Is Alex Morgan a fit for the future of USWNT?

Once the most feared women’s football outfit in the world, now a side in the midst of transitional confusion.

Despite being four-time World Champions, the US Women’s National Team have shown that they too are not immune to periods of uncertainty.

Following a below-average exit in the Round of 16 of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023, question marks were raised over the future of one of football’s most successful nations.

Since that penalty shootout loss to Sweden, the side have seen the back of manager Vlatko Andonovski, the retirement of all-time veteran Megan Rapinoe, an unconvincing third-place finish at the Pan American Games and the announcement of new manager Emma Hayes.

What has surprised fans the most, however, is the omission of Alex Morgan from the side’s latest roster.

As the USWNT geared up for an international break of back-to-back friendlies against the People's Republic of China, interim manager Twila Kilgore - with the input of future manager Hayes - left out Alex Morgan, Becky Sauerbrunn, Ashley Sanchez, Sofia Huerta, Alyssa Naeher and Andi Sullivan from the squad list.

Although the exclusions came as a shock to some, others expected a different setup to what they had grown used to. And now, the latest roster announcement poses an interesting question: do the veteran players of 2019 fit within the future of this USWNT side?

• How will Chelsea boss Emma Hayes finish her last season in the Women’s Super League?
• Megan Rapinoe: What now for the USA legend following USWNT retirement?

Alex Morgan and USWNT

For over a decade Alex Morgan has performed for her nation on and off the field.

At the age of 22, Morgan was the USWNT’s youngest player to step out at the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2011 in Germany and she made headlines with her first-ever FIFA Women’s World Cup goal in her nation’s 3-1 semi-final win over Brazil.

Her status within the USWNT set-up was cemented during the final when she not only assisted, but also scored in her side’s attempt to clinch their third FIFA Women’s World Cup trophy. Despite losing out to Japan on penalties, Morgan’s future with her country seemed bright.

Just a year later she was called up by her country again, this time for the 2012 London Olympics, and was the difference in an excruciatingly tight game between Canada and the US when she scored a winning header in the 122nd minute.

Despite recovering from a knee injury in the lead-up to the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2015, Morgan proved indispensable to her nation once again, featuring - and scoring - for the USWNT in their third World Cup winning campaign.

Her success continued into 2016. Morgan was awarded her 100th USWNT cap, just six years after making her senior debut. She also netted the fastest tournament goal in history during qualification for the Rio 2016 Olympics before representing her nation at the Games in Brazil.

Morgan netted her 100th international goal in the lead-up to the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2019 during a friendly against Australia, before helping her side set a new record at the tournament with their 13-0 win over Thailand in which Morgan scored five and assisted three.

By the time the USWNT had reached the knockout stage of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2019, there was no doubt that Morgan was the beating heart of then-manager Jill Ellis’ setup. As the US won their fourth Women’s World Cup, Morgan was awarded the tournament’s Silver Boot award after drawing on goals with her teammate Megan Rapinoe.

Following the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2019, Morgan missed out on frequent roster call-ups due to injury and pregnancy, but her influence continued to reign over her nation.

Following a USWNT complaint that was filed in 2016, Morgan co-led an equal pay lawsuit with Megan Rapinoe that ensured equal pay for male and female U.S. players. The well documented $24 million settlement was a landmark agreement following the USWNT’s complaints of gender discrimination against US Soccer and set a precedent for women’s football across the globe.

Since the USWNT’s successful lawsuit, the women’s game as a whole has seen an increase in players demanding better standards, more support and fairer pay - actions that may not have been taken had Morgan and Rapinoe not led their own charge.

Aside from a historic equal pay victory, Morgan has brought more awareness to the issues surrounding female footballers and pregnancy. More often than not, female players are forced to choose between the role of ‘mother’ or ‘footballer’, but Morgan shone a light on the ability to continue a career throughout pregnancy.

The midfielder continued training with both club and country until she was around eight months pregnant in 2020, and although not the first footballer to do so, Morgan was without a doubt one of the most well-known to speak on the subject, which helped open a wider conversation.

Be it her performance on the pitch or her activism off of it, there is no doubt that Alex Morgan’s influence has helped shape the US Women’s National Team into what it is today.

What is in store for Alex Morgan under Emma Hayes?

Earlier this year, after bowing out of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 on penalties, the 34 year old revealed that she is “not planning to hang up my boots anytime soon now," and despite her omission from this round of friendly fixtures, there is nothing to suggest that this is the end of Alex Morgan’s international career.

New manager Emma Hayes is not expected to take the reins until the summer of 2024, following the end of her final domestic season with Chelsea. This leaves Hayes with little time to prepare her new side for Paris 2024 - a competition that she will be eager to impress at.

Given her lack of contact time with the USWNT prior to next Summer’s Olympics, Hayes has already begun to work with the team from afar and had a level of say into the most recent squad announcement - therefore it could have been her decision to omit Morgan and other regulars from the roster.

As proven throughout her time at Chelsea, Emma Hayes is a manager keen to give everyone a chance. The new USWNT boss will be more than aware of the influence that Morgan carries and will want to carefully pair her seasoned experience with the nation’s emergence of new, youthful talent.

“As we move forward with the next steps, we need more opportunities to see players from our pool in our unique national team environment, in both training and games, so we can evaluate if and how they might contribute moving forward to the Olympics,” reaffirmed Twila Kilgore.

With proven talents like Morgan omitted from this round of fixtures, both Kilgore and Hayes can get a true sense of the USWNT’s long-term future and from there decide how to include her established professionals in the short-term.

34-year-old Morgan will undoubtedly be looking forward to playing under such a decorated manager, and could find herself undertaking a mentor role as she assists Hayes in developing the nation’s next generation of World Cup winners.