Emma Hayes is back in the United States after leading the U.S. women’s national team to an Olympic gold medal at the Paris Games. The trip is very much about business ahead of a trio of October friendlies against Iceland and Argentina.
After a whirlwind introduction that included a sprint through the Olympics, Hayes finally has the luxury of time and can dig into some of the larger projects that excited her about the job. The USWNT boss also faces big questions, three years out from the next Women’s World Cup in Brazil. Maybe not as big as choosing to leave Alex Morgan off the 18-player Olympic roster, defensible as that choice was in the moment, but crucial nonetheless and aimed at the future.
Advertisement
On Sunday, Hayes traveled back to the home of her former employer, the Chicago Red Stars, to watch the team take on the North Carolina Courage. During a half-time interview with CBS Sports, Hayes said she and the rest of the program were reflecting on recent successes beyond just the Olympics. But there is little rest for a head coach who took one of the most high-profile jobs in soccer less than five months ago.
Hayes led the U.S. to an Olympic gold medal in her first three months in charge (Claudio Villa / Getty Images)
Hayes’ build starts with this trip and continues into 2025 with what she called “the futures,” which will allow the U.S. technical staff to see “some of the best talent, both within the NWSL and the under-20 level” to identify future players for the team. Specifically, the under-20 team recently completed its best run since 2012 at the Under-20 Women’s World Cup, with a bronze medal finish against the Netherlands last month.
But Hayes must also answer questions about her goalkeeper succession plan, identify an heir to Morgan to supplement Sophia Smith, and find the personnel to make her midfield hum.
With Olympic gold already secured, the focus shifts to the team’s future.
You again – assessing familiar faces
Hayes doesn’t need to go too far to start. The curse of the Olympic roster is the 18-player limitation. Injuries and club form also impacted Hayes’ pool of players to consider bringing to France. The blessing is that the October friendlies are a perfect chance to look more widely and check in on players who have long been in the pool but missed out on the big call-ups. Midfielders, of all kinds, are a particularly prevalent talking point.
While the forward line was as good as it gets and the team’s defense was staunch, the USWNT midfield operated a level below their standard this summer. Sam Coffey’s yellow card suspension exposed a lack of cover in defensive midfield, while Lindsey Horan struggled to make her usual impact as her role changed with every game. A good midfield can carry a team through a tournament, as Spain showed last summer, and it’s an area that needs to be sorted to fully install Hayes’ ideology for the team.
Advertisement
In terms of creative options, Hayes got the perfect chance in Chicago to watch one of these main candidates, Ashley Sanchez. Hayes hasn’t been spotted with a notebook yet, but if she were taking notes in any form, it’s hard to imagine this wouldn’t be on her list under “reasons to call Sanchez back in.”
ashley sanchez just hit a backheel nutmeg mid-dribble pic.twitter.com/V8ovR25Lnm
— ugh (@838_carlisle) September 29, 2024
The attacking midfielder had a rough 12 months, between making the World Cup squad but failing to log a single minute and being shocked by a draft day trade from Washington to North Carolina. However, the move has resulted in her getting increased responsibilities on the ball.
Sanchez averages roughly 10 more pass attempts per 90 minutes than she had in her final season with the Spirit and her passing and carrying have been more proactive in getting upfield than she had with Washington. She’s come through in the clutch, too — her five combined game-winning goals and assists is tied for the league’s second-best, only trailing the Spirit’s Croix Bethune.
Like Sanchez, Olivia Moultrie emerged late in former head coach Vlatko Andonovski’s tenure. The Portland Thorns midfielder helped the United States win this year’s W Gold Cup under interim head coach Twila Kilgore and should continue to factor for involvement in a box-to-box role alongside fellow younger options like Korbin Albert and Lily Yohannes, who play in Europe.
Andi Sullivan has been a steady presence for the Spirit (Kiyoshi Mio / Imagn Images)
There’s a familiar candidate for the No. 6 on the national team: Andi Sullivan, who is still very capable of going for the next cycle if not longer. And count Washington head coach Jonatan Giráldez among those who think the 28-year-old needs a fresh set of eyes from Hayes, saying she deserves the opportunity to play for the national team.
Advertisement
“An exceptional player,” Giráldez said earlier this month following a win over the Thorns. “It’s unbelievable, in terms of the leadership that (Sullivan) has, the understanding in terms of game plan, in possession, out of possession, and when she trains she’s always 100% every training session.”
Will the former Barcelona coach sway Hayes? It’s hard to ignore his declaration: “For me, Andi Sullivan is one of the best players in this country.”
Another option as the midfield’s defensive base is Taylor Flint. After an offseason move to Racing Louisville, the 25-year-old has arguably been the NWSL’s best midfielder this season, proving difficult to bypass whether the ball is on the ground or in the air. Amid her strong form, Louisville traded Jaelin Howell, another of the league’s best young defensive midfielders, to Seattle, where she’ll look to fortify her case for inclusion under Hayes.
In England, Catarina Macario returned to Chelsea and added a goal in their 7-0 win against Crystal Palace — finally, after another delay in her injury recovery that forced her out of Olympic contention. Before the setback, however, it looked like she could make a real play for a starting role on the USWNT. There’s no need to rush her return or add extra strain through long travel back to the U.S. for October, but if she’s built minutes in the Women’s Super League, that friendly against England at Wembley could provide the perfect opportunity.
Albeit out wide and not in midfield, Alyssa Thompson has also been in goalscoring form for Angel City as of late, putting in extra time at practice with someone who knows plenty about the USWNT, Christen Press. Another surprise pick for the 2023 World Cup roster, Savannah DeMelo has gone from being a true No 10 to more of a creative winger, cutting in from the left and continuing to help Louisville progress up the pitch.
Thompson fits more naturally into a wing role in Hayes’ system, but DeMelo could be helpful given Hayes’ valuation of positional versatility.
Who needs a closer look?
We both shook our fists at the sky over Sam Staab’s torn Achilles tendon which put her on the NWSL season-ending injury list in late July because she would be at the top of our list for a category like this. The injury cruelly curtailed her long-running iron-woman streak, but the left-footed center back is a genuine defensive anchor and can break lines with ease using her distribution.
Advertisement
We could basically just rename this section after her: the club stalwarts who could really stand a look in the USWNT environment.
Gotham FC made waves last offseason, bringing in veterans like Crystal Dunn, Rose Lavelle and Tierna Davidson. They also made a savvy move to bring in Ella Stevens after she was underused in Chicago and she’s become the type of line-leading striker who can come in and change a game with pinpoint accurate finishing. Gotham has also continued to find myriad ways to make the most of Yazmeen Ryan’s versatility, allowing the 25-year-old to flourish in several roles. Ryan is an incredibly progressive player on the ball and could be an ideal option in a few spots for Hayes.
Another depth question Hayes will need to start considering is in the goalkeeping position. While Teagan Wy had some great saves at the Under-20 World Cup (head coach Tracey Kevins said that they knew she had a weakness in stopping penalty kicks coming into the tournament, but Wy came up with a major stop against Germany in the shootout), she’s probably not yet at the stage for a full senior call-up. So who could Hayes call in from the NWSL if she wants to start looking at options outside of regulars like Jane Campbell and Aubrey Kingsbury?
There are two younger candidates in Utah’s Mandy Haught (25) and Seattle’s Claudia Dickey (24). Both are getting a bit of trial by fire this season on two of the league’s worst-performing teams, but hey, so did current No 1 Alyssa Naeher in her Boston Breaker days.
Who are the youths ‘futures’ that Hayes might be tracking?
Hayes has already been thinking ahead to the next cycle, bringing a few younger players to France this summer. Hal Hershfelt never made an Olympic game-day roster, but she still lived through the rhythms of a compressed major tournament and those training sessions. Croix Bethune and Jaedyn Shaw (even with her ill-timed injury) also got that crucial experience that should serve them in both qualification and major international tournaments.
But the fascinating thing about the most recent under-20 USYNT team is the shift from college talent to a larger contingent of players who have already gone pro and now play in the NWSL, led by former college teammates Ally Sentnor (Utah Royals) and Savy King (Bay FC). Not every player in this category has begun earning significant NWSL minutes on their respective teams, but there’s a subset here, including Sentnor, King, Riley Jackson (NC Courage), Claire Hutton (KC Current) and Gisele Thompson (Angel City) that feel like obvious choices for a talent ID camp in January.
Kevins said on the “Full Time with Meg Linehan” podcast that the diversity of the youth player pool is a real asset for the program as a whole and also pointed to a player like Onyeka Gamero who is with FC Barcelona B, but missed out on the tournament due to injury. In addition to development through the youth national team, NCAA play and the NWSL, there’s a new generation looking to go pro abroad from a young age. The USL Super League shouldn’t be overlooked as it opens its doors to up-and-coming talent, too. No matter how these players enter the program, U.S. Soccer wants to make sure they develop with a shot at the senior national team.
“So quite a lot of work to do,” Hayes said on the CBS Sports broadcast this weekend. It’s a fair assessment.
(Top photo: Eakin Howard / Getty Images and Imagn Images)