 13 if Tom Sermanni’s side fails to hold home field advantage on Mother’s Day against the North Carolina Courage. However, Coach Sermanni has been quick to point out that the 2017 version of the Pride is different, and vastly improved from last year. Taking him at his word, let’s examine why this team hasn’t been able to get a win so far this year and the adjustments needed to beat North Carolina.

With the level of talent on the Orlando roster, the midfield for the team was a question mark leading into the season.  And going into the fifth match, returning players have not performed to where the team was last year. Monica was one of the starting centerbacks and so far, has appeared more uncomfortable in the holding mid role. Laura Alleway, the other starting centerback, was dropped from the Matildas in the offseason and has not been the first choice to make the starting XI for half the matches. Plus, she gave up the penalty in the first meeting with the Courage which led to Sam Mewis’s game-winning goal from the spot.

Last year’s team golden boot winner Kristen Edmonds seems to be slightly out-of-sorts at times, which pales in comparison to her strong form that ended the 2016 season and led to national team camp invites. Jasmyne Spencer also looks unsettled in the starting XI to begin this year’s campaign. Her strength so far seems to be as a late game sub. Spencer was able to assist in Marta’s goal entering the match in the 64 minute after generating the opportunity with her movement. The pass to Spencer which created the chance came from Edmonds. Could this spark the run of good form which could lead to the first victory?

Sermanni’s side has also been undisciplined at inopportune times in 2017. Both of the game winners against the Pride have been converted penalty kicks, and last week’s draw came from a free kick right outside the penalty area. Eliminating those mental errors could have potentially given Orlando more than the two points it currently has. Has Sermanni focused on the offensive finishing in the final third at the expense of working on correcting the disciplinary miscues?

The North Carolina Courage is rolling into the City Beautiful off a road win in Boston, full of confidence. They will be favored on Sunday, but does Orlando have a chance to win at home? Yes, of course. Parity is still a favor in the NWSL, and the Pride can get wins if they can stop underachieving.

Sunday will be the second of three meetings against the Courage. Here’s what Sermanni’s squad needs to do to give themselves the chance to take the three points at home: To begin, the Pride will need to give North Carolina a different look than when the two teams met in Cary. This is already a certainty since reports have indicated Monica will miss the match with a bone bruise stemming from her injury last week. This should give Dani Weatherholt another chance as the starting holding mid. Last week, Toni Pressley earned her first start, and the back line played noticeably better than it had all season. The Courage will continue to high press teams; will Pressley allow the Pride to play quicker from the back compared to Alleway? So far, it seems it might.

Starting Danica Evans created more opportunities in the box from her flip throws in Kansas City. The team should be able to improve by practicing tactics that act like an extra corner kick. The flip throw puts more pressure on the opposing teams, and Orlando really didn’t make the Courage uncomfortable inside their eighteen. The Pride need more numbers in the box to get under the skin of North Carolina. Evans’s energy alongside Marta should make the defenders work much harder than in the first meeting where the Courage were giving Orlando a ton of space to operate.

So there you have it, the Pride can beat the Courage by coming out with a different look, having expected stars perform to expectations while not shooting themselves in the foot by giving up great dead ball chances, and applying pressure inside their attacking third. Easier said than done, right? We’ll see.