Full-time newsletter ⚽| It is AthleticismThe weekly women’s football bulletin. Sign up here to receive Full Time straight to your inbox.
Read the NWSL issues, stay for emergency diapers and Jack Harlow’s dog. I am Emilie Olsen attached Meg Linehan, Steph Yang And Jeff Rueter — welcome full-time!
International break recap
End of an interim era
Well, it was a fun international break. The USWNT won another trophy and finally left its interim period. Emma Hayes will be in charge the next time the team plays, but will it be worth the wait?
In the meantime, Nigeria And Zambia occupied the last places in the Olympic group. Zambia will join the USWNT in Group B, alongside Germany and Australia. Orlando Pride forward Barbara Bandawho has I just joined the clubscored twice to take the Copper Queens to qualification.
We’ll also come back to Hayes’ poetry slam at Chelsea later, but first let’s look at the NWSL.
NWSL in numbers
There was 15 goals this weekend in the NWSL. THE Houston Dash saw a strong first half performance collapse at the feet of two Spirit of Washington recruits – and that’s not the Dash’s only problem. Bay FC fought to another thrilling finish at home, this time securing their first victory at PayPal Park. Temwa Chawinga And Bia Zaneratto become the most dynamic duo in the league for KC current. And Marta added another accolade to his legendary career.
Marta scores monumental goal for Pride
200: Orlando Pride Before Marta38 years old, scored the only goal against the Utah Royals. The score in the 68th minute was 200th goal in regular season marked in the history of the team. It was entirely appropriate since Marta has 33.
The 200th goal in the club’s history belongs to Marta
THE @ORLPride initiate! pic.twitter.com/u0A3TMj7Kn
– National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) April 13, 2024
New Kids On The Block
27%: Of the 70 goals scored in the league so far this season, NWSL rookies and first-year players account for more than a quarter of those goals. Two dynamic duos lead the group.
For new NWSL players, Chawinga and Zaneratto lead the way for KC Current. It’s no wonder both are already being considered for year-end awards, even after Chawinga had to leave Sunday’s game against Gotham in the 86th minute due to injury. His speed and accuracy are unmatched and his association with Bia is almost unfair.
POETRY. IN. MOVEMENT. 🤌@biazaneratto on the Chawinga counter with the arrival!@NWSL | #KCBABY pic.twitter.com/wI23yzDvAM
– KC Current (@thekccurrent) April 14, 2024
For beginners, Béthune Cross And Hal Hershfelt quickly make a name for themselves through the Spirit and help each other along the way. Both players scored in a comeback win over the Dash on Saturday.
Houston, you have a problem
$1.5 million: The signing of the Dash record, Maria Sanchez, may not see the end of the four-year, $1.5 million contract she signed just four months ago. The forward reportedly requested a trade before the NWSL transfer/trade window closed on Friday, according to ESPN. Sanchez was a restricted free agent this offseason, which gave Houston the opportunity to match any offer it received from another NWSL team.
The news is the latest blow for Dash, which has struggled with poor results and general apathy since its inception in 2014. Frank Alonso as new head coach in the offseason, his fifth coach in three years, to mixed results. The club also recently fired the goalkeeping coach. Matthew Lampson for violating the NWSL Anti-Fraternization Policy and Coaching Code of Conduct.
The Dash’s only victory this season came in a 3-2 stoppage time battle with Bay FC.
Bay FC, an expansion team, has a number of its own: six, the amount of equalizer or go-ahead goals scored after 80 minutes. Talk about drama on the field.
Meg’s Corner: Pressure mounts in Portland
The pressure is very strong on Portland Thorns four games into the NWSL season. The team are in uncharted territory, having managed just one point so far in 2024. The situation did not improve this weekend, with a 2-0 defeat to the North Carolina Courage. Early goals have defeated Portland this season, and Saturday was much of the same with Tyler Lussi on a free kick in the first five minutes.
On Tuesday, the team restructured its technical department and transferred the head coach Mike Norris in a new role as technical director. Rob Gale will assume the role of interim head coach while the Thorns and general manager Karine LeBlanc conduct a global search for Norris’ full-time replacement.
GO FURTHER
Portland Thorns promote Mike Norris, name Rob Gale interim coach
After the Courage match, the mood was sullen, frustrated and even slightly disconcerted. The team lost a few players in the offseason, but not enough to explain why they seem so lost — and especially not after getting their contract. Sophie Smith on a new record contract. However, there is only so much Smith can do.
“It’s a special group, made up of very special players,” captain Becky Sauerbrunn said Saturday. “We need to find a way to highlight our strengths and minimize our weaknesses. »
Sauerbrunn said she had “all the faith in the world that they could figure this out.”
It’s unclear how the team’s new owner, led by Lisa Bhathal Merage, might envision what changes he might make, but a coaching change is a start.
Norris acknowledged the pressure of the Thorns gig. “We believe in how we want to play, how we want to operate. We have to stick to the process.
Sauerbrunn said it’s important that they ignore the noise and focus on themselves. “It’s hard to find a lot of encouraging things, but what I find encouraging is that people are frustrated. People are upset because we’re not doing well. We care, and I think it’s really important.
The bottom-of-the-table Thorns will be at home against Houston next weekend. If it goes wrong again, what’s the next step?
Meanwhile, in Europe
Emma Hayes gets poetic
Friday, Chelsea director Emma Hayes recited a line from Robert Frost’s poem “Choose Something Like a Star” in response to questions about her Arsenal counterpart Jonas Eidevall after the two clashed in the Conti Cup final last month. Perhaps Hayes truly turned to the “Wall of Repair.” (I’m still wondering if it was a flare-up or not).
In “Choose Something Like a Star,” the narrator addresses a star in the night sky, urging it to provide clear answers.
“So when sometimes the crowd is swayed, to carry the praise and blame too far, we can choose a place like a star, to keep our minds occupied and remain composed,” Hayes quoted.
The media weren’t the only ones questioning Hayes about the incident with Eidevall. Her five-year-old son Harry also asked about the push, to which she conceded: “You can’t answer aggression with aggression.” When a reporter asked Hayes what she meant by reciting the poem, she replied, “I’ve already explained an important analogy to my son and the lessons learned and I’m focusing on the future.” I had time to look at my star.
The next day, Hayes’ Chelsea fell to Manchester United 2–1 in the FA Cup semi-final, ending Hayes’ hopes of a fourth FA Cup in a row.
Chelsea, who have seen their quadruped chances dwindle to a possible double, and the USWNT, who are looking to bounce back from a dismal World Cup, have learned that Nothing Gold Can Stay. The question now is: can gold come back?
Hayes is located where two roads diverge. It may not be a yellowwood, but ahead of it lies the final stage of Chelsea’s WSL and UWCL season and the USWNT’s looming Olympic defeat. For now, it continues in both directions.
Bonus content
Finally, I promised you dogs and diapers.
JJ Watt defined the meaning of a layer of urgency while honoring Kealia Watt’s return to Houston.
Emergency diaper in back pocket.
This isn’t my first rodeo.(You can imagine how the first rodeo went now that I wear a back pocket diaper to events.)
– JJ Watt (@JJWatt) April 13, 2024
Meanwhile, Jack Harlow continued his local soccer tour in Louisville, attending Racing’s scoreless draw against the San Diego Wave with a four-legged friend.
Great to see the one in Louisville, @jackharlow, I’m supporting the team tonight! 👋 pic.twitter.com/SWC07yHlEC
– Racing Louisville FC (@RacingLouFC) April 14, 2024
Enjoy this? Subscribe to our other newsletters! Scoop City 🏈 | The rebound 🏀 | Athletic FC ⚽ | The liquidation ⚾ | First Tire 🏁 | The pulse 📣
(Top photo: Soobum Im/USA TODAY Sports)