5.) Things Are Only Getting Worse In Atlanta

Who’s to say if the three goals Atlanta conceded in under five minutes to the Boston Breakers would have been prevented if Hope, Kia and Tina were there. Perhaps it was a given that Atlanta’s lone positive asset (their defense) would be exploited without the presence of the Terrible Triangle. But beyond that this team still has no offensive cohesion. Judging by this article, it appears as if the former Athletica players are still having issues adjusting to their new surroundings. It doesn’t matter how much talent a player has if the environment isn’t right. And clearly the environment isn’t right. It’s time for a change in Atlanta. Soon.

4.) Washington and Chicago Are Swapping Places

Don’t look now but that’s the Chicago Red Stars surging up the WPS table. Chicago is now undefeated in four games and now seem to be playing with a bit of fight, character and some luck. They’re now tied with the Washington Freedom who have been winless in the previous five games and are looking increasingly porous in the back. Abby Wambach isn’t scoring and they have failed to find a suitable strike partner for her yet. Christie Welsh is not the answer but Nikki Marshall might be. However, who would Washington replace Marshall with in central defense? Somehow, the Chicago Red Stars aren’t fraught with question marks. The Washington Freedom on the other hand…

3.) The Breakers Might Be On to Something

Perhaps the Breakers won in spite of Tony DiCicco last weekend but it wouldn’t be fair to assume the same for Boston’s emphatic 3-1 victory. Yes, it was against the Beat but scoring three unanswered goals in under five minutes speaks to a team’s self-belief. One of the league’s most underrated rookies Jordan Angeli scored a beauty for the equalizer while Kelly Smith and Liz Bogus (!) finished off the Beat. Lauren Cheney and Kristine Lilly were impressive last weekend. Now it’s the rest of the team that’s seemingly determined to impress.

2.) Ella Masar, Wow.

It’s not just the goal amount (four goals in four games), it’s also the quality of Masar’s goals. Her opening goal last Saturday was a gorgeous long-range effort off the outside of her boot. It would be fair to assume she would have missed that same attempt at least nine out of ten times. It might also be fair to assume that there’s something about Coach Omid Namazi’s philosophy that’s allowing Masar to flourish this way. Something Emma Hayes never could accomplish. Whatever it is keep it up, Ella. You’ll be this month’s Amy Rodriguez.

1.) Things Are A-OK Without the USWNT

FCGP would probably have used Rachel Buehler’s tenacity in the closing minutes of the Freedom game and perhaps Sky Blue FC needed HAO’s industry but still. Good teams can still perform in the absence of its American stars while poor teams will struggle even more. And then there are the delightful surprises in Chicago and Boston. We’ll get proof positive of this next weekend as the corps of American players will again be absent for the USWNT’s friendly against Sweden this Saturday.

View Original Post at allwhitekit.wordpress.com

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