This post was originally going to be centered around fitness updates on a few players, but stop the presses… Ajax midfielder Lily Yohannes, who does not turn eighteen until next June, has chosen to represent the United States.
In not-so-good news, Portland Thorns head coach Rob Gale made some comments regarding Sophia Smith’s recent ankle injury that raises the question of whether she should be called up for the USWNT’s upcoming European friendlies against England and the Netherlands.
Meanwhile, two Olympic gold medalists who were left off of the USWNT’s roster for its trio of October friendlies due to injury issues played full matches over the weekend: Gotham FC center-back Tierna Davidson returned for her first match in almost a month, while forward Trinity Rodman played the full 120 minutes in the Washington Spirit’s extra-time victory over Bay FC.
“Lily Yohannes chooses America”
On Monday, 17-year-old midfielder Lily Yohannes announced via an Instagram post (embedded below) that she has “decided to commit to represent… the United States” rather than the Netherlands, where she has lived for the past seven years. The news was also announced by her current club, Ajax, with a headline that translates to “Lily Yohannes chooses America” (ajax.nl).
The 5’8″ Yohannes was called into her first USWNT camp back in March, for the 2024 SheBelieves Cup, but did not play in that two-match tournament. Yohannes was called up again for Emma Hayes’s first matches as USWNT head coach and debuted in the second friendly against the Korea Republic as a substitute. Yohannes scored the USA’s third goal of that match (U.S. Soccer match recap), earning herself membership in the USWNT’s first goal in first cap club (bsky.app).
At Ajax, Yohannes is in the middle of her second season with the senior team, for whom she has 40 appearances and seven goals (ajax.nl).
Yohannes has a 2007 birth year and would be eligible for the 2026 FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup.
The USWNT’s next friendlies are against England and, coincidentally, the Netherlands, so Yohannes could be called up for those matches.
Yohannes, who was born in Virginia and spent her first ten years in the States, has started the process of acquiring Dutch citizenship, but does not yet have a Dutch passport, so she would not yet officially eligible for the Netherlands.
Further Reading:
- The Athletic: “Who is Lily Yohannes? The 16-year-old USWNT goal-scorer breaking through at Ajax” by Tamerra Griffin (3-April-2024)
Sophia Smith: Ankle injury update from Thorns head coach Rob Gale
In a post-game interview following their 1:2 quarterfinal loss to Gotham FC during the quarterfinal, Portland Thorns head coach Rob Gale had some concerning quotes regarding Sophia Smith and her ankle injury:
- “Soph was probably only scheduled to play 45 minutes medically”
- “ankle with chronic fatigue since the Olympics”
- “She’s barely been able to train”
Source: x.com video posted by Adam Susman (10-Nov-2024).
Smith played almost the entire match, but left the field in the 13th minute of second-half added time due to an issue with her right ankle. Smith went down in the 100th minute (about 99:37 according to the ABC/ESPN+ broadcast), but play continued for about a minute or so. Smith’s right ankle and foot were inspected by medical staff, then she was helped off the field while visible limping. On the ESPN+ replay, the incident begins at about the 02:02:05 mark. (Note: The NWSL’s page for the match incorrectly lists Smith as being subbed out in the 90th minute.)
Background
The situation surrounding Smith’s injury is not exactly clear, but her most recent injury troubles happened during Portland’s Concacaf W Champions Cup match at the San Diego Wave, where an “ankle injury… resurfaced”, according to a quote from Thorns assistant coach Sarah Lowden (Pro Soccer Wire). In that match, Smith was replaced at half-time when Thorns only had a 1-nil lead, thanks to a 25th minute goal from Smith. The Wave would go on to win the match 3:2 via a hat-trick from María Sánchez. (Concacaf match details)
About ten days later, a Thorns spokesperson apparently stated that the ankle injury was a “flare up of the same injury Smith battled post-2023 [Women’s] World Cup” (paraphrase by Taylor Vincent, via x.com post). However, the only confirmed injury for Smith in the second half of 2023 was a scary knee injury that luckily only turned out to be a mild MCL sprain (CBS Sports). It is possible that the spokeperson misspoke and meant to say post-Olympics, but, after given the first match back off, Smith started her next three matches, playing the full 90 in the last two. (NWSL game log)
After the Concacaf match against the Wave, Smith subsequently missed Portland’s next three NWSL matches and returned to play in Portland’s last match before the international break, appearing as a substitute for about 30 minutes. Smith was called up for the USWNT’s trio of friendlies, where she appeared as a substitute in both of the matches against Iceland (U.S. Soccer recaps: October 24th, October 27th) but did not feature in the Argentina friendly (U.S. Soccer recap).
Smith has had issues with her right ankle in the past, most notably as a freshman at Stanford. In October 2018, Smith was sidelined for nine months due to a broken right ankle caused by a defender’s poor tackle (The Coloradoan article; Pac-12 highlight video with the injury incident). Also, during the 2024 Summer Olympics, Smith exited the USA’s opening match against Zambia due to a right ankle injury (Sporting News), but returned to start in the next group stage match, versus Germany, against whom she scored twice.
Thoughts
If Sophia Smith is not fully match fit, then it was irresponsible to have her play the full match against Gotham. Also, Gale’s comments raises the question of whether Smith should have even been called up for the USWNT’s October friendlies.
Without additional clarification regarding the extent of Smith’s ankle issues, I would be against calling her up for the USWNT’s European friendlies against England and the Netherlands, as extended recuperation appears to be warranted.
Tierna Davidson played her first NWSL match since October 12th
Davidson, who was left off of the USWNT’s roster for their October friendlies due to a “hamstring strain”, started Gotham FC’s quarterfinal against the Thorns. This was her first match in almost a month, as her last appearance came on October 12th against the Chicago Red Stars. (NWSL game log)
Not only did Davidson play the full 90 in the quarterfinal, she also scored Gotham’s opening goal.
Trinity Rodman played the full 120 in the Spirit’s extra time victory over Bay FC
Trinity Rodman, who exited the Washington Spirit’s September 20th match against the Kansas City Current due to an “intense back spasm” (AP) and subsequently missed the next two matches, started her second straight match last weekend and went the full 120 of the extra-time match.
For the last match of the regular season, Rodman started and played 74 minutes. (NWSL game log)
Rodman appeared as a substitute in the Spirit’s two matches prior to the October international break, but was not named to the USWNT’s roster so that she could continue recuperating her back injury.
Women's Soccer Express 