Jump to content

Recommended Posts

7 hours ago, Ally McCoist said:

This would be as if Davies went to Toronto FC to join Oso. This is an odd move.

Portland and Chelsea are similar level teams. Pretty well all of the US teams have the level of a strong top flight in Europe, and Thorn is consistently one of the better clubs. So movement from Chelsea to Thorn could only be viewed as a slight shift down. 

She was not getting starter minutes, and to be honest, Chelsea does not play very nice football (I've seen them a few times vs. Barça, I've already stated how little I liked how they were coached).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, rkomar said:

I believe that Hayes is leaving to run the USWNT.  I wonder if the system changes significantly at Chelsea after that?  Maybe Fleming knows something we don't?

Hayes plays over the heads of the mids, she wasted Fleming terribly at Chelsea. They play 1970s style British football, direct, long ball, plenty of kick and run. Not ideal for Jessie.

What happens is that, like the old days of women's football, say up to when Norway won the World Cup and we bought into that with Pellerud, they look for players to play that way. Wolfsberg plays like that too. Only a few teams are breaking out of that mentality, first Lyon and PSG, then Barça, historically and most importantly a few national teams like Japan, now Colombia.

I think she'll squander a lot of the US virtues, which are dynamic attacking mids, with technique and pace, and goals coming from many places, in many ways. I've posted this in more detail elsewhere here, I was shocked by how backward they were in the warmups, her tactical instructions. For me she's a dinosaur. I think she'll hurt their programme, not promote the kind of player who can challenge the new paradigms in world women's football, and they'll slip as a world power. Which is fine by me. 

Edited by Unnamed Trialist
Link to comment
Share on other sites

17 hours ago, Ally McCoist said:

This would be as if Davies went to Toronto FC to join Oso. This is an odd move.

No?

First, the NWSL is much more comparable to the top European women’s leagues.

Second, and most importantly, Fleming needs to be a regular starter, which she isn’t at Chelsea. She’s doing the same thing Huitema did.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, BearcatSA said:

https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/39376208/jessie-fleming-set-join-nwsl-side-portland-thorns-sources

This article suggests that the revenue from this transfer might go towards getting the Colombian Mayra Ramirez from Levante as a replacement for Kerr.

Total aside but Levante is chock full of great players who are undervalued, underpaid most likely, and could thrive elsewhere. A bit of an anomaly, one of the historically great female clubs in Spain, actually tied for second in the league.

I feel better about NWSL now there are more teams, it means a bit more depth and variation. What is interesting about the US league is that it looks to be growing still, we'll likely see more clubs in the upcoming years. I also see that average attendance is pushing 10,000, which is the best in the world. Thorn average about 19,000, basically a full stadium. That is a great environment to be in. NWSL is also far ahead of the WNBA for example. While some clubs are a bit weak, others have a powerful connection with the fans.

Edited by Unnamed Trialist
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I honestly would have preferred to see her play elsewhere with a top side in Europe.  

I think the Americans only had one starter from their WC team playing in Europe (the captain Horan at Lyon) but I see a few more starting to move away from NWSL and head across the Atlantic and I think that is a good thing for their NT program.  Despite significant international presence in NWSL, I think there is a level of insularity which hinders that league in comparison to the tactical and technical sophistication from the top teams at the last WWC with large numbers of European-based players

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...
  • 3 months later...

I'm concerned about Fleming's play since moving to the NWSL. Has anyone viewed any matches? I'm getting all my info from FotMob and note low match ratings, early substitutions, coming off the bench. I'm curious if anyone has any idea of what is happening for her. I was very excited for her move to Portland but am worried now.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 5/25/2024 at 1:01 AM, Onelessstar said:

I'm concerned about Fleming's play since moving to the NWSL. Has anyone viewed any matches? I'm getting all my info from FotMob and note low match ratings, early substitutions, coming off the bench. I'm curious if anyone has any idea of what is happening for her. I was very excited for her move to Portland but am worried now.

I didn't think Fleming's style would suit the NWSL. She doesn't do enough dribbling, taking players on, medium to long passes, crossing into box, shot taking & win aerials which are things NWSL attacking mids often do and/or valued by the fanbase. She has been good defensively and with her short passing.

At times with Canada, she can be disconnected/not on the same page with her teammates. And we have seen that with Portland.

With the Thorns fanbase, a few have wondered when she will show up but for most, she hasn't registered. Probably has made the least impact on/off the pitch of the major international signings for NWSL this year.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

16 hours ago, red card said:

I didn't think Fleming's style would suit the NWSL. She doesn't do enough dribbling, taking players on, medium to long passes, crossing into box, shot taking & win aerials which are things NWSL attacking mids often do and/or valued by the fanbase. She has been good defensively and with her short passing.

At times with Canada, she can be disconnected/not on the same page with her teammates. And we have seen that with Portland.

With the Thorns fanbase, a few have wondered when she will show up but for most, she hasn't registered. Probably has made the least impact on/off the pitch of the major international signings for NWSL this year.

I think this is a good assessment.

In her best role, she is a good linking player, keeping the possession rolling, providing defensive support and a passing outlet from the back.  But I emphasize the word "role" because it is more role player than marquee, which is probably what a fan base would be looking for from a club record signing.

Regardless, her skillset is very important for our WNT's chances of medalling in Paris.  She needs to ignore the "noise" at club level, keep doing what she does best, and stay healthy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...
  • 1 month later...

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now

×
×
  • Create New...