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Despite a holiday this week, there was plenty going on in the world of US Soccer. Of course, the USWNT treated fans to a 2-0 win on the Friday after Thanksgiving. This truly seems like an ideal time to hold a national team match and if the schedule allows in the future, Friday after turkey day would be a great start to the holiday weekend.
Get to know the second strongest player in the world
Apparently. That’s according to the best writer on MLS dot com, J. Sam Jones... and FIFA. Sam has a profile of Orlando City striker Darly Dike. The American took MLS by storm and is a huge part of why OCSC had the breakthrough season that it did in 2020. The article goes into why Dike is special, belonging, and his national team (or teams!?) aspirations. You’ll come away from reading this hoping he represents the Stars and Stripes, because he’s exactly the kind of person the team needs.
Hearing from the USWNT General Manager
Ahead of the USWNT match against Holland, General Manager Kate Markgraf spoke to Yahoo Sports about her role and the challenges of 2020. Much has been discussed about the General Manager role for both the men’s and women’s teams - like, “what is this?” Markgraf gave details about how she supports the team, what her relationship with manager Vlatko Andonovski is like, and how her experience as a player informs her understanding of what players expect on and off the field.
December USMNT camp taking shape according to rumors
After a quiet 2020 due to COVID-19, the USMNT is set to hold another camp to finish out the year. This time, it will be a domestic one and it seems like the focus will be on youth. Two players whose names have come up as potential attendees are dual-nationals Efrain Alvarez and Julian Araujo of the LA Galaxy profiled by Tom Marshall of ESPN. Alvarez has long been of interest to US coaches and has represented Mexico most recently at the youth level. If he ends up choosing the Stars and Stripes in the end, it will be a major addition to the team. For now, this is just a camp callup and he hasn’t filed paperwork to play for the team so won’t be eligible to play in the friendly match against El Salvador according to the article.
Mewii are back
Ahead of their match against the Netherlands, the Mewis sisters talked with Goal about being reunited for the national team. Fans will know that Sam has been a key player for the USWNT for the last few years while Kristie fell off the map a bit. The article discusses her struggles and how Sam supported her through her return to form and comeback.
Next stop for ArJo?
Following a career that has been derailed by injuries, Aron Johannssen could be headed to MLS. He is thriving in Sweden where he’s scored 15 goals in 25 games Hammarby IF, but a move may be looming by the time January arrives. Despite injuries, he’s shown that he still has the scoring prowess that earned him callups to the USMNT. MLS noted that in addition to coming to the domestic league, the Alabaman may also look to move back to Germany.