MANCHESTER, England — The brightest abilities in girls’s soccer shall be on present on the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
Alex Morgan is out to win a 3rd straight World Cup with the United States and England’s Lucy Bronze is seeking to turn out to be a world champion after serving to the Lionesses’ win the European Championship final yr.
Ada Hegerberg will carry Norway’s hopes and Alexia Putellas is again from the damage that saved her out of motion for practically 10 months and dominated her out of the Euros.
Here are 10 of the highest gamers to be careful for at this yr’s match.
ALEX MORGAN (UNITED STATES)
Heading into her fourth World Cup, Morgan is already a two-time winner, an Olympic gold medalist and one of many greatest stars within the historical past of the ladies’s sport. The match in Australia and New Zealand shall be an opportunity so as to add to the ahead’s legacy if she helps the U.S. turn out to be the world champion for a document third time in succession. No males’s or girls’s crew has ever received the World Cup thrice in a row. Now 34, Morgan retains making a mark on the sector. The four-time CONCACAF Player of the Year performed her two hundredth sport for her nation final yr and received the golden boot within the NWSL in 2022 after ending as the highest scorer with 15 objectives for San Diego Wave. She has received 11 main tournaments with the U.S. and was additionally a Champions League winner with Lyon. Having received so many honors in her profession, she is trying so as to add one other World Cup in what might be her remaining look on this stage.
CHRISTINE SINCLAIR (CANADA)
No soccer participant, male or feminine, has scored extra worldwide objectives than Canadian legend Sinclair’s 190 for her nation. Canada coach Bev Priestman has described Sinclair’s “incredible humility” – however there’s nothing humble about an unbelievable profession that simply retains on going. Ready to seem in her sixth World Cup on the age of 40, Sinclair stays as decided as ever to attain extra. She resisted the temptation to hold her boots up after Canada received Olympic gold in Tokyo in 2021. It was her fourth Olympics representing her nation. Sinclair has reimagined her sport as her profession has superior, shifting from a middle ahead to a extra withdrawn function as she continues to supply on the high stage. A 3-time NWSL Champion with the Portland Thorns – most lately in 2022 – she is a 14-time Canada Soccer Player of the Year and has received 319 caps. A World Cup winner’s medal is lacking from her assortment, however that might all change at this yr’s match.
SAM KERR (AUSTRALIA)
The first Australian to attain a hat trick within the males’s or girls’s World Cup, Kerr might be within the reckoning to win the golden boot at this yr’s match. She scored 5 in 2019 and was the main scorer on the Asia Cup in 2022 with seven objectives. The ahead is Australia’s all-time main scorer — surpassing Tim Cahill with 63 objectives in complete. Kerr is used to racking up the titles together with her membership crew Chelsea. She has received the English league title 4 years in a row, in addition to three FA Cups and two League Cups. Kerr has been named Women’s Footballer of the Year in England for the previous two seasons. Captaining Australia to World Cup glory in entrance of her residence followers could be the final word achievement. She is actually one for the massive event – most lately scoring the winner within the FA Cup remaining in opposition to Manchester United in entrance a document crowd at Wembley Stadium. She has scored 10 objectives in seven home cup finals.
WENDIE RENARD (FRANCE)
As a part of Lyon’s all-conquering crew, Renard has received 16 French league titles and eight Champions Leagues. Add to that 10 extra French Cups and Renard is arguably France’s best girls’s footballer. But it appeared like she could be absent from this World Cup after asserting in February that she was stepping again from the nationwide crew, saying she might “no longer support the current system.” France coach Corinne Diacre was fired in March and Renard was recalled by new coach Herve Renard, that means she shall be again within the coronary heart of the protection as her nation tries to win the largest prize in girls’s soccer.
ADA HEGERBERG (NORWAY)
It is a measure of Hegerberg’s uncommon expertise that she has been described as girls’s soccer’s reply to Lionel Messi. But on condition that she is from Norway, maybe Erling Haaland is a extra appropriate comparability for the ahead. After all, she is a deadly goal-scorer, identical to the Manchester City striker. Her complete of 59 Champions League objectives is a document for the competitors. And she has averaged greater than a objective per sport for her membership Lyon, profitable eight French league titles and 6 Champions Leagues. Hegerberg was the primary ever feminine winner of the Ballon d’Or and can carry out on the World Cup after ruling herself out of choice for her nation for 5 years as much as 2022 as a consequence of what she thought-about a disregard for ladies’s soccer in Norway.
MARTA (BRAZIL)
Concerns hold over the six-time FIFA participant of the yr as she approaches her sixth World Cup. “I don’t know whether she will be in the starting lineup. She could come off the bench as well,” mentioned Brazil coach Pia Sundhage. Marta, 37, remains to be working her approach again to her greatest after a knee damage. She had surgical procedure to restore a torn anterior cruciate ligament final yr, resulting in an 11-month absence from the nationwide crew. Having by no means received the World Cup, this might be her remaining probability for the Orlando Pride ahead to carry the trophy. Brazil followers are more likely to be concerned about Marta’s health. As her nation’s all-time main scorer with 117 objectives, she might be important to Brazil’s hopes.
DEBINHA (BRAZIL)
It takes a particular participant to put on Brazil’s No. 9 shirt and Debinha is worthy of that honor. The two-time Copa America Femenina winner additionally represented her nation on the World Cup in 2019 and at two Olympics. A high class goal-scorer, the ahead is blessed with velocity and creativity and offers the leading edge for Pia Sundhage’s crew. At membership stage, she received two NWSL championships and three NWSL Shields with the North Carolina Courage and was the NWSL Championship Most Valuable Player in 2019. She now performs for Kansas City Current.
ALEXIA PUTELLAS (SPAIN)
The two-time Ballon d’Or winner missed out on final yr’s European Championship due to a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament simply days earlier than the match. While she is again taking part in once more – and lifted the Champions League with Barcelona in June – it stays to be seen how a lot of an influence she’s going to be capable to have on the World Cup. Putellas’ damage saved her out for practically 10 months and he or she has solely made six appearances for Barca since her return. In that sense, it is going to be an achievement simply to make the match, and her presence provides followers the possibility to look at top-of-the-line gamers on this planet. The winner of two Ballon d’Ors, midfielder Putellas has helped Barca to 2 Champions League titles in three years and 7 Spanish league crowns.
ALEXANDRA POPP (GERMANY)
After the heartache of the Euros, Popp is hoping to make up for that on the World Cup. The Germany striker turned the primary participant to attain in 5 consecutive video games at a Women’s European Championship final yr and hit six in complete to fireplace her nation to the ultimate. But she then suffered the distress of lacking out on the sport in opposition to England at Wembley after struggling an damage throughout warmups. She watched from the bench as England received 2-1 via further time. Popp additionally suffered defeat on this yr’s Champions League remaining, dropping 3-2 to Barcelona after main 2-0. But she has loved loads of success in a extremely embellished profession. Her trophies embody three Champions League titles, seven German league championships and an Olympic gold in 2016.
LUCY BRONZE (ENGLAND)
A serial trophy-winner, England defender Bronze lastly tasted glory in a serious worldwide competitors ultimately yr’s Euros. And if the Lionesses are to observe that up with a World Cup title then Bronze is more likely to be essential. The proper again has received seven league titles in three totally different international locations with Liverpool, Manchester City, Lyon and Barcelona. She heads to the World Cup on the again of profitable the Spanish title and the Champions League with Barca, the fourth time she has lifted European membership soccer’s greatest prize within the girls’s sport. In 10 years since her England debut, she has received 103 caps and established herself as one of many high gamers on this planet. Bronze has described the sensation of profitable as addictive and that has clearly been a motivation in such a extremely embellished profession.
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