The halfway point of the FAWSL season is approaching, and while the players are away on international duty, coaching staffs are working on their plans for the second half of the season.

Each club has its own goals for the season, whether it is winning the league or simply avoiding relegation. For a team just promoted from the FA Women’s Championship, there are typically two objectives for their first season in the FAWSL: number one, don’t get relegated. Number two, build a team with a strong foundation—so you don’t get relegated in the years to come.

A tough challenge for any coach, but even more so for Gemma Davies, the FAWSL’s youngest manager. Aston Villa steamrolled the Championship last season with Davies at the helm, winning 13 matches and drawing one during their 14 game season, and finishing six points ahead of second-placed Sheffield United. Watching Villa dominate last season made it easy to forget how much the club once struggled, a testament to the work that Davies has done since she joined the club back in 2018.

Truly privileged to be the new Head Coach @AVLFCOfficial ... I am unbelievingly excited to get started and join up with the team! #PartOfThePride https://t.co/KGIRIbuK21

— Gem Davies (@GemDav6) June 19, 2018

The FAWSL is proving to be a new challenge for Davies and the team; they currently sit in 10th place with three points, having registered one win and four losses. The good news is that they are not in the relegation zone, nor are they in eleventh, just above relegation. Their one win against Brighton Hove & Albion back in early November has secured their spot above both Bristol City and Tottenham Hotspur. Furthermore, Villa have played one less game than Bristol City and two less than Tottenham, putting Villa in a position where they have the advantage.

Outside of the league, Villa have made positive strides in the Conti Cup, having topped their group after beating Durham 4-2 on penalties after a 1-1 draw. They advanced to the knockout rounds, which will see the top eight teams compete for the cup.

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— Aston Villa Women (@AVWFCOfficial) November 19, 2020

The season is a marathon, not a sprint, but Villa’s upcoming four matches in the league may make or break their season. First, they host league leaders, Manchester United, and while Villa goes into the game as massive underdogs, their mentality regarding the match is vital.

Back in 2018, the same fixture occurred, with United beating Villa 12-0. Both teams were still in the Championship back then, and it was one of Davies’ first matches in charge of Aston Villa. The match was the biggest away win of the season and the highest-scoring match of the season for United.

FT: Aston Villa 0 #MUWomen12

United secure their first 3 points of the season with an outstanding victory to kick off the campaign in style. Goals from @jessSigsworth5 (5), @laurenjamess22 (2), @KirstyHanson3 (2), @katiezel, @mollie_green97 and @ellatoone99! #MUWomen pic.twitter.com/AfFPoDI1MZ

— Manchester United Women (@ManUtdWomen) September 9, 2018

That blowout is now considered a turning point in the recent history of Aston Villa. Davies herself said it was a “stark awakening” which shaped how she approached managing the team. Davies now has a chance to show her growth, with the same fixture two years on from that twelve-goal defeat.

After United, Villa takes on Bristol City and Tottehnham Hotspur in the league. These two matches are of critical importance given that both teams are below Villa in the table; this is an opportunity for Villa to pull further away from the relegation zone. Both their opponents are in poor form, and while it is important that Villa doesn’t get complacent, the team should go into both matches with confidence.

Villa’s fourth match in December will be against West Ham. At the time of writing, West Ham are one point ahead of Villa in the table. This is yet another opportunity for Villa to gain some more points.

Currently, West Ham have lost four of their last five, and they’ve just lost Matt Beard as head coach, who left the club by mutual consent. It remains to be seen as to whether West Ham will have hired a new permanent head coach by then, but even if they do, it takes time for a team to gel under a new manager. The Villa players will have the upper hand in large part because they know their manager’s system so well.

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— Aston Villa Women (@AVWFCOfficial) November 22, 2020

It’s always fascinating to see how promoted teams do in their first season in the top flight. By simply looking at the league table, it would seem like Aston Villa is massively struggling. But the Villans have a string of winnable games, and if those go their way, then Gemma Davies and her team are on their way to becoming a steady presence in the FAWSL.

USWNT stalwart Alex Morgan will miss at least one week of NWSL action after suffering a left ankle knock in her last club appearance, Wave manager Casey Stoney said on Thursday.

Morgan was helped off the field after rolling her ankle in the later stages of the Wave’s 1-0 loss to the Orlando Pride last weekend, despite the San Diego side being out of available substitutes.

“She's got an ankle injury and she's out for this weekend, and then it'll be week by week from there,” Stoney said, confirming that Morgan’s been ruled out for Saturday’s showdown with NWSL newcomer Bay FC.

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Depending on its severity, Morgan’s ankle issue might have larger ramifications than missing a few weeks of NSWL play. Morgan was added to the team's Gold Cup roster after an ACL injury sidelined young striker Mia Fishel, and she's since made a number of USWNT starts in the team's Gold Cup and SheBelieves wins. A long-term injury could potentially derail the center forward’s Olympic plans.

With her return timeline uncertain, it's possible the injury could also impact Morgan's ability to participate in new head coach Emma Hayes' first U.S. friendlies in June and July.

Morgan's injury concerns aren't uncommon in the U.S. player pool, but add a sense of urgency as Hayes eyes the NWSL for top-performing players in the upcoming weeks. Gotham's Tierna Davidson and Rose Lavelle have also been dealing with injuries: Lavelle has yet to appear for Gotham, while Davidson exited last weekend's match early with a hamstring injury.

Gotham has yet to issue an update concerning Davidson's status.

This week, legendary Brazilian superstar Marta announced that she’ll retire from the national team at the end of 2024.

In an interview with CNN Esportes published Thursday, the iconic footballer confirmed that she would be hanging up her boots regardless of whether or not she ends up making Brazil's 18-player roster for the 2024 Paris Olympics. 

“If I go to the Olympics, I will enjoy every moment, because regardless of whether I go to the Olympics or not, this is my last year with the national team,” she said. “There is no longer Marta in the national team as an athlete from 2025 onwards.”

Marta will retire as a giant of the women's game, having appeared in five Olympics and multiple World Cups. When discussing her retirement, she stressed confidence in the rising generation of Brazilian players, noting that she was, “very calm about this, because I see with great optimism this development that we are having in relation to young athletes." 

The statement echoes back to a plea she made during the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup after Brazil lost to France 2-1 in the Round of 16. “It's wanting more. It's training more. It's taking care of yourself more. It's being ready to play 90 plus 30 minutes. This is what I ask of the girls,” she said then, addressing the young players following in her footsteps. 

In 2023, she signaled a farewell to World Cup competition with the same sentiment, telling media, “We ask the new generation to continue where we left off.”

If selected for the 2024 Olympic team, Marta has a shot at extending her own consecutive-scoring record with the ability to score in an unbelievable sixth-straight Olympic Games. She currently stands as Brazil’s top goalscorer, racking up 116 career goals in 175 matches, as well as the leading goalscorer in any World Cup, women’s or men’s, with 17 to her name. 

Marta will continue to play for the NWSL’s Orlando Pride through at least the end of 2024. The longtime forward and club captain has already contributed to multiple goals this season.

U.S. Soccer announced Tuesday that the USWNT will play their last home game on July 16th in the lead-up to the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris.

The 2024 Send-Off Match against Costa Rica will take place at Washington, DC’s Audi Field — home to both the Washington Spirit and DC United — at 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 16th. The friendly rounds out a four-game Olympic run-up campaign under incoming head coach Emma Hayes’ side, with the last two set to feature the finalized 2024 U.S. Olympic Women’s Soccer Team roster.

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Hayes will appear on the USWNT sideline for the first time this June, helming the team as they embark on a two-game series against Korea Republic hosted by Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado on June 1st followed by Allianz Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota on June 4th. 

The team is then scheduled to meet a talented Mexico squad on July 13th at Gotham FC’s Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, where the Olympic-bound lineup will attempt to rewrite February’s shocking 2-0 loss to El Tri Femenil in the group stages of this year’s Concacaf W Gold Cup. And while clear roster favorites have emerged from both of this year’s Gold Cup and SheBelives Cup rosters, a spate of recent and recurring injuries means making it to the Olympics is still largely anyone’s game.

Broadcast and streaming channels for the USWNT's final July 16th friendly at Audi Field include TNT, truTV, Universo, Max, and Peacock.

The USA Basketball Women's National Team is still considering Caitlin Clark for a spot on the Paris Olympics squad, says selection committee chair Jennifer Rizzotti. 

On Monday, Rizzotti told the AP that the committee will be evaluating the college phenom’s Olympic prospects by keeping a close eye on her first few weeks of WNBA play with Indiana.

The move is somewhat unconventional. While Clark was invited to participate in the 14-player national team training camp held earlier this month — the last camp before Team USA’s roster drops — she was unable to attend due to it coinciding with Iowa’s trip to the NCAA Women’s Final Four.

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Judging by the immense talent spread throughout the league in what might be their most hyped season to date, competition for a piece of the Olympic pie could be fiercer than ever before.

"You always want to introduce new players into the pool whether it's for now or the future," said Rizzotti. "We stick to our principles of talent, obviously, positional fit, loyalty and experience. It's got to be a combination of an entire body of work. It's still not going to be fair to some people."

Of course, Clark isn’t the first rookie the committee has made exceptions for. Coming off an exceptional college season that saw her averaging 19.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 4 assists per game for UConn, Breanna Stewart was tapped to represent the U.S. at the 2016 Olympics in Brazil less than two weeks after being drafted No. 1 overall by the Seattle Storm. Eight years prior, fellow No. 1 pick Candace Parker punched her ticket to the 2008 Games in Beijing just two weeks after making her first appearance for the L.A. Sparks.

In the lead-up to Paris’ Opening Ceremony on July 26th, USA Basketball Women’s National Team is scheduled to play a pair of exhibition games. They'll first go up against the WNBA's finest at the July 20th WNBA All-Star Game in Phoenix before facing Germany in London on July 23rd.

While an official roster announcement date hasn’t yet been issued, players won’t find out if they’ve made this year’s Olympic cut until at least June 1st.