Photo copyright Chris Jones for USA TODAY Sports
Change has been the operative word around the United States women’s national team lately, and the team’s 23-player roster for the inaugural Concacaf W Gold Cup continues that with a headline omission and the semi-return of a star in her prime.
Forward Alex Morgan has been left off the Gold Cup roster, marking the second straight camp in which Morgan, who ranks fifth all-time in U.S. goals with 121, has been omitted.
The big additions to the U.S. camp come with an asterisk: Forward Mallory Swanson returns from nearly a year away due to a ruptured patella tendon, but she will only be a training player and not officially rostered for the tournament. Midfielder Savannah DeMelo and 18-year-old defender Gisele Thompson are also training players.
Twenty-one of the 23 players on the United States’ official Gold Cup roster were also in camp in December, which indicates direction and continuity taking shape just five months ahead of the 2024 Olympics. These are the major talking points from the roster, interim head coach Twila Kilgore’s explanation for them, and what they could mean in the long run.
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