Orlando Pride

2024 Orlando Pride Season in Review: Evelina Duljan

The young Swede signed early in 2024 but didn’t make a mark on the pitch until the midsummer cup competition.

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

The Orlando Pride signed Swedish youth international Evelina Juljan from Juventus on a one-year deal on Jan. 2. A professional player since the age of 14, Duljan was a tantalizing prospect at attacking midfielder with her technical ability and skills in tight spaces. Bringing in a player so young — she was just 20 at the time of her signing but has since turned 21 — on just a one-year contract was an interesting move by the Pride at the time. It seemed to be a compromise of sorts, with Orlando not locking down the player in hopes of developing her over time, while not making a longterm investment from the club’s side if she things didn’t work out.

Duljan didn’t crack Head Coach Seb Hines’ regular rotation in 2024, but she did show flashes of a potential emerging talent during her Summer Cup appearances and sparing use in league play. Let’s look back at her first (only?) season in Orlando.

Statistical Breakdown

The Kristianstad, Sweden native appeared in eight matches in the regular season, starting one, and played 174 minutes. Duljan didn’t have a goal contribution in NWSL play, attempting just one shot that wasn’t on target. She passed at a 75% success rate on 84 attempts, with no key passes and one successful long ball. A strong challenger on the ball, Duljan won nine of 12 tackles (75%), tallied two interceptions, and won four headed duels. She committed eight fouls, suffering six, and was not booked.

The Summer Cup is when Duljan really got an opportunity to shine. She played in all three of the Pride’s matches, starting two, and played a total of 191 minutes She scored her first goal with the Pride on Aug. 1 against Racing Louisville for her lone goal contribution of the season. In the tournament, Duljan attempted four shots, putting three on target and completed 81.25% of her 64 passes. Defensively, Duljan contributed six tackles and an interception. She did not commit or suffer a foul and was not booked in the competition.

Duljan did not appear in the NWSL playoffs.

Best Game

The Swedish-Nigerian attacker’s best match came in the NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup on Aug. 1 in Orlando’s 1-1 draw against Racing Louisville at Inter&Co Stadium. Duljan started the match and played 85 minutes, attempting two shots — tied for her season high — with one on target. She made that shot count in the 38th minute, getting across her defender and putting her head to a cross from Kerry Abello, putting it in the net to give the Pride the lead.

In addition to her goal, Duljan passed at a 71% rate and played with some bite to her game, winning five tackles to tie a season high, recording an interception, and committing three fouls (also tying a season high).

Unfortunately, the Pride couldn’t hold the lead, conceding an equalizer in the second half. Duljan had been subbed off, so she did not participate in the postgame penalty shootout, which the Pride lost, 4-3.

That game, and her performance overall in the Summer Cup, must have caught Hines’ eye, as all of her regular-season minutes came after the competition, including 30 in the second half against the Kansas City Current and a start at Portland.

2024 Final Grade

As with the previous Season in Review subjects we’ve done so far this postseason, The Mane Land staff cannot give Duljan an official grade due to not meeting the minimum number of minutes played (400), so she will receive an incomplete for the 2024 season.

2025 Outlook

Duljan’s deal was through 2024, so if she is to be part of the Pride’s future, she would have to sign a new contract. Whether she did enough to earn a new deal is up to Hines and Vice President of Soccer Operations and Sporting Director Haley Carter. She still has a lot of upside and her skill set isn’t something that a lot of players in NWSL have. She simply needs to develop those skills a bit and add more control to her game.

Her return is a two-way street. Orlando has to want her back and Duljan must have a willingness to stay in North America with the Pride, knowing she will have to battle for minutes. The Pride typically lock down players they like early, avoiding situations where they have to negotiate new deals in the off-season. That didn’t happen with Duljan, so I would question whether she’s back in purple in 2025.


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