The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Nani, the Orlando Pride, and More

We’re smack dab in the middle of the busy season for soccer, and I’m loving it. MLS, NWSL, EPL, Champions League, and soon the Women’s World Cup. With so much to potentially talk about, let’s see what made my list this week.

The Good

Nani. It’s really pretty simple. Nani has five goals and two assists in the last five matches. For those who were worried he was too old, what have you to say now? Yes, he’s 32, but he’s been extremely productive for Orlando City since he arrived. Let’s not forget that he’s only had a little bit of time with his teammates to get to know them, and their tendencies. Regardless, he’s been a leader on the field and in the locker room by all accounts. He has so far been worth every dollar that the front office paid.

The Bad

The Orlando Pride. They’re bad. They have only one point so far on the season, and now the internationals will report to their national teams for the World Cup. That’s a lot of the Pride’s best players no longer available — not that those players have been producing so far this season. I don’t know how much better it will get for the Pride, or even if it will get better. I do believe that Marc Skinner is making changes, and even holding the players accountable, but it will take time. Given that it’s a World Cup year, it may take quite a bit of time. The question is if the fans and the front office will give Skinner that time. I believe the front office will, but the fans might be a different matter.

The Ugly

This is really more of a potential ugly. Ali Krieger will reportedly be on the roster for the USWNT World Cup squad when it is released this afternoon.

I am an Ali Krieger fan, but if the defender depth of the USWNT requires Jill Ellis to call up Krieger, then the state of the team is not great. I’m not saying that Krieger doesn’t bring experience and leadership to the team, because she does. It’s still not the ideal situation. Now the even more potentially ugly part is if somehow, someway Ellis doesn’t put Krieger in during the entire Cup and Krieger continues to remain stuck on 99 international caps. It seems implausible, but you can’t really rule it out as a possibility, can you? Don’t be an even bigger troll, Jill. Please?

That will do it for now. Let me know what you think in the comments below, or feel free to “at” me on twitter @manelanddave. Go City!