U.S. women’s national team head coach Emma Hayes said Lily Yohannes is still undecided on her international future after the teenager wasn’t named to the USWNT’s Olympic roster.
Yohannes had an incredible USWNT debut earlier this month, scoring against South Korea in a 20-minute cameo to become the third-youngest goalscorer in program history.
The Ajax midfielder, who turned 17 this month, was born in Virginia and moved to the Netherlands with her family when she was 10. She is expected to gain Dutch citizenship soon, and will then face a decision over which country to represent.
Speaking to the media after naming her 18-player Olympic roster, Hayes said that Yohannes was considered for the squad but has yet to fully decide on which country she wants to play for in the long run.
“Lily was a consideration for this roster but at this moment, Lily hasn’t made a decision about her future and I support that,” Hayes said.
“I’m sure everybody can appreciate she’s a young player that really enjoyed her time with us at the last camp. But it’s an important decision and one that I support.
“One thing I want is for every player that’s part of this roster [to be] conscious of all the commitments and opportunities that come with that, but that moment isn’t now with Lily.
“I will continue to work with with Lily beyond the Olympics and I really do hope that she will be part of our future. But at this moment, she wasn’t ready to make that decision, and I fully support it.”
Hayes did not specify if Yohannes would have been on her roster if she were ready to commit to the USWNT.
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