Energetic Orlando Pride attack preseason training with optimism

With key veterans called up to their national teams and both captains on maternity leave, new additions to the Orlando Pride are taking on bigger roles during the opening weeks of preseason.

Captains Ashlyn Harris and Ali Krieger have spent the last two weeks on maternity leave following the adoption of their daughter, while veterans Marta and Alex Morgan have been with their national teams for the SheBelieves Cup.

For defender Ali Riley, training is focused on creating a new cohesion among a team that spent most of 2020 apart due to the pandemic.

“It’s always a different culture when a lot of your senior players are gone, but I think it’s a good test for me to make sure that I am continuously…