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U.S. Women's National Team

29 U.S. Women Assemble to Prepare for 2015 World Cup

With the World Cup set to kick off in Canada in five months, Jill Ellis called up 29 players for a three-week training camp that will culminate in friendlies in Europe against France and England.
BY John D. Halloran Posted
January 03, 2015
9:46 AM
IT'S SAFE TO SAY that the United States women's national team didn't exactly finish off 2014 with a bang.

In December, the team tied China and lost to Brazil en route to finishing second at the International Tournament of Brasilia—a four-team competition. Its also lost the No. 1 world ranking, a position it had held for 2,464 days dating back to 2007.

Now heading into 2015—and the World Cup this summer—coach Jill Ellis and the team have plenty of work to do.

On Friday, Ellis named a 29-player roster for the team's January camp, which will run for three weeks before the team departs for Europe and friendlies against France and England in early February.

Here's the roster and a breakdown of Ellis' choices.

GOALKEEPERS
Nicole Barnhart (FC Kansas City), Ashlyn Harris (Washington Spirit), Alyssa Naeher (Boston Breakers), Hope Solo (Seattle Reign FC)

DEFENDERS
Lori Chalupny (Chicago Red Stars), Crystal Dunn (Washington Spirit), Whitney Engen (Western NY Flash), Julie Johnston (Chicago Red Stars), Meghan Klingenberg (Houston Dash), Ali Krieger (Washington Spirit), Kelley O’Hara (Sky Blue FC), Christie Rampone (Sky Blue FC), Becky Sauerbrunn (FC Kansas City), Rachel Van Hollebeke (Portland Thorns FC)

MIDFIELDERS
Shannon Boxx (Chicago Red Stars), Morgan Brian (Virginia), Tobin Heath (Portland Thorns FC), Lauren Holiday (FC Kansas City), Allie Long (Portland Thorns FC), Carli Lloyd (Houston Dash), Kristie Mewis (Boston Breakers), Samantha Mewis (UCLA), Heather O’Reilly (FC Kansas City), Megan Rapinoe (Seattle Reign FC)

FORWARDS
Sydney Leroux (Seattle Reign FC), Alex Morgan (Portland Thorns FC), Christen Press (Chicago Red Stars), Amy Rodriguez (FC Kansas City), Abby Wambach (Western NY Flash)


The Regulars

If there's one thing that can be counted on from Coach Ellis, it's consistency in her rosters. For the team's January camp, all 24 players who made the trip to Brazil in December were called in again. The group also includes all 20 players who were on the team in World Cup qualifying.

The New Additions

In addition to the 24 players who were with the team in last month's Brasilia tournament, Ellis is bringing five veterans back into the fold, including Nicole Barnhart, Rachel Van Hollebeke, Shannon Boxx, Allie Long, and Kristie Mewis.

The fact that the 37-year-old Boxx is still with the team is evidence that the U.S. midfield remains unsettled in her absence—especially in Ellis' oft-preferred 4-3-3. While the Americans have a pair of world-class talents in Lauren Holiday and Carli Lloyd, neither are natural holding midfielders like Boxx.

Ellis could also take another look at Long in the middle, who started the two June friendlies against France alongside Holiday and Lloyd.

Rachel Van Hollebeke, a veteran of two Olympic teams and the 2011 World Cup, will head into the camp after spending her fall playing in Japan. She missed the last two rosters under Ellis and will ostensibly have to leapfrog Whitney Engen or Julie Johnston on the depth chart at center back over the next six months to make the World Cup team.

Barnhart heads into camp looking like the U.S.'s fourth option at goalkeeper. During the camp, No. 1 goalkeeper Hope Solo will face trial for domestic violence charges dating back to last summer. In World Cup qualifying and the Brazil tournament last month, Ashlyn Harris and Alyssa Naeher each earned one start as Solo's backup and appear to be the two main contenders for the backup role.

Finally, there is Kristie Mewis. She was a favorite of former coach Tom Sermanni but hasn't seen much time under Ellis. Usually used as a left back, or left midfielder (she can also play center mid), it's hard to see where Mewis fits in a number of crowded position battles.

The U-23 Camp

One unique feature of this camp is that it will run concurrently with the U-23 camp in the same location. That camp could give several players a chance to make a last-minute run at the senior team roster before next summer's World Cup—assuming Ellis is open to that possibility.

Some of the notable call-ups to the U-23 camp with senior team potential are collegians Jane Campbell (GK, Stanford), Katelyn Rowland (GK, UCLA), Abby Dahlkemper (D, UCLA), Emily Sonnett (D, Virginia), Danielle Colaprico (MF, Virginia), and Rose Lavelle (MF, Wisconsin), as well as NWSL stars Erika Tymrak (MF, FC Kansas City), Keelin Winters (MF, Seattle Reign), Sarah Hagen (F, FC Kansas City), and Kealia Ohai (F, Houston Dash).

Sonnett and Colaprico are college teammates of Brian and recently led the Cavaliers to the national title game. Ohai and Lavelle made names for themselves as members of the 2012 and 2014 U-20 World Cup teams, respectively. Finally, Tymrak, Winters, and Hagen are all proven professionals who have received senior team call-ups in the past.

Pulling up a player or two from the U-23 squad could have a big payoff for Ellis. For the better part of two years, the U.S. has seemed to be in a funk and one has to wonder if an unaltered string of call-ups and a steady rotation of playing time through squad rotation has made the current crop of players complacent. Bringing up some fresh, hungry talent could be the kick in the butt some of the senior players need right now.

What Formation Will the U.S. Play?

Since Ellis took over the team in April, the U.S. has employed a 4-3-3 in every game except its last match. Against Brazil in the final of the International Tournament of Brasilia, the U.S. went back to a 4-4-2.

However, it is unclear whether this tactical change signals the beginning of a permanent switch back to the U.S.'s traditional formation or simply was a a one-match maneuver. Against Brazil, the U.S. was missing strikers Alex Morgan, Sydney Leroux, and Christen Press, which may have prompted Ellis to ditch the three-front just for that game. Ellis may have also made the switch as a one-game tactic in an effort to bulk up the U.S.'s defense, which had conceded three goals to Brazil in the group stage of the tournament only days earlier.

The No. 10 Role

The other big question headed into this camp and the February friendlies: Who will play the No. 10 role for the U.S.?

Ellis has so far preferred either Megan Rapinoe or Abby Wambach—neither of whom has offered definitive proof of their value at the position. Rapinoe's best performances for the U.S. have always been when deployed wide and Wambach simply doesn't have the requisite skill set to be an effective attacking midfielder in Ellis' set-up. With Rapinoe or Wambach in the No. 10 role, the U.S. attack has often been disjointed.

On the other hand, the team has looked good when it has partnered Holiday and Lloyd with Morgan Brian, but those occasions have been rare.

In addition to Brian, Ellis' other options for a third central midfielder—should the U.S. stay in a 4-3-3—include Long, Boxx, Tobin Heath, Lori Chalupny, Julie Johnston, Sam Mewis, and Kristie Mewis (Long, Boxx, Chalupny, Johnston, and Kristie Mewis aren't No. 10's, but including them in the starting XI would allow Ellis to push Holiday or Lloyd into the attacking role).

The Battle at Outside Back

The re-introduction of Chalupny onto the roster, whose appearances last month for the U.S. were her first in five years, has also added a new dimension to the battle at outside back.

Over the past few months it seemed as if the four roster spots at outside back were essentially set with Ali Krieger, Meghan Klingenberg, Crystal Dunn, and Kelley O'Hara the preferred choices. However, not only did Chalupny get called in for last month's tournament, she ended up starting in three of four games.

Now with Kristie Mewis back in the mix as well, things could get very interesting. Both Mewis and Chalupny are naturally left-footed, but Klingenberg, Krieger, and O'Hara all have vast experience on the left. Another factor likely to be considered is versatility, but all six players in contention at outside back have played professionally and internationally at multiple positions.

Krieger's ability and experience make her essentially indispensable and Klingenberg's performances in qualifying were outstanding. O'Hara and Chalupny have the experience, while Dunn brings world-class speed. It should be fun to see how it all plays out.

John D. Halloran is an American Soccer Now columnist. Follow him on Twitter.

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