By ANNE M. PETERSON
Catarina Macario is returning to the U.S. women’s national soccer team for the first time since last June for the SheBelieves Cup.
Macario, who plays for Chelsea, last played for the United States in a friendly against South Korea. She was named to last year’s Olympic team, but a knee injury kept her off the gold-medal winning squad in Paris.
U.S. coach Emma Hayes picked 23 players on Tuesday for the 10th annual edition of the tournament, which will include Japan, Colombia and Australia and be played in Houston, San Diego and Glendale, Arizona, from Feb. 20-26. The teams will each play three games, one game apiece in each city, with the winner determined by points.
The American roster includes 12 players from the squad that won it’s fifth Olympic gold medal in Paris. Hayes did not include Sophia Smith, Trinity Rodman or Mallory Swanson, the dynamic trio nicknamed “Triple Espresso” in Paris.
Rodman is recovering from a back injury, Smith is not yet game ready and Swanson had personal commitments.
Midfielder Rose Lavelle wasn’t included because she is still recovering from offseason ankle surgery and defender Naomi Girma, recently acquired by Chelsea from the San Diego Wave for a record $1.1 million transfer fee, was not called up because of a calf injury.
But Hayes did include sisters Alyssa and Gisele Thompson, who both play for Angel City in the National Women’s Soccer League. Alyssa recently took part in the senior team’s January camp, while Gisele was part of a simultaneous Futures Camp. They are just the third set of sisters named together to the team.
Four players have never appeared in a game for the national team, and 10 have four or fewer appearances.
Two players will be playing under their new married names: Lynn Biyendolo, formerly Williams, and Lindsey Heaps, formerly Horan.
“We are facing three excellent teams with three very different styles and the tournament will be a great test to see who can perform against world-class players, but to see that, we need to give them opportunities,” Hayes said in a statement Tuesday.
Three players — Manchester United goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce, Angel City defender Savy King and newly signed Bay FC midfielder Hannah Bebar — will train with the national team but were not part of the active roster. Bay traded King to Angel City last week.
Emily Sonnett will be honored for her 100th appearance with the team before the match against Colombia in Houston on Feb. 20. She’s the 45th national team player to reach the milestone.
U.S. Roster:
Goalkeepers: Jane Campbell (Houston Dash), Mandy McGlynn (Utah Royals)
Defenders: Tierna Davidson (Gotham FC), Crystal Dunn (Paris Saint-Germain), Emily Fox (Arsenal), Tara McKeown (Washington Spirit), Jenna Nighswonger (Arsenal), Emily Sams (Orlando Pride), Emily Sonnett (Gotham FC), Gisele Thompson (Angel City)
Midfielders: Korbin Albert (Paris Saint-Germain), Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns), Lindsey Heaps (Lyon), Claire Hutton (Kansas City Current), Jaedyn Shaw (North Carolina Courage), Lily Yohannes (Ajax)
Forwards: Lynn Biyendolo (Seattle Reign), Michelle Cooper (Kansas City Current), Catarina Macario (Chelsea), Yazmeen Ryan (Houston Dash), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville), Ally Sentnor (Utah Royals), Alyssa Thompson (Angel City)
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
