Mallory Pugh and the USWNT take on Germany on opening day of the SheBelieves Cup at MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.
By Debby von Winckelmann
The U.S. women’s national team will take on Germany today, March 1, at 7 pm ET at MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, as the third annual SheBelieves Cup opens play. England will play against France at 4 pm ET to kick-off the four-team tournament.
Jill Ellis, head coach of the U.S. women’s national team will want to better her team’s performance from last year’s tournament, where the U.S. came in last place, losing to France 3-0 in the final game. It was the American’s worst defeat in a decade and people criticized Ellis for her experimentation with lineups, positions, and formation.
With World Cup qualifying looming on the horizon, fans will expect the U.S. to capture the tournament cup and will want to see a solid starting 11. However, the U.S. will be missing regular starters Becky Sauerbrunn, Sam Mewis, and Tobin Heath for this tournament, due to injuries.
Ellis’ 23-player roster for the 2018 SheBelieves Cup contains most of the players that she played in the U.S. 5-1 victory against Denmark in January. It is a roster heavy with experience in players such as Alex Morgan, Carli Lloyd, Megan Rapinoe, Kelley O’Hara, and Morgan Brian. But, newly-capped players Tierna Davidson, Savannah McCaskill, Jane Campbell, and Sofia Huerta also made the cut, which shows that Ellis is still looking to experiment a bit before World Cup qualifying. Look for Davidson to see some minutes on the back line.
With a strong set of forwards and solid midfield, the major area of concern for the U.S. appears to be the lack of experience on the defensive side, especially with the lack of a strong goalkeeper. Alyssa Naeher seemed to be cemented in the position, but has been inconsistent lately. Backup Ashlyn Harris hasn’t seen a lot of minutes for the U.S. in a long time and Jane Campbell has just two caps.
With the U.S. holding the number one spot in the FIFA Women’s World Rankings and Germany ranked No. 2, this match will be a tight one. The U.S., however, has prevailed in the last two meetings of these teams, in the 2016 and 2017 SheBelieves Cup.
U.S. Women’s National Team 2018 SheBelieves Cup Roster by Position (Caps/Goals):
GOALKEEPERS (3): 18-Jane Campbell (Houston Dash; 2/0), 24-Ashlyn Harris (Orlando Pride; 14/0), 1-Alyssa Naeher (Chicago Red Stars; 24/0)
DEFENDERS (7): 7-Abby Dahlkemper (NC Courage; 14/0), 17-Tierna Davidson (Stanford; 1/0), 14-Sofia Huerta (Chicago Red Stars; 3/0), 5-Kelley O’Hara (Utah Royals FC; 105/2), 2-Casey Short (Chicago Red Stars; 19/0), 22-Taylor Smith (Washington Spirit; 8/0), 16-Emily Sonnett (Portland Thorns FC; 13/0)
MIDFIELDERS (6): 6-Morgan Brian (Olympique Lyon, FRA; 69/6), 8-Julie Ertz (Chicago Red Stars; 58/15), 9-Lindsey Horan (Portland Thorns FC; 44/4), 10-Carli Lloyd (Houston Dash; 247/98); 20-Allie Long (Portland Thorns FC; 33/6), 3-Andi Sullivan (Stanford; 8/0)
FORWARDS (7): 19-Crystal Dunn (Chelsea FC, ENG; 58/23), 21-Savannah McCaskill (Sky Blue FC; 1/0), 13-Alex Morgan (Orlando Pride; 135/81); 23-Christen Press (Chicago Red Stars; 97/44), 11-Mallory Pugh (Washington Spirit; 30/8), 15-Megan Rapinoe (Seattle Reign; 130/34), 12-Lynn Williams (NC Courage; 16/4)