The youth contingent of the U.S. women’s national team is having its moment.

Both Jaedyn Shaw, 18, and Mia Fishel, 22, scored their first international goals in Sunday’s 3-0 win against Colombia. Meanwhile, players such as Alyssa Thompson, 18, and Naomi Girma, 23, have established themselves as mainstays for the national team.

And while interim head coach Twila Kilgore has preached patience while integrating younger players into the U.S. system, that doesn’t mean the coaches are not impressed with what they’ve seen.

“We’re really, really pleased with both of them,” Kilgore said of Fishel and Shaw. “We’ve introduced them to the environment with little pressure. They’ve been dressed, had an opportunity to learn specific things and then got their first caps and then got extended point in time and made the most of it. We’re really, really pleased with how they’ve seized those opportunities.”

Both players entered the game at halftime as substitutes for Sophia Smith and Alex Morgan, and they established an easy connection in just their second career appearances for the USWNT.

“We never played together before. Since our first camp, we came in kind of together,” Fishel said. “She was my buddy from day one. Off the field just an amazing person. I think it showed on the field our connection off the field.”

Fishel scored the first goal of the match for the USWNT, and Shaw iced the win with her goal off an assist from Thompson. Shaw’s goal coming at at San Diego’s Snapdragon Stadium made it even more special for the Wave forward.

“It’s hard to believe that it even happened,” she said. “I saw Alyssa get the ball, I took off and she played the best ball ever. I did what I could to tap it in. I’m so so happy to have it here in San Diego and I’m so honored to be here.”

The patience shown by Shaw and Fishel as they acclimate to the national team environment has also been impressive, Kilgore said. She also noted that they are both “really solid” and “very talented” players.

“Whether you’re a young player of you’re a veteran player, the key is that you never know if you’re gonna get invited back,” Kilgore continued. “You have to compete daily for the minutes that you get. … You’ve got to be able to show that you can play at the international level and that your quality translates to this.

“Today was a really, really good day for them in terms of proving that they can execute. … Nothing’s promised to anybody. And I think that the path that we took with them proved that it’s good to take things slow and their futures are very bright.”

Girma, who already has become a staple on the USWNT backline, also was impressed by Shaw, she said after Sunday’s victory.

“I’m so happy for her. Only her second cap and getting a goal,” Girma said. “Just being so confident on the ball and really impacting the game in a positive way when she came in. It’s so impressive and she’s so young so I think the future’s so bright for her.”

Mia Fishel scored her first international goal Sunday for the U.S. women’s national team — with some help from veteran forward Alex Morgan.

While Morgan wasn’t in the game at the time of Fishel’s header in the 56th minute, she did give Fishel “a few pointers” that helped her score the goal, Fishel said after the USWNT’s 3-0 win against Colombia.

Morgan, 34, played the first half of the match at San Diego’s Snapdragon Stadium. Fishel, 22, replaced her at halftime as a substitute, and opened the scoring for the USWNT just over 10 minutes later.

“I was watching Alex Morgan, her movement, the space that was in front of her, the spaces behind,” Fishel said. “At halftime, she came up to me and gave me a few pointers and it made a difference. It made me score a goal, just sitting in the right spot.”

As for the goal itself, which came in Fishel’s hometown of San Diego, she said it was “a dream.”

“Oh my god. It was a dream,” she said. “I mean, every little girl dreams of being on this team to be here and to be able to score with my family and friends in the stands, it’s just amazing.”

Both Fishel and Jaedyn Shaw got on the board with their first international goals, and interim USWNT head coach Twila Kilgore said the coaching staff is “really pleased” with how the two young players have stepped up.

“We’ve introduced them to the environment with little pressure,” she said. “They’ve been dressed, had an opportunity to learn specific things and then got their first caps and then got extended point in time and made the most of it. We’re really, really pleased with how they’ve seized those opportunities.”

As for Fishel, Kilgore praised her for doing “a really good job” of settling the ball back to goal.

“Obviously, scoring a goal is a big thing and something that we talked about across the whole team,” she said.

Mia Fishel’s first two appearances with the U.S. women’s national team have left more questions than answers when it comes to why she was not called up sooner.

The 22-year-old forward scored in her Women’s Super League debut with Chelsea, and she scored her first international goal in just her second appearance for the USWNT. That shouldn’t come as a surprise to those who have been watching her in recent years. Fishel is a bonafide scorer, having led Liga MX during her time with Tigres.

And with each game Fishel plays, she’s proving former USWNT coach Vlatko Andonovski wrong for not giving her a shot at the national team ahead of the 2023 World Cup. While Andonovski praised her as a “very good young player” and called her into camp in October 2020, he did not call her into any other USWNT camps over the next three years.

“Right now, after looking at everything, we decided the forwards that we have in camp are going to give us the best chance to be successful,” he said in January.

So Fishel continued to wait in the wings, finally getting called up to the national team in September – after Andonvoski’s resignation. And U.S. Soccer is still facing questions about her hiatus.

One such question came after Sunday’s 3-0 win against Colombia, with a reporter noting Fishel’s level of play over the last several years and asking “what took so long” for the national team to bring her into the fold. In response, USWNT staffer Aaron Heifetz noted that Fishel “wasn’t playing at this level, because she was playing with Tigres and not at the national level.”

Interim head coach Twila Kilgore paused, then followed up Heifetz’s statement, saying she believes Fishel “benefited” from her time with the Liga MX club.

“I know we were watching Mia with Tigres, and she did a great job with them,” Kilgore said. “We also had some other talented forwards in the mix and it wasn’t the right time for the coaching staff at the time to bring her in. I think that she’s benefited a lot from her time at Tigres.”

Kilgore, who has known Fishel “since she was a very young player,” noted that she developed her tactical skills while in Liga MX. And now she’s adding another element to her game with Chelsea.

“This is just part of her journey. And now she has a next step with her journey with us,” Kilgore said. “But I know she really values that time at Tigres and so do I. I enjoyed watching her there. … It’s a great club. She had a high impact there and now she’s on to a different chapter of her life and both have an influence in the player that she is that is now with us.”

Mia Fishel and Jaedyn Shaw both scored their first international goals to power the U.S. women’s national team to a 3-0 win Sunday over Colombia.

Three days after a tepid performance in a 0-0 draw against Colombia, fresh faces brought the USWNT to life. In just their second appearances for the senior national team, Fishel opened the scoring with a header in the 56th minute, and Shaw iced the victory in the 83rd.

Shaw’s goal came off an assist from fellow 18-year-old phenom Alyssa Thompson, a display of the growing youth movement within the U.S. ranks. At 18 years and 343 days, Shaw became the youngest player to score for the USWNT since Mallory Swanson’s goal against Colombia at the 2016 Summer Olympics at 18 years and 102 days of age.

Shaw and Fishel both entered the game at halftime as substitutes for Sophia Smith and Alex Morgan, while Thompson relieved Trinity Rodman in the 72nd minute. The trio of young forwards brought energy to the pitch at San Diego’s Snapdragon Stadium — and a scoring touch, which the USWNT lacked in Thursday’s scoreless draw.

Lindsey Horan scored the other goal for the USWNT in the 62nd minute.

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Jaedyn Shaw scored her first international goal as well, the third of the game for the USWNT. (Brad Smith/Getty Images for USSF)

While the search for a permanent head coach remains ongoing, the U.S. women’s national team announced its roster on Wednesday for two October friendlies against Colombia. The group consists of both longtime veterans and exciting young talents, including the first senior team call-up for 18-year-old Olivia Moultrie.

If the 2023 World Cup squad looked like a team in transition, the USWNT we’ve seen this fall only leans deeper into the winds of change. Legends have said their goodbyes, and young players are getting their chance to prove their value on the international stage. In between, the U.S. has many holdovers to help maintain the team’s longtime standard before a new coach comes in to make their stamp on the team.

The post-Pinoe era

The USWNT’s October friendlies will be the first international break since the retirements of Julie Ertz and Megan Rapinoe, which are already being felt on the depth chart. Ertz’s absence should make way for more consistent opportunities for Portland Thorns defensive midfielder Sam Coffey, who is likely competing with Emily Sonnett for time despite Sonnett being listed on the roster as a defender.

The U.S. is also left searching for center-back depth after Ertz took over a starting role during the 2023 World Cup. Tierna Davidson misses out on this roster after suffering a face injury in the NWSL, and Abby Dahlkemper has yet to be called back into U.S. camp since returning from back surgery in August. Becky Sauerbrunn makes her welcome return to the roster after missing the World Cup with a foot injury, providing a vital infusion of veteran leadership. But looking beyond 2024, the central defense will need more players with experience to join the depth chart with Alana Cook and Naomi Girma.

Sauerbrunn’s return speaks to the larger cycle refresh now that Rapinoe has hung up her boots. Lindsey Horan, named a captain by Vlatko Andonovski for the 2023 World Cup, suddenly has the third-most caps on the team behind Sauerbrunn and Alex Morgan. Morgan has shown how she can galvanize a team around her in San Diego this NWSL season. As the spirit of the team reshapes around younger stars, Morgan will be tasked with connecting with the next generation.

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Alyssa Thompson is the most experienced of the USWNT's youngsters after making the World Cup roster. (Hannah Peters - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)

Teenage dream

The October roster features three teenagers: 18-year-old Alyssa Thompson, 18-year-old Jaedyn Shaw and 18-year-old Olivia Moultrie. Thompson is already a mainstay with the team after making the roster for the 2023 World Cup, and fans will be eager to see how Shaw and Moultrie adapt to the international level after impressive seasons with their respective NWSL clubs.

Shaw has the ability to slot in as a winger, a position where the U.S. doesn’t lack for talent, but she can also drift further back into the midfield to facilitate playmaking in the absence of Rose Lavelle. In September, interim manager Twila Kilgore opted for a defensive midfield shape with Andi Sullivan, Sonnett, and Lindsey Horan. If the USWNT feels comfortable with a more attacking style in October, Shaw will be a huge asset.

Moultrie’s addition is particularly notable based on the position she plays. The Thorns player is a sharp passer and a connecting midfielder who can break lines and set up the attack. In recent years, the USWNT coaching staff has been more comfortable integrating young players into attacking roles and letting midfielders develop through league play. If Moultrie gets time against Colombia, she’ll have significant responsibility as the team’s engine, and the earlier she can get comfortable with the speed of play, the better.

There’s also something to be said about rewarding teenagers who made the leap to professional clubs with serious USWNT consideration. After their World Cup disappointment, USWNT players and U.S. Soccer officials alike have said they want to build a cohesive style of play that prioritizes holding the ball and begins at the youth levels. For Thompson, Shaw and Moultrie, there’s no time like the present, with the hope that more players feel encouraged to follow in their footsteps.

Play the kids

Kilgore was somewhat cautious with the young players she brought in last month, letting Shaw get acclimated to the U.S. camp environment and waiting to play Chelsea striker Mia Fishel until the second game of their series against South Africa. As the U.S. gets further away from the World Cup, Kilgore may feel more emboldened to let players test their mettle against Colombia, a major tournament quarterfinalist.

In September, the USWNT was balancing heavy emotions as they said goodbye to close friends and icons and looked to rebound from a confidence-shaking summer. But preparation for the 2024 Olympics needs to begin sooner rather than later, and reverting to a conservative midfield of experienced players and only late substitute minutes for incoming attackers would be a disappointment in October.

Kilgore could pair Sam Coffey with Andi Sullivan or let the young No. 6 stand alone in a more attacking structure. She could also start Fishel to give Morgan rest in one of the two matches, work Moultrie into the midfield alongside Horan or as her replacement, and have Shaw make slashing runs in tandem with Sophia Smith or relieve her as she builds minutes from a knee injury.

There is a healthy amount of connective tissue for every player new to the U.S. environment this month. But one of the team’s tasks going forward is to worry less about the safety net, and more about the future.

Claire Watkins is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @ScoutRipley.

When Mia Fishel scored the opening goal in her Chelsea debut, it felt like a Hollywood beginning. Fishel has been in the U.S. women’s national team conversation for months, she’s representative of a new wealth of club options for women’s soccer players in the U.S., and she is now proving herself on one of the biggest clubs in the world.

Fishel is a known goal-scorer. She can make connective passes and probing runs in behind the defense, and she can use her height to gain advantage in the air in front of her opponent’s goal. None of those assets are new now that she’s at Chelsea, but with a Women’s Super League contract and a first cap for the USWNT behind her, she appears to have unlocked another level in her game.

Even though she’s just 22 years old, Fishel’s ascension to international prominence has been a long time coming. She’s already played professionally in two leagues after a stellar college career at UCLA, and she has become a fan favorite among U.S. fans. But she’s also taken a path less traveled in the women’s soccer landscape, and it’s taken some time for decision-makers to catch up.

Drafted by her former UCLA coach, Amanda Cromwell, to the Orlando Pride in 2022, Fishel instead opted to join UANL Tigres in Liga MX Femenil. Liga MX Femenil began play in 2017 and has been rising in stature since its inception, but at the time was considered a developing league compared to the NWSL. Fishel dominated in Mexico, becoming the Liga MX Femenil’s top scorer with 47 goals in 64 games and the first foreign player to win the league’s Golden Boot. She won two league titles with Tigres and continued to develop as a young scorer, before making the leap to Chelsea.

“What I did was historic,” she told Goal.com in 2022. “You don’t see U.S. players coming to Mexico. This hasn’t been done yet. The rate at which the league has been growing was very appealing. They’ve only been here for five years or so, and the global media recognition, the passionate fans, playing in [large] stadiums, you just don’t get that in the U.S.”

Fishel’s jump to Liga MX Femenil was prescient, as other well-known internationals begin to follow suit. Spain star and World Cup champion Jenni Hermoso now plays for CF Pachuca, and former France national team player Kheira Hamraoui currently plays for Club America. Fishel’s decision to sign with Chelsea is perhaps an indication that the world of women’s soccer is bending toward the European game, but she’ll long be remembered as a trailblazer in choosing her own path.

Fishel landed at Chelsea this season as an expected backup to Australian superstar Sam Kerr, who missed the team’s WSL opening win over Tottenham on Sunday due to rest.

“For the team to be better, I needed to come in to help Sam Kerr when she doesn’t need to be in the game. That [means] a big role,” Fishel told the Evening Standard prior to the season’s start.

In some ways, it’s poetic that Fishel has joined a Chelsea team headlined by Kerr, whose journey to this point has parallels to that of her understudy.

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Sam Kerr has led Chelesa to four straight Women's Super League titles since joining the team in 2020. (Harriet Lander - Chelsea FC/Getty Images)

Nowadays, it feels like Kerr was always destined to be beloved in London, a trophy winner many times over and a top scorer in a league that grows in prowess with each passing year. But when Kerr officially joined Chelsea at the end of 2019, questions plagued the forward who started her career in Australia and North America, winning the NWSL Golden Boot more than once but failing to walk away from the NWSL with a Shield or a championship win.

Assumptions about athleticism trumping technical ability and how she would fit in with the biggest stars in Europe pervaded the conversations about Kerr. The answer, of course, was that she did just fine, finding an immediate foothold in Emma Hayes’ lineup and now considered one of the best players in the world.

For Fishel, that push for acceptance was delayed when former USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski declined to bring her into senior team camp in the run-up to the 2023 World Cup. While it’s impossible to know how a player would have performed within an unfamiliar environment, Andonovski’s decision was even more baffling because Fishel seems like exactly the type of player who would have thrived in his system.

Fishel has the ability to play target forward, and her first goal for Chelsea came courtesy of a towering header. But she can also slip back into the attacking midfield, and her ability to contribute to build-up play is the type of skill set Andonovski seemed to want out of Chelsea teammate Catarina Macario and U.S. veteran Alex Morgan. When it became clear that Macario would miss the World Cup due to injury, Andonovski’s stubbornness toward Fishel felt more like coaching dysfunction than objective evaluation of what she could possibly bring to the team.

After the USWNT parted ways with Andonovski following a disappointing World Cup result, Fishel was one of the first players brought into the fold for their September friendlies, earning her first cap in Megan Rapinoe’s final match. While the U.S. won’t have a new permanent manager until December, Fishel’s call-up could be perceived as a quick direction shift from Andonovski’s vision, rewarding the patience of a player who has done everything possible to earn an opportunity.

The next question for Fishel is how many minutes she’ll get for Chelsea consistently once Kerr returns to the starting lineup, but in just one appearance, she’s made herself difficult to drop. As long as she keeps performing at the highest levels, her time on the periphery of the USWNT should finally be over.

Claire Watkins is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @ScoutRipley.

Mia Fishel’s first game with Chelsea got off to an impactful start.

Fishel, who signed with the legendary English club in August from Liga MX, made her debut — in the starting lineup — for Sunday’s match against Tottenham. Then, in the 28th minute, she made her presence felt.

The forward headed in a cross from about 10 yards out, giving Chelsea the opening goal in the Women’s Super League contest on the opening day of competition for the 2023-24 season.

Fishel screamed in celebration and was mobbed by her teammates as the Chelsea fans erupted. Chelsea went on to take a 2-1 victory.

Fishel, 22, signed with Chelsea after a successful run with Tigres UANL of Liga MX Femenil, the highest division of women’s soccer in Mexico.

She had long been a mainstay on the U.S. youth national team and made her debut for the senior team during the Sept. 24 friendly match against South Africa. Fishel entered in the 65th minute of what turned into a 2-0 victory for the USWNT.

The U.S. women’s national team’s next generation is ready for their moment.

Several young players, including Sophia Smith and Naomi Girma, as well as Trinity Rodman and Ashley Sanchez, already have been with the USWNT over the last year, honing their skills. Now the retirements of Megan Rapinoe and Julie Ertz have left holes in the roster, and even more up-and-comers are stepping in to fill them.

“It’s a privilege to first of all be on this team and to be able to play,” said Mia Fishel, who made her debut with the senior national team on Sunday. “But to play alongside Megan Rapinoe and being training this whole week is just like a dream come true. So I try to soak it in as much as possible and apply as much as I can in the field.”

The 22-year-old forward enjoyed her experience in the September camp – in just the second senior call-up of her career – despite the long flight from London to Cincinnati. She and Catarina Macario, 23, are playing together for Chelsea in the upcoming WSL season. And while Macario is recovering from an ACL injury, they could play together for club and country in the near future.

“I tried to get as quick as possible with the group because I missed the training,” Fishel said of the USWNT camp. “But it was all positive vibes. … I feel like this new group has new energy after the World Cup and we’re ready to go.”

Jaedyn Shaw, 18, joined World Cup forward Alyssa Thompson, 18, as one of two teenagers on the September roster. And while Shaw didn’t earn a cap in her first call-up, she still made waves.

“I don’t really surround myself with hype, or whatever, that is attached to my name or how I play,” Shaw told the Inquirer. “I think that I just, up to this point — and will continue to do it — just focus on myself and focus on my journey, and just try to learn as much as I can, and enjoy this experience.”

She also looked at the call-up as an opportunity to grow in an environment full of encouragement. After all, she’s got San Diego Wave teammates Girma and Alex Morgan alongside her. And both see what Shaw can bring to the USWNT.

“When we signed [Shaw] mid-season last year, she immediately came in and was a great professional at 17 years old, so much more mature than for her age,” Morgan told the Inquirer. “The goals she scored and the composure that she had in front of goal — you kind of knew right from the start after those first few weeks that she was going to have a long career, not only in the NWSL but hopefully with the national team as well.”

Morgan’s World Cup co-captain Lindsey Horan also is excited to see more of Shaw in the future.

“The more training sessions that we have, we’ll see more and more,” Horan said. “I’ve heard such incredible things. I wish NWSL games were better times for me in France [where she plays for Lyon], because I could probably give you a better answer right now. But I’ve heard nothing but the best, and the little bits that I’ve seen, it’s really cool.”

Catarina Macario and Mia Fishel are fitting right in at Chelsea.

Although the pair are still learning the pronunciations of London’s Tube stations, their connection has brought them from the San Diego Surf youth soccer club all the way to one of the game’s biggest stages: the English Women’s Super League.

Emerging stars for the U.S. women’s national team, Macario and Fishel already have turned their names into a portmanteau — “Catfish” — and are looking forward to connecting on the pitch for club and country.

They’re set to help Chelsea defend the WSL title for a fifth straight season. And while they’re the biggest American names in the WSL right now, they’re not the first USWNT players to make the leap across the pond. Alex Morgan, Rose Lavelle, Tobin Heath and Christen Press all played England in past seasons.

“They’ve always praised how intense the WSL is, how competitive it is,” Macario told the Daily Mail. “They’ve also told us where to go to buy some nice winter coats!”

Macario and Fishel come to Chelsea from different professional clubs, Macario from 2022 Champions League winners Olympique Lyonnais and Fishel from Liga MX’s Tigres UANL.

Fishel finished 2022 as Liga MX’s leading scorer, and the 22-year-old forward believes the environment in the Mexican league pushed her to be a better player.

“I decided to trust myself and go to another league [from the NWSL] which was an amazing experience. A new culture, a new language, and the best team in Mexico,” she told the Daily Mail. “I had like seven or eight national team players from Mexico on my team. It was a great environment that pushed me. I was able to flourish there.”

The 2023-24 WSL season kicks off Sunday, with Chelsea facing off in a London derby against Tottenham. While Fishel is set to compete right away alongside star players including Sam Kerr and Fran Kirby, Macario still is making her way back from an ACL tear. And while the 23-year-old midfielder is hoping to be back soon, she isn’t in any rush.

“It’s taken a little bit longer than I’d hoped for anyone would have expected,” Macario said. “One reason why I chose to go to Chelsea, Emma (Hayes) really focuses on doing the little things off the field. I feel like she has created a culture, not only on the pitch but off the pitch and really taking care of her players – not pressuring them to come back earlier than what they’re supposed to. I’m really happy where I am right now, I really trust the medical team here.”

Mia Fishel made her U.S. women’s national team debut Sunday, and she got some pointers from a legend in the process.

The 22-year-old forward came on in the 65th minute for Alex Morgan. Her first USWNT match came in Megan Rapinoe’s last, and she got to watch as the retiring legend got her farewell from the crowd at Chicago’s Soldier Field.

“It was a dream,” Fishel said after the 2-0 win against South Africa. “I mean, as a little kid, you always dream of this moment watching people like Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan. It was just really cool for [Rapinoe’s] last time and my first time being out there with her.”

Interim head coach Twila Kilgore saw a nice symmetry in the moment.

“Having Mia and Pinoe in the circle at the end and making sure to celebrate Mia’s first cap, but also at the same time Megan’s last game, has all sorts of emotions for everybody,” she said. “And I think it’s really special for both Megan to be sent off that day, but also for Mia to be next to her in the same moment, one career finishing and another starting.

“I thought Mia was really good. And just speaking with her after the game, I think she also gets the magnitude of the moment of getting her first cap on Megan’s last game. So I look forward to seeing how she uses that as fuel.”

The call-up to the USWNT, Fishel’s second ever and her first since October 2020, has been good for the young forward in other ways, too. One of them? She got to pick Rapinoe’s brain during training.

“I tried to ask her as many questions as possible, because this is the last time,” Fishel said. “She’s so friendly. She’s just a great person. And she truly has changed women’s soccer in the world. And I’m just glad to be a part of it.”

As part of the training camp, Fishel got to see the expectations that come with wearing the USWNT crest, and she handled it well, Kilgore said. In their postgame hug, Kilgore also told Fishel that she had “earned this” and that she wouldn’t have put her in if she didn’t believe in her.

“She just told me it was a big day,” she said. “And she hopes that she can follow in the same footsteps as Megan, but in her own way.”

On the club level, Fishel is preparing for her Women’s Super League debut with England’s Chelsea. The WSL season kicks off Sunday.