In lieu of posting predictions that will surely be wrong here are five questions that will hopefully be answered this weekend:

5.) Can Lauren Cheney Start A Streak?

I guess it isn’t all that surprising, is it. A WNT player not named Abby Wambach who can score goals for a professional team. Maybe not after considering how highly-touted the 5’10 Breakers forward was coming out of UCLA. And then there was her breakout performance for the WNT at the Algarve Cup. And don’t forget the goal against Mexico in a recent friendly (the one that didn’t require snow ploughs). Judging by last week’s 2-0 victory over the Washington Freedom, she seems to have slotted in just fine in front of Kelly Smith. We’ll see if she can make it two for two against Karina LeBlanc when the Breakers host the Philadelphia Independence. It’ll be on FSC on Sunday at 6pm ET so there’s no excuse to miss it.

4.) Will Jim Gabarra Continue to Experiment With His Formation?

Erm, was Jim Gabarra trying to implement total football at the ‘Plex last weekend? Rebecca Moros at left back? Nikki Marshall in central defense? Becky Sauerbrunn in the holding role? Sonia Bompastor at right back!? Lisa de Vanna on the bench? Heck, why not try Abby Wambach in goal and make Erin McLeod a striker. Perhaps they’d be better at doing each other’s jobs than their own. It will be interesting to see who lines up where and if there’s more team cohesion this Sunday when the Freedom take on the Atlanta Beat at the Maryland SoccerPlex.

3.) Will Chicago Find Their Scoring Boots?

Honestly, the Red Stars have about nine players on their roster that are fully capable of scoring. Despite 13 corner kicks, plenty of possession in the final third, 20 shots and five shots on goal, Chicago’s best shot at actually scoring was dashed when referee Ted Unkel decided not to call a penalty on Sky Blue ‘keeper Karen Bardsley for taking out Karen Carney in an attempt to win the ball. Chicago absolutely needs to convert if they have any chance against Saint Louis on Saturday at Toyota Park. Will Coach Hayes attempt to have a go and actually try to play through the Athletica’s loaded midfield (come on, Katie Chapman!) or will they go ultra-defensive and try to mitigate Eniola Aluko and cut off her supply line? Maybe Eni can be generous to the Red Stars and commit some own goals or something…no, bad idea.

2.) Which Newcomer Will Shine Brighter: Marta or Carli Lloyd?

Ok, so these two players have little in common aside from the fact that they’re female and they play soccer for a living. But they’re also high-profile newcomers to their respective teams and are each saddled with high expectations. FC Gold Pride were certainly disappointing last week in their 2-0 loss to the Athletica. And despite a few bright moments, Carli Lloyd was also a little underwhelming in Sky Blue FC’s 1-0 win over Chicago. It’s heartening to know that that was only the first game of the season though. Will their respective coaches find a suitable place for these two players? It looks like Albertin Montoya’s side is a work in progress but who knows what will happen when FC Gold Pride host Sky Blue FC 10pm ET on Saturday. But perhaps the Bay Area organization’s biggest question is…

1.) How Many People Will Show Up For Gold Pride’s First Home Game?

Off the field-related questions maybe shouldn’t take precedence over actual game day matters but this one’s a little different. This certainly isn’t the same Gold Pride team that suited up last year. (And if you didn’t actually see Gold Pride play in 2009 don’t worry, few people did.) An argument can be made that last year’s lump of coal has been magically transformed into WPS’ crown jewel. That’s probably presumptuous but Marta, Amway, Abily and a few Stanford standouts all must count for something. It’s also unfair to say that this match will be a litmus test for the 2010 WPS season as far as attendance figures go – I won’t mention that FCGP are the only WPS team west of the state of Missouri - but one would assume that a match featuring the world’s best player five times over, the reigning WPS champions, two local college stars and ‘tasha Kai’s cool new name might be of interest to some people. Particularly in a stadium seating just 5,000 people. And if it isn’t well, uh, let’s just wait until Monday.

Would love to hear your thoughts.

View Original Post at allwhitekit.wordpress.com

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• Soccer, Sports, WPS

This post is related to the following ongoing stories:

• 2010 WPS Season