Lion Links: 1/6/21

Good morning, Mane Landers! I hope the day finds you well. Let’s go ahead and jump right into the links.

Four Orlando City Players Invited to USMNT January Camp

The U.S. Men’s National Team announced the official roster for the January camp to begin next week in Bradenton and the young Lions are breaking through. Chris Mueller has been called up to the senior team. Daryl Dike, Benji Michel, and Andres Perea have been called up to the U-23 camp roster. The U-23 USMNT will train alongside the senior team. Good luck to all four young men as they continue to chase their international soccer dreams.

The Orlando Pride Sign Carrie Lawrence

The Orlando Pride announced yesterday that they have signed defender Carrie Lawrence to one-year deal with an option for an additional season. Lawrence signed last season with the Pride on a short-term contract for the Fall Series.

“We’re really pleased to sign Carrie back to the Pride. She has a heartbeat made here in Florida, which allows her to connect with the club in a unique way,” Orlando Pride Head Coach Marc Skinner said in a club press release. “She has the physical and technical skills to perform in the NWSL coupled with the character to manage challenges while continuing to improve. Carrie possesses a lot of potential and we are excited to keep working together to turn that potential into high performance.”

Alex Morgan Tests Positive for Coronavirus

Alex Morgan returned to California for the holidays and announced yesterday that she has tested positive for COVID-19. The 31-year-old took to Twitter to share the news.

Morgan’s announcement came on the eve of the USWNT roster being announced, as that will come later today.

MLS Seeks to Extend CBA

Major League Soccer won’t be asking players to take another pay cut due to COVID-19. Instead, the league will seek to extend the collective bargaining agreement that was signed last summer by two years. MLS officially proposed the extension to the players union late yesterday.

“According to public health officials, the restrictions on attendance at live sporting events will continue far into the 2021 MLS season,” MLS president and deputy commissioner Mark Abbott said in a statement. “In 2020, despite MLS and its clubs suffering extraordinary and unsustainable losses, players received 95 percent of their salaries. To address the ongoing impact of the pandemic in 2021, MLS is proposing to extend the term of the existing collective bargaining agreement for two years rather than seeking any salary reduction. This proposal will help ensure the long-term health of the league while paying MLS players 100 percent of their salaries.”

Free Kicks

• The LA Galaxy have named Greg Vanney as their head coach.
• Mesut Ozil is reportedly in negotiations to sign with D.C. United
• You could win some time with Alex Morgan (post-COVID):

• Wil Trapp has signed with Minnesota United and Diego Fagundez has signed with Austin FC.
• Kieran Trippier’s WhatsApp messages, that led to his 10-week ban, have been released.

• Manchester City legend Colin Bell has died at the age of 74.
• Pep Guardiola shared that Manchester City doesn’t have many players for the Carabao Cup semifinal against Manchester United.

That’s going to do it for me today, everyone. Have a great day and please stay safe.