Tag: Abby Dahlkemper

USWNT star Alex Morgan returns from injury for San Diego Wave

Morgan returned to the pitch after missing a month with an ankle injury

Alex Morgan has made her return from injury, and just in the nick of time.

The U.S. women’s national team star had been sidelined for over a month with an ankle injury, but made her return Thursday night in a scoreless NWSL draw between the San Diego Wave and Angel City FC.

Morgan entered the match as a substitute, replacing Elyse Bennett in the 63rd minute. That ended just under five weeks on the touchline for Morgan, who departed an April 19 loss to the Orlando Pride following an awkward fall.

The news comes just days before the USWNT will assemble for the first time under coach Emma Hayes, who included Morgan in her 23-player squad for matches against South Korea early next month.

San Diego matches have been must-watch for USWNT observers lately, with numerous candidates for the Olympic roster all dealing with injuries.

Naomi Girma (hamstring) started for the Wave, putting in her first 90-minute shift since April 27’s home win over Bay FC.

Jaedyn Shaw (ankle) sat out last Friday’s loss, coincidentally also against Bay FC, but returned for manager Casey Stoney as the defending NWSL Shield holders battled to a scoreless draw in LA.

Those two, like Morgan, were on the latest USWNT squad. Abby Dahlkemper, a longtime U.S. center back looking to push her way back into the squad under new management, made her first start since April 19.

Morgan faces fight for USWNT Olympic spot

Morgan has been a USWNT fixture since bursting onto the scene in 2010. However, with the extraordinarily tough task of taking just 18 players to Paris, Hayes could possibly leave her out of a major tournament.

Catarina Macario’s return to fitness will give Hayes a very different sort of No. 9, and one she knows extremely well (having just finished coaching her at Chelsea). Sophia Smith, meanwhile, has arguably been the best striker in the NWSL this season, with Zambia star Barbra Banda her only serious competition.

On top of that, Hayes has brought up a need for versatility, which may play against Morgan. The 34-year-old has occasionally played on the left during her career, but has played almost entirely as a center forward in recent years.

With Smith able to play wide and Macario capable as a midfielder — not to mention Trinity Rodman being a possible central option, and Crystal Dunn being listed among the forwards after years of playing left back for the USWNT — the competition for a U.S. roster spot has never been stiffer for Morgan.

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USWNT defender Girma set to return from injury for San Diego Wave

A little good news, a little bad news for both the Wave and the USWNT

The San Diego Wave are set to welcome multiple U.S. women’s national team players back from injury, including star defender Naomi Girma.

Wave head coach Casey Stoney said that Girma would be available for Friday’s game against Bay FC, with the 23-year-old apparently having recovered from a thigh injury that sidelined her for San Diego’s last three matches.

“Naomi and Abby will be back,” Stoney told reporters during a Wednesday press conference, referring to Girma and another USWNT center back, Abby Dahlkemper. The latter has been out for roughly a month, also with a thigh issue.

Girma is considered a lock to start for the USWNT at the Olympics, but has now missed time over muscular injuries twice in the last six weeks. USWNT interim coach Twila Kilgore had to substitute Girma in April’s SheBelieves Cup win over Japan after the defender pulled up with an apparent hamstring strain.

Dahlkemper, meanwhile, faces a battle to make Emma Hayes’ final 18-player roster for this summer’s Olympics, with multiple players vying to partner Girma at center back. Candidates like Tierna Davidson and Alana Cook have both lost time to injuries of their own this year.

Hayes will begin her tenure as the U.S. manager in the coming weeks, with friendlies against South Korea on June 1 and June 4 representing the one and only set of matches before the Olympic roster is announced.

Shaw questionable, Morgan remains out

The Wave had further updates on USWNT regulars, but the news for Jaedyn Shaw and Alex Morgan was more mixed.

Shaw limped off in the final seconds of Sunday’s 1-1 draw with NJ/NY Gotham FC with a possible ankle injury, and per Stoney, her status is still up in the air.

Stoney said Shaw is “day-by-day at the minute, so we won’t know [until Friday’s game],” leaving open the possibility that the star attacker could make a quick return from an incident that initially looked more worrisome.

Morgan, meanwhile, remains out with an ankle injury suffered during a loss to the Orlando Pride on April 19.

“Alex is still out,” said Stoney. “She’s been running. She’s been doing technical work this week. She’ll be available when she’s available.”

For her own part, Morgan last week posted on social media that she hopes to return “very soon.”

San Diego has two NWSL matches before Hayes is expected to announce her squad for the games against South Korea: Friday’s clash at Bay FC, and a trip to face Angel City FC on May 23.

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Dahlkemper scores after missing nearly a year with back injury

The veteran defender announced her return with a tremendous strike for the Wave

Abby Dahlkemper marked her recent return after nearly a year out by scoring her first NWSL goal since 2016, as the San Diego Wave beat the Orlando Pride 2-1 on Friday.

Dahlkemper suffered a back injury last September and later underwent surgery. After signing on with the Wave prior to their 2022 expansion campaign, the center back ended up making just eight NWSL appearances.

The 30-year-old would miss nearly a year of action before starting in a Challenge Cup match against Angel City FC on August 5.

The longtime U.S. national team defender fully announced her return two games later against Orlando, latching onto an attempted clearance before slamming home to give her team an early lead.

San Diego assistant coach Louis Hunt paid tribute to Dahlkemper after the game, saying she’s picked up right where she left off before the injury.

“She’s been incredible over the last few weeks or so since she was cleared to be in training,” Hunt said. “She’s been bright, she has been confident, you can see the quality oozing out of her.

“So for her to get that nice little bonus of a goal as well and helping us win is brilliant because her performance in the last two games, two 90-minute matches back-to-back, you would never have thought she’d been out for a year or so. So just showing her professionalism and showing her quality.”

Dahlkemper has earned 77 USWNT caps in her career, and was last called in for friendlies against Uzbekistan in April 2022. She started every game for the USWNT at the 2019 World Cup as the team won its second consecutive title.

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USWNT injury updates: Andonovski speaks on 10 players including Macario and Mewis

The USWNT is missing a lot of key players, and the coach provided updates on almost all of them

The U.S. women’s national team is currently dealing with a lot of injuries.

Some are long term and others are more minor, but many of the USWNT’s most important players over the past several years are presently sidelined.

On Monday after announcing his roster for November friendlies against Germany, USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski offered updates on no less than 10 players who are currently out: eight who are injured and two coming back after giving birth.

Here is a list of the players Andonovski spoke about on a conference call.

The USWNT couldn’t go to the Olympics Opening Ceremony, but they had fun making an entrance anyway

Megan Rapinoe and Abby Dahlkemper still managed to celebrate in style.

Megan Rapinoe and Abby Dahlkemper seemed to be feeling a little left out during the Tokyo Olympics Opening Ceremony.

The USWNT chose not to attend the events, instead preparing for the team’s matchup against New Zealand on Saturday. But it couldn’t help but celebrate.

Rapinoe and Dahlkemper pretended to do their entrance to the stadium from inside what appears to be their training facility. It must have been a tough decision for the athletes, missing a such a memorable event. It’s easy to wonder whether their opening match, a stunning 3-0 defeat to Sweden, came into play in making this decision. Either way, they seemed to make the most of their evening watching the events.

Rapinoe’s fiancée Sue Bird served as one of the United States’ two flag bearers with Eddy Alvarez for the Opening Ceremony.

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