The reigning World Cup champions, the USWNT have won the world’s most prestigious footballing competition four times, which is the most of any country. With the world’s most competitive league from top to bottom and the collegiate circuit, the United States is able to produce world-class athletes and technicians at all positions.
So once again, they will be among the favorites to win it all at the 2023 World Cup, and many expect the Stars and Stripes to repeat as champions.
Even making the final squad of the USWNT is quite the challenge, given all the American talent in women’s football. Tough decisions will have to be made, but before the squad is finalized, let’s take a look at the 10 very best players we could see suiting up for the United States at the upcoming World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
San Diego Wave CB Naomi Girma: Though she was only a rookie for one of the NWSL’s two expansion sides in 2022, Naomi Girma established herself as not only the best first-year player in America, but also the best overall defender. Girma’s passing and reading of the game are at the highest possible level, and she could be the difference for the USWNT winning it all in 2023. Girma is a “Player of the Tournament” caliber player, even as a center back.
Lyon CM Lindsey Horan: One of the best footballers of the last decade, Lindsey Horan is the perfect midfielder. She has delivered for every club she’s played for, whether in the top flight in the United States or France. Horan is a serial winner who was one of the outstanding players of the last World Cup tournament. Her experience, athleticism, and technical quality will be vital to the USWNT at the 2023 World Cup.
This past season, Horan scored five goals with two assists from midfield for Lyon, the champions of D1 Arkema. Horan also made 7.6 progressive passes per 90 with 3.0 combined tackles and interceptions. Those are stunning statistics and highlight the match-winning, all-around impact she makes.
OL Reign CM Rose Lavelle: Rose Lavelle is one of the most dangerous attacking midfielders in world football, capable of scoring wonderful solo goals or perfectly-placed strikes from range. She showed that game-changing ability in the last World Cup, shining in the Final as the USWNT soared to yet another triumph.
Though she was a breakout in the mainstream, Lavelle has always been a classy footballer, dating back to her time with the Boston Breakers (now defunct) when she first joined the NWSL. Lavelle is one of the world’s best technicians and has a knack for coming up in the biggest moments.
Portland Thorns FW Sophia Smith: Alexia Putellas and Aitana Bonmatí – Barcelona’s titanic tandem – may have the edge for being named the best players in the world, but reigning NWSL MVP Sophia Smith has undoubtedly joined the conversation with her brilliance each and every week in the United States.
Smith is the clear superstar of the team with Mal Swanson sadly out due to a patellar tendon tear. The 22-year-old phenom had 14 goals and 3 assists in 2022 as a breakout superstar and MVP in her second season, but she is already off to an even better 2023 with 6 goals and 5 assists in the first half of the season.
Her underlying statistics are even more impressive. Smith averages 6.5 progressive carries per 90 and 6.1 shot-creating actions. You will not find a better player in the attack at creating an ever-present sense of danger both as a scorer and creator. Smith starts and finishes attacks. She is a truly special player and is ready to take the world by storm.
San Diego Wave ST Alex Morgan: Alex Morgan is one of the greatest players in the history of this beautiful game and has proven it on the global stage time after time. She scored 6 goals with 3 assists at the last World Cup, shining as an all-around striker who put away chances from all angles and created for her teammates with intelligent hold-up play.
One of the MVP candidates of the 2022 NWSL season behind Sophia Smith, Morgan has brought those same qualities for the San Diego Wave. It feels like Morgan is getting stronger with age as her technical game continues to refine. Morgan’s vision, accuracy with her passing in the final third, and aerial ability make her the perfect striker to center a dynamic USWNT attack around.
Racing Louisville CM Savannah Demelo: Savannah Demelo is still massively underrated on a global scale and even within the United States footballing sphere. She is legitimately one of the world’s best all-around midfielders and off to a phenomenal start in the 2023 NWSL season.
Able to make an impact in every phase of the game, Demelo has already matched last season’s tally of four goals and two assists for Racing Louisville.
The fourth overall pick in the 2022 NWSL Draft, Demelo is already living up to expectations as one of the best midfielders in the league. She averages 6.8 progressive passes and 3.3 progressive carries per 90, creating 4.5 shots per match. Demelo’s defensive contributions are excellent as well, making her a nightmare for any opponent.
Gotham FC LW Midge Purce: Another exceptional talent of the international class, Midge Purce is itching to show the world how amazing she is now that she is in her third season with Gotham FC. Purce is a world-class talent at virtually any attacking position but does her best work when cutting inside from the left, creating chances with her exceptional football IQ.
A dream for any manager to work with, Purce impacts the game decisively in all phases of attack as a progressor, creator, and finisher. Purce had 17 goals in two seasons before injuries hurt her from making as much of an impact in 2022. This season, Purce is averaging 5.82 shot-creating actions per 90 at the club level, reinforcing her status as one of the league’s best wide playmakers.
OL Reign RB Sofia Huerta: Speaking of wide playmakers, you will be hard-pressed to find a better attacking right back than Sofia Huerta. It took the USWNT way too long to value Huerta as a member of the squad, but her exceptional deliveries and tireless work rate on the right flank for OL Reign are impossible to ignore.
Huerta could be one of the most valuable players of the 2023 World Cup due to her intensity and the quality of her final ball. She places crosses where only her strikers can get to it, adeptly drilling or lofting in her passes. Huerta is the master of the early cross, meaning she can create chances when the defense thinks there is no danger.
Gotham FC FW Lynn Williams: One of the most intelligent and versatile attacking players we have ever seen in the NWSL, Lynn Williams has seemingly reached another level since joining Gotham FC as one of a number of inspired offseason acquisitions by the resurgent metropolitan club.
Williams has found the back of the net six times will averaging four combined tackles and interceptions per 90, which is just absurd for a top goal-scorer. She never stops working for the team on and off the ball, getting into the exact right position to execute the exact right finish. Her skill set can make her a game-changer for the USWNT, in addition to joining Alex Morgan as a key stabilizing presence in the attack when things get tough in this hotly-contested major international tournament.
Washington Spirit RW Trinity Rodman: There is perhaps nobody else in women’s football with that X-Factor of excitement than Trinity Rodman. When she gets going, she is impossible to stop. There are so few wide creators who can show the skill she does while also providing the intelligent decision-making on the fly that she does.
Rodman is only 21 years of age, yet she is already one of the NWSL’s absolute best players. She has been exceptional for three seasons now, and she is slowly getting even better each year. Fans around the world are starting to recognize Rodman for being the skilled, all-around attacking dynamo that she is, but the 2023 World Cup could be the stage where she truly breaks out as a global superstar.
