SkoPurp Soccer Episode 60: Chicago Rewind, Kansas City Preview, Pride Transactions, and More

The Orlando Pride dominated statistically but got just enough offense to win on a Marta wonderstrike from outside the box in a 1-0 road win on Sunday against the Chicago Red Stars. Although the Pride kept Mallory Swanson quiet, Orlando needed a bit more sharpness in front of goal to open the game up. It never happened, but Marta’s NWSL Goal of the Week helped Orlando secure three more points on the road.

We broke down the game, checked back at our score predictions from last week, and made our selections for Player of the Match.

Our mailbagbox this week had concerns about whether Orlando should stay undefeated in the regular season, whether stoppage time is an issue, whether the soccer gods have an axe to grind with Barbra Banda, and whether Evelina Duljan should play more minutes with Banda. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We’d also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we’ll find them easily and read them on the show.

After the mailbagbox, we discussed Amanda Allen’s loan to Lexington, McKinley Crone’s new contract through 2026, and Banda’s recent scoring drought.

Finally, we look ahead to Orlando’s home match Friday against the Kansas City Current. The visitors will be looking for revenge from the first meeting and their perceived slights when Pride players were happy about the result in that match. We also provided our key matchups and score predictions for the game.

Here’s how Episode 60 went down:

0:15 – The Pride kept rolling with another clean sheet and a win at Chicago.

12:59 – Our mailbagbox is chock full, as is our Orlando Pride news segment.

39:50 – Our preview of the rematch against the Kansas City Current, who totally won’t celebrate like crazy if they win after playing more than half the match a player down on the road. Honest.