USWNT: Argentina’s Roster for the October 2024 Friendly, with Stats — Three Changes Since Original Announcement

On Wednesday, October 30th, the United States Women’s National Team will play a much younger Argentina from the squad the USA faced earlier this year in the 2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup. Of the 20 players originally selected by head coach Germán Portanova for this camp, only 13 were on Argentina’s 22-player Gold Cup roster. However, due to injuries, three players had to withdraw. Two of those players were replaced, while the third, midfielder Romina Núñez was a late scratch, so Argentina will only have 19 players available for the friendly.

With the withdrawals, Just 10 players return from the Concacaf W Gold Cup and only four of those players were starters in Argentina’s nil-4 loss to the USWNT.

The median age of Argentina’s roster for this friendly is only 22.60 years, a full four-year difference compared to their W Gold Cup roster, which had a median of 26.74 years. For this roster, just eight players were born before the year 2000, while the remaining 11, who were all born in 2002 or later, includes four players who recently competed in this year’s FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup. Among those is Boca Juniors forward Kishi Núñez, who had a brace against the tournament’s champions, Korea DPR (FIFA highlights) and also scored via a low, long chip from halfway between the center circle and the “D” for the game-winner against Costa Rica (FIFA highlights).

Four of the players called up are based in the United States, including Kansas City Current midfielder Sophia Braun, who is currently on loan to the USL Super League’s Spokane Zephyr and played collegiate soccer for Spokane’s Gonzaga University (player profile). The other three USA-based players are currently on NCAA Division I teams: Defenders Anela Nigito and Catalina Roggerone, who play for Cal State Bakersfield, plus forward Chiara Singarella, who plays for Purdue after single seasons at South Alabama and Kennesaw State. All three collegiate players hail from Argentina, while Braun was born and raised in Oregon.

Three players are uncapped: 27-year-old goalkeeper Abigaíl Chaves, who was a back-up goalkeeper on Argentina’s 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup roster; Cal State Bakersfield defender Anela Nigito, who has been in previous senior Argentina WNT camps, and midfielder Margarita Giménez, who is attending her first senior WNT camp for Argentina.

(Note: Caps and goals numbers are sourced from an Argentine Football Association press release and may include appearances and goals scored at the Pan-American Games, which would not be considered full international matches under FIFA’s standards.)

Thirteen players in this camp have a dozen or less senior international caps.

Only one of the players on the roster has more than 50 caps for Argentina: Center-back Aldana “Aldi” Cometti, who has 85 appearances for Argentina and currently plays for Madrid CFF in Spain. Cometti has eight goals for Argentina, which places her second on the roster in that category, behind Santos forward Yamila Rodríguez, who has 11 goals in 48 caps. Only four other players have scored senior goals for Argentina, including Sophia Braun, who has a WWC goal on her résumé (FOX Sports video on YouTube).

The youngest player on the roster is 17-year-old outside-back Milagros Martín, who signed her first professional contract before turning 16 (Platense news item) and has nine senior international caps for Argentina.

In addition to Romina Núñez, the other two players originally named to this roster are defender Marina Delgado of Newell’s Old Boys, who suffered an ACL tear (Newell’s Feminino on x.com) and Boca Juniors outside-back Celeste Dos Santos, who apparently picked up some sort of knock before the international window and is being given time to recuperate (Instagram). Two replacements were called up: Forward Carolina Troncoso for Dos Santos and midfielder Sofía Domínguez for Delgado. No replacement was named after the withdrawal of Romina Núñez.

Argentina’s Roster, By Position

Bolded players were additions to the original roster. Hyperlinked club names go to the player’s club profile or NCAA team profile.

Goalkeepers (2):

Defenders (5):

Midfielders (6):

*Also listed as defenders on Argentina’s updated roster release

Forwards (6):

Withdrawn (3):

  • Delgado, Marina (Newell’s Old Boys, ARG) — ACL tear; replaced by Sofía Domínguez
  • Dos Santos, Celeste (Boca Juniors, ARG) — unspecified issue; replaced by Carolina Troncoso
  • Núñez, Romina (Belgrano, ARG) — unspecified knee injury; not replaced

Table: Player Details and International Statistics

S#  PLAYER                  P.     HT.   D.O.B.      AGE    CAPS   G  DEBUT
12  Chaves, Abigaíl         GK     5'9"  07/11/1997  27.30     0   -   n/a
 1  Pereyra, Solana         GK     5'9"  04/05/1999  25.57    12   -  2019
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 6  Cometti, Aldana         DF     5'6"  03/03/1996  28.66    85   8  2023
 3  Martín, Milagros        DF     5'1"  04/26/2007  17.51     9   0  2023
 4  Nigito, Anela           DF     5'7"  06/22/2004  20.36     0   -   n/a
14  Roggerone, Catalina     DF     5'4"  04/04/2003  21.57     4   0  2022
 2  Sachs, Adriana María    DF     5'4"  11/25/1993  30.93    43   0  2014
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
13  Braun, Sophia           MF/DF  5'7"  01/26/2002  22.76    34   2  2021
16  Domínguez, Sofía        MF/DF  5'3"  12/16/2005  18.87     4   0  2024
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 8  Giménez, Margarita      MF     5'8"  11/01/2004  19.99     0   -   n/a
10  Ippolito, Dalila        MF     5'2"  03/24/2002  22.60    27   1  2017
15  Pereyra, Maricel        MF     5'1"  05/22/2002  22.44    19   3  2021
 5  Preininger, Vanina      MF     5'5"  09/26/1996  28.09    12   0  2021
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
19  Holzheier, Agostina     FW     5'3"  09/30/2003  21.08     9   0  2021
 9  Núñez, Kishi            FW     5'5"  05/17/2006  18.46     2   0  2024
11  Rodríguez, Yamila       FW     5'4"  01/24/1998  26.77    48  11  2018
20  Singarella, Chiara      FW     5'5"  12/05/2003  20.90     6   1  2022
17  Szymanowski, Marianela  FW     5'3"  07/31/1990  34.25     6   0  2014
18  Troncoso, Carolina      FW     5'2"  01/28/1991  33.75     3   0  2021
-------- WITHDRAWN --------------------------------------------------------
 7  Núñez, Romina           MF     5'2"  01/01/1994  30.83

Key:

  • S# = Shirt Number
  • P. = Listed Position
  • HT. = Height in inches
  • D.O.B. = Date of Birth
  • Age = Player’s age, calculated as of day of the friendly (October 30, 2024).
  • Caps = Senior international appearances for Argentina
  • G = Senior international goals for Argentina
  • Debut = first senior appearance for Argentina

Sources: Shirt numbers, positions, dates of birth (except for Preininger), caps, goals, and debuts are from the AFA’s updated roster release. Heights are primarily from official FIFA squad lists. For some players, their heights were sourced from club profiles or NCAA team profiles. Preininger’s date of birth was wrong in the updated roster release (listed date was the same date as Solana Pereya’s).

Roster Links:

Last Time Out

As noted above, the USWNT and Argentina met during the Concacaf W Gold Cup. The USA won the match 4-nil on a brace from Jaedyn Shaw, a goal from Alex Morgan, and a converted penalty by Lindsey Horan.

2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup (Group Stage)

  • Date: February 23, 2024
  • Result: 4-nil win for USA
  • Match Recap: U.S. Soccer
  • Returning Starters: 4
  • Returning Substitutes: 2
  • Returning Unused Substitutes: 4

Bolded players are on the roster for the October 2024 friendly.

Argentina’s Line-Up:  12-Laurina Oliveros; 4-Julieta Cruz (18-Celeste Dos Santos, 84), 13-Sophia Braun, 14-Miriam Mayorga (Capt.) (Ejected, 75), 3-Eliana Stabile; 6-Aldana Cometti, 5-Vanina Preininger, 17-Camila Gomez Ares (8-Daiana Falfan, 84), 7-Romina Nuñez; 19-Mariana Larroquette (15-Maricel Pereyra, 84), 11-Yamila Rodriguez (9-Estefania Palomar, 37) (2-Adriana Sachs, 84)
Substitutes not used: 1-Vanina Correa, 10-Dalila Ippolito, 16-Marianela Szymanowski, 20-Chiara Singarella, 21-Catalina Roggerone, 22-Nina Nicosia  

Bonus: 2023 Pan-American Games

For last year’s Pan-American Games in Chile, the U-19 USWYNT (which had no collegiate players), faced a mostly older Argentina squad twice. First, during the group stage (U.S. Soccer recap) and then in the bronze medal match (U.S. Soccer recap). The USA won both matches, 4-nil and 2-nil, respectively.

Six players on this current roster were also on Argentina’s Pan-Am roster. Aldana Cometti, Maricel Pereyra, Sophia Braun, and Agostina Holzheier started both matches for Argentina. In the bronze medal match, Adriana Sachs and Milagros Martins also started. Martins, at 16, was the only teenager on the squad. All other players were over the age of 21. (Argentina’s 2023 Pan-Am Games roster, via Wikipedia).