Lion Links: 8/14/24

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. We are knee deep in a week bereft of an Orlando City or an Orlando Pride match with the teams playing at the end of next week. Not only that, but the Olympic soccer tournament is also over, making it that much worse. Fortunately, we still have some news to share. Let’s get to the links.

Leagues Cup Comments

It’s been a few days since Orlando City exited the Leagues Cup despite not losing a match. Yes, the Lions lost for the first time on penalty kicks — no one here is to blame, despite what some people might say — but the Lions were wasteful with their chances throughout the match. Oscar Pareja and Robin Jansson conveyed as much following the match. Still, there are positives the team can take from the competition as the MLS regular season resumes next week.

Getting to Know David Brekalo and Haley McCutcheon

I love that the club puts out these “Getting to Know” videos introducing Orlando City and Orlando Pride players. I always find out a little something new and cool. This go-around we get to know Orlando City center back David Brekalo and Orlando Pride defender Haley McCutcheon.

USMNT Updates

Weston McKennie isn’t long for Juventus as the club’s new manager, Thiago Motto, has explicitly stated he and two others need to look for a new club. Now, it looks like Fiorentina is interested in the midfielder. Frankly, McKennie is too good for some club not to pick him up, though it seems he might be staying in Serie A. Of course, he’s not the only USMNT player who could use a change of scenery.

Meanwhile, Christian Pulisic is so important to AC Milan’s plans that new head coach Paulo Fonseca kept the U.S. captain out of Tuesday’s match against Monza to allow the American to deal with a knock. If all goes well, Pulisic may be able to feature in this weekend’s match against Torino. Pulisic will try to follow up an outstanding first season with the Serie A club.

Tim Ream was the oldest USMNT player in the last Olympics at 36 years old. Now that he has made the move to Charlotte FC from Premier League side Fulham, he is targeting a spot on the USMNT at the 2026 World Cup. Ream will be 38 years old when the next World Cup comes around

USWNT Post Olympics

The Olympics may be over, but that doesn’t mean we can’t start thinking about the 2027 Women’s World Cup, and which players might make the squad in three years. Personally, I’m hopeful that the Pride’s Emily Sams will get to actually play in that competition. Of course, following up a Gold Medal performance won’t be easy for Emma Hayes and the USWNT. The remainder of the world is catching up.

Free Kicks

• Manchester City will potentially face justice regarding the 115 breaches of Premier League rules that have been brought against the club. The independent panel hearing is scheduled for Sept. 16. I say “potentially,” because while I hope Manchester City receives the full penalty for all the shenanigans, I don’t actually expect it to happen.
• Schedule fixture congestion is only getting worse, especially for the teams that make all the competitions. While we love watching soccer whenever possible, burnout is a real possibility for the players.
• The North Korean Women’s Soccer team is a mystery. The team showed up big in the 2007 FIFA Women’s World Cup, but then fell off and missed out on this year’s Olympics. The story behind all of it is fascinating.
• Manchester United has acquired Noussair Mazraoui and Matthijs de Ligt from Bayern Munich on four- and five-year contracts, respectively.
• It’s a good thing that Ryan Reynolds has the number one movie in the U.S. right now, because his football club, Wrexham AFC, got knocked out of the Carabao Cup, thanks to a 4-2 loss to Sheffield United.

That will do it for today. I suppose you can get your fix by playing some FIFA on your console of choice. Or, just perhaps, venture outside. If you do that, I recommend something like swimming or kayaking. Whatever you do, check back with us regularly, as you never know when the news will hit. Vamos Orlando!