The Orlando Pride returned to the pitch on Friday but they hardly seemed into it, as they played one of their worst games of the season in a 2-0 loss at Angel City that could have been worse. The Pride rarely threatened Angel City’s goal, struggled to defend or keep the ball, and had no attack to speak of whatsoever.

We broke down the match about as much as we could bring ourselves to do so, discussed the various things that aren’t working, and looked back at our score predictions. We selected a Player of the Match but we didn’t feel good about it.

Following our match rewind, we talked a little about goalkeeper Kat Asman’s loan to Denver Summit FC — a move that took place a couple of days before the Angel City match.

This week’s mailbagbox asked headphones, improving the Pride’s lineup, things that make us feel better, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. 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.

Finally, we looked ahead to a critical match coming up against the Kansas City Current. The Pride will get embarrassed if they don’t improve from their most recent performance, and it’s imperative to get something from this game to stay in playoff contention and to try to build back some of the team’s lost momentum. We give you the series history, discuss the teams’ relative positions in the table, complain a bit about the NWSL website, and provide our key matchups and score predictions.

If you’d like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we’d love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 128 went down:

0:15 – The Pride were not good in Los Angeles.

15:12 – The mailbagbox helps us heal by asking us about puts us in a better mood.

26:01 – A look ahead to an important Friday match against Kansas City.

Orlando City B came from behind on the road but still wasted multiple good opportunities in a 1-1 road draw against Crown Legacy. The Young Lions then dropped their second straight penalty shootout, earning just a single point for the second week in a row. We opened this week’s show with a brief discussion about a team that seems to be struggling on offense a bit.

From there, we pivot into discussion of the USMNT’s loss to Belgium and all of the madness that led up to it. The bottom line is that most of our concerns about the team showed up on the same day, and unfortunately, that was on a day the U.S. was playing a good European side for the right to go to the World Cup quarterfinals.

Our mailbagbox asked us about USMNT players as MLS players, the Flo Balogun saga, and more. Remember, if there’s anything — and we do mean anything — you want us to address on the show, just ask us by tweeting it to us at @TheManeLand with the hashtag #AskTMLPC, or hitting us up on Bluesky Social with that same hashtag.

After the mailbagbox, we set the table for OCB’s trip to FC Cincinnati 2 on Sunday and discuss the kinds of things we might see in Orlando City’s friendly today against the Tampa Bay Rowdies in front of the club’s supporters and Season Ticket Members.

Be sure to rate and review our show wherever you get your podcasts. Remember, we’ll read any five-star reviews we get on Apple Podcasts on the next show.

If you’d like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we’d love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how No. 541 went down:

0:15 – OCB hung around with another top Eastern Conference team but could not bring all three points home. Plus, the USMNT crashed, burned, and then had its ashes scattered to the four corners of the Earth by Belgium.

26:11 – The mailbagbox asks for predictions. We like those, because we already know we’re bad at them, and yet people keep asking for them.

34:32 – The Lions host an I-4 Derby friendly and OCB heads to the greater Cincinnati area.

The Orlando Pride will get back to business on Friday night with a big road game on the other side of the country against Angel City. It’ll be great to have the team back in action after a month’s interruption to the season.

Before we get into talking shop about the NWSL, Orlando Pride Head Coach Seb Hines returns to the show to discuss the state of the club, working with Caitlin Carducci, the team’s horrible injury luck this season, putting banger-scorer Cori Dyke at striker (OK, not his idea, but it was discussed), what could happen in the transfer window, and more. Big thanks to Seb for joining us. It’s always great to chat with him, even if Dave wasn’t available to be part of the questioning.

This week’s mailbagbox asked us about timing in soccer, why stoppage minutes aren’t counted in player stats, what we’d ask PRO referees, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. 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.

Finally, we looked ahead to the Angel City match late Friday night in California. The Pride will be playing their third consecutive California-based team while looking to make it three straight. Meanwhile, Angel City will be playing its first game under a new manager. We look at the teams’ places in the standings, provide our key matchups, and give you our score predictions.

If you’d like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we’d love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 127 went down:

3:36 – Seb Hines joins us to discuss the state of the Pride.

26:59 – The mailbagbox asks about timing.

37:46 – A look ahead to the Pride’s trip to play Angel City.