04/01/26 11:07:00
Printable Page
04/01 11:05 CDT Naomi Girma set to return home to San Jose for USWNT match
against Japan
Naomi Girma set to return home to San Jose for USWNT match against Japan
By ANNE M. PETERSON
AP Soccer Writer
Naomi Girma is going to play at home in Northern California with the U.S.
national team later this month for the first time since a send-off game for the
2023 Women's World Cup.
Coach Emma Hayes announced Wednesday that Girma, who was born in San Jose and
played at nearby Stanford, will be on the roster when the U.S. plays the first
of three matches against Japan on April 11 at San Jose's Pay Pal Park.
Her last U.S. national team appearance in her hometown was in a 2-0 victory
over Wales ahead of the 2023 World Cup.
"Playing for the national team in the Bay always just feels like kind of
surreal, and seeing a lot of people who come to support me, who were there when
I was playing club soccer, just playing for fun, and being like, ?Wow, I can't
believe that we're all here and we've made it this far.' So it always is really
special for me," Girma said.
Girma's Stanford teammate Sophia Wilson was named to her first roster in 15
months after taking last year off for the birth of her daughter. Defender
Tierna Davidson, who tore her ACL last season, will also return.
"I think it's a great test for us," Girma said about Japan. "They're a great
side, just won the Asian Cup. And I think they're very organized in their
defense, but then also in their attack and they bring something different to a
lot of other opponents that we play. So I think it's always a good test for us
to measure ourselves against them."
Girma plays professionally in England for Chelsea. She joined the Women's Super
League club in early 2025 on a $1.1 million transfer from the San Diego Wave.
This past weekend the defender scored her first WSL goal in a 4-3 victory over
Aston Villa to move the Blues in to second in the standings behind Manchester
City.
She made her debut for the national team in 2022. She has appeared in 52 games
with the United States and played on the squad that won the gold medal at the
Paris Olympics.
Wilson was left off the U.S. roster for the recent SheBelieves Cup as she
worked her way back from maternity leave with her club team, the Portland
Thorns. Wilson has played in 58 games for the national team, scoring 24 goals,
including three at the Olympics in France.
After the match in San Jose, the series against Japan will move to Seattle's
Lumen Field on April 14. The final game is set for April 17 at Dick's Sporting
Good's Park in Commerce City, Colorado.
The roster by position with club affiliation:
Goalkeepers: Jane Campbell (Houston Dash), Claudia Dickey (Seattle Reign),
Phallon Tullis-Joyce (Manchester United).
Defenders: Tierna Davidson (Gotham FC), Emily Fox (Arsenal), Naomi Girma
(Chelsea), Avery Patterson (Houston Dash), Lilly Reale (Gotham FC), Emily Sams
(Angel City), Emily Sonnett (Gotham FC), Gisele Thompson (Angel City), Kennedy
Wesley (San Diego Wave).
Midfielders: Sam Coffey (Manchester City), Lindsey Heaps (OL Lyonnes), Claire
Hutton (Bay FC), Rose Lavelle (Gotham FC), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns),
Jaedyn Shaw (Gotham FC), Lily Yohannes (OL Lyonnes).
Forwards: Michelle Cooper (Kansas City Current), Jameese Joseph (Chicago
Stars), Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville),
Ally Sentnor (Kansas City Current), Alyssa Thompson (Chelsea), Sophia Wilson
(Portland Thorns).
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
|
