Alex Morgan Retires, Ballon d'Or Nominees & NWSL Matchday 19 Preview | Attacking Third

hey everyone happy Thursday and welcome into attacking third alongside Daren Jenkins and Christine Koo I'm Lisa Carlin we have massive breaking news this morning as US Women's National Team Legend Alex Morgan has announced her retirement from the game in a post on social media Alex Morgan put out that San Diego's waves match against North Carolina courage on Sunday is going to be her last As She is expecting a child um initial reactions from both of you on this huge news it's yeah it's it's a lot fast it feels like I know it probably has been on her mind for quite some time she did say that she was planning on it but for us it feels very abrupt um she's a Goliath in this game she's meant so much on and off the field I thought about it a little bit um I saw her in the 2011 World Cup final I saw her again at the 2015 World Cup final and to see her like sort the start of her career and know that she's sort of retiring now it kind of surreal like like I kind of feel like I watched her grow up even though you know I wasn't that much older than I mean she was the face of US soccer for the last decade at least the last decade since 2011 2012 that's when she got her first call up and then that iconic pink PRP she she's had such an impact on the game both her playing and also just her her the way that she stood up in her role as a leader in helping with you know fighting for equal pay in helping with nwsl it just she's done so much and I feel like the lasting effect will not be seen for quite some time what was your initial reaction Daran when you heard this news this morning it's bittersweet because she's one of those players that you don't ever see leaving the game she it it's a shock because you can't really imagine the game at least I think for us like we grew up watching Alex Morgan I I said on a show earlier that I went to a camp and have a picture between her and Hope Solo and I'm like my teeth are giant and I have like yeah acne like it crazy time in my life but she has just been this she is an icon and has been for so long that it seems surreal that she's not going to be in the game that we're not going to be talking about Alex Morgan around nwl and US Women's National team as a player but I think she's left a massive mark on the game she's left it so much better than when she entered the professional space on a domestic level and a Women's National Team level um but I'm also very happy for her I mean that video for her to then announce that Charlie's going to be a big big sister so so sweet and the fact that she's able to retire on her own terms and grow her family and in she's a healthy woman um and just leave the game better than when she found it I think is really really beautiful because most players a lot of players don't get that opportunity and she I mean there's so many adjectives we we could use to describe her Legend um superhero Mom right but she definitely changed the game Charlie Davies was just asking me about this like where does she rate in terms of like Legends essentially of US soccer and I rate her so high because of how I grew up watching her because of how old I am Dar and you too like Christine right these are the women and that is the age group that we watched for 10 years dominate put women's football on the map like I wasn't really paying attention in the 1999 World Cup I was four years old like I wasn't watching that I was watching Alex Morgan I was watching her um in London at the Olympics and at the World Cup and watching her grow up and shaping the way I wanted to play and how I wanted to play football and the fact that I wanted to play in general even the opportunity to play she gave the visibility that this is possible before her there wasn't the most visible Pathway to getting to that level and I think because she is has been the face of us soer for so long and in an ERA with social media and where we're actually able to follow players right she made herself accessible she made herself so vulnerable accessible um looked out for players and fans and just created so much visibility and opportunity for the sport in general I mean here even her saying Charlie is four years old and says she wants to grow up and be a soccer player yeah because she's witnessed it herself it's kind of interesting because it's not even just her being able to witness it it's like her mom carved that out she came to age in sort of pro soccer during a period of time especially for women where it wasn't super realistic to think that you could just pursue a professional soccer career you had to have another job the fact that we're in 2024 and she can make a decision like this to retire and know that she can be a full-time mom comfortably is also remarkable for a professional soccer player of her length of time in her career because it's very unheard of there's always you know what's the next step what's my next job how do I do this um and there are new Pathways but she's also helped create those Pathways and she gets to retire now at home where she calls home in San Diego and when she first joined the San Diego Wave 3 years ago she was there Marquee signing and this past season with the wave she started the year winning the nwsl challenge cup scoring the game-winning goal against Gotham and since then throughout this nwsl season with San Diego has played in 12 matches and one assist Darion how would you rate her performance at the club level this year oh it's brutal when there's so many things out of your control happening at your Club um I think we've seen many clubs that turn successful or were successful turn to struggle we're seeing that with Portland right now um they they Dominate and San Diego did they were so difficult to play against the first two years and they just dropped off and it sucks that players suffer from that you do you lose chemistry you lose confidence in your ability to score goals of just how your playing style is and I think that that's why we didn't see the same the same amount of goals or assists or just her being able to really affect the game as much as we're used to seeing with Alex Morgan I think if she were on a different team she would be racking up numbers with goals and assists AB Stony the head coach at San Diego did put out a tweet after this talking about how um she is the most professional athlete that Casey Stony has ever had the pleasure to work with and although Stony is no longer at San Diego wave um clearly Daran she's still a fan of Morgan and they have a good relationship that was beautiful to see that because Casey Stony there was so many question marks around her being let go but knowing that there isn't any bad blood there's nothing with between the legend of Alex Morgan and Casey Stony and both incredibly professional women that have done a lot for the sport and a lot for San Diego and seeing her just wish her well and talk about how what an incredible athlete and human being she is made my heart happy for them it's so cool we are going to talk in depth with Sandra Herrera about Alex Morgan's Legacy at Club at Country everything that she's done on and off the pitch but Christine when you think about this snapshot of Alex Morgan's last year at the international level with the US Women's National Team it's been a bit of a roller Co poster earlier in February she was not named to the initial W Gold Cup roster uh ultimately some injuries happen she gets called up and Alex Morgan proves herself she gets a goal in the Argentina match in the group stage she continues to be a bright light for this us side and she proved herself in the W Gold Cup yeah absolutely I think roller coaster is a great way to put it obviously we know that she was omitted from the Olympics roster and that was surely a big hit for her especially probably now in retrospect there probably was a plan at hand but but Alex Morgan has proven that she can serve more than one role and she absolutely um would come up with assists can string play together help progress play not just a goal scorer but she still can make um an impact when she's relied upon and I think that that sort of initial Omission for w Gold Cup just kind of spurred her on further and ultimately she doesn't make the Olympics roster Darion but it it Bittersweet now you have to think in hindsight um she's found a little bit of closure being able to announce her pregnancy and say goodbye and and do it really all on her own terms all on her own terms is the biggest key not being forced out of the game it's not as if Alex Morgan wasn't going to be a huge name if she continued playing the rest of the year or the following I thought she was going to get another senior national team go I thought so too I thought she'll surely be in the next Camp um but I think it's a beautiful thing that she's able to make this decision on her own grow her family keep her health and continue investing into the women's game on the business side and just sticking up for players in the NW cell and globally um I I love this for her I think this is Monumental and to see her go out that way is it's it's honestly perfect poetry and yes with the Olympics it was really sad to see her not make that roster um but I think it this probably was the poetic way for it to for her to bow out of the game and because she's inspired the next generation of players that kind of took her spot that we were wondering if she was going to make it it was it was perfect for her to step away at that point Alex Morgan's retirement comes pretty immediately her final match with San Diego wave will be on this Sunday against North Carolina courage 8:00 pm Eastern you can watch it right here on the galazo network but this is her final match Christine it's at home at Snapdragon Stadium she gets to go out with a bang how much does that change San Diego's game plan with all of the emotions around this good buy I I don't think San Diego wave have an easy go of it nevertheless just with all of the managerial shifts and is trying to come into their own again this season but I can guarantee that every single one of her teammates will be playing their heart out for her for sure they're going to be bombing balls forward Alex Morgan get in the 18 get your Noggin ready we're going to whip some balls in get a goal for your last match I I hope she scores I hope she scores I hope so too that would be cool how many players are going to be wearing pink PR wrap everybody everybody should be it's going to the are going to be coated in pink pre wrap yeah I'm going to wear pink pre wrap covering the I think I I don't have I'm not going to commit to it because I don't think I have any I need to get some I definitely do and especially since I haven't been able to use it in the last year I think I can pass you my role but um yeah it's it is very emotional to hear this and to see it but one more chance to watch Alex Morgan at Snapdragon Stadium get your tickets get out to that game and if you can't you can watch that match right here on the Gazo Network tune in to Alex Morgan's last game when the San Diego wave take on the North Carolina curve Sunday at 8:00 p.m. Eastern right here on the Gazo Network Sandra Herrera is joining us next and we're talking Alex Morgan's Legacy welcome back into attacking third the biggest news of the day Alex Morgan US Women's National Team Legend and forward with the San Diego wave has announced her retirement her final match with the wave will be on Sunday against North Carolina of Courage a lot of emotions swirling around and for more on this we welcome in the fourth member of our crew Sandra Herrera to chat about this Sandra good morning I believe you're the first one that dropped Alex Morgan's video tweet into our group chat obviously it's a Sandra bomb she tells us all of our news always but what were your initial reactions when you saw Alex Morgan's video honestly like shout out to the group chat cuz that was a little bit of emotional support for me I was like I need others to react to with this so thank you all for also being there but that's part of the gig right making sure that we're paying attention to anything and everything uh to be honest I'm I feel like I'm still processing a little bit I don't I don't think the concept of of retirement for Alex Morgan or or players of this particular generation is is the part that is surprising or shocking I just don't think that any of us were actually ready to process this today but this is sometimes how things are built right in the most organic kind of way and and now here we are reacting to to this Legend and her departure from the game yeah Daren talked so much about that in our first segment about how it's really special that she gets to do this on her own terms and um really say goodbye the way she wants to and the way she can allow herself to do but Sandra at the international level with the US Women's National Team I mean she's a legend she's a legend she's been the face of US soccer for so long um what do you think of when you think of Morgan's International Legacy I just think of like how how much of her moments have spanned from just like really big significant uh moments on the international stage and all those really little intricate things in in between so much of the framing around this player and really quite frankly players of this particular generation who will go through retiring processes or have already announced retirements um they'll be the ones that we take a look at and we have that framing where it's like here is two time World Cup winning insert player here that's how magnificent this era of players is and Alex Morgan is is a huge part of that so she has all of these moments whether they're in World Cup tournaments or Olympic tournaments but there's all these little things in between too I'm I'm still looking for my fellow nerds to maybe kind of develop that stat that I always refer to as the the Alex Morgan go out there and get get your butt beat challenge because all of this work that she would also do off of the ball is along with her assisting and her go goal scoring she definitely took a lot of punishment out there to try to help open up Lanes in in the final third for others as well and that I think was also pretty reflective of of you know what she did on the pitch was was reflective of what she did off the pitch she was always trying to be that person to to help make the team better in multiple ways whether that was scoring those goals setting him up or you know helping to lead the the Char and championing other their issues off the pitch as well yeah Sandra I've already cried twice so since the the group tra grenade that you dropped but um to your point like I'm just thinking back to even like the 2011 World Cup final I remember the buzz around Alex Morgan just oh this young Scrappy like she's really good watch for her and then her being able to create an impact in the final um just reminiscing a little bit but did you ever foresee that she would become the player that she is in 2024 that entire Legacy of footballing and also just like activism yeah some players just have the buzz about them and and I think we we really saw something special in those those early moments with Alex Morgan on the pitch and we knew that she was going to be such a special player but to know that she was going to go on to be such a special person and teammate I think you never really know that until people show us who they are and thankfully for Alex Morgan she didn't shy away from them this is this is the player that was winning uh at the international level along with with Club as well I mean she she won Club championships with the Western New York flash shout out WPS I mean she's a 2023 Shield winner with with with the wave and an nwl Championship in 2013 with the Thorns but I think it's we can't talk about these periods of times without talking about the things that she did during those moments I mean so often we're going to again talk about the fact that these types of players this generation of players were World Cup winning champions and maybe some of them even Olympians but the efforts that they made and generated on and off the pitch are much bigger in my opinion we're talking about players that really had to take a giant leap of faith when it came to founding the nwsl because this is the generation of players that were told that WPS was going to be it and then all of the sudden that was a failed attempt so we're talking with clasped hands full eyes saying yes we will commit to another women's domestic League knowing that was going to take a lot of balancing and getting the footing beneath them and Alex Morgan when we look at her history we're going to not only see all of these titles and all of these championships and medals that she won but all of the strides that she's helped make for women's soccer along the way with this particular specific generation of players that we find ourselves talking about a lot more frequently in terms of these retirements we're we're talking about minimum standards for WSL clubs helping um you know celebrate cbas that didn't exist before 2022 and now we're just a weak remov from celebrating a 2.0 version of that you know so incredible stuff from her yes on the winners Podium but so much more off of that as well there is so much that Alex Morgan has done and and one of those things Sandra is that you touched on is all the work that she did off the pitch specifically in the United States and in the nwsl because remember back to 2021 when there was this huge movement to um kind of pick out all the bad abusive coaches and everything that was wrong in the nwsl she was a huge Catalyst for all of that change Daran as a player playing during that time how much did she change the game for you massively think about I mean we're as women no being in a workspace where you feel like you don't have enough power or say to get done but you know that there's wrongdoing being done and you need somebody to reach down and help you or reach next to you reach next to them and help you Alex Morgan has done that because she has the massive platform that she's always had and to use that to help monish him to force the N cell to make an anti-harassment policy to get an HR freaking Department in the league is insane and she put her reputation her sources her power her platform on the line to support the players to do that um we can talk about all of the amazing things that she's done on the field or you know maybe when she's not involved in camps or whatever she has always done what's best for the players and for the league and for her teammates in future generations and I think that that's really what her Legacy is to me because thinking about that time I've had a plethora of abusive coaches in the nwsl she was the Catalyst by using her name and her power to finally affect change and I think to me that's that's the most important impactful part of her her Legacy moving forward absolutely I mean as a a superstar let's be honest let's call her what she is it's so easy to stay in your own bubble and to focus on what you can do right even her fight off the field with US Women's National Team for equal pay that benefited her it reaching um out to the nwsl and asking for a handbook in 2021 that was eight pages long and now you think about the league has just reinstated its second edition of the CBA player forward focused CBA possibly in most sports globally so like it's I I still think it's wild when you point out that like she there was no HR well think about it I was never on the full national team like rarely players are it's very few and far in between that get to do that your voice isn't heard especially at that point in the league you're lucky to be playing is what you're told you're lucky you have an opportunity or that you're on a team she took everything she had and used her name to actually affect change I don't think so much of this would have happened if she didn't support monos shim and come out help a alates help with the HR it's it's incredible what she's done to be honest the the conversations that were happening between manim and the nwsl or attorneys were falling on deaf ears until Alex Morgan got involved until she signed off until she put out the tweet that said hey Lisa bar former nwsl commissioner we did send you this email Sandra you remember when all of that happened and how involved Morgan was with the change in the nwsl how could I forget at Leisa I remember when we launched attacking third and I felt like we were doing a reactive episode to to this type of news almost day in and day out it was the news cycle around that time was was constant but it was also necessary right to help in that change and I think that's also where I'm myself am so grateful to to Alex Morgan and in this particular generation of players because they also kind of reshaped how media covered of this league could kind of look like a lot of times you can go back and find just blips of coverage of nwsl specifically I I remember when just seeing the Doom and Gloom type of headlines around the league and and now you're starting to see different type of coverage reflected of this league so they really helped kind of raise up the level of everything when it comes to women's pro soccer in this country and I would include the way the style of play looks now the the way there are minimum standards the way there are new cbas and and the way that there's uh massive coverage of the sport now for me a big thing that we have to touch on is thinking about how she's impacted Our Generations older Generations but especially the kids that are looking have looked up to her followed her career and the massive impact that she's leaving the opportunity the pathway that hey we can do this this is how it's accessible I can see myself in you and look at these players faces like just dying to get photos of her not players sorry these kids faces these adults faces just being so inspired by her game what she's done on and off the field I think she's left such an impact on the global Women's Soccer World than she possibly could have ever imagined she did so much I mean players sign line up to get her autograph to wear number 13 to wear the pink prewrap her Legacy will continue to go on and have such a ripple effect uh throughout soccer glob as we've already seen it do congratulations Alex Morgan uh we'll see you on Sunday big game for Alex Morgan don't go anywhere we've got plenty more attacking th we're talking the latest news and everything that's happened in the world of women's [Music] football the Washington Spirit announced on Wednesday that midfielder Croy bethon will miss the remainder of the 2024 season after suffering a Tor Minis away from training last week spirit head coach Jonathan Herald has confirmed that the injury did take place while Bon was throwing out the first pitch at the Washington Nationals MLB game um so now the Olympic gold medalist has underwent knee surgery and she will remain with the team through recoveries uh coming off of three ACL injuries in college for bethon and now this D your heartbreaks yeah I have Goosebumps um is this is sad for Cy I mean she's coming off of an incredible year and this doesn't undercut that in any sort of way I mean rookie of the she just got announced as rookie of the month all of the accolades she has I still believe fully that she'll be rookie of the year there's no contest in my opinion um she left her Mark in this amount of time is pretty freaking incredible and I hope that she doesn't forget that um because this isn't the end for her I know she's going to come back stronger she's overcome three acl's which is insane she knows this rehab proc she knows her body um it's unfortunate but I think this is only going to make her stronger going forward and yeah this isn't the end we're seeing of Cory bathon but my heart does go out for her and she's young her body can bounce this just makes me angry for her more than anything it's frustrating uh it's a familiar frustration I hope she has a speedy recovery but it's just unfortunate because she just seemed like she was everything the Stars aligned and she was like cooking and you're like let's see what she can do I mean even us with like our little jokey bet I'm like a assists and goals for her for the rest of the season like everyone loved watching her yes she just adds so much to the game she's just enjoyable to watch play she has like joy in her feet and she's just so decisive she's a great player and she'll be missed through the rest of the season she's so kind too she's such a sweetheart I right after she got drafted third overall we got to interview her and she was the most polite excited player I've ever talked to hands down and this is a little bit of adversity I mean she's been through enough she doesn't need anymore but it always changes you as a player and it it makes you get out there a little bit differently the next time you don't take it for granted you you continue to grind and now to be able to watch her team finish out the season on the sidelines will give her a different perspective that frankly she hasn't had yet this year because she came in and she was an immediate starter and an impact player on this team she's going to learn a lot being on the sidelines with this coaching staff absolutely under Jonathan heraldez Adrien Gonzalez she is going to learn a ton you said it very well Lisa and something to think about too is she's going to come back and have a full year mhm she has a great medical yeah I'm I'm already I'm already excited for next year you know she's going to come back yes this is a brutal time but the offseason is going to be the perfect landing strip for her to then go into season full swing strong how strong you are after doing rehab and I love that she's a part of US soccer now because now you have the best doctors in the world the best re have Specialists the best trainers working with you to get you back to 100% not that college or whenever she tore her ACLS isn't but now you have people solely focused on you because you're a professional and because you're the future of US soccer in the Midfield in my opinion she's going to come back amazing and this is her full-time job now is to get better in college you're also a student and you're trying to become a woman and you have a social life like it's all her I think knowing that she has the resilience she does and the mental toughness paired with the fact that now she also has the access to the best of the best to get her back she couldn't be in a better position and so obviously all of us are rooting for her but um we'll miss her of course we will wishing you all the best Croy Bon and a very speedy recovery some other news that dropped earlier this week is that the balandor short list for the nominees has been released uh reigning Champions League winners Barcelona they lead the list with six nominees including 2023 winner itana bonmati Super League they they have seven players featured including three lionesses Lucy bronze Lauren James um and a couple more on this list we've also got nwsl represented by six players US Women's National team has five that includes Lindsay heran with Leon um the winners will be announced in Paris on October 28th as we take a look at all the list the biggest name missing Naomi GMA US Women's National Team San Diego wave Defender where the heck is she good question very good question yeah balling out I out per usual perhaps perhaps they haven't heard of this place called San Diego to to tune in and watch her or show up and watch her play I don't know it's it's insane GMA belongs on this list I think there's a number of names that I could probably rattle off that I'd be like well why not her but like germa is absolutely like this is insane she is the best offender in the world how do you omit her from the balone door I mean she's won every else at this rate domestically internationally besides the World Cup but how how do you not even consider she should be the first name that pops into your head when you're thinking of Defenders to put on this list how do you not even consider the US soccer female player of the year on this list right that's who she is she's the reigning US soccer female Player of the Year it's absolutely crazy every minute at the Olympics I I know like oh my God what an oversight it it's absolutely crazy we aren't the only people that were um appalled that GMA is not on this list Twitter went crazy after this list was dropped and gma's name was not on it including her own coach um or former coach at San Diego wave Casey Stony um who put out a tweet as well saying hey what is this based on the one name that should be on this list isn't on here Laura Harvey also put out a tweet um a coach of Seattle Reign in the nwsl and then Jess fishlock who is the Welsh International and midfielder at Seattle rain all appalled that GMA is not on this list Christine you mentioned that there are a couple other names you could rattle off who else maybe got snug from this list I mean granted I think I would be up in arms if we do not see her on the 25 list because I do understand the criteria but like T chinga um I know Tabitha made the list but T chinga even when she was playing in China was lighting things up so it begs the question like where where is she in this grand scheme of things D who would you have like to see included uh I'm going to go diani mhm a good French player how leading goal scorer she's so effective uh the team both teams that she's on the French um France and PSG how is she not included on this list I think there's a lot of oversight and some questionable ones that I'm like I wonder what the criteria exactly is to make it on this because there were a lot of snubs I mean extend the list Shar they're just nominees put them all on other ones come on hey Stanford FC we go hard Stan Vegas is that we call it Stan Vegas yeah I like that we should change our name guys Stan Vegas FC uh well valindor also put out their coach of the year nominees uh for this year and there are some big names on this list Sonia bom Pastor Alor elas who is with Brazil Jonathan heraldez um for his time with Spain winning the the World Cup he is now at Washington Spirit Emma Hayes her time with Chelsea in the super league but also with the US and then of course Serena vman um who is the Netherlands coach they've also put out their Club of the Year nominees some big names on this list no surprise we see Barcelona there Chelsea the dominant Club in England PSG Leon and New Jersey New York Gotham FC the little club that plays in Red Bull Arena so deserving to on this list Arion absolutely I mean I think with the new investment coach Juan Carlos amose coming in the amount the players that they've acquired sky blue was not a club you wanted to go to I won't lie as a player that was not a place you wanted to go the Rebrand the ownership the real investment it's totally turned this club around and then coming from worst to First and winning the championship last year like a very poetic ending to 2023 for them I think it's very deserve because they've come a long way where most clubs take a lot more time to get to this point I mean Gotham absolutely crushed it last year it's no wonder they're on there remember that whole last to first run like that was I'm still okay let's we not forget they almost lost their marbles on the last day of the year and got knocked out of uh the playoff waited until the last minute they were in like four all of the odds and they decided oh we're just going to play it easy on the last day and drop all the they could have clinched like four Gam prior and they they wanted to keep us on our to they wanted they have fun with us the hard way they wanted the drama I'm here for it yeah it was it was stressful on the front office side but it was it was very entertaining to watch and cover that last year I mean all of it the last two years congratulations to all the players nominated the coaches and the clubs especially Gotham FC I know on Carlos amose put out a tweet saying how proud he was of his team and his Club don't go anywhere we've got plenty more attacking third we've got nwsl weekend preview coming up next you're not going to want to miss it nwsl match day 19 features a kickoff on Friday Angel City against Seattle rain it's their first meeting of the Season Saturday we've got Washington against Portland that match on big CBS at 12:30 p.m. Eastern and then on Sunday Gotham FC take on Houston Dash the red stars take on Orlando Pride The Undefeated pride and in Alex Morgan's final game of her career at Snapdragon stadium with the San Diego wave Sunday at 8:00 pm Eastern against the North Carolina courage and you can watch all that coverage on the golazo network let's preview some of these matches including one of the biggest ones that we have Washington against Portland they did meet earlier in in the season in May Portland winning 2-1 over the Washington spirit and since then Portland has had a bit of an up and down season they only have one win in their last six matches Christine how does the how do the Thorns turn it around this weekend they have um I think that with uh summer cup and also now um God the way too long what is it Champions W Champions there we go that we need an abbreviation from me for that um coming off a win there I think they still have the fire in their bellies to get it done I think it's just a matter of just correcting and getting it back to the organized state that Rob Gil had turned them into um when he first took them over I I haven't counted them out just yet um Washington Spirit obviously are a strong team um they should be a little bit scary for them to come up against um but even more reason to just review your tactics and how you're going to approach this match although Washington is so strong Daren they've been conceding goals and when you look at their last five matches they haven't had a clean sheet so that's little bit promising for Portland in the attack it's promise am I fishing over here I think think you're you're looking for for something you're grasing of straws I I don't think Portland are going to be able to really take it to Spirit um spirit for me are just at this Apex in the season where they're on fire into the attack yes corathon is not there but they did really really well by bringing in Lacy Santos who can fill into that 10 position who is so technical has great vision can thread a ball through passing Lanes oar is on fire right now Trinity Rodman looks good I mean this is a yaked front line for the Washington spirit and Portland defensively have been quite in shambles not just in their backline but all over the field they always look like they're you're a step behind when you defend regardless but they look like they're all having different ideas of how to approach team defending that is not something that you can let slip when you're playing a team like the spirit I expect Spirit to kind of punch him in the mouth in this match no Croy bethon for Washington spear she's now on the SEI list who has to step up Christine for this Washington side um I think SAR has been doing a great job I mean especially with Trinity but like yeah Lacy Santos the very quick I'd say like integration and she's been really smooth um even in their friendly ahead of her actually making her League debut looked really solid so I feel like they're in a good place just as a team yeah I would say so we'll see that big match happening on Saturday at 12:30 you can watch it on CBS another big one is number eight Bay FC against number 10 racing Louisville Bay FC um I don't I don't know what's happening that's why you guys are here to tell me what the heck is happening because they're coming off a huge 3-1 win over Portland last weekend they are at home at PayPal Park but they haven't kept a clean sheet in six matches Daren what's the number one thing B needs to carry over from last week to pick up points against Louisville putting away their chances But ultimately I love these matches because this is what the NW cell is about baby bay FC versus Louisville fighting for a playoff position both teams conceding a lot of goals not really playing a full 90minut match um but we're seeing those connections in the attack come together so they're scoring goals but these are games where you never you aren't sure what's going to happen it's whoever puts them away on the day and has a little bit more of a team win uh they're both not playing the most beautiful soccer I think both still trying to develop what that identity is I mean both coaches talked in kind of lofty terms about their style of play and how they operate I wonder if we'll see that edge that bite of this is what this team's DNA is going forward the going into playoffs we're going to be that team to do it cuz it's it's getting now and that's why these games are these matches are so fun because you really see who has that dog in them it is absolutely crunch time Christine Louisville is at or Bay is at eighth Louisville is at 10th racing needs points oh absolutely and I think they made that clear that they understood that banz with the signings that she made very very recently so Bal are coming in to add that reinforcement of Firepower to ensure they are finding the back of the net because they do have those goal scoring problems but even picking up Courtney Peterson to reinforce that defense that we knew she really needed to fill in that once they traded away Carson um I think they have the Personnel finally let's see them impl have they had enough time to put the new Personnel together it's been what one week now yeah one match week where they're all together as a collective they may need a little bit more time but I think bana as knows there's urgency and there isn't time to be had so I think the trainings are probably really wild in Louisville right now i' I'd like to just jump in and see what happens I'm like the ominous Chester cat over here at the clock is also grasping grasping something something I don't know um listen to this fun fact I love our research team shout out Adriana um Bay FC is the only nwsl team to not have a draw this year meanwhile racing Louisville it's tied for the most with seven draws what are the odds at to draw Louisville loves to draw the default is to draw for Louisville ever since their Inception it's that's that's brutal to me that's worse than a loss of having so many draws and baa never have any they pretty funny exactly and Louisville Louisville just look at Orlando last year they didn't have enough draw right they had too many losses that didn't push them over the playoff line with 10 wins they didn't make the postseason so crunch time for Bay and for Louisville there's a lot on the line between these two sides another big matchup the first of the Season between Angel City and Seattle rain it is at beo stadium in La Angel City is on this two- match win streak um Alysa Thompson three goals in just two matches they sit in ninth place and they have to pick up points to stay in playoff contention I mean it is the playoff push right now Darion but whose shoulders does it fall on for Angel City oh Alyssa Thompson and CLA emley for me these are two players that can turn a game on its head when they're in good form when they're feeling confident as an attacker it's I feel like your confidence is easy to shake up when things aren't going your way I think we saw we've seen both of those players actually struggle when a shot is missed or something's just a little bit off and they kind of fall away from the game Alyssa Thompson's on fire CLA emsley looks great those two can really dictate the game on the wing spaces and especially going against a Seattle backline who I don't think can withstand that pace they can really take advantage of it but on the other side Seattle g g g how are you going to stop G I don't know watching her come in against Louisville was so impressive to me Seattle was missing some Edge somebody to have some audacity to take shots to throw their body on the line the smallest player on the field getting on the end of a quarter and it buting in a goal I mean she is a player for me that can really lead Seattle to a win in this match Seattle needs someone to take charge Christine because they do the rain have only picked up four points on the road this year and TR hav't had teeth this whole season but I think unfortunately for the rain I think that Angel City are on an upswing and I do think Alyssa Thompson is rightfully feeling herself um they're going to have to do battle it it'll be big it's going to be hard too for Seattle to go into beo and play against an inform Angel City side how does Laura Harvey and and the Seattle rain side need to shape their mindset not mindset on the road in this big [Music] matchup I mean I feel like they have been very up and down all season long and there hasn't been this equilibrium I know obviously lur Harvey was out this last match with illness um and they managed to turn it out I guess maybe in her absence um I think maybe stay the course but acknowledging that Angel City very much have playoffs in mind so um it's a little bit of like disrupt but also play your own game I think they need to maintain that grittiness that they proved in the second half of the match against Louisville and bring that from the jump against Angel City the bmo's a difficult Stadium to play at the atmosphere is heavy everyone's booing you cheering against you need to come out and have that bite they did it last week against Louisville as you said it come from behind 3-2 win for the rain can they make it streak what what makes it a streak two games three games we can give we can give them a streak with two cuz it's been rough that is grapping for straws don't go anywhere we are creating free agency starting 11 we're going to have a little fun with it stick with us welcome back to attacking third here is a look at some of the notable free agents in the nwsl and this is of course after the 2024 season um there there's a lot of big names on the overall list some of them have already been signed so they have been taken off the list for this fun little exercise that we get to do so we are creating our attacking third free agency 11 so 11 players in a formation that we roll out based solely on free agents and our producer broke it up so I've got Defenders and goalkeepers Christine's got our Midfield and daran's got our forwards and this was a fun little exercise that we got to do and we get to take a look at it right now um I'll start in the back Alysa ner as our free agency goalkeeper and then across the backline Kelly hubly Sam hayatt Abby EG and Natalie Jacobs a really good mix of veterans a little bit of Youth in there with Sam hayatt we've got players that can play center back and out so what I wish this was in formation settings so I can actually see where I did have a bit of confusion with the the exercise today that we doing we're rocking with it I rock with you it so we play in a three back we could play in a four back we could do a lot of different things Sam hiatt's going to be on the outside I can also put Natalie Jacobs on the outside back as well yeah Jacobs on the left Hyatt on the right EG and hble in the middle and we're going to be breaking lines we're going to be sending crosses in we're going to be the best 1 V one defending fre agency team out there I mean that's a great backline for set pieces to in Corners we're going to score all the gos we don't even need your forwards Daran all right Christine who'd you put in the Midfield okay my Midfield the quintessential Vanessa de Bernardo who I love who has been integral to the success over at Casey um five assists four goals this season um despite a few niggling um injuries uh but absolutely perfect in my opinion Danny caprico San Diego wave who's super important to any of the success that Squad had had this season again someone that was taken out a bit for injuries but like really good at like stepping stifling play giving you what you need and then of course narumi who um is capable of being box to box but also can work that sixth position quite well great at breaking up play and then just redistribution her passing is beautiful this is a good Midfield especially because de Bernardo and kpro played together for years at Chicago so they've got a little um you know it's almost like Chicago knew what they were doing the Midfield all right d take us through your front line all right let's go Claire emley on the right side and carolene on the left Kristen Hamilton at the nine uh Kristen Hamilton I'll start with her hasn't had a lot of minutes this season with Kansas city that is a tough lineup to break into but this is a player that is really gritty knows how to finish she will put life and limb on the line defensively and in the attack for a team the reigning MVP car give her space in a wide Channel let her be that false nine that comes in underneath Kristen Hamilton that combination play her and emley can just have this like beautiful little you look like a conductor a conductor yeah that's that's exactly what they would do in those positions uh if if I were looking for players to bring in and I could pick a trio of forwards that would be my Trio you have a lot of experience you have setpiece of fanad 1V One artists uh that would be a dominating front line so we came up with our uh 11 who would be our coach I say oh we were nominating ourselves are Daran Co you can be the GM you can be the GM that's not that fun okay not that fun I want casy Stony out there Twilight Kilgore oh that's a good one those are two really good picks now I'm just like mentally Nom how how do we get money and get an expansion side because we obviously have our picks for a team together we just need a name and some money Oo we could do it and then it's based in Philly no okay I guess I'll concede we have the Midfield one day we'll get there one day we'll be head coaches and GMS and we'll do all the things thanks everyone for joining us today don't forget Alex Morgan in her final match this weekend Sunday with the wave against North Carolina we'll see you there and we'll see you back on Monday have a great weekend [Music]