Former Portland Thorn, Alex Morgan, announces her retirement. Sophia Smith is nominated for the prestigious Ballon d'Or. Lauren Kozal is headed out on loan. Rob Gale provides update on Morgan Weaver.
Ummmmm.....don't look now but Sarina Weigman is in Portland and was at the game last night. Karina posted a pic with her at PP. (Thanks for pointing that out to me, Jacob Stevens!)
Bet she watched that dross and said WOW, this is some poor coaching lol..
At the beginning of the season, BB told one of the commenters here that the Bhathals were interested in Sarina Weigman as a coach, right after Norris was fired. I might dream a little dream.....
It’s interesting…she follows the league page on IG, along with 5 NWSL clubs, but Thorns aren’t one of them. They are: SD, Houston(?), Orlando, Gotham, and the Spirit.
Neither follow eachother on the socials, but yeah, these sorts of connections are def great to make. Wish she got a better Thorns experience than a pretty empty cup game of a Wednesday lol.
I bet Spirit are making a lot more money having the visibility of Giraldez, rather than if they just hired some other random person to coach. Maybe not yet enough to pay for itself, but will it eventually with titles, players wanting to come play for the coach, big-name player retention, name recognition, etc..? Seems worth it to invest in your coaching hire...
What, after that exhaustive world-wide search found The One right here, can him less than a month after anointing with the Holy Head Coaching Oil? What, y'wanna make the owners look like dopes?
No, that would look really silly, as you say lol. But…if they were to announce that in the off-season? Well…sure would be nice. I REALLY don’t think it would ever happen lol, but I kinda don’t think anyone would complain that they went from Gale to Weigman, regardless of any timeline.
If the club craters - either dropping below the red line or getting hammered in the playoffs - I will expect Ken to get pink-slipped. That would save face; "We had hoped you'd be good, sorry but you weren't."
As for what happens then..? Well, that's going to be hard to forecast because the NCAA, European and CONMEBOL seasons will be going, and who will be available is going to be a real ???? But given the outcome of the LAST "worldwide search"?
I'm not holding my breath. Frankly, the jury is still out on the new ownership. There's been a handful of promising moves, but almost as much "WTF?" stuff.
I'd like to see something smarter out of them. Right now what I'm seeing is mostly bog-standard VC things, acquisitions and development. Let's see some genuinely clever team-building...then I'll be more confident.
What has been "WTF" to you? The one big "disappointment" was that they allowed KK to do her job as she saw fit instead of pushing her towards an aggressive coaching hire, but I'd say everything else has been other than that has been either good or insignificant.
People associate owners with team building: That is NOT their job and I don't want them involved with that aspect of the organization beyond hiring the right FO personnel and being willing to spend money on the team. What Kang has done with Washington seems to have warped everyone's idea of what good ownership looks like.
The next checkpoint for them is whether they respond to what seems likely to be continued poor results into next season by either canning or putting pressure on Leblanc to do things differently. As frustrating it is for fans, I'm fine with them seeing what they have before acting *so long* as they do actually act.
My guess is Weaver, WNBA, or the training facility… though Phuoc already kinda did post about the WNBA so it’s prob related and maybe some official club announcement about it.
Apparently the Bhathals have been sending out event invites for 9/10 (Tues), which is the day it’s supposed to be announced.
Totally agree. There's not a lot of playing time available, but she belongs here. A player of her immense stature, she needs a proper place to retire from soccer.
Hot take and she has no reason to come back, but she'd actually be a pretty nice add as a backup six. Still a good player, great human, and won't need starts.
I'd love to see her again. However, in a salary-capped league there's only so much to go around. The league isn't built for nice rounder-outers like her.
So let's see...Weaver was injured May 1, got surgery May 9 and was put on the 45-day DL that day:
June 9 - 31 days
July 9 - 61 days
August 9 - 92 days
September 9 - 122 days
So the "45 days" was, presumably, a first-guess that turned out to be significantly shorter than not just the layoff but the rehab period, if she's just now returning to the pitch against practice opponents.
That's understandable...but just points up why being secretive about things like injuries isn't always good PR.
At this point it has been almost season-ending. The long rehab time suggests this was a bad injury, or a rehab that didn't progress as well as anticipated. On top of everything else this season that's pretty unfortunate.
Weaver's been gone so long it's hard to remember what it was like when the Thorns had 2 forwards that could score goals.
Seriously though, it's weird how overlooked Weaver is by commentators/journalists if /when they mention PTFC's injuries/absences, even though she's been among league leaders in offensive stats for years- Weaver was 4th in the league in goal contributions just last season.
She is NEVER mentioned when commentators both in-game or on podcast, tv shows, ect...talk about the Thorns issues. Like, literally NEVER! It makes me so so mad because she's really goddamn good!!
I seem to recall when Robert Williams III got injured just before the playoffs when he was with Boston, there were two MCL surgery options that took significantly different times to heal. The longer one had less long term ramifications. Not sure if that’s the case here
That list without Girma is a joke. She is the best at her position and one could argue that the US does not win the Gold Medal without her. But I know I am spitting into the wind because defensive players never win.
I don’t see any US player winning. It is incredible that Sinclair has never won it. Marta was wise to play in Europe. I think she won it three times. Carly Lloyd won it twice but only deserved it once. It is a name familiarity contest.
Oh well as long as Erling Haaland wins it I will be somewhat happy. I am hoping Barbra Banda is the female winner.
80% of me thinks it's just about Weaver signing a new contract (which isn't THAT surprising tbh), with maybe 20% thinking it's just an actual club announcement about the WNBA team coming to Portland. News, but not like NEWS at this point.
Haha, I agree...guess I can't blame him for trying to get the vibes up though. I don't really know anything about basketball tbh so the news doesn't affect me a ton, but I understand the importance for the city and probably excitement for Thorns players to have some other pro siblings in the city.
I'll def be happy to lock Weaver down, but honestly she seemed like the easiest player to keep here. Portland lifer vibes. Still, good news, but not like NEWS!!!!
Would love some good news. besides what's already known or obvious. It's gonna take more than that to butter me up at this point lol. Would love to hear progress on the training facility (which sounds like it's gonna be shared with the WNBA team possibly??)
I mean I'm not super worried about her leaving either because of the club option, but it's definitely not out of the realm of possibility. This is a fully professional league with real salaries now, so if they tried to low-ball her (or even just didn't offer as much as other teams were willing to pay) I wouldn't have been shocked if she took more money even if she would prefer to stay here. I never thought Balcer would leave Seattle, for instance.
I also think --despite the fact she didn't start the season very well-- that her absence has had a much bigger impact that it's gotten credit for. She's a major piece from a talent perspective, but she's also kinda the heart of the team and her absence has allowed them not to play real wings, which has in turn compounded all the issues they already have.
(News could also, technically, be more player adds. Don't think that's super likely though)
Yeah, I don't mean for my somewhat blasé attitude to mean that her importance is any less than huge for this team. It's more that she has many ties in the community now, is from the PNW, plays next to one of the best strikers itw, and seems to love it here...so it technically would be more surprising to see her go than stick around, just from my eyes. Huge news from a team standpoint(!), for all of the reasons you mention, but just not necessarily surprising news. Both can be true. But yes, free agency definitely can make things less secure for every player/team heading forward! Def exciting...
With Balcer, I used to think that way, but bringing in Huitema seemed to signal that she wasn't doing enough and that they were still searching for another answer. And with her getting yanked out of position (or not even starting) for years now for a less skilled player, and with Seattle cratering still...well, after the initial shock of the trade, I actually wasn't too surprised to see Balcer leave tbh.
Yeah absolutely, that's why I said it'd be good news, but not like, NEWS!!!!! It's not news that garners much surprise. I would be much much more surprised if she left...
Ummmmm.....don't look now but Sarina Weigman is in Portland and was at the game last night. Karina posted a pic with her at PP. (Thanks for pointing that out to me, Jacob Stevens!)
Bet she watched that dross and said WOW, this is some poor coaching lol..
At the beginning of the season, BB told one of the commenters here that the Bhathals were interested in Sarina Weigman as a coach, right after Norris was fired. I might dream a little dream.....
I just made a comment about this on another post! Sure it could be a coincidence but given what we heard earlier in the season maybe it’s not.
It’s interesting…she follows the league page on IG, along with 5 NWSL clubs, but Thorns aren’t one of them. They are: SD, Houston(?), Orlando, Gotham, and the Spirit.
Hell, I'm impressed that Karina *knows* Weigman.
Neither follow eachother on the socials, but yeah, these sorts of connections are def great to make. Wish she got a better Thorns experience than a pretty empty cup game of a Wednesday lol.
Any chance Karina thought she was getting a *Wegman* photo instead?
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/photos-four-decades-william-wegmans-weimaraners
Lol. EYE would like one.
Dream a big dream. She’s under contract for roughly $1.6 million a year through 2027. Too bad.
Don't think money is the main barrier to this one lol
Yeah. Dreaming an $$$ dream for sure lol…
I mean, that isn’t actually that much money to billionaires.
I bet Spirit are making a lot more money having the visibility of Giraldez, rather than if they just hired some other random person to coach. Maybe not yet enough to pay for itself, but will it eventually with titles, players wanting to come play for the coach, big-name player retention, name recognition, etc..? Seems worth it to invest in your coaching hire...
What, after that exhaustive world-wide search found The One right here, can him less than a month after anointing with the Holy Head Coaching Oil? What, y'wanna make the owners look like dopes?
Ain't gonna happen.
No, that would look really silly, as you say lol. But…if they were to announce that in the off-season? Well…sure would be nice. I REALLY don’t think it would ever happen lol, but I kinda don’t think anyone would complain that they went from Gale to Weigman, regardless of any timeline.
If the club craters - either dropping below the red line or getting hammered in the playoffs - I will expect Ken to get pink-slipped. That would save face; "We had hoped you'd be good, sorry but you weren't."
As for what happens then..? Well, that's going to be hard to forecast because the NCAA, European and CONMEBOL seasons will be going, and who will be available is going to be a real ???? But given the outcome of the LAST "worldwide search"?
I'm not holding my breath. Frankly, the jury is still out on the new ownership. There's been a handful of promising moves, but almost as much "WTF?" stuff.
I'd like to see something smarter out of them. Right now what I'm seeing is mostly bog-standard VC things, acquisitions and development. Let's see some genuinely clever team-building...then I'll be more confident.
What has been "WTF" to you? The one big "disappointment" was that they allowed KK to do her job as she saw fit instead of pushing her towards an aggressive coaching hire, but I'd say everything else has been other than that has been either good or insignificant.
People associate owners with team building: That is NOT their job and I don't want them involved with that aspect of the organization beyond hiring the right FO personnel and being willing to spend money on the team. What Kang has done with Washington seems to have warped everyone's idea of what good ownership looks like.
The next checkpoint for them is whether they respond to what seems likely to be continued poor results into next season by either canning or putting pressure on Leblanc to do things differently. As frustrating it is for fans, I'm fine with them seeing what they have before acting *so long* as they do actually act.
Don't be so pessimistic; silly things happen all the time around here.
It’s absolutely not going to happen but you must admit that it would be very funny if the Bhathals chose this moment to strongarm KK
I would be sat lol.
My guess is Weaver, WNBA, or the training facility… though Phuoc already kinda did post about the WNBA so it’s prob related and maybe some official club announcement about it.
Apparently the Bhathals have been sending out event invites for 9/10 (Tues), which is the day it’s supposed to be announced.
Ah, training facility makes sense then. Excited to hear what site they found.
I meant the WNBA announcement re: the event, but yeah maybe that comes with news about the training facility.
Oh well I don’t think Phuoc would tease wnba stuff, so maybe it’s not training facility related then. Weaver still seems most likely.
Week 18 Recap, featuring:
- Orlando suffocate Gotham and plant their flag at the top
- KC's issues at the six
- A Thorns film review and diagnostic session.
https://www.theeaststandnwsl.com/post/nwsl-week-18-recap-kc-and-portland-s-struggles-continue-while-orlando-races-clear-at-the-top
Amandine already leaving Utah. Most random signing of the season?
Her departing SLC was #1 on my List of the Overdetermined for 2024. "Eeff I see ONE MORE how you say HOT DEESH...."
She wasn't in their plans once they started winning and after France flamed out at the Olympics.
BRING HER HOMEEE
Totally agree. There's not a lot of playing time available, but she belongs here. A player of her immense stature, she needs a proper place to retire from soccer.
.. could this be the news?
https://x.com/Phuocerman/status/1832155868844191907
It's a romantic notion but she'll be 35 in about three weeks and the Thorns already have their share of old, declining players.
Hot take and she has no reason to come back, but she'd actually be a pretty nice add as a backup six. Still a good player, great human, and won't need starts.
Completely agree. This is a no-brainer.
I'd love to see her again. However, in a salary-capped league there's only so much to go around. The league isn't built for nice rounder-outers like her.
Based on her role with ACFC and Utah, I don't think she's making any kind of huge money. The Thorns also aren't anywhere NEAR the cap.
Per your request...is Phuoc hinting something here? (Although, we did just literally get a backup 6)
https://x.com/Phuocerman/status/1832155868844191907
So let's see...Weaver was injured May 1, got surgery May 9 and was put on the 45-day DL that day:
June 9 - 31 days
July 9 - 61 days
August 9 - 92 days
September 9 - 122 days
So the "45 days" was, presumably, a first-guess that turned out to be significantly shorter than not just the layoff but the rehab period, if she's just now returning to the pitch against practice opponents.
That's understandable...but just points up why being secretive about things like injuries isn't always good PR.
My theory is that they only have two official lists, so anything that’s not season ending is labeled as “45 day”.
At this point it has been almost season-ending. The long rehab time suggests this was a bad injury, or a rehab that didn't progress as well as anticipated. On top of everything else this season that's pretty unfortunate.
Weaver's been gone so long it's hard to remember what it was like when the Thorns had 2 forwards that could score goals.
Seriously though, it's weird how overlooked Weaver is by commentators/journalists if /when they mention PTFC's injuries/absences, even though she's been among league leaders in offensive stats for years- Weaver was 4th in the league in goal contributions just last season.
She is NEVER mentioned when commentators both in-game or on podcast, tv shows, ect...talk about the Thorns issues. Like, literally NEVER! It makes me so so mad because she's really goddamn good!!
I seem to recall when Robert Williams III got injured just before the playoffs when he was with Boston, there were two MCL surgery options that took significantly different times to heal. The longer one had less long term ramifications. Not sure if that’s the case here
That list without Girma is a joke. She is the best at her position and one could argue that the US does not win the Gold Medal without her. But I know I am spitting into the wind because defensive players never win.
I don’t see any US player winning. It is incredible that Sinclair has never won it. Marta was wise to play in Europe. I think she won it three times. Carly Lloyd won it twice but only deserved it once. It is a name familiarity contest.
Oh well as long as Erling Haaland wins it I will be somewhat happy. I am hoping Barbra Banda is the female winner.
Tarciane but not Girma???
????????
https://x.com/Phuocerman/status/1831867602257506771
Assuming this is Weaver contract related?
Please let it be good news lmao, I’m tired.
tough time to resign a player whose injury recovery time has exceeded a normal recovery period.
Not really, her contract just expired so it would make a lot of sense.
I hope it’s good news
He’s definitely saying something might be happening
https://x.com/stumptownfooty/status/1832070889443414333?s=46
80% of me thinks it's just about Weaver signing a new contract (which isn't THAT surprising tbh), with maybe 20% thinking it's just an actual club announcement about the WNBA team coming to Portland. News, but not like NEWS at this point.
I will give Phuoc a hearty "tsk tsk" if the teased Thorns news is WNBA related lol.
I agree that it's probably Weaver (which, while expected, would make me very happy). Training facility seems very possible too.
Haha, I agree...guess I can't blame him for trying to get the vibes up though. I don't really know anything about basketball tbh so the news doesn't affect me a ton, but I understand the importance for the city and probably excitement for Thorns players to have some other pro siblings in the city.
I'll def be happy to lock Weaver down, but honestly she seemed like the easiest player to keep here. Portland lifer vibes. Still, good news, but not like NEWS!!!!
Would love some good news. besides what's already known or obvious. It's gonna take more than that to butter me up at this point lol. Would love to hear progress on the training facility (which sounds like it's gonna be shared with the WNBA team possibly??)
I mean I'm not super worried about her leaving either because of the club option, but it's definitely not out of the realm of possibility. This is a fully professional league with real salaries now, so if they tried to low-ball her (or even just didn't offer as much as other teams were willing to pay) I wouldn't have been shocked if she took more money even if she would prefer to stay here. I never thought Balcer would leave Seattle, for instance.
I also think --despite the fact she didn't start the season very well-- that her absence has had a much bigger impact that it's gotten credit for. She's a major piece from a talent perspective, but she's also kinda the heart of the team and her absence has allowed them not to play real wings, which has in turn compounded all the issues they already have.
(News could also, technically, be more player adds. Don't think that's super likely though)
Yeah, I don't mean for my somewhat blasé attitude to mean that her importance is any less than huge for this team. It's more that she has many ties in the community now, is from the PNW, plays next to one of the best strikers itw, and seems to love it here...so it technically would be more surprising to see her go than stick around, just from my eyes. Huge news from a team standpoint(!), for all of the reasons you mention, but just not necessarily surprising news. Both can be true. But yes, free agency definitely can make things less secure for every player/team heading forward! Def exciting...
With Balcer, I used to think that way, but bringing in Huitema seemed to signal that she wasn't doing enough and that they were still searching for another answer. And with her getting yanked out of position (or not even starting) for years now for a less skilled player, and with Seattle cratering still...well, after the initial shock of the trade, I actually wasn't too surprised to see Balcer leave tbh.
Extending a young player with Morgan’s talent would be news even though she seems thoroughly happy here
Yeah absolutely, that's why I said it'd be good news, but not like, NEWS!!!!! It's not news that garners much surprise. I would be much much more surprised if she left...
I’m guessing that’s the Phil Neville interview? But hoping for Thorns news 🤞
It's a riveting first hand look into new signing Hirst's Pokemon card collection and a pimp my van with coach Vytas interview! I can't wait!