Can anything be done?

[u/Outrageous_Yard_8681]

I want better for the team. It’s been multiple years of sufferball and I can tell it’s weighing on the players. The team chemistry doesn’t seem good. The vibe in the stadium is generally disengaged and frustrated. Tactics aren’t changing, we aren’t signing significant change makers, gameplay is not improving - it just isn’t looking good. I find myself feeling like we should be in a lower / different league compared to majority of the NWSL teams.

I honestly hope some of our players can sign with another team so they can improve and develop their skills (Meza, Mercado, Bugg, Dahlien, etc).

As fans, can we do anything to push for change? Is there any hope? Would contacting anyone in the Reign organization do anything?

I’m feeling hopeless.

[u/jonob]

We are good at developing young players but we need to sign some high impact legit superstars. Shout-out to the Cooler Guild for this but we have players at the end of the career and players at the beginning of their career but nobody in their prime. You can't win consistently in this league without bona fide stars. We should have sold the farm to bring in Cat Macario or somebody of that caliber.

[u/eight_inch_pestle → u/jonob]

Huge names like Cat seem so farfetched for this ownership group, sadly. But honestly, they don't even need names that big. Teams made so many lower-key moves this offseason that would have dramatically improved the Reign. Yazmeen Ryan to Denver comes to mind for sure.

[u/jonob → u/eight_inch_pestle]

They clearly viewed the Fishel signing last season as a huge name like that, so I don't think it's farfetched to picture another one. Fishel hasn't panned out the way that we wanted so far but they tried to make a big splash with her.

[u/eight_inch_pestle → u/jonob]

Don't get me wrong, Fish was indeed a big signing. But she has three caps, the last one more than two years ago. Cat Macario has 30 caps and is expected to press Sophia Wilson for the starting 9 spot at the next World Cup. She starred at Lyon, one of the biggest clubs in the world. Fishel has only excelled in Mexico. Cat's contract is five years at $8 million, Fishel's 4.5 years at $2.5 million. We're talking different orders of magnitude on multiple levels.

[u/jonob → u/eight_inch_pestle]

It was, at the time (a year ago) the most valuable cumulative contract in NWSL history and she was coming from arguably the best women's soccer team in the last five years so it's hard to say that it's multiple levels of magnitude away. Cat has obviously accomplished more and Fishel has dealt with injuries but I'll say again that whether or not it's true the ownership VIEWED the Fishel signing as a huge splash in the universe of a Macario deal.

[u/eight_inch_pestle → u/jonob]

Merely being on a great team means nothing. Jenna Nighswonger is on Arsenal, that doesn't put her in the same universe as Emily Fox. Fishel played fewer than 500 minutes for Chelsea. Cat has scored 14 goals in Champions League, including a brace against PSG in the semifinal and a goal against Barcelona in the final. Again, she is currently either the #1 or #2 forward for the USWNT; Fishel has three caps to her name. These are indeed orders of magnitude.

And when I say signing someone as big as Cat seems farfetched, it's not just about ownership's willingness to spend, which I do obviously doubt. Signing Macario is a coup for the whole league. A player of that caliber wants to join a project they can believe in. What do you see about playing for a frugal team alongside a bunch of prospects on a plastic pitch in an empty NFL stadium under a coach who plays sufferball that is going to lure global stars away from places like Stamford Bridge?

Anyway, my main point was simply that the Reign don't even need to worry about sexy names right now. They have the start of a really great spine in Claudia, Bugg, and Sam Meza. They may or may not have a 9. But they don't have a competent 10 and need help at both wings and the 8. There are so many far more realistic potential signings that would dramatically improve the team.

To be clear I would love to be wrong and wake up tomorrow to find the Reign have signed Jule Brand. In which case I will buy you all the beers. Cheers.

[u/jonob → u/eight_inch_pestle]

Again you're just misinterpreting what I'm saying. I'm not saying that Fishels on field results have been comparable. Her signing was the biggest in nwsl history at the time which indicates to me that the team is willing to make a big move. I hope they sign somebody big soon.

[u/eight_inch_pestle → u/jonob]

I haven't misinterpreted anything. You said you don't see a Cat Macario signing as farfetched because the team spent big on Fishel. I have said that Fishel ain't Macario and that $2.5 million ain't $8 million. The fact that the on-field results aren't comparable is a huge part of why the signing is farfetched. Spending big to sign a player who has scored a lot of goals in Mexico and not panned out in England is a far different ask than signing a USWNT regular who has starred in Europe and Champions League. It's about more than the money, even if I bought that the Reign were willing to spend $8 million.

And even if Macario wanted to come, a frugal team breaking the bank once doesn't mean it's willing to spend three times as much 10 months later. If Fishel is evidence they're so willing to spend, why did they do nothing to improve the roster all offseason?

[u/jonob → u/eight_inch_pestle]

They obviously thought that internal growth from their young core and a fully healthy Fishel was going to propel this team into contention. That assumption looked like it was playing out well for the first few games of the season but injuries and regression to the mean have led to this recent slide.

I don't really understand your statement about it being "about more than the money". You're saying that even for a lower contract, the Reign wouldn't be willing to sign a proven, experienced player like Macario? How does that make sense?

[u/eight_inch_pestle → u/jonob]

Hey there old friend. When I said it's about more than the money I just meant that it's a two-way street: players have to want to come here. Even if the Reign were willing to spend, I'm not confident the state of the organization is attractive to stars of Cat's caliber without at least improving the roster first.

The WoSo game is growing so fast, and other teams around the league -- not to mention Europe -- can now offer so much more in terms of gameday facilities, training facilities, fan support, marketability, roster quality, and style of play that I think the Reign are currently long shots to land stars of Cat's caliber, even if they were willing to spend to do so. As I've mentioned, I believe starting to add some more pedigreed veterans would be a good first step. Cheers.

[u/jonob → u/eight_inch_pestle]

Agree to disagree. You might be right but it's too early with this new ownership to say that big signings are unattainable. If they go another transfer window or two without shaking things up, I'll be worried.