Rose Lavelle is hoping to return to the field soon.
The 28-year-old midfielder has been sidelined with a lower leg injury since the Gold Cup in early march. Since then, she has yet to play for new club Gotham FC in the NWSL. She also missed a potential USWNT appearance at the SheBelieves Cup in April, where senior team newcomer Jaedyn Shaw saw success assuming Lavelle's role in the attacking midfield.
At the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee media showcase on Monday, Lavelle told reporters that she’s doing well and hopes to be back soon.
"I’m doing good — I’m hoping I’ll be back in the next couple weeks," Lavelle said. "It’s frustrating to start the year off with an injury, just because I feel like you come off preseason and you’re revving to go, so it’s so annoying."
Lavelle is still looking to compete for one of just 18 Olympic roster spots. When healthy, she ranks as one of the national team’s most trusted assets, but considering this most recent injury, her health is an obvious concern. Faced with an onslaught of experienced competitors and young talent, incoming USWNT coach Emma Hayes will have some big decisions to make when selecting the Paris-bound squad — a reality Lavelle seems to be taking in stride as she works to regain full fitness.
"We have so many special players, we have so much depth, and so many different weapons to utilize on and off the bench," Lavelle said. "Unfortunately that means really good players are going to get left off, too. And I think for all of us, it’s just about being ready for whatever role is given to us, embracing that, and looking to put it into a collective picture so that we can go into the Olympics ready to go."
The Portland Thorns are looking for a new head coach after a winless start to the NWSL season.
The organization has reassigned head coach Mike Norris to a newly created technical director position. Assistant coach Rob Gale is set to take over as interim head coach while the club conducts a "global search" for its next head coach.
Norris began his time at the club as an assistant coach before taking the reigns after former head coach Rhian Wilkinson abruptly resigned in 2022. Under Norris, the Thorns finished second in 2023's regular season standings, but suffered three losses in their last five games in a spell that saw them knocked out of the running for the NWSL Shield. They went on to lose their first playoff game in postseason play.
At the start of the 2024 season, the Thorns went winless through four games for the first time in club history.
"The results have not gone our way, and in a head coach position, the results do matter," Thorns GM Karina LeBlanc told The Athletic's Meg Linehan shortly after the Tuesday afternoon announcement. “But the results that we have, you can’t just pinpoint it on one position.”
Norris' reassignment marks the first major personnel decision made under the club’s new ownership. RAJ Sports' Lisa Bhathal Merage and Alex Bhathal, who also own the NBA's Sacramento Kings, bought the club in January from Merritt Paulson, who sold the Thorns amidst the fallout stemming from reports of misconduct within the NWSL.
Both the Bhathal family and the Thorns front office have been looking to make changes, and establishing a technical director topped the list. According to LeBlanc, Norris has what it takes to assume the position.
"Where can we grow? Where are the gaps? How do we move forward with being the standard that people are used to with the Thorns?" LeBlanc continued. "One of [Norris’] strengths is to analyze and process, then come down to communicate what needs to happen."
Despite the dismal start, a quick turnaround could certainly be in the cards for Portland. The club currently leads the league in shots and shots on goal, as does star forward and USWNT standout Sophia Smith.
"These changes will help us maximize our strengths as we continuously pursue championship-level success," LeBlanc said, voicing full support for the staffing shakeup.
The Portland Thorns continue to struggle to start the NWSL season, falling 2-0 to the North Carolina Courage over the weekend to remain winless through their first four games.
It’s uncharted territory for Portland, who has never started the NWSL regular season without a win in four games before.
Following the loss, defender Becky Sauerbrunn voiced her frustrations with the start.
“It’s hard to find a lot of encouraging things, but what I find encouraging is that people are frustrated,” she said. “People are pissed off that we’re not doing well. We care, and I think that’s really important.”
She also added that while the team will reflect individually, “there’s going to be no finger pointing.”
“We’re going to look at ourselves and figure out what we should have done, or I should have done better,” she said. “There is a list of things that I could have done better, and I’m going to make sure I know every single thing and watch this game back.”
The Thorns currently sit at the bottom of the league table with just one point, having allowed 10 goals – tied for the worst in the league. They’ve yet to lead in a match. And as questions grow, attention turns to head coach Mike Norris.
Norris is in his second year as head coach of the club after leading the team to a second-place finish in the regular season last year. When asked about the possibility of pressure growing after the unprecedented start, Norris said that the pressure has been there “from day one.”
“I cannot be driven by my day-to-day and the longer vision of the pressure of the job,” he said. “We’ve got a belief in how we want to play, how we operate. We’ve got to stick with the process of that. While we do it, we have to review and see what is working, what’s not working.
“I’ll be showing up for the team and being there for what they need from me as we approach getting back together as a group next week.”
Maria Sanchez, who signed one of the biggest deals in NWSL history just four months ago, has reportedly requested a trade from the Houston Dash.
ESPN was the first to report the news, which was confirmed by multiple sources.
In a statement to ESPN, the team said: “Maria Sanchez is under contract, a choice she made in free agency at the end of 2023."
In December, Sanchez signed a new three-year contract with the Dash worth $1.5 million including bonuses and an option year. At the time, it was the largest contract in NWSL history – something that was eclipsed by multiple contracts in the following months.
The winger was a restricted free agent in the offseason, meaning that Houston could match any offer from another team and retain her rights. Should the team trade Sanchez, her contract would remain as it has been signed with the league. That limits the number of teams that could take on her contract.
In three starts with the Dash this season, Sanchez has zero goals and an assist. The Dash are 1-2-1 through four games and have allowed a league-worst 10 goals.
The team hired a new coach, Fran Alonso, in December. Earlier this year, former goalkeeper coach Matt Lampson was fired for violating the league’s Coach Code of Conduct and Anti-Fraternization policy.
Both the NWSL trade window and transfer window close at midnight ET on Friday.
Members of the Oregon women’s soccer team are saying they received harsh treatment and even verbal abuse from head coach and former USWNT assistant Graeme Abel.
During the 2023 season, the team had zero wins, and upon its conclusion a total of 12 of the team’s 29 players departed the team. Former players told The Oregonian that Abel would verbally attack them, threaten to kick them off the team and at times would even throw objects.
"When I’d make a mistake at practice, it felt like he made it a job to embarrass you to the point where you just wanted to walk off the field,” one player said. “He’d stop the practice – and I know it’s college soccer, it’s very competitive — but he’d stop practice and just keep going nonstop on this one thing."
In total, the Oregonian spoke with 14 former players – including 12 who agreed to be interviewed in depth. All said that they experienced verbal abuse. Six of the players were among those who transferred following the season.
One instance of Abel’s tirades included him throwing a water bottle that narrowly missed players’ heads.
“He kicked all of our staff out of the locker room, kicked a trash can, threw a white board, sat on the trash can and started screaming,” one player recounted. “He wanted us to tell him what we thought went wrong in the game. Me and another player spoke up, and he said, ‘You’re just (expletive) wrong.’ And that if we didn’t want to be in this program, we could all quit, and he’d sign our release paperwork tomorrow.”
While Abel was not made available for an interview, he did say in a statement that “at no point have I used threatening statements or financial repercussions as a part of coaching.”
Instances of emotional distress stemming from Abel’s alleged harsh treatment date back to 2021 – his first full year leading the team following an abbreviated 2020 campaign.
One former player contacted by The Oregonian detailed positive overall experiences, and described his style as “normal coaching.”
Others, like USWNT players Becky Sauerbrunn and Lindsey Horan, did not respond to requests for comment, although Sauerbrunn wrote in 2019 that she had a “great relationship” with Abel.
Still, multiple players interviewed had similar stories, with one saying that girls would be “crying in the locker room” after practice because of what he would tell players. Attempts to speak with the administration about his behavior, players say, was “discouraging.”
“His office is like the scariest place,” one player said. “You’d have to sit there while he’d belittle you and say all these nasty things, and gaslight you into believing you’re not good enough. ... Our team fell apart because of the environment he created. We were just trying to get through the day. There was no way we could focus on soccer.”
Multiple players said they experienced suicidal ideation while playing at Oregon. In part of his statement, Abel wrote that “at no time do we put our student-athletes in any danger.”
Abel is currently in his fifth and final year of his contract at Oregon.
Gotham FC has unveiled their 2023 NWSL championship rings — and safe to say, they deliver.
The reveal has led to a little bit of trash talk ahead of the team’s matchup with Kansas City this weekend, as both teams have NFL owners. While the Current are co-owned by Patrick and Brittany Mahomes, former Giants quarterback Eli Manning is a co-owner of Gotham.
On Wednesday, Manning took to Sportscenter to give Mahomes a bit of a hard time.
NWSL owners @EliManning and @PatrickMahomes are talking trash ahead of Gotham FC-KC Current this weekend 🍿
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 10, 2024
"He may have one more Super Bowl ring than me, but he does not have a NWSL championship ring like I do." 😂 pic.twitter.com/ZkLFs3SUSL
“He may have one more Super Bowl ring than me, but he does not have a NWSL championship ring like I do,” Manning joked.
“Come Sunday night at Red Bull Arena, April 14th, we’re dropping the banner on Kansas City. We got the ring ceremony, the players get their rings and their championship afterwards. This is it, I’ve got something to talk a little trash to him about because I can’t do it about football anymore, I gotta find something else.”
The appearance came after Manning posted to social media, inviting Mahomes to “come see [the championship ring] up close this Sunday.”
We’ll see yall Sunday! 😎 #KCBABY @thekccurrent https://t.co/LNIKai3rgI
— Patrick Mahomes II (@PatrickMahomes) April 10, 2024
Mahomes responded in kind, writing that “we’ll see y’all Sunday!”
Gotham takes on current league-leaders Kansas City on Sunday at 6pm ET. The game is available on NWSL+.
Chelsea is closing in on Emma Hayes’ replacement, reportedly having reached an agreement with Sonia Bompastor to succeed their longtime coach.
According to the Telegraph, Chelsea and Olympique Lyonnais have agreed on a deal for Bompastor, who will take over Chelsea upon the conclusion of the season.
Personal terms with Bompastor had already been agreed to, but compensation between the two teams still had to be figured out in order to release the coach from her contract a year early.
Following Bompastor will be assistant coach Camille Abily. Bompastor takes over having won two Champions League titles as a player at Lyon, and one as coach during the 2021-22 campaign. The club also has won two straight league titles under Bompastor.
The French coach has reportedly been Chelsea’s number one target when looking to replace Hayes. Hayes will depart Chelsea at the end of the season to take the helm of the U.S. women’s national team (USWNT).
Hayes leaves big shoes to fill. Since taking charge in 2012, she’s led the team to six WSL titles and five FA Cups. The only trophy that eludes Hayes is the Champions League – which she still has hopes to win this year.
They face Barcelona in the semifinals of the Champions League beginning on April 20. Should they advance, they could face Bompastor and Lyon in the final.
Angel City's Christen Press has given an update on her continued rehabilitation from an ACL tear.
On Wednesday, Press posted pictures of her training alongside the caption, “The comeback is coming along. The only promise I'll make to you is that I'll try. And what a beautiful, giving thing it is to try.”
Earlier this week, Angel City coach Becki Tweed gave an update on Press, noting that “rehab is going well.”
“She’s progressing along,” she said in an update given on Press as well as M.A. Vignola and Gisele Thompson. “No real timelines on any of them, but they’re all progressing with their rehab and getting what they need right now.”
Press has not played since June of 2022, when she tore her ACL in a match with Angel City. Since then, she’s had four separate surgeries to repair the tear, setting back her recovery.
A couple of weeks ago, Tweed said that Press is back training with the team “full time” while continuing to work at her rehab.
“I have a bit of relentless optimism,” she told The Athletic in February. “I never, ever doubted that I would make it back on any of the timelines I’ve been on."
Alyssa Naeher found herself in a familiar position against Canada on Tuesday – and once again came away victorious.
For the second time in just 34 days, Canada and the USWNT went to a penalty shootout. And Naeher went on an incredible run of form once again – stopping three shots – to give the USWNT the SheBelieves Cup win.
In addition to her key saves, Naeher also stepped up and drilled a penalty herself. It was reminiscent of her efforts against Canada in March – when she also saved three shots and converted an attempt of her own.
We have Alyssa Naeher. pic.twitter.com/uHDfVwY2NZ
— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) April 10, 2024
“Alyssa is just so even keeled. She is someone that shows no emotion,” forward Alex Morgan said. “I know there are nerves under [there] somewhere, but she is never going to show them and she’s just someone that continues to show up in big moments.”
Her recent success in penalty shootouts comes after the USWNT’s dramatic exit from the 2023 World Cup, with Naeher both saving and making penalties before the team was eliminated by a millimeter on the decisive penalty against Sweden.
Naeher has since said she still believes she saved that shot. Irregardless, she’s been a difference maker in shootouts ever since.
"There's certainly a lot of mind games when you come into the penalty shootout, on both sides," Naeher said. "There's a lot of familiarity [with Canada] that makes it hard and also really fun to compete on the field."
Interim head coach Twila Kilgore called Naeher’s performance “incredible.”
“Is it not incredible?” Kilgore said. “I mean, nerves of steel.”