Lion Links: 6/8/21

Happy Tuesday, everyone! It was a hell of a good weekend with the Orlando Pride staying unbeaten and the United States Men’s National Team winning one of the most entertaining soccer games I’ve seen in quite awhile, and against Mexico no less! There’s lots to talk about today so let’s get going.

Kornieck Hails Pride Teammates

Orlando’s Taylor Kornieck might have been the one who saved the Pride’s bacon over the weekend, but she was humble and full of praise for her teammates when discussing the game. She spoke about how she doesn’t feel she’s played her best soccer just yet, but that her goal was a small glimpse of what she’s capable of. Kornieck also specifically thanked Sydney Leroux, Alex Morgan, and Marta for helping her and teaching her, giving them credit for helping her to adjust to the professional game. Hopefully the goal is the first of many for Kornieck!

Scouting Costa Rica

While the USMNT won the first ever Concacaf Nations League in dramatic fashion, the team has one more game before the Gold Cup later in the summer. The Red, White & Blue will take on Costa Rica tomorrow in Salt Lake City, with Orlando’s own Daryl Dike slated to participate in the match. Our friends over at Stars and Stripes FC put together a nice little scouting report on the opposition, which will be missing several veteran players with Keylor Navas among them. There are a good number of young players in the team and several familiar faces from the MLS ranks with FC Cincinnati’s Allan Cruz and Ariel Lassiter of the Houston Dynamo among them.

Busquets Tests Positive for COVID

Sergio Busquets has tested positive for COVID-19 right before the start of the European championships. The FC Barcelona midfielder was the only member of the national team to test positive, but today’s friendly against Lithuania will be contested by Spain’s U-21 team. Several players have been called up as a precaution if Busquets can’t return to the squad, with Rodrigo Moreno, Pablo Fornals, Raul Albiol, Carlos Soler and Brais Mendez all being brought into a “parallel bubble” to train separate from the rest of the team. Coach Luis Enrique will have to decide whether to drop Busquets or keep him in the squad in the hopes that he can return.

European Transfer Buzz

Even though Europe’s soccer league’s only recently concluded, transfer business never stops, with big moves like Sergio Aguero to Barcelona already having happened. More big deals could be on the horizon, starting with UEFA Champions League runners-up Manchester City. The champions of England are reportedly after both Jack Grealish and Harry Kane to strengthen their squad, with Kane being important in replacing Sergio Aguero and Pep Guardiola admiring Grealish immensely.

Meanwhile, even though Cristiano Ronaldo has a year left on his contract with Juventus, he and his representatives are reportedly judging interest from a number of European clubs before making a decision on his future. A decision is reportedly unlikely to come until after the end of the European championships. Even though a move away from Juve hasn’t been ruled out, his wages could prove to be a stumbling block for a number of potential suitors.

Free Kicks

• This is awesome news, and keep an eye out for an official announcement in the near future.

• The Pride are popular and rightfully so!

• Daryl Dike had a hell of a time with the USMNT.

That’ll do it for me today. Y’all stay safe out there.