Yesterday, in a friendly match against Brazil, Abby Wambach, the U.S. team's top scorer, broke her leg. She will be sidelined for three months. This, of course, means that she will not be able to play in the Olympics, which begin on August 8th.
The match, played in San Diego, was the U.S. team's last game before heading to Beijing. Natasha Kai, who went into the game after Wambach was carried off the field, ended up scoring a goal to give her team the win.
Wambach's absence is a huge blow to the U.S. players, who were hoping to redeem themselves after last fall's less than stellar performance at the Women's World Cup. Germany ended up winning that title, and it's easy to see that they could also win Olympic gold.
This whole situation raises the question of whether or not star players should play in friendly matches right before a huge tournament. Yes, yesterday's game gave them practice against a team that they will likely face in Beijing. However, it also cost them their top scorer and woman who is basically the face of their entire program.
If the U.S. is going to win gold, they need to find a player--or a combination of players--who can step up and score on a consistent basis. Stay tuned to see if they can accomplish that feat in the next three weeks.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment