Lion Links: 12/26/19

Good morning, Mane Landers! I hope this morning after Christmas finds you all well. Let’s jump right into the links.

Best Nutmegs of 2019

MLS shared a video compilation of the best nutmegs of the 2019 season. Orlando City was featured heavily in said video. We see Sacha Kljestan meg to a Benji Michel goal, Ruan meg to João Mountinho to Nani for a header, and Chris Mueller meg New York City FC. Additionally we see Kljestan, Uri Rosell, Kamal Miller, and Kyle Smith get megged.

Top 10 U.S. Soccer Stories of 2019

Sports Illustrated published a list of the top 10 stories of 2019 for U.S. Soccer. The stories are ranked as follows:

10. Another quarterfinal exit for the U-20s.

9. Lawsuits, lawsuits, lawsuits.

8. Structure changes, and a big one at the top.

7. Goodbye, Jill; welcome, Vlatko.

6. Sergiño signs on.

5. Chaos after Canada and Berhalter’s up-and-down first year.

4. When Glassdoor reviews get real.

3. Pulisic nets record transfer, wins POY again.

2. USWNT adds a fourth star.

1. Megan Rapinoe wins just about everything.

Holidays around Social Media

ProSoccerUSA.com compiled some of the best MLS and NWSL holiday messages from around social media. There wasn’t anything from Orlando City SC’s club or player accounts, but it’s always nice to see various clubs having some fun and seeing how others around the league do things.

Premier League Boxing Day

We couldn’t have Dec. 26 come around and not mention the Premier League Boxing Day and now it’ll be a little easier and cheaper for all to partake in the football watching fun. Amazon Prime Video bought the rights to the 10 matches over two days. With a 30-day free trial, I’m not saying you could watch it all for free, but it certainly sounds like there’s a chance. The bad news, you’ll need a VPN blocker if you don’t already have one to stream the matches outside of the U.K.

Free Kicks

• The USWNT averaged 8% more fans per game in attendance in 2019 than the USMNT did.
• Soccer By Ives put out a list of the 30 best USMNT goals of the decade as well as the top 10 USMNT goals of 2019.
• Charles Boehm lists 10 “tectonic shifts” that shaped MLS in the 2010s.

That’s going to do it for me this morning, Mane Landers. Have a happy and safe rest of the week.