Seattle Reign returned to the training pitch at Starfire on a beautiful Tuesday morning in front of several dozen season ticket members who had the privilege of watching the squad practice and to meet players after. The highlight was the first day on the field for new signing Ami Diallo, who arrived in Seattle on Thursday and spent the past few days getting settled into her new home, adjusting to the time difference, and meeting with team staff and her new teammates.
While the drills were mostly focusing on quick passing and possession, Diallo appeared to be integrating quickly with her new teammates. Speaking with reporters after training, head coach Laura Harvey praised both her strength and technical ability.
“I think, obviously, she's a physical presence,” Harvey said when asked about what strengths she felt Diallo would bring to the side. “She has her eye for goal. She can finish. And I think what we've been, not surprised about, but we've been really happy about, is she's good technically. She can handle small spaces. And you can just see she fits a little bit into the style of play that we like to have.”
Harvey noted that while they like what they’ve seen so far, it is still far too early to know when and how Diallo would integrate into the game-day roster as they assess her fitness and she builds chemistry with her new teammates. They also want to be cautious with ramping her up so as not to overwhelm her in a new environment.
“I think we're taking it slow. We trying to transition her in, we're conscious that travel was tough, and it's a very different climate and environment than she's used to. So I think getting used to that, getting used to the team, we've got no real timeline on when and how integration into getting on the field will happen in games, but we're just taking every day as it comes and just trying to make her feel as comfortable as possible and not try and throw everything at her at all at once.”
Diallo also spoke with reporters in French via a translator. She spoke with a shy and quiet demeanor reminiscent of some other new signings to the team who were still getting their bearings and dealing with some culture shock during their first days in Seattle and initial meeting with the press.
When asked how the adjustment to Seattle is going so far, Diallo said “Everything is going well for me. The coach welcomed me, and everything is doing well here in Seattle,” but acknowledged that the language barrier has been a challenge. The club has provided her with a translator, and teammate Nerilia Mondesir is also bilingual and has helped communicate between her and her teammates during some team activities over the weekend.
One funny moment near the end of the interview came when Diallo was asked about her familiarity with the NWSL and whether she had any favorite players, to which she replied that her favorites were Marta and new teammate Maddie Mercado, whom she said she’s “very excited to be here playing with her, too.”
Claudia Dickey injury update
Harvey also provided an update on goalkeeper Claudia Dickey, who was not outside at training after suffering a deep cut and potential head injury late in the game against San Diego. Postgame on Sunday, Harvey mentioned that Dickey had gone to the hospital to receive stitches for the injury and would be evaluated for a concussion.
“I went to the hospital. She was good. She got it stitched up. She's seeing our doc this afternoon. It didn't look like she had a concussion or she hasn't shown any symptoms of concussion, but I think we'll get that answer this afternoon. It was just a very big cut – very deep, very big – so we'll just have to see how she does and what the best recommendation is to keep her safe and then how she feels moving forward. She was in today and seems to be doing great.”
With Dickey unavailable for training today while waiting to be cleared and Evan O’Steen away with the US U20 national team, Salmon Bay FC goalkeeper Elena Milam filled in as the second keeper at training alongside Cassie Miller.
Lynn Biyendolo update
Lynn Biyendolo continues to build fitness as she works back from maternity leave after giving birth earlier this year. She participated in the warmup portion of training and did additional wind sprints, but did not take part in any of the group training drills. Laura Harvey noted that they are working to bring her back quickly and that Biyendolo has her eye on being in consideration for the 2027 Women’s World Cup roster, but at this point they don’t yet have a clear timeline on when she might be ready.
“When someone comes back from pregnancy, it's very, very unique to each individual, how their body handled giving birth, and all those types of things, and I think we want to make sure we bring her back as quickly as we can, but mainly the biggest goal is to bring her back safely. Lynn's at a point in a career where we know there's now and then there's a big thing happening next summer. So we want to make sure that we set her up for success, both with us and for the national team moving forward.”
Mercado contract extension
Maddie Mercado also spoke to media after training, primarily to discuss her 2027 contract option being exercised. Mercado noted that she had requested the option in her contract based on appearances this season, because she wanted to bet on herself and felt confident she could take a step forward this year and earn it. With eight goals and counting, it seems fair to say she bet wisely.
She was quick to praise all of her teammates across the attacking band for pushing each other and contributing to the success of the team since the World Cup break. The Reign have tied a club record for consecutive games with a goal and still feel they can be even more dangerous in front of net, but they are clearly having a lot more fun than early in the year. Of particular note was the celebration Mercado and Maddie Dahlien broke out after Mercado’s goal on Sunday, which featured Dahlien pitching an imaginary baseball to Mercado. That was apparently a celebration in the works for several weeks.
“We were supposed to do it after Houston, but she [Dahlien] ran away from me. So we were just kind of talking about it in the locker room. We were like, we need a fun celebration. And she's like, how about somebody pitches a ball and somebody hits it? My brother plays baseball, so that was something that like we were kind of quick to hop on. It was a simple one. Obviously, the culture in Seattle surrounds sports a lot. And I think we, as women's sports, want to continue to create, advocate for ourselves and connect to other sports teams and stuff like that. So there is a little bit of that that goes into it, you know, connect with them in a way… and now we're like, we need to come up with a new one. So we're gonna go brainstorm in there right now.”
Mercado was also excited about what Diallo can bring to the team and how the players have welcomed her to Seattle thus far.
“She's been great. I know the transition is going to be huge for her, but our team is very welcoming. I'm biased, but we have such a great culture. I think whenever new people come, they always right away feel welcomed. That's the way I felt at least when I came, and I think people have given us that feedback throughout the years. So we're happy to have her. It's gonna be another dynamic player in the attack. I am excited to connect with her and there's a language barrier, but some of us are starting to learn some French, she’s starting to learn some English. So I think when we can communicate better and get her comfortable, feel safe, you know, excited to have her. So I think it's gonna be exciting to see her kind of come into her own here.”
