Angelina Alonso Costantino has just joined Orlando Pride for a contract that will end in 2026, knowing that Angelina was a restricted free agent during this offseason after having spent the previous three seasons with OL Reign. Orlando Pride exploited the fact that Angelina was a free agent and seized this opportunity to sign one of the most talented and promising midfielders, or rather defensive midfielders, in the NWSL at the moment.
Being only 23 years old also means that Angelina can acquire a lot more experience and become an all-round midfielder soon if she works hard on improving what is needed and, more importantly, if she finds the adequate environment to develop quickly. Seb Hines, Orlando Pride’s head coach, will need to deal with the new recruit intelligently and know how to get the best performances out of her while motivating her to keep improving.
At the same time, Angelina will have to strive to earn a regular place with the national Brazilian team and be present in the upcoming continental and international tournaments, as that would accelerate her development and allow her to gain more experience at the highest level.
In this tactical analysis article realised in the form of a scout report, the aim will be to explore how useful Angelina can be to Orlando Pride by identifying which positions she can occupy and what roles would suit her abilities. Moreover, the analysis will focus on her defensive and playmaking skills and link them with the need for such abilities in Orlando Pride’s tactics.
Angelina’s possible roles and positions at Orlando Pride
Angelina has usually been a midfielder but has played in various midfield positions such as central midfielder, defensive midfielder, right and left central midfielder, right and left defensive midfielder, and advanced playmaker. Also, she was used as a left and a right winger on a few occasions, especially when she played for Palmeiras.
Angelina started her career at Santos in 2017, then moved to Palmeiras in 2020 and OL Reign in 2021. And with already three seasons of experience in NWSL plus finding excellent Brazilian players like Marta, Adriana and former Arsenal’s Rafaelle Souza, Angelina’s adaptation mission would undoubtedly be more straightforward than if she moved to a European team like Barcelona, Chelsea, Manchester City or others where the environment is not necessarily more complicated yet quite different to that of the NWSL.
Also, Orlando Pride have just signed an additional Brazilian defensive midfielder recently, Luana, and this would also represent another factor that can help Angelina be more at ease when being on the pitch as the duo of Luana-Angelina might become an impressive midfield idea for Hines. Both players have strong defensive abilities combined with excellent playmaking skills, which can significantly help in the offensive phase.
Nevertheless, Hines will have to find the best possible formation to use both players well without impacting the attacking phase. Therefore, a 4-2-3-1 or a 4-3-3 formation would suit the team in this case, as both guarantee defensive balance and attacking contribution from midfielders. As you can see in the following heatmap, Angelina can adapt to different positions, and Hines can try playing her in different positions.
This being said, the defensive midfielder position is what suits her best, given her outstanding intercepting abilities and physical strength. But in order to use her 100%, she should not be instructed to focus only on defending but also to playmaking. Trusting her in terms of playmaking and helping her acquire more confidence in this regard can potentially make her a very influential playmaker, even if she will keep playing in a defensive role.
Defensive abilities
Angelina is a defensive midfielder who wins 64.5% in terms of defensive duels per game and 45.6% regarding aerial duels, which is not a bad average as well. She often uses her body intelligently to intercept passes or block attacking players on their way towards the box while avoiding fouls. She can also be surprising to certain players as she uses tricks to avoid eye contact between her and her opponents, which would facilitate the act of intercepting the ball.
For instance, she preferred to remain behind the player holding the ball in this action instead of returning immediately to midfield following an attack. She delayed her return in order to be able to surprise the opponent, who was not aware of her presence, and eventually intercept the ball when the opponent was about to cross it. Such actions highlight Angelina’s defensive intelligence and not just aggressiveness without thinking.
Angelina can get aggressive too and use her physical strength in a remarkable way, even against tough and powerful attacking or midfield player, such as in this example against Gotham FC when she did her best to intercept the ball from her direct opponent when the latter was still controlling the ball. Choosing the right timing also characterises Angelina and makes her defensive interventions often successful or at least impactful in the worst cases.
Orlando Pride should, therefore, exploit these defensive abilities well and try to make Angelina an even more crucial defensive midfielder.
Playmaking skills and possible attacking improvements
From an attacking perspective, we should say that Angelina is a terrific passer, a set-piece taker and a player who can be very important for Orlando Pride in terms of building up from the back and even regarding playmaking inside the final third when she advances.
With an 80.8% passing accuracy rate, Angelina has one of the highest rates in the NWSL and can improve this average even further if she is relied on in terms of playmaking. She is excellent at short passes, long passes, and crosses from midfield to wings, which might look simple, yet it requires a lot of precision and accuracy. This following picture highlights Angelina’s ability to completely switch the play towards the left wing with a quickly-executed long pass that looks very simple and nearly automatic for Angelina despite its real complexity.
Such intelligent long passes into space create many solutions for the team and should always be well-timed so as not to lose the created space. Having a player who masters this type of passes represents an added value for any team as it makes things easier, especially when playing against organised teams with formidable defences.
In addition to passes towards the wings, Angelina can also be crucial when using direct vertical crosses towards the final third or the penalty box. She often times these crosses well and does not execute them only when noticing a real opportunity that deserves taking such a risk.
That’s precisely why Angelina’s passing rates are high, and these passes are usually very useful to attacking players. Finding the necessary chemistry with Orlando Pride’s attacking players can also help Angelina be more dangerous with her crosses, as planned actions in this regard can surely be unpredictable to opponents and, therefore, more effective for Orlando Pride.
This action highlights the impact of Angelina’s vertical crosses and how she usually executes these crosses accurately, knowing that the player receiving the ball is not covered in the picture. Plus, Angelina had to avoid all the defensive line players and make her cross as high as possible to surpass that line and reach the needed teammate.
It is also true that Angelina should raise the number of her assists per season, given her passing talent and her ability to be more dangerous inside the final third. But at the same time, we should state that on the few occasions during which she assisted, she confirmed that she is a team player and not a self-centred one, as she often avoids finishing by herself when noticing better-positioned teammates.
She received a pass in a suitable shooting position in this goal action. Still, she preferred to provide assistance to her teammate rather than shoot, mainly because she noticed two defenders running towards her while her teammate was completely unmarked. She was also intelligent enough to confuse these two defenders by pretending to shoot before passing.
In addition to these playmaking traits, Angelina is considered a reliable set-piece taker. Orlando Pride can exploit this characteristic and give more confidence to Angelina regarding free-kicks especially. With a bit of trust and a lot of training, Angelina can become an even more crucial free-kick taker since she has the shooting abilities and techniques needed to score free-kicks. It is also the coaching staff’s role to notice this trait and work on improving it.
This is one of the free-kicks executed by Angelina towards the near post on purpose, knowing that she alternates between the near and the far post whenever needed and according to the team’s plans. Therefore, in addition to instructing Angelina to aim at scoring free kicks, the team should work on multiple alternative plans to execute during indirect free kicks in order to confuse opponents.
Another aspect that needs serious consideration from the coaching staff and Angelina herself is shooting from a distance. In fact, Angelina shoots 44.6% on target and can improve this average a lot more if she gives herself the opportunity to shoot more often with conviction and determination. As a defensive midfielder, she is expected to receive a lot of second balls that need to be finished with shots from distance.
However, Angelina often tends to prefer passing to teammates rather than shooting. Working on improving her shooting rates plus attempting more shots per game would eventually make Angelina an all-round midfielder since she already has the excellent defensive and playmaking abilities. What lacks Angelina to become a complete midfielder is to score more goals and be more impactful whenever she advances to the box.
Conclusion
Angelina Alonso Costantino is expected to do well at Orlando Pride mainly because the environment would most probably suit her. Therefore, she will not have adaptation issues and start performing well from day one, given that she is also accustomed to the NWSL.
Nevertheless, working hard to get a regular spot is necessary to convince Hines. The latter should work individually with Angelina on a lot of aspects, mainly on goalscoring, shooting more often with more determination and accuracy, and striving to become more crucial in terms of set pieces.
By improving these aspects, Angelina can eventually become among the best midfielders in the NWSL.
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