2019 SheBelieves Cup

According to Phil Neville, the teams for the 2019 SheBelieves tournament will be England, Japan, and Brazil.

 

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Nashville is also hosting (and confirms England, Brazil, and Japan). At this rate, we're going to get the full schedule from twitter before USSF releases it.

.@ussoccer_wnt returning to Nashville in 2019 for SheBelieves Cup, playing @lionesses
https://t.co/ijvSZhYgvO

— Tennessean (@Tennessean) December 6, 2018

 

And the other host is Tampa (also looks like there'll be a 3-game send-off series as well):

.@ussoccer_wnt will embark on a 10-city, 10-game tour - which is being called the Countdown to the Cup - ahead of the '19 WWC.

Highlights include SheBelieves Cup (played in Chester/Nashville/Tampa) & a send-off series at Levi's Stadium/Busch Stadium/RBA. https://t.co/N7Yc4xjXid

— Ian Thomas (@byIanThomas) December 6, 2018

 

I posted above too soon. There you have it: the full slate of games for the beginning of next year (x-posting in News and Media):

Here is the full list of games on @ussoccer_wnt's Countdown to the Cup tour slated for next year (note the 1st two games are in Europe):https://t.co/jh2xXOUB6d pic.twitter.com/eBSRvWzhzs

— Ian Thomas (@byIanThomas) December 6, 2018

 

Yeah, yeah, yeah, blah, blah, blah - - - - I’ve got one word for you…………YYYYYYAWN.

If the NFL was smart, they would market this so-called game as part of the preliminary festivities leading up to the She Believes Cup. Last year after becoming the first individual to win the Super Bowl MVP without actually participating in the game, I’m not sure JJ will even bother to show up today.

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How “big” can this event be if JULIE IS NOT THERE? Don’t be too surprised if you hear that the NFL’s viewership numbers plummeted this year.

BTW – I’m embarking on a one man anti-frostbite propaganda campaign because Chicago has NOT gotten the message:

Look for free T-shirts in Nashville.
35,113 minutes to Chester.

 

roster is out.

horan out injured.

no brian (not surprising for many, & maybe the first huge wwc roster indicator), coloprico & sullivan continue to get called.

campbell, matthias, fox, & long will also be in camp, but not on the tournament roster.

https://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2019/02/12/15/34/20190212-news-wnt-sbc-23-player-roster

 

Looks like this is probably going to be our WWC roster guys with Horan once she is recovered. What do you think? We didn’t look good at all against France, will we look better as we get closer to the tournament or is that a possible foreshadowing of it being a possible bust this cycle?

 

I have continuing concerns about the goalkeeper position. Naeher is often solid but she seems to make an adventure out of the simplest plays and her medium distance distribution has seemed to lack the required accuracy. Harris does not seem to be really up to the international challenges and she shows weaknesses after long in game periods of low activity. Maybe a concentration issue. Franch is the big unknown. She often shows flashes of absolute top performances but she is given too little chance to really develop at the international level.

It is now too late, baring injury, to really change the GK rotation and Naeher is, most probably, #1 and Harris #2.

Personally, given that it is too late to give Franch a real chance at #1, I would make her first off the bench in the event of injury or other in game problem because she has shown to be a very quick warmup and is also very good at focusing on short notice.

In the past the GK position has always been a strength as long as the coach does not do something stupid with the keepers and ruin the whole rotation but I do not think that is the case at this point.

I will say, looking at the goalkeeper pool currently in existence, that I think that Franch will be the keeper to beat for the next few cycles after this WWC. She looks to have nothing except an upside if given any chance at all.

 

I'm going to say it first, we aren't winning a World Cup with Naeher managing our defense. I'm sorry. I hope I'm wrong with that but once this cycle is over and done with, I hope we can get a new number 1 and number 2 some caps. I think we have overlooked one the biggest voids we have to fill which has been Hope Solo. Love her, hate her, she was a big piece to our team and losing her means for the first time since the very beginning before Scurry, we are going into a big tournament without the best goalkeeper in the World.

 

If you look closely at most of the major tournaments since the WWC became a "thing" (and it is also mostly true for the men as well) it is pretty clear that the tournament is actually won or lost primarily by the performance of the central defense and the defensive midfield. Of course a top GK can makeup for many weaknesses in those spots but if the shot is never taken or is made predictable then the job of the keeper becomes less important and a team can get by with just an adequate keeper.

Currently the US has a defensive mid, Ertz, that is one of the best in the world at winning the ball. But her passing and her attack is, right now, woefully lacking. I hope she avoids injury and redevelops in those areas in the run up matches because, right now, all her replacements are a rather large step down. They all lack the grit required to be at the top in that most important position.

I hope someone else steps up and becomes a decent replacement because we really need one.

The central defense is pretty good and there are at least four players that can play well in that area so we are pretty OK in the central defense. BTW: The ability to make accurate long passes is actually not too important in the central defense as they generally are called on to stop the attack and make a short pass out to others that are the ones that should be expected to spring the counter attack.

My concern, outside the keeper position, is in the defensive mid and there we have no depth and our primary is currently having a LOT of trouble passing after winning the ball and actually hitting the goal when she runs into the attack. Those two problems would seem very related to each other.

We have plenty of players that can step into the defensive mid spot BUT they all are a rather huge step down in tackling and pass interception ability but some are better passers and shooters.

One more thing is that if your defensive mid can make good passes the job of all the attacking players gets easier and the better the passes the easier it is for those attacking players to do their job.

 

I am once again going to suggest that each of the U.S. matches gets its own thread when the time comes. In each of these tournaments the host team seems to put forward three substantially if not radically different performances, and lumping them into a single continuous discussion seems like a bit of a disservice to me.

I'm hoping that in this case the team saves their best performance for last, at the match I'll be attending three weeks from tonight, for reasons upon which I hope to elaborate in that game's thread.

 

Consider yourself forgiven.

Incidentally, I hope you're wrong with that too.

 

Franch is only two years younger than Naeher, and Ellis has never given her a single cap. Time is running out on how long she can be viewed as our goalkeeper of the future without ever being allowed on the field.

 

i haven’t seen any stats, but i believe this is largely true.

if the back five of ertz, o’hara, dahlkemper, davidson (some say sauerbrunn), & dunn do a great job, we’ll have to worry a lot less about naeher.

i believe that sullivan is the answer, and that this is one reason why brian was dropped. (coloprico is also on trial. but i’m not sure she’ll make it. she’ll likely be left off once horan is healthy).

she hasn’t shown it for the spirit (poor coaching some say), but she showed loads of it at stanford. that, and what she has shown in camp tells the wnt coaches that she has the chops, and needs to be given brian’s time.

so, expect sullivan to see significant time in these lead up games. she actually might be a better forward passer than ertz. she now needs to improve her play stopping abilities, and she actually might become the 2019 version of the last world cup’s morgan brian.

 

i know that some people reverse my positions on my sullivan and colaprico, believing that colaprico will take brian's spot, and sullivan will be dropped.

not sure that colaprico can stop plays well at the international level, but certainly possible.

btw, I also believe that zerboni is too slow for the int'l level, and that the wnt coaches still are using a mewis-light program because sam never had surgery on that knee.

mewis should otherwise be starting i believe.

 

Sullivan is talented but rather slow herself, and has played very in quite some time for the U.S. so it's silly to say that she's shown herself capable of being on the roster. I don't think that is true yet at all--and the same applies to Coloprico; she has hardly played.

Even with some odd player decisions at outside back--Dunn has the athletic qualities for the position but doesn't have a lot of experience at that spot and I don't really think Sonnett is all that good--the U.S. is going to be pretty strong defensively and hard to score on, I think. Defense has really been our strength for quite some time. Our keepers rarely get tested much, so as someone above noted, I am not too worried about Naher, though come the knockout rounds she will be called upon to make plays.

Overall, I see the U.S. being challenged in this WC more than we have in the past, perhaps, mainly because a number of our players are probably past their prime and because there might be more good teams than ever before this year. Sauerbrunn, Rapinoe, Heath, Morgan--all have now got a lot of miles on their legs. They are all still good, to be sure--but Rapinoe and Heath won't scare anybody with their pace (but they are skillful and clever), and I think Sauerbrunn, still very solid, has lost a half step at least. I think we could see a lot of Press and maybe Pugh on the wings both to give Rapinoe and Heath some rest and because they've both got more speed than the starters. Even with questions the U.S. has got a very strong squad and remains the favorite, but there could be some very competitive games.

 

I agree that our defense is pretty solid with Sauerbrunn (or Davidson), Dahlkemper, Dunn, and O'Hara in the lineup. But we don't have a proven backup for either Dunn or O'Hara -- and both of them have frequently been injured. (Hinkle could solve this problem, but....)

I have been underwhelmed by Sullivan. I would pick Colaprico or Zerboni instead. .

I'm most worried about our offense -- which depends, as someone said, on players who have a lot of miles on their legs: Rapinoe, Morgan, and Heath. I see the possibility that one or more of them will age out or be injured at or before the WC -- and we will be in trouble.

Pugh is maybe up to the task of playing right forward. I have less confidence in Press -- but she has the physical attributes to excel. Jess McDonald has looked good in her few appearances -- and should be given a lot of opportunity to prove herself in the upcoming friendlies. Lloyd? Well, she has the ability to shoot for distance and a good head near the goal. But, she'll be at the WC for sentimental reasons, not for merit.

I'd rather see Lynn Williams than Lloyd on the roster. And I wish Huerta was being tried out as a forward.

 

I always believe you get better if you play against better competition and also compete for a job. Many clubs and colleges scrimmage against boys and mens teams. This increases their speed of play, pace, soccer IQ, aggressiveness, etc. I'm sure many will complain that it may also increases injuries, you may be right.

Anyway, I put together a list of NWSL players that I think can compete with the so called Full Team(Red Team). I'll call the second team the Blue Team. This serves 3 purposes: 1. Another 24 women professional players get a chance to compete and show what they are made of. 2. This will diffuse those who don't like to scrimmage against the boy and mens teams. 3. US soccer won't have to leave the country to play and can charge fans to see this large group of US All Stars play. It's a WIN WIN!

Blue Team

Goalies: Aubrey Bledsoe, Katelyn Rowland, Michelle Betos. Sub: Britt Eckerstrom

Defenders: Jaeline Hinkle, Meghan Klingenberg, Arin Wright, Amber Brooks, Megan Oyster, Christen Westphal, Katie Naughton, Midge Purce

Midfielders: Heather O'Reilly, Kristen Hamiton, Venessa DiBernardo, Morgan Brian, Tori Huster, Erika Tymrak, Sofia Huerta, Christine Nairn. Sub: Morgan Andrews

Forwards: Lynn Williams, Stephanie McCaffrey, Khalia Ohai, Shea Groom, Amy Rodriguez, Makenzy Doniak, Ashley Hatch. Sub: Dorian Jenkins

I'm sure everyone will have a few comments good and bad. Please feel free to express them. My personal opinion is there are many holes with the Red team and scrimmaging against them with another group of quality players will only improve them.

 

This is the WC roster, pending changes. I concur on this.
We have our work cut out for us. I believe this crew can do it.

 

Our defense is the main concern to me - pace,especially. If O'Hara is not able to play 90 for most of the tournament, there are serious re-considerations to be made.

 

It's getting a little late for serious re-considerations. Plus, the re-considerations mostly would be on the other side of the field from where O'Hara ordinarily plays -- unless Dunn is playing on that other side. The bigger question will be, What if Dunn is not able to play 90 for most of the tournament?

I think it's pretty much, "What you see is what you get" from here on out. Any changes will be at the periphery.

 

I like the idea of the U.S. having a "B" team -- which plays a few matches every year during the NWSL offseason. France has a "B" team, at least occasionally. Its "B" team won a tournament in Turkey against the likes of Mexico, Lebanon, etc. about a year ago.

The Australia W-League is practically a B-Team of the U.S. now. I wish we could see more of its games on television. I"m still waiting for the w-league final to show up on youtube.

Oops, it just got to youtube -- but it may be blocked soon.