When the 2018 National Women’s Soccer League season began, the landscape around Portland Thorns FC had already drastically changed. Not only were the league’s defending champions going through their own changes, with Amandine Henry’s and Nadia Nadim’s returns to Europe, but the teams around them were stocking up. The North Carolina Courage added U.S. international Crystal Dunn to their Shield-winning squad, the Seattle Reign capped their capture of two-time title-winning coach Vlatko Andonovski with a star-studded makeover, while the Orlando Pride added the depth they needed to build on their second-year playoff performance. No matter what, 2018 was going to be far tougher than the 2017 season.
Inside PTFC | How the NWSL landscape just got much tougher for the Portland Thorns
