Ellis quote from USSoccer Q&A On the current club situation for Christen Press: "At this point Christen is in the process of securing a club team. We've had several conversations and she understands our expectations are that a consistent training and match environment for a professional is an important factor for selection into Women's National Team rosters. Since the SheBelieves Cup, our professional players returned to pre-season training with their clubs and have had multiple scrimmages in preparation for the opening weekend. I am certain that once Christen transitions to a new team, she will embrace being back on the pitch and will help her team be successful."
Obviously much talk with be about the Press omission. Deservedly so. I can't recall the last time she was healthy and not selected for USWNT. Ellis is definitely sending a message. I disagree with some of her tactics and player selection, but she is right about this one. A player cannot be club-less (by her own choice) and expect to be picked for the national team. I bet Press wishes she accepted Utah's earlier offer now. I realize she wants to be on the West Coast, but Utah's facilities and organization are top notch. Plus they are thin on offense with Arod a big question mark, so she would've been a starter. She made a big mistake declining that option. It could still happen, but that means giving up Sauerbrunn or O'Hara most likely. And Press's opinion isn't the only one that matters. Neither of the above Utah players is inclined to switch to Houston at this late juncture. As for Press's other handpicked teams, Seattle's roster seems settled. Portland just signed Swiss forward Cnogorcevic to fill in for injured Foord. Hard to picture either of them making a trade. This snub will surely give Press some urgency. The most likely scenario seems to be Sweden; makes sense given her history. As for non-Press talking points, this midfield is not good. They will manage, because it is Mexico, but against better teams this group cannot dictate the tempo of a game. We need Ertz, Mewis, Lavelle and Heath back. I'm disappointed again that Ellis has not called up any NWSL mids to try them out. There is no guarantee our injury-prone players will be ready for the World Cup, so why not build some depth? Is that not the stated purpose of NWSL? If it's just about giving caps to the same 25 players over and over, while the rest toil away for scraps with no prospect for a NT call-up, that is a terrible model for player development. Maybe this also means the Taylor Smith experiment is over. She is a good club player, and seems like a nice person, so I don't mean to disparage her. She is just not NT quality, and it's up to the coach to realize that.
Smith also seems to being sent a message by Ellis. As to Press, u have to wonder whether this works to cross purposes. Not really sure Ellis wants her in Sweden but if she is pushing her to make a decision that might be the way she jumps.
In principle I agree with the rule that you don't call up a player that does not have a club. However I don't for one second buy that is why Press was not called. This omission was a message being sent by USSF/Ellis to Press that she don't get to pick and chose which club she plays at the last minute after signing a NWSL contract. Let's remember that it has been less than 2 or 3 weeks since Press was last in camp for the She Believes. And sure Press may not be training with a team but I doubt she have spent that time netflix and chilling either. I'm of the opinion that this was the right move because as I said in the NWSL forum, no player have flat out refuse to play for their team after signing the NWSL contract. Especially if that player willfully chose not to be an active participant (not having a agent) in which club they where being traded to. So it will set a bad precedent if this was just quietly swept under the rug and everyone went about their business. I also won't be surprised if she's left off the roster for the next tournament even if she has a club.
This is also the same federation that believes it is ok for their players to populate a league that is 6 months long so they train on their own for half the year. The best way to describe Press' part in this mess is denial. Most players would have had Gulati on the phone Jan 18th.
Interesting call up. I'm not a big Press fan, but I did see her as the best sub for Morgan. Who jumps into that role now? Did McCaskill play center forward in college? Or maybe Hatch as the Morgan sub? I think Press has blotted her copy book. She was never a key player on the NT. I noted years ago that Lloyd and Holiday never passed the ball to her. She never appeared to me to be a member of the "in-crowd." At this point, I think she had better go to Sweden and give up on the notion of playing on the National Team. No Taylor Smith -- and a trimmed down list of defenders -- but of course Dunn who is listed as a forward can play defender. I hope Huerta gets a start against her former teammates from Mexico. Will she be treated as a defector -- a la Leroux against Canada -- or as an old friend by the Mexicans?
I think Press is still part of the core roster, and is justifiably left off because she is not signed to a club team. There will never be another Abby Wambach in terms of power on this team that can blow off club play. It's too competitive now. I'm not sold on Hatch or Mccaskill but I'm curious to see how they fare in the future. I think Williams, like Smith, is a good club player but struggling on the NT. Quite frankly I'm surprised she still has a contract. There is also some other overlooked talent in the NWSL. I can't wait to see how Hill and Leroux fare this season and hopefully one of them can fight for a NT spot. The eye test tells me Press is the best American forward as of last season (just my opinion) and it would be crazy to cut her at this point. Then again, things change from year to year so we'll see. I think refusing to rotate out Morgan and Rapinoe (two injury prone players, both not all that young anymore) more frequently is also insane.
I agree with the last part. Why would u give Morgan three 90 minutes shifts in a 7 day period especially considering how much they pressure? As to the rest, I think this is a message to Press much like Rapinoe got a message during the kneeling period. As much as it seems to make sense Press should be on a club the truth is the USSF supports a league that only plays/trains 6 month per year and has rules forbidding clubs from organized training in the off months. Where is this concern for Press' training habits from October thru March?
I have a feeling that Ellis is using Press's NWSL debacle as a pretext to leave her off the roster [however legitimate that reason might be] when she likely wanted to do that anyway. I hope that Press hasn't shot herself in the foot with her Houston boycott. Hinkle was never seen again after dropping out of the Europe friendlies last year. I am skeptical that Ellis will give Press a second chance when and if the crisis is resolved. Meanwhile I'm still back here waiting for Heath to make it back onto the USWNT like: I realize that after more than a year off the team due to a string of persistent injuries the odds of Heath making a successful return are waning, and the facts that 1) the reason for her exclusion wasn't mentioned in the official roster release [as it has been the last few times] and 2) she seems to have dropped out of the conversation even here are certainly not encouraging. But contemplating the idea that the 3-0 bulldozing by France in the 2017 SheBelieves Cup, possibly the most painful match I've ever watched, might be her last appearance in a U.S. jersey makes me want to vomit.
I will never understand Ellis' underuse and misuse of Press. Does she not practice well? I don't even believe that to be true, I think Ellis just has somewhat irrational favorites and non-favorites. She goes hot and cold on players quickly. Smith looks like she's out before she can get a chance to improve, and she was the preferred RB recently sending Casey to the bench. Now I guess we are back to the old fave, Short. Weird decisions.
This^^^^..............and stated within the context that most everyone here has never even seen a typewriter in use.
I have actually seen those instruments in use (not because they ever were in use at school in my era: for different circumstances), but, since I am not an English native-speaker, I had never heard about that idiom and, although I could figure what it was meaning, I had to check it out. Thanks very much: my English is so poor that I am always happy when I learn something new and these boards actually use to be awesome at digging up different uses of language!
Long must be the player willing to do the laundry and carry the gear to the bus or maybe she teams with Ellis to win the karaoke tournament every camp? I don't get her being on any rosters. Williams is not good enough to play on the USWNT. Nothing wrong with that. She is fast, and Ellis comes from the American coaching fraternity that likes speed over actual ball skills, but can that really be it? She has never really shown anything and has had plenty of chances. I think Dahlkemper and Brunn are in competition for one spot over the next 6 months. USSF/Ellis has shown that it is ok to sign in Europe or Australia but you'd better not unpack your bags because you will be called for every camp, FIFA date or not. Many times you will fly thousands of miles and barely play if at all. Press will not be missed by Ellis, she either doesn't know how to use her or she isn't that good. It is funny how certain players have huge amounts of fans without ever really being a top performer for the team (she has been great in NWSL, but I don't think that is where her fans come from). I'm sure Krieger fans are somewhere moaning about getting her two caps. Press fans are up in arms. I think Press should take some time and find a good club as this will probably be her last USSF supported move.
Long seems to be a good buddy with Morgan. I anticipate that she will fade from the team when Mewis and Ertz come back onto the scene. In the meantime she's a good passer, a scoring threat -- even from a defensive midfield position --, and a steady, calm presence. I've always liked Long, but I doubt she will be on the 2019 World Cup squad. Still, in case of a rash of injuries it's good to have her in reserve. .
I think Williams has shown well enough to be the backup #9 on the NT. The problem is if Press is already the backup, Williams really hasn't shown enough versatility to make the roster as an extra attacker.
Really? I don't think Williams can do any of the things Morgan is doing. Not sure Press can either. Williams seems to come in for Pugh as a straight line running winger, like Pugh. Finding someone to back up Morgan has to be a priority from here.
Press, in the past, has come in for Morgan. For that to work, the team has to shift into a different type of attack, as Morgan is close to unique. At this point, I don't see anyone I would prefer over Press.
Of course Ellis has favorites who are picked for subjective reasons--every coach, in every sport, is this way. I have always thought Press to be a very talented forward; I don't think there is any doubt about it--and she's always been underplayed by the Ellis and the NT, IMO--but, again, these are often subjective decisions, ultimately. As for the midfield for these friendlies, agree it seems rather weak. It is certainly past time to push Lloyd into retirement. She was a no-show in the She Believes against France.