Another Interesting Move

Hello everybody! Hope you all have been having a great holiday season! I myself have been keeping busy, but also enjoying some quiet time together with family and friends. Isn't that the best way to do it? Well, I decided to stop by and let you know that another great player has found a new home! Most of you probably know, since I'm a little late on the news, but it's a trade/transfer, which means I'm gonna write about it! So onto the news: Megan Rapinoe is going to be playing for the Philadelphia Independence in 2011. Rapinoe is an excellent middie who has the ability to weave around defenders, and has a cheeky style of play. Rapinoe is well-known for her flair and flashy moves which spice up her game and are a joy to see, especially when she embarrasses her opponents. The move to the Independence will definitely boost the team. Rapinoe will strengthen the midfield, and will definitely help the attacking efforts with her skillful ball movement and accurate passing and crossing. Also, her and Lori Lindsey should form a deadly middie tandem. Rapinoe will likely replace Seger, who was traded to the Flash. The Independence, who had an excellent run last year, are looking even stronger, and I think Rapinoe will make the squad even better.

I'll be back again soon to write about some upcoming friendlies, and the Four Nations Tournament. See you all soon, and I hope you enjoy your New Year's celebration! Here's wishing you all a prosperous and healthy New Year!

Denise

USWNT January Camp

Hello everyone! As you all probably know, the USWNT took December off, after they qualified for the Women's World Cup in late November. However, in January the USWNT will begin preparing and training for Germany 2011, and it will start with a training camp which is to be held from January 8-13. Sundhage recently released the roster of players. Here's the squad who will be training in January:


GOALKEEPERS: Barnhart, Harris, Loyden, Naeher, Solo
DEFENDERS: Cox, Engen, Sauerbrunn, Schnur, Taylor
MIDDIES: Angeli, Averbuch, Heath, Klingenberg, Lilly, Lindsey, Lohman, Mewis, O'Hara, Osborne, Rapinoe, Tarpley
FORWARDS: Cheney, Leroux, Morgan, Rodriguez

Wondering why some key players are missing? That's because Sundhage decided to give 8 veterans some time off. Boxx, Buehler, LePeilbet, Lloyd, Mitts, O'Reilly, Rampone, and Wambach are all going to be given extra time off. However, even with some key players missing, this squad of 26 players offers experience, talent, and youth. Its also great to see a few newcomers get a chance to train with the USWNT.

This camp is designed to have the players get in some good practice and training before the Four Nations tournament, which takes place in late January. Joining the USA in the tournament, are the hosts China, and other invited guests Canada and Sweden.

I'm looking forward to that! Hopefully the USWNT has a successful and productive training camp, and gets well prepared for the Four Nations tournament!

Until next time,

Denise

Transfers, Trades, and Signings

The Western NY Flash have definitely been the most busy during the off season, constructing their squad, which is already looking strong, but other teams have been picking up players as well. Here's some of the recent news:

Cat Whitehill- Experienced defender and veteran player Cat whitehill will no longer be calling the Washington Freedom her home. She will be moving to the Atlanta Beat and will be playign with them for the 2011 season. There's a good chance that Whitehill and Solo, who are both teammates on the USWNT, will be combining to secure the defense for the Beat.

Carli Lloyd- Lloyd, a veteran midfielder for the USWNT, will be moving to the Beat come 2011, as she leaves Sky Blue FC.

Kia McNeill, Leigh Ann Robinson, Estelle Johnson- Both McNeill and Robinson, who played with the Beat in 2010, will be leaving to play with the Philly Independence for the 2011 season. Johnson, who was already a member of the Indy, will be returning.

Natasha Kai- The Philly Independence just signed forward Natasha Kai, who played with Sky Blue FC for 2 seasons. Kai, a talented player who has a nose for goal, hasn't had highlight years with sky Blue in the past few seasons, so maybe going to the Philly Indy will help her find her rhythm again.

Stephanie Cox- The Boston Breakers re-signed Cox as part of their strong defense. She will be rejoining the Breakers for her 2nd season.

That's the latest in terms of the WPS off season. Be sure to check back again soon, as the off season is really heating up with tons of signings and trades!

Denise

Western NY Flash Wasting No Time In The Off Season

The Western NY Flash, the newcomer to the WPS, will be playing their first ever season in 2011 after their establishment towards the end of WPS's 2010 year, and they already look promising. The Western NY flash have wasted no time in gathering talented players and constructing what is looking to be a well-rounded, powerful squad. Both the Independence and the Beat, after their establishment, landed some good players, but the Flash are seriously go-getters. So far, they've taken advantage of every opportunity, and have not wasted any time in landing big players to begin constructing a strong and skilled squad for their inaugural 2011 season. So far, the team has done a tremendous job in building a squad, and have done well to take advantage of the abundance of great players in the Free agency market. The folding of FCGP and the suspending of operations for Chicago were not good news by any stretch of the imagination, but it resulted in many talented players becoming Free agents, and the Flash have not slacked one bit in the way of landing them. Let's take a look at who I think are some of the Flash's key players:

Christine Sinclair- She will surely be leading the offense for Western NY. Sinclair led the league last year with 9 assists, and she also tallied 9 goals. She had a quite prolific year, working well in a partnership with Marta. Sinclair is a complete striker, who has a real nose for goal. She plays the role of goal-scorer and play maker as well. Sinclair, one of the original 10 nominees for the 2010 WPOTY, is one of the best strikers in the women's game. I personally think this could be the Flash's biggest acquisition during the off season. With Sinclair alone, the offense is already threatening, now, if you get a good strike partner for her? You will have a lethal offense, as it was proven when her and Marta formed a deadly tandem on FCGP last year.


Ashlyn Harris- A young and talented GK. Harris stepped in midway through the 2010 WPS season to take over for Erin McLeod, who suffered an ACL injury. Harris is very talented for her age, and has the ability to keep any team in the game. She displayed tons of skill and leadership after taking over McLeod, and she did a great job of filling in for her. She proved that she deserved to be starting, so its great that she moved to the flash, where she could start and put her GK abilities to good use. As a new team, the Flash is going to want to have a secure defense, and Harris is definitely the one to get the job done. She's an up-and-coming keeper who already has a ton of talent and will only get better. She is sure to secure the Flash next season between the pipes.


Caroline Seger- A talented midfielder who is a great distributor of the ball. Seger had a great run with the Independence last year, and was instrumental in their rather successful season and play-off run. On Philly, Seger and Lori Lindsey formed a dangerous tandem of center middies, and the combination could cut defenses and offer great opportunities for the offense. Caroline Seger, who was one of the original 10 nominees in the 2010 WPOTY, will surely be the midfield center piece which the Flash will likely build around. Seger is going to be a critical and crucial part of the Flash's midfield.


Ali Riley- Riley, who was the Rookie of the Year for 2010, is a young and skilled player. She proved to be a crucial part of FCGP's solid defense. Riley did an excellent job defending the flanks and overall stopping opposing teams in their tracks. With Harris in goal and with Riley there to bolster the defense, the Flash is already showing signs of being rock-steady in back. Pair her up with other strong defenders, and you've got yourself quite a brick wall.

The Flash have done a great job of signing some strong key players, but they've signed plenty of players who are going to combine with the key players to make a strong squad. Here's some of the recent acquisitions:

McCall Zerboni
Brittany Cameron
Candace Chapman
Yael Averbuch
Whitney Engen
Brittany Bock
Candace Wilson

The Flash show no signs of slowing down, and have already begun constructing quite a talented looking team. It also seems there is a great mix of youth and experience on the squad as well. As for me, I haven't seen them play and
I'm already a fan. The Freedom is and will always be my number one, but I think the Flash will now occupy my second-favorite-team spot, which was once held by FCGP. I'm happy with all of the signings the Flash has made. I'm happy to know that this new team will be a strong one, and will have the ability to be a title contender. They're efforts have made the off season exciting and interesting. I like a lot of the players the Flash has signed, and I'm really excited to see how they combine, and how they play come 2011. I'll report any more information on trades and signings, as I'm sure at this rate, the Flash will definitely keep working hard to form their squad!

See you again soon!

Denise

Reaching 3,000 Views

Hello everyone! Once again, another milestone has been reached! I've recently reached 3,000 views, and have already started to exceed it. As you know by now, everytime I get another 1,000 views, I write a post about it.

Well as I always say, Thanks for reading! This is to all of my readers, from all around the world, whether you read casually or check in here often, every view counts! Like I've said before, I love the women's game, and writing about it is a lot of fun. I love reporting all the news, reviewing games, and giving my take on the events in the world of women's soccer, and sharing it with fellow fans is great! You guys make my the time and effort I spend on the blog rewarding. Thanks again for reading, following, commenting, and for being a fellow women's soccer fan!


Hope you continue to read and enjoy Just another Soccer Fan!


Denise

Tons of News in WPS

Hey everyone, sorry for the complete lack of posting as of late. There's been tons of news but I haven't kept up! I'm here now though to report some awesome and some not-so-awesome news.


First let's start with the bad. You already know my policy on bad news first, good news last. Here we go.

Chicago Red Stars- The Chicago Red Stars just announced that they will be suspending operations, and will not participate in the 2011 season. However, they will try to make a comeback for 2012. They simply could not meet the deadline, and felt they did not have enough funds or investors to be able to participate in 2011. Like I said, this is only a suspending of operations. The team does have intentions of returning for the 2012 season. While it sucks that the Red Stars will not be competing this upcoming year, this makes the Free Agency a lot more interesting, with players like Rapinoe, Carney, Masar, Loyden, LeBlanc, etc. up for grabs. However, some of these players might have to end up playing overseas, since the WPS teams can only have so many players on their rosters.


Free Agency Heating Up- There has been quite the big moves and transfers happening in the past week or so. Here they are:

Western NY Flash- The Flash are not slacking at all when it comes to landing talented players. The Flash nabbed Harris recently, but landed quite a "big fish" if you will, when they grabbed Canadian legend and one of the 10 original FIFA World Player of the Year nominees, Christine Sinclair. Sinclair is a World Class striker and a legend for Canada, scoring over 100 goals for her country, and who has had 2 excellent season in WPS. In 2010, she led the league in assists with 9. Sinclair is one of the best strikers in the women's game today, and can be a playmaker or a deadly threat in front of goal. That so far is probably the biggest move in this Free agency period. Also, the Flash landed Rookie of the Year Ali Riley, who had a great year with the Pride, and they have also landed Kandace Wilson and Brittany Bock. The Flash have not wasted any time, and have already begun constructing what is looking to be a talented and powerful squad.

Boston Breakers-The Breakers have been doing well in the way of Free Agents too, as they have landed USWNT defender Rachel Buehler, talented young striker Kelley O'Hara, and also landed forward Nikki Washington. These are some pretty smart acquisitions, since Boston could always use an offensive spark (O'Hara is probably just what the doctor ordered, and pairing her up with Smith and Cheney should be promising) while Buehler and LePeilbet, teammates on the USWNT, will likely form the same rock-steady tandem that they do on their national side.


Sky Blue and Atlanta Beat- Sky Blue and Atlanta have worked together to make a few deals. Eniola Aluko, Angie Kerr, and Tobin Heath are all headed to Sky Blue. Atlanta gave these players up in exchange for 2011 Draft picks.


That's pretty much it for now everyone. I'll be sure to report on more stuff as it comes in! See you all soon!

Denise

FIFA Women's World Player of the Year Award Finalists Announced

Today, the Finalists for the WPOTY were announced, and I'm going to be dead honest and say I wasn't too happy with them. Here are the Finalists:

Marta
Birgit Prinz
Fatmire Bajramaj

It seems like a lot of you enjoyed my post on the original 10 nominees, and I know that one was strongly opinionated, so I can guarantee you this post is going to be just as opinionated.

Let me just start off by saying that when I saw the list, I was shocked. The first name I saw was Marta. Was that really a surprise? Of course not, everybody and their mother knows that Marta was going to make the finalists, I mean, this IS Marta we're talking about. Hell, she'll probably win the whole damn thing, AGAIN. As much as I don't think she should win it again, she deserved to be on the list. She did well for her team in the CONMEBOL Sudamericano Femenino, scoring 9 goals, and did well in WPS, scoring 19 goals as the top scorer. Then I saw Prinz next in line. I thought to myself "Well, it didn't seem like she had a stellar year with her country, and I don't know much about her club stats, but I'm gonna guess that they were not bad. I kind of like Prinz, so I'm not really complaining." But then I saw Bajramaj and thought "What is that all about?" But, then a friend of mine told me she did well for Turbine Potsdam, her Frauen-Bundesliga club. A lot of people are unhappy with the Prinz nomination, agreeing with my first thought of her "Great player, but not a highlight year for her at all." I was rather annoyed after reading this list. Needless to say, FIFA never ceases to amaze me with their strange choices. I for one think Abby Wambach, of all people, should have been on this list. She had a prolific WPS year, notching 13 goals and 8 assists, and scored 16 goals for the USWNT, 8 coming in the Gold Cup. There's no way someone like her should have been left off that list, especially with those numbers. What does she have to do, juggle and ride a unicycle while heading goals in? Even Sinclair, along with Wambach, heavily impacted her National and club team. To ignore both of them is a complete farce. Like I always say, Marta does not deserve 5 POTY Awards in a row. That's ridiculous. Here's what I said to a friend on facebook regarding the nominees:

"I'm still hoping FIFA announces the Prinz and Bajramaj nominations were part of an early April Fool's joke and that Abby and Sinclair are the actual nominations."

That pretty much sums it up right there. Who do I think will win? Well, I bet its going to be Marta. If its Prinz, that would be ridiculous, because it seems like she had an average year compared to some of the other 10 nominees. Bajramaj, I don't even know much about her. She seems to have done well for her club but not her country. If this was done right, they'd have taken club and country stats and impact into account. But, this is FIFA we're talking about. My final verdict is that Marta wins it all for the 5th damn time in a row. Why? Because FIFA picks the usuals, the favorites, and overall does things ass-backwards, or half-assed. Good job FIFA, first you give the 2022 bid to Qatar, and now you screw up the Women's POTY finalists! Good job guys.

Denise

WPS Free Agency and Western NY Franchise

There's some events to mention regarding WPS! And they're good ones, I promise.



Hello everyone! Some goings-on have been happening in the WPS! So far, there's been some Free-Agency moves (finally!), and the Western NY franchise has announced some important information, so let's talk about it:

Ashlyn Harris- Harris, the young keeper who took over for McLeod in July of the WPS season (and did an outstanding job, I might add), will be making saves for Western NY next year. The brand new WPS team should be happy that they jumped on Harris, they've got a great keeper on their hands. As a Freedom fan, I'm going to miss her, but I can't wait to see what she does for Western NY! Good luck to her!

Allie Long- Long has been signed by Sky Blue FC, whose head coach is now Jim Gabarra (The Freedom's former coach). Long is a good middie and Sky Blue FC will definitely benefit from her presence!


Western NY- The Western NY franchise announced their official name and logo. Its going to be the Flash, as was their previous W-league name, the "Buffalo Flash." Instead, they're dropping the Buffalo part, to make their official name the "Western NY Flash." Cool name!

That's all on the WPS news for now, but expect to see some big transfers soon. There's no way big names like Sinclair, Marta, Boxx, Buehler, Kai, Lloyd, etc are going to stay in no-man's land for too long. Expect to see them and many other big players get swiped up sooner rather than later.

See you again soon,

Denise