What Happened to Allie Long’s Spot on the USWNT?
Allie Long has been in the national team conversation for more than a decade. She represented the U.S. at various youth levels and even earned her first full team call-up in 2010. When I was younger, I lived just a few towns over, and Long was already a big name around town. She was a standout in high school, on her club teams, and in college. But despite the bright career her early years promised, Allie Long has had quite the rollercoaster of a journey.
Long spent two seasons at Penn State before transferring to the world-class program at the University of North Carolina. After her college career came to a close, the Washington Freedom selected her seventh overall in the 2009 WPS draft. Since beginning her professional career, Long has been a centerpiece in the NWSL, playing for the Portland Thorns, OL Reign, and Gotham FC.
The years of experience around the world (Long played for PSG) and with different teams have shaped Long into the incredible player she is. Though she got her first call-up to the senior USWNT squad in 2010, it wasn’t until 2016 when Long really got the chance to make her mark on the team and consistently earn playing time. By then, Long was regularly commanding the midfield in the NWSL and made it nearly impossible to ignore her any longer.
She tallies 45 appearances, 6 goals, 3 assists, and one World Cup with the USWNT yet has fallen out of favor of late. Long’s journey with the national team has not been straightforward, but she is a quality player who reads the game well and always has one of the highest (if not the highest) passing percentages when she plays. But she’s center mid trying to squeeze into one of the most talented midfield in the world. It’s always going to be an uphill battle for anyone trying to break into the USWNT roster. To complicate things for Long even further, the current midfield mainstays still have so much of their career ahead of them, and barring anything drastic, they’re not going anywhere.
So what does this mean for Allie Long? Well, she needs to shine in the NWSL to earn even a call-up to the USWNT squad. However, she is a world-class player and has the experience, so it is definitely possible she makes a return. We’re here cheering her on.
Featured Image via Photo by Maddie Meyer – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images
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