Tag: Vlatko Andonovski

Christen Press was not on the USWNT roster even before her injury

The veteran forward has not been with the USWNT since last summer’s Olympics

Vlatko Andonovski has confirmed that even prior to her recent injury, Christen Press did not make the U.S. women’s national team roster for the upcoming CONCACAF W Championship.

Press was was forced out of Angel City FC’s game Saturday night against Racing Louisville, limping off the field with an apparent knee injury.

Though it seemed possible that Press’s exclusion was due to her injury, particularly with fellow veterans Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe returning to the squad, Andonovski made it clear that was not the case.

“I have to say that Christen Press was not on the roster even before the injury,” Andonovski told reporters on Monday. “We’re very sorry for her injury and don’t have confirmed information on the extent or the significance of the injury, we just hope that it is not too serious.”

Press has not been with the USWNT since last summer’s Olympics, after which she took time away from the game to focus on her mental health.

Though Andonovski believes Press is doing well with Angel City, he cited the increased forward competition with the USWNT as the reason for her exclusion.

“I think that she’s performing well but it’s not just her now at this point, it’s her competing with the players that are in front of her,” Andonovski said.

“For Christen to be back on the field it’s not just to perform well in her club environment, it’s also outperform the players that she’s competing against. And that would be players like Mallory Pugh and Sophia Smith, Alex Morgan, Ashley Hatch and Trinity Rodman. It’s not easy to be a forward in the United States right now. Obviously it’s great but it’s not easy because the competition just got bigger and bigger.”

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Andonovski says Rapinoe’s inclusion on USWNT roster was agreed last year

The veteran was named to the roster despite playing just 155 total minutes in 2022 so far

U.S. women’s national team head coach Vlatko Andonovski has said he told Megan Rapinoe last year that she would be on the roster for the CONCACAF W Championship this summer, barring injury.

Rapinoe was named to the 23-player squad on Monday, making her first USWNT roster since October as the U.S. aims to qualify for the 2023 World Cup and 2024 Olympics.

Despite her decorated career, the 37-year-old’s inclusion did raise some eyebrows because she has played just 155 total minutes across five appearances for OL Reign in 2022, all of which have come from the bench.

“Megan and I had a great conversation after the season last year, and she understood the processes that we were going to go through,” Andonovski told reporters on a conference call.

“Within the conversation, she understood that we are going to bring a lot of players, we are going to test a lot of players, we want to give the young players lots of minutes and opportunities to play, and give us a chance to evaluate them as much as possible. But after everything is said and done [I said] that if she’s healthy, and if she’s fit to get minutes that she will be on the roster.”

Rapinoe’s ability on and off the field

Andonovski said that Rapinoe’s inclusion was not only down to her on-field abilities – though he did highlight her tremendous strike off the bar in OL Reign’s match against San Diego on Sunday.

“We saw that in the minutes she got in the last game, how dangerous she can be,” the coach said. “But also the thing with Megan is that she is very important for this group. We are a younger group and we’re bringing in lots of young players. So her experience and going through adversity, going through tough times and [coming out] on top – her winning mentality, her knowledge and understanding is very valuable for the group.

“For players like players like Mal [Pugh] and Soph [Smith] and Trinity [Rodman] who are forwards, who play the same position as Megan, I think that she’s going to be instrumental to help them going through these games, going through these qualifiers, because at some point, whether it’s within the game or in between the games, they’re going to need Megan’s voice and her responsibly is to help them be the best version of themselves.”

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