Lion Links: 11/24/23

Happy Black Friday, Mane Landers! For those of you who celebrated Thanksgiving yesterday, I hope you got your fill of family, turkey, and dressing. Yes, dressing and not “stuffing” although it stuffs us all the same. Some might even consider today a holiday as well when it comes to shopping deals and saving on holiday gifts or personal needs. I’ve been thinking of grabbing a Duncan McGuire jersey, so it might just be the time to capitalize on that. If only it would arrive in time for our match tomorrow. Let’s break down that game and more in today’s links. But first, today is a historic day in our site’s history. Nine years ago today, an independent free WordPress site called The Mane Land joined SBNation. Of course, this year, we moved back to being independent (although no longer on a free WordPress account), but our time at SBN was well spent, turning a couple hundred readers into thousands and ultimately landing us here in these (still somewhat) new digs.

Lions’ Keys To Victory

The last time the Columbus Crew met Orlando City in Exploria Stadium we witnessed a 4-3 victory for the Lions. CBS Sports’ Thomas Rongen claims the brilliant play of winger Facundo Torres will be the key to victory for Orlando in this outing. The back line has helped the Lions win their last six matches, with five clean sheets along the way, but it will see a true test with Colombian talisman Cucho Hernández on the opposite side. Most pundits agree this will be another high-scoring affair.

Wilfried Nancy’s First-Year Form

Following two disappointing seasons in 2021 and 2022, the Columbus Crew regained confidence this year due to the tactics of first-year head coach Wilfried Nancy. The French manager seems to not only get results but also the best out of his players. In 2022, Nancy coached CF Montreal to its best-ever MLS regular season with 65 points. This year, the Crew equaled a single-season club record for points with 57. Nancy’s use of the 3-4-3 formation allowed the potent Columbus attack to lead the league in goals during the regular season, as the Crew bagged 67 total and scored two or more on 24 occasions in the regular season and playoffs.

Win or Go Home MLS Cup Conference Semifinals

Saturday’s fixture between the Lions and Crew isn’t the only match this weekend. The playoffs are down to the final four in both conferences entering single-elimination play. Seven of the eight remaining teams that advanced from the first-round, best-of-three series’ were the higher seed, with only Sporting Kansas City out of the West being the lone lower seed to force an upset by defeating Western Conference No. 1 seed St. Louis City in a two-game sweep. Should any of the remaining playoff matches be level after 90 minutes of play, two 15-minute extra time periods will be played in their entirety. If the score is still deadlocked at the end of extra time, kicks from the penalty spot will determine the winner.

USMNT’s Johnny Cardoso to Real Betis

Despite Real Betis wanting to keep Argentine World Cup-winner Guido Rodriguez, who has an expiring contract, Los Verdiblancos have already agreed to invest in his long-term replacement. USMNT and Internacional midfielder Johnny Cardoso will be joining Real Betis for a fee between €7-8 million and the Brazilian side will retain a percentage of any future sale. Cardoso previously attracted the interest of Brighton and Hove Albion, but Real Betis moved swiftly to secure the signing.

Emma Hayes Worth The Wait

USSF Sporting Director Matt Crocker is thrilled having secured the appointment of Emma Hayes as the USWNT head coach. The official announcement came last week after weeks of speculation, but Hayes will not take charge until May. The crunched timeline leaves only two months to prepare for the Paris Olympics, but Crocker believes that Hayes is the one for the job.

“I started to realize not only was she a fantastic coach, but also a great person and somebody with real gravitas and charisma,” claimed Crocker.

Free Kicks

• Orlando City fans sat down to share their support and gratitude for the club heading into the next playoff match.

• USMNT players Gio Reyna and Joe Scally will meet as Borussia Dortmund hosts Borussia Moenchengladbach this weekend. These are just two USMNT players abroad this weekend.
• Manchester City’s Erling Haaland is ready to face Liverpool after returning to training following an injury on international duty.
• Spain’s state prosecutors will request a nine-year prison sentence for Brazilian defender Dani Alves for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman in a night club in December of 2022.
• Rodrygo said he received racist insults on social media after Brazil’s 1-0 World Cup qualifying defeat to Argentina in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday.
• England’s Football Association is unlikely to light up the Wembley Stadium arch in support of social and political causes in the future. The FA decided not to light the arch in blue and white in solidarity with Israel following the attacks by Palestinian militant group Hamas last month.
• FIFA has signed a longterm sponsorship extension with its global airline partner Qatar Airways that will run until 2030. 

That’s it for your Black Friday edition of Lion Links. For those of you working through the holiday sale hustle and bustle, I hope you are safe traveling to and from work. For those of you who still have a bit of a long weekend left, I wish you rest and relaxation.