Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I’ve been busy working at Under Armour and Wrigley Field this past week, but I got a chance to watch some soccer over the weekend. There is plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Orlando City Transfer Bid for Alejandro Zendejas Rejected

Liga MX side Club America has reportedly rejected a bid from Orlando City for American winger Alejandro “Alex” Zendejas. Talks have stalled as Club America sorts out manager Andre Jardine’s future with the club, as he has been linked to Brazilian side Botafogo. Zendejas has four goals and five assists in 19 matches so far this season for Club America. Orlando City has an open Designated Player spot after the club sold Facundo Torres to Palmeiras last month. The Lions will reportedly prioritize other targets during the winter transfer window.

Antonee Robinson Named U.S. Soccer Male Player of the Year

On Sunday, Fulham and United States Men’s National Team defender Antonee Robinson was voted the 2024 U.S. Soccer Male Player of the Year. Robinson won 55% of the vote and was also a finalist for the award in 2022. He started 11 matches for the USMNT and had an assist in its 1-0 win against Jamaica in the Concacaf Nations League quarterfinals. Robinson had a solid year at Fulham, recording 10 assists in 37 matches, and won the club’s 2023-2024 Player of the Year award. Robinson beat out AS Monaco forward Folarin Balogun, PSV Eindhoven forward Ricardo Pepi, AC Milan winger Christian Pulisic, and Charlotte FC defender Tim Ream. He’s the first defender to win the award since Oguchi Onyewu won it in 2006.

Keeping Up With the Americans Abroad

We had another busy weekend featuring several Americans in action in Europe. Cristian Pulisic returned to AC Milan for Friday’s Italian Super Cup semifinal matchup against Juventus that also included Weston McKennie, Tim Weah, and Yunus Musah. Pulisic scored the equalizer from the penalty spot to tie the match in the second half, helping AC Milan overcome a 1-0 deficit to defeat Juventus 2-1 and book a spot in the Italian Super Cup final against Inter Milan later today. Gianluca Busio played a full 90 minutes for Venezia as his side fought to secure a 1-1 draw against Empoli in Serie A action. Auston Trusty scored his first goal for Celtic as his side defeated St. Mirren 3-0.

Premier League Weekend Roundup

There are plenty of results in the Premier League to catch you up on from the weekend. Former Lion goalkeeper Brandon Austin made his debut for Tottenham Hotspur. Unfortunately, his side fell to Newcastle United 2-1. Manchester City defeated West Ham United 4-1 to get back-to-back Premier League victories, Bournemouth defeated Everton 1-0, Aston Villa edged past Leicester City 2-1, and Brentford dominated Southampton with a 5-0 win. Crystal Palace and Chelsea battled to a 1-1 draw, while Brighton and Arsenal also played to a 1-1 draw. On Sunday, Raul Jimenez scored twice as Fulham fought back for a 2-2 draw against Ipswich Town. The Liverpool and Manchester United match also ended in a 2-2 draw. We have one Premier League matchup later today, as Wolverhampton faces Nottingham Forest.

Free Kicks

• The Houston Dash have hired former North Carolina Courage assistant coach Fabrice Gautrat as its next head coach. Fabrice is married to Orlando Pride midfielder Morgan Gautrat.
• The San Diego Wave and former Orlando Pride midfielder Emily van Egmond have reached a mutual agreement to part ways. She spent three seasons with the Wave, scoring two goals and adding two assists in 70 matches across all competitions.
• Charlotte FC is reportedly finalizing a deal to re-sign Pep Biel on a loan deal from Olympiakos.
• Toronto FC is reportedly trying to move forward Lorenzo Insigne before the 2025 MLS season begins.

• PSV Eindhoven has reportedly rejected an offer from Club America for American right back Richy Ledezma.
• Major League Soccer’s official match ball for the upcoming 2025 season features the league’s original colors.

That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Monday, and I’ll see you next time.

Happy first Friday of 2025! I don’t have too many plans for the weekend beyond brunch with friends, so it should be a relaxing couple of days. Before we dive into today’s links, we here at The Mane Land want to give a special shout out to Michael Garvey for signing up for a Homegrown Player-level membership on our Buy Me a Coffee page. By signing up at one of our three levels of support, our readers and podcast listeners can enjoy added benefits in addition to keeping our bills paid so we can continue doing what we do. Let’s get to today’s soccer news!

Philadelphia Union Hire Bradley Carnell

The Philadelphia Union have hired Bradley Carnell as their fourth head coach in franchise history. He has tough shoes to fill in Philadelphia, as Jim Curtin led the Union to plenty of success since joining in 2014 and was named MLS Coach of the Year twice in that span. Carnell coached St. Louis City through a stellar inaugural season in 2023 that included finishing atop the Western Conference standings, but he was fired by the club last summer. We’ll see if Carnell can get the Union back to the postseason after they missed out on the playoffs for the first time since 2017 last season.

Americans in Action This Weekend

While we endure the off-season here in the U.S., there are thankfully plenty of Americans playing abroad for us to root for this weekend. Ligue 1 soccer is back, and defender Mark McKenzie could continue building his case to make the Concacaf Nations League roster when Toulouse plays Lens on Sunday. Johnny Cardoso, who has been excelling amid transfer interest from clubs across Europe, will have a chance to impress when Real Betis takes on Huesca on Saturday in the Copa del Rey. Christian Pulisic may return from injury today when AC Milan faces off against Juventus in an Italian Super Cup semifinal that could also feature Yunus Musah, Weston McKennie, and Tim Weah.

Injuries have dampened what was set to be a fun EFL Championship season for American fans, but Leeds United’s Brenden Aaronson and Burnley’s Luca Koleosho are helping their teams lead the promotion race. We may get to see Antonee Robinson, Tyler Adams, and Chris Richards in the English Premier League as well.

Esmir Bajraktarevic Transferred to Europe

The New England Revolution transferred 19-year-old Esmir Bajraktarević to PSV Eindhoven for a reported fee of up to $6 million. It’s a hefty sum for the Homegrown Player and the Revolution retain a sell-on fee as part of the deal as well. Bajraktarevic has spent the past three seasons with New England’s first team and was 10th on the 2024 MLS 22 Under 22 rankings. He joins a PSV side that sits atop the Eredivisie and has experience developing players coming from America. As for the Revolution, they helped fill the void left by Bajraktarevic’s exit by signing winger Luis Diaz, who previously played for Caleb Porter in Columbus for a few years.

Denver Reportedly Lands NWSL Team

For a reported expansion fee of $110 million, the NWSL has reportedly chosen Denver as the home of its 16th franchise. That fee is more than double the $53 million expansion fee both BOS Nation FC and Bay FC paid to join the league, and it would also be the highest expansion fee in U.S. women’s sports history. The group behind Denver’s bid, which is led by IMA Financial Group CEO Robert Cohen, reportedly submitted its first payment to the league earlier this week. It’s all tough news for Ohio, as both Cleveland and Cincinnati were finalists to become the 16th team in the league.

Free Kicks

• McCall Zerboni is departing NJ/NY Gotham FC after five years with the club to pursue other opportunities.
• The Chicago Fire transferred defender Tobias Salquist to FC Nordsjaelland in Denmark. Salquist only spent one year in Chicago, but the move makes sense considering center back Jack Elliott’s arrival this off-season.
• Inter Milan claimed a spot in the Italian Super Cup final following a 2-0 win over Atalanta, with Denzel Dumfries scoring a brace in the second half.
• Russia won’t take part in the 2026 FIFA World Cup due to the ongoing sanctions from FIFA and UEFA.

That’s all I have for you this time around. Thanks again to Michael for the support! I hope you all have a fantastic Friday.

Welcome to the second day of the new year, Mane Landers. I didn’t do anything too monumental to ring in 2025, but it was still a fairly good start. I’ve foolishly increased my reading goal even though I didn’t hit it last year, but I’m feeling pretty optimistic. Before we get going, we here at The Mane Land want to give a special shout out to Steele Mycroft for signing up for a TAM Player-level membership on our Buy Me a Coffee page. By signing up at one of our three levels of support, our readers and podcast listeners can enjoy added benefits in addition to keeping our bills paid so we can continue doing what we do.

With that, let’s dive into today’s links!

Women’s Soccer to Watch in 2025

While most of our attention will be on whether the Orlando Pride can repeat as NWSL champions, there’s plenty worth keeping an eye on in women’s soccer this year. We’ll get to see how Brazil does without Marta in this summer’s Copa América Femenina in Ecuador. We also may get to see Barbra Banda and Grace Chanda in the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, with Zambia in Group A along with host Morocco, Senegal, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Every FIFA confederation will also have a club champion by the end of the year, with the inaugural Concacaf W Champions Cup and AFC Women’s Champions League wrapping up. There’s also the new UEFA Women’s Europa Cup, which should put a spotlight on smaller European teams.

Predicting 2025 for USMNT and USWNT

Stars and Stripes FC made predictions for how 2025 will go for both the United States Men’s National Team and United States Women’s National Team. It predicts that the USWNT will go undefeated this year, beating some of the world’s best teams along the way. Plenty of attention will be on Lily Yohannes this year, and this month’s Futures Camp is also worth noting. I’m personally hoping the Pride’s Emily Sams can claim the center back spot alongside Naomi Girma.

As for the USMNT, Stars and Stripes FC predicts it will win both the Concacaf Nations League and Concacaf Gold Cup this year. I’m mostly excited to see how Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino unlocks the offense, and I agree that Ricardo Pepi is in a great spot to score plenty of goals.

James Sands Loaned to St. Pauli

New York City FC midfielder James Sands is headed to the Bundesliga, joining St. Pauli on loan until the end of June. The loan can also be extended through the following European season if conditions are met. The 24-year-old has already spent time in Europe, joining Rangers on loan back in 2022, but the Bundesliga should be a new kind of challenge for him. St Pauli is just four points clear of the relegation zone and Sands may help the club ensure its spot in the league next year.

MLS Teams Reportedly Interested in Marcus Rashford

A move to MLS could be an option for Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford, who has not been receiving much playing time at the club as of late. The 27-year-old still has three and a half years on his contract, but an exit before then feels inevitable. He will likely have options to stay in Europe, but MLS teams are reportedly keeping tabs on the situation and could convince Rashford to play in the U.S. While it’s not particularly novel that MLS teams would want someone of Rashford’s caliber, it’s nice that such a move isn’t entirely out of the realm of possibility.

Free Kicks

• Austin FC signed Ilie Sanchez through 2025, removing another notable free agent from the market. The 34-year-old recorded 10 goals and 18 assists in his time with LAFC and Sporting Kansas City since joining the league in 2017.
• The Athletic ($) dove into how Christian Pulisic will be affected by AC Milan hiring Sergio Conceicao.
• Wrexham had a minor setback in its fight for promotion after a 2-1 loss to Barnsley dropped it to third in the League One standings. While a loss never helps, there’s still plenty of the season left to go.
• Arsenal moved up to second in the English Premier League after a 3-1 win over Brentford. Liverpool has a six-point lead and a game in hand over Arsenal, but the transfer window could change things up in the second half of the season.

That’s all I have for you all this time around. I hope you all have a wonderful Thursday and rest of your week!