Also in today’s roundup, Scotland’s Jane Ross ruled out for rest of EURO group stage, Cristina Ferral becomes first player from Mexico to play in French league, Yuri Kawamura undergoes surgery, and FCKC v Courage gets later start time…again.
FC Kansas City transfers Brianne Reed to Sweden
FC Kansas City announced today that second-year defender Brianne Reed had been transferred to Kvarnsveden IK of Sweden’s Damallsvenskan league. The news comes just days after The Equalizer’s Allison Lee reported that Reed had been released from FCKC.
“It was actually a very difficult decision,” Reed said in the team’s official statement. “My goal is to be a starting center back, so I have to go and get some experience in order to get there. I have learned so much in KC from Vlatko [Andonovski] and my teammates and they have created an environment that is truly like a family.”
Reed was drafted by Andonovski as the No. 18 overall pick in the 2016 NWSL College Draft. In her rookie season, she started in five of seven appearances for The Blues but had yet to see the field this year.
Alongside centerback partner Erica Skroski, Reed was a crucial part of the 2015 Rutgers defense that had over 770 minutes of shutout soccer, recorded a nation’s best 19 shutouts and set program records for wins (19), home wins (13) and fewest goals allowed (10). 2015 was also the first year the Scarlet Knights appeared in the College Cup. In her four years at Rutgers, Reed scored three goals and recorded five assists over 87 appearances.
Reed will depart for Sweden immediately.
Scotland’s Jane Ross sidelined by shoulder injury
#SWNT | Team doctor, Dr Stephen Boyce, gives an update on @janeross10‘s injury: https://t.co/V8tHK8o7uP #OurGirlsOurGame pic.twitter.com/mjQJz2awsl
— Scottish FA (@ScottishFA) July 21, 2017
Scotland will be without striker Jane Ross for at least the remainder of the European Championship group stage after she suffered a shoulder injury in Scotland’s 0-6 loss to England in the two teams’ EURO 2017 opening game. There is a chance she could retake the field during the quarterfinal round if Scotland manages to advance past the group stage.
The injury appeared to happen in the 55th minute when the Lionesses were already leading 4-0. England captain Steph Houghton, who plays with Ross at Manchester City, clipped Ross’s ankle and sent her flying to the pitch, where she landed awkwardly on her right shoulder. She was seen holding her right shoulder shortly after the tackle and was subbed off later in the match. For the challenge, Houghton received a yellow card.
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Ross was Scotland’s leading scorer during their EURO qualifiers, helping them to qualify for their first ever major final. They are already short on attackers, as both Arsenal’s Kim Little and Man City’s Jen Beattie had to miss the tournament with injuries.
Cristina Ferral signs with Olympique de Marseilles
University of South Florida graduate Cristina Ferral is in the final stages of contract negotiations with Olympique de Marseilles of the French League, according to a report in Fut Mex Nation. The defender will reportedly sign a contract in the next few days and will leave for France shortly thereafter.
The signing isn’t especially noteworthy in and of itself, but the fact that Ferral will be the first ever Mexican player to play in the French league is.
Ferral was recently called up to the senior Mexican national team for its friendly against Sweden earlier this month. Before that she was working on her master’s degree at Tec De Monterrey in Mexico.
In her two seasons at USF, Ferral played in 44 matches, scored 3 goals and registered 7 assists. Prior to college, she won five national championships with her state team ITESM Monterrey and was named MVP of the 2012 National Championship. She also has significant experience within Mexico’s youth national system.
In NWSL news…
North Carolina Courage head coach Paul Riley tweeted on Thursday night that defender Yuri Kawamura had successfully undergone knee surgery and had begun the rehabilitation and recovery process. The surgery was to repair a torn right ACL and meniscus, which she suffered in the Courage’s road match against the Chicago Red Stars on May 27. Kawamura will be out the rest of the season.
FC Kansas City announced this evening that tomorrow’s match against the Courage had been pushed back to 9 p.m. ET because of a heat advisory in the Kansas City area. The game has already been pushed back once; it was originally the Lifetime Game of the Week backup game and scheduled to kick off at 4 p.m. ET, but was pushed back to 8 p.m. as the league sought cooler temperatures for game times.