Who Will Be Alyssa Naeher’s Back-Up?
The USWNT is prepping for the big games ahead of them, and their #1 is looking to add to her stat sheet and keep nothing but shutouts. Alyssa Naeher, the goalkeeper for the USWNT, has 67 appearances, 40 clean sheets, and two World Cups under her belt. In addition to being an important asset to her NWSL team, the Chicago Red Stars. Naeher has been with the USWNT since 2015 and became the undisputed starter after Hope Solo’s departure in 2016. However, the real question is who will step up if she is unavailable and be the USWNT backup keeper at the 2021 Olympics?
Jane Campbell
Jane Campbell and Casey Murphy worked their way onto the USWNT roster to learn from and compete with Alyssa Naeher. The goalkeeper position is not as interchangeable as field players, so earning your spot in a big match is a huge deal. The competition is fierce, and one mistake could potentially make or break the decision of head coach Vlatko Andonovski on who gets the starting role. Jane Campbell has five USWNT appearances and two clean sheets at the time of writing. She also dominates for the Houston Dash, with 6,750 minutes played since joining the team in 2017. Campbell is still young, and with more game exposure and caps, she can definitely be a reliable backup and potential future #1.
Casey Murphy
Casey Murphy is also in the running for the number two spot. Murphy received her third call up to the senior squad and is the only uncapped player on the current roster. In 2020, she tallied three clean sheets with the North Carolina Courage. Additionally, she has appeared with the U.S. Youth National teams since U-14 and appeared in the U-20 FIFA Women’s World Cup. As one of the youngest and least capped players on the USWNT, Murphy has great role models to learn from, and with more experience, there’s no reason she couldn’t make a name for herself at the #2 spot. However, we can’t see her edging out the other contenders for this year’s Olympics, if we’re honest.
Ashlyn Harris
Ashlyn Harris has been a consistent force with the red, white, and blue. The USWNT veteran has 18 appearances, 7 clean sheets, and two World Cup titles under her belt. Despite not being on the most recent USWNT roster for matches in Sweden and France, Harris is definitely still in contention for the 18-player Olympic roster. There is no doubt that the USWNT veteran can reclaim her role. However, if Andonovski wants to look to the future and chooses a younger, less-experienced player instead, it could be the beginning of the end for Harris’s national team career. Make no mistake, Harris won’t give up her spot without a fight.
Other Recent Call-Ups
Other keepers have found themselves competing for a spot on the infamously competitive USWNT roster. Aubrey Bledsoe received her first USWNT senior squad call-up in 2019 and found herself on training camp rosters in 2020 and 2021. Bledsoe had a 66.7% save success rate and a goals-against average of 0.8 in the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup. As younger players are finding their way into senior camps, there is no telling who will be the future of the USWNT.
Additionally, Adrianna (A.D.) Franch has 4 USWNT appearances, 1 clean sheet, and 1 World Cup title on her resume. Though her call-ups have not been the most consistent as Andonovski looks to test other options in the backup keeper positions, we still consider Franch a dark horse for that second keeper spot at the Olympics.
Only time will tell who makes Andonovski’s final Olympic roster. For now, the sheer number of options the USWNT head coach is bringing in spells a bright future for the team. For so long, the keeper positions were signed, sealed, and delivered. Today, that second spot is totally up for grabs.
Featured Image via Bob Levey/Getty Images
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