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Utah Royals: Sign Narumi Miura and Mandy Freeman
Sporting director Kelly Cousins is a savvy operator. The pivot to Jimmy Coenraets and the splash to grab three thirty-something players from Europe in the summer window doubled Utah’s expected points per game from 0.7 pre-Olympics to 1.4 post-Olympics. They’re moving in the right direction. If Ally Sentnor can kick on and Hannah Betfort comes back, the Royals might have some attacking juice.
Signing Narumi to patrol midfield helps ensure that the club no longer gets exposed to ugly counterattacks, their bane while under Amy Rodriguez. Narumi provides a solid defensive base that also frees Claudia Zornoza to push up and unlock the forward line more fluidly. It also allows Ana Tejada to move back to central defense. Suddenly, between Narumi, Tejada, Kate Del Fava, and goalkeeper Mandy Haught, the Royals have a strong, powerful spine. Throwing Mandy Freeman on top of it helps prevent wingers from running riot, too. Cousins has cap space to play with…
