With the World Cup set to kick off in Canada in 5 months, Jill Ellis referred to as up 29 gamers for a three-week coaching camp that can culminate in friendlies in Europe towards France and England.
BY
John D. Halloran
Posted
January 03, 2015
9:46 AM
SHARE THIS STORY
IT’S SAFE TO SAY that the USA girls’s nationwide staff did not precisely end off 2014 with a bang.
In December, the staff tied China and misplaced to Brazil en path to ending second on the Worldwide Match of Brasilia—a four-team competitors. Its additionally misplaced the No. 1 world rating, a place it had held for two,464 days courting again to 2007.
Now heading into 2015—and the World Cup this summer season—coach Jill Ellis and the staff have loads of work to do.
On Friday, Ellis named a 29-player roster for the staff’s January camp, which is able to run for 3 weeks earlier than the staff departs for Europe and friendlies towards France and England in early February.
This is the roster and a breakdown of Ellis’ decisions.
GOALKEEPERS
Nicole Barnhart (FC Kansas Metropolis), Ashlyn Harris (Washington Spirit), Alyssa Naeher (Boston Breakers), Hope Solo (Seattle Reign FC)
DEFENDERS
Lori Chalupny (Chicago Pink Stars), Crystal Dunn (Washington Spirit), Whitney Engen (Western NY Flash), Julie Johnston (Chicago Pink Stars), Meghan Klingenberg (Houston Sprint), Ali Krieger (Washington Spirit), Kelley O’Hara (Sky Blue FC), Christie Rampone (Sky Blue FC), Becky Sauerbrunn (FC Kansas Metropolis), Rachel Van Hollebeke (Portland Thorns FC)
MIDFIELDERS
Shannon Boxx (Chicago Pink Stars), Morgan Brian (Virginia), Tobin Heath (Portland Thorns FC), Lauren Vacation (FC Kansas Metropolis), Allie Lengthy (Portland Thorns FC), Carli Lloyd (Houston Sprint), Kristie Mewis (Boston Breakers), Samantha Mewis (UCLA), Heather O’Reilly (FC Kansas Metropolis), Megan Rapinoe (Seattle Reign FC)
FORWARDS
Sydney Leroux (Seattle Reign FC), Alex Morgan (Portland Thorns FC), Christen Press (Chicago Pink Stars), Amy Rodriguez (FC Kansas Metropolis), Abby Wambach (Western NY Flash)
The Regulars
If there’s one factor that may be counted on from Coach Ellis, it is consistency in her rosters. For the staff’s January camp, all 24 gamers who made the journey to Brazil in December had been referred to as in once more. The group additionally consists of all 20 gamers who had been on the staff in World Cup qualifying.
Discovered an image of Jill Ellis’ keyboard. pic.twitter.com/x7BOPDuVOg
— Lauren Barker (@ljbarks) January 2, 2015
The New Additions
Along with the 24 gamers who had been with the staff in final month’s Brasilia match, Ellis is bringing 5 veterans again into the fold, together with Nicole Barnhart, Rachel Van Hollebeke, Shannon Boxx, Allie Lengthy, and Kristie Mewis.
The truth that the 37-year-old Boxx continues to be with the staff is proof that the U.S. midfield stays unsettled in her absence—particularly in Ellis’ oft-preferred 4-3-3. Whereas the Individuals have a pair of world-class skills in Lauren Vacation and Carli Lloyd, neither are pure holding midfielders like Boxx.
Ellis might additionally take one other take a look at Lengthy within the center, who began the 2 June friendlies towards France alongside Vacation and Lloyd.
Rachel Van Hollebeke, a veteran of two Olympic groups and the 2011 World Cup, will head into the camp after spending her fall enjoying in Japan. She missed the final two rosters below Ellis and can ostensibly need to leapfrog Whitney Engen or Julie Johnston on the depth chart at heart again over the subsequent six months to make the World Cup staff.
Barnhart heads into camp wanting just like the U.S.’s fourth choice at goalkeeper. Throughout the camp, No. 1 goalkeeper Hope Solo will face trial for home violence prices courting again to final summer season. In World Cup qualifying and the Brazil match final month, Ashlyn Harris and Alyssa Naeher every earned one begin as Solo’s backup and look like the 2 most important contenders for the backup position.
Lastly, there’s Kristie Mewis. She was a favourite of former coach Tom Sermanni however hasn’t seen a lot time below Ellis. Normally used as a left again, or left midfielder (she will be able to additionally play heart mid), it is laborious to see the place Mewis matches in quite a few crowded place battles.
The U-23 Camp
One distinctive function of this camp is that it’s going to run concurrently with the U-23 camp in the identical location. That camp might give a number of gamers an opportunity to make a last-minute run on the senior staff roster earlier than subsequent summer season’s World Cup—assuming Ellis is open to that risk.
A number of the notable call-ups to the U-23 camp with senior staff potential are collegians Jane Campbell (GK, Stanford), Katelyn Rowland (GK, UCLA), Abby Dahlkemper (D, UCLA), Emily Sonnett (D, Virginia), Danielle Colaprico (MF, Virginia), and Rose Lavelle (MF, Wisconsin), in addition to NWSL stars Erika Tymrak (MF, FC Kansas Metropolis), Keelin Winters (MF, Seattle Reign), Sarah Hagen (F, FC Kansas Metropolis), and Kealia Ohai (F, Houston Sprint).
Sonnett and Colaprico are faculty teammates of Brian and not too long ago led the Cavaliers to the nationwide title recreation. Ohai and Lavelle made names for themselves as members of the 2012 and 2014 U-20 World Cup groups, respectively. Lastly, Tymrak, Winters, and Hagen are all confirmed professionals who’ve obtained senior staff call-ups previously.
Pulling up a participant or two from the U-23 squad might have a giant payoff for Ellis. For the higher a part of two years, the U.S. has gave the impression to be in a funk and one has to marvel if an unaltered string of call-ups and a gradual rotation of enjoying time via squad rotation has made the present crop of gamers complacent. Mentioning some contemporary, hungry expertise might be the kick within the butt among the senior gamers want proper now.
What Formation Will the U.S. Play?
Since Ellis took over the staff in April, the U.S. has employed a 4-3-3 in each recreation besides its final match. Towards Brazil within the remaining of the Worldwide Match of Brasilia, the U.S. went again to a 4-4-2.
Nevertheless, it’s unclear whether or not this tactical change indicators the start of a everlasting swap again to the U.S.’s conventional formation or just was a a one-match maneuver. Towards Brazil, the U.S. was lacking strikers Alex Morgan, Sydney Leroux, and Christen Press, which can have prompted Ellis to ditch the three-front only for that recreation. Ellis might have additionally made the swap as a one-game tactic in an effort to bulk up the U.S.’s protection, which had conceded three objectives to Brazil within the group stage of the match solely days earlier.
The No. 10 Function
The opposite massive query headed into this camp and the February friendlies: Who will play the No. 10 position for the U.S.?
Ellis has to this point most well-liked both Megan Rapinoe or Abby Wambach—neither of whom has supplied definitive proof of their worth on the place. Rapinoe’s finest performances for the U.S. have at all times been when deployed broad and Wambach merely does not have the requisite ability set to be an efficient attacking midfielder in Ellis’ set-up. With Rapinoe or Wambach within the No. 10 position, the U.S. assault has usually been disjointed.
However, the staff has regarded good when it has partnered Vacation and Lloyd with Morgan Brian, however these events have been uncommon.
Along with Brian, Ellis’ different choices for a 3rd central midfielder—ought to the U.S. keep in a 4-3-3—embody Lengthy, Boxx, Tobin Heath, Lori Chalupny, Julie Johnston, Sam Mewis, and Kristie Mewis (Lengthy, Boxx, Chalupny, Johnston, and Kristie Mewis aren’t No. 10’s, however together with them within the beginning XI would enable Ellis to push Vacation or Lloyd into the attacking position).
The Battle at Exterior Again
The re-introduction of Chalupny onto the roster, whose appearances final month for the U.S. had been her first in 5 years, has additionally added a brand new dimension to the battle at exterior again.
Over the previous few months it appeared as if the 4 roster spots at exterior again had been basically set with Ali Krieger, Meghan Klingenberg, Crystal Dunn, and Kelley O’Hara the popular decisions. Nevertheless, not solely did Chalupny get referred to as in for final month’s match, she ended up beginning in three of 4 video games.
Now with Kristie Mewis again within the combine as effectively, issues might get very attention-grabbing. Each Mewis and Chalupny are naturally left-footed, however Klingenberg, Krieger, and O’Hara all have huge expertise on the left. One other issue more likely to be thought of is versatility, however all six gamers in competition at exterior again have performed professionally and internationally at a number of positions.
Krieger’s skill and expertise make her basically indispensable and Klingenberg’s performances in qualifying had been excellent. O’Hara and Chalupny have the expertise, whereas Dunn brings world-class pace. It must be enjoyable to see the way it all performs out.
John D. Halloran is an American Soccer Now columnist. Observe him on Twitter.
