Sophia Smith, the Portland Thorns, and the U.S. women’s national team can all breathe a modest sigh of relief.
The USWNT star was on Wednesday diagnosed with what Portland called “a mild medial collateral ligament (MCL) sprain.” The Thorns termed Smith “week-to-week” as she recovers from the injury.
Smith went down with a serious-looking knock in the final seconds of the first half of Portland’s 1-1 draw against the Washington Spirit at Audi Field on Sunday. The USWNT forward reached for an attempted through ball, only for her plant foot to slip, causing an awkward fall.
Smith was treated briefly before being replaced by Hannah Betfort. Once both teams headed off for the halftime break, Smith slowly made her way to the locker room on crutches, later returning to the bench with a knee stabilizing brace.
Smith’s status for USWNT friendlies in question
While worries about a longer-term injury that could jeopardize Smith’s status for the 2024 Olympics appear to be misplaced, the knee issue makes her a doubt for Twila Kilgore’s USWNT roster for a pair of September friendlies against South Africa.
MCL sprain recovery times can vary widely from a few days to three months, and realistically Smith only has a couple of weeks to recover before that squad has to be finalized. The USWNT will face South Africa in Cincinnati on September 21, followed by a second meeting three days later in Chicago.
As for the Thorns, losing this season’s NWSL MVP frontrunner is a massive challenge. Betfort is the most likely option for head coach Mike Norris, based on a rich vein of recent goalscoring form. However, a team that has the challenge of finding playing time for Crystal Dunn, Olivia Moultrie, Christine Sinclair, Hina Sugita, and Morgan Weaver could end up getting creative as well.
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