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Vlatko Andonovski has named his final 18-player roster for the summer Games, including 11 of those who played at Rio 2016
Tobin Heath and Julie Ertz have made the United States Women’s Olympics 2020 squad, but Catarina Macario and Margaret Purce have missed out.
Vlatko Andonovski announced his 18-player squad for Tokyo on Wednesday, with Manchester United midfielder Heath and Chicago Red Stars defender Ertz making the cut despite currently being out of action due to respective injuries.
Lyon star Macario, who made her international debut earlier this year, won’t be part of the roster but will travel to Japan as one of four alternates, while NJ/NY Gotham FC forward Purce has been omitted entirely.
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What’s been said?
“It’s been a long process to get to this point, longer than anyone thought it would be, but we collected a lot of information on the players over the past year and half in training, in their club matches and in international games and we’re confident that we’ve selected the team with the best chance for success in Japan,” Andonovski said while explaining his final selection.
“We know there are some very talented players that won’t be in Japan, but these were the difficult decisions that we had to make.
“We have a very experienced roster that has been through adversity at the highest levels, so it’s no surprise those players have distinguished themselves.
“They’ve embraced the challenges and have shown tremendous flexibility and determination over the past 15 months to get us to where we are today.”
Who else has been included?
11 of the players that competed with the USWNT at the Rio Olympics in 2016 are back this time around, including Heath, Ertz, Carli Lloyd, Crystal Dunn and Lindsey Horan.
Talismanic duo Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe have also returned, while Tierna Davidson, Emily Sonnett, Kristie Mewis are among the first-time Olympians.
Kristie’s younger sister Samantha will also be making her bow at the Games, with the pair now set to become the first sisters in history to represent the U.S. in senior world championship competition.
When do the Olympics start?
Tokyo 2020 will officially begin on July 23, but the women’s football event will kick off two days earlier, with the USWNT set to open their Group G campaign against Sweden.
Andonovski’s team have a clash with New Zealand scheduled three days later and will complete their pool schedule against Australia at the Ibaraki Kashima Stadium on July 27.
The final USWNT Olympic squad in full:
Goalkeepers: Adrianna Franch, Alyssa Naeher
Defenders: Abby Dahlkemper, Tierna Davidson, Crystal Dunn, Kelley O’Hara, Becky Sauerbrunn, Emily Sonnett
Midfielders: Julie Ertz, Lindsey Horan, Rose Lavelle, Kristie Mewis, Samantha Mewis
Forwards: Tobin Heath, Carli Lloyd, Alex Morgan, Christen Press, Megan Rapinoe
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