Alex Morgan has been praised by the USWNT head coach. It was :56 The new addition to the US women's national team, 21-year-old Alex Morgan, was watching from behind the goal as Heather O'Reilly and A.S. women's national team teammates stood behind the goal. The youth national team sensation with lightning speed and the ability to score had been heard about before she came to college. O'Reilly and Wambach looked at Morgan, going back and forth, trying to find words to describe what they were seeing. She's fun to be around. It's raw. The limbs are all in one direction. It was like a newborn animal. A baby horse is what I mean. That's when Alex Morgan was christened. O'Reilly said that she doesn't love the nickname, but she is a trooper about it. There is no hint of a gangly foal anymore. There is no player in the world who has a more recognizable stride. She whips her hair behind her. Speed isn't enough to make you a global star. Morgan has scored a lot of big goals. She's been on almost every magazine cover and has 9.1 million followers on her social media accounts. She's won most of the time. Maybe that success is due to Alex Morgan's bravery. She's a seeker, someone with both the hunger to get better and the nerve to put herself in the middle of new, unfamiliar environments, whether that's going to Lyon to fight for a starting spot against the world's best, or bringing her 5-month-old baby to She adds a new layer of sophistication, creativity, understanding and verve every year. The global star was not on the U.S. roster for the past eight months. For someone who has been on the national team for a long time, this was the first time she was outside. Morgan scored a pair of goals in her first qualification for the U.S. team, putting the U.S. back in the running for the World Cup and Olympics. It was thought that Morgan's time with the team was over. The team might have moved on without her. Alex Morgan's most interesting chapter may be that one. Morgan's first Olympics took place in London. She lived with Heather O'Reilly. Morgan said thatHeather was one of the first people to take him under her wing. She was such a good person, a good teammate, a good leader, and I would just follow and do as she did. There's a beautiful game here. You can watch tournaments and teams.
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She was still excited about the opening ceremony even though it was her third Olympics. She said that she may have been put with the rookies because she still has childish energy for things like that.
Morgan and O'Reilly made their own parade after Morgan and O'Reilly put the ceremony on the television. They wore their berets and took pictures in the hotel hallways with their teammates. You have dreamed about the Olympics since you were a child.
O'Reilly told me that it was important to make it fun. People get tight, too sucked into this world that's not reality, so you can't take yourself so seriously.
"It's like, first thing's first, get our s--- done on the field, but you're not going to get your s--- done unless you're having fun, and you're not going," O'Reilly said.
O'Reilly said that winning is enjoyable. If you're not winning, those other shenanigans won't matter.
Morgan came off the bench to score two goals and lead the U.S. to a come-from-behind victory. Morgan scored the game-winner in the 123rd minute of overtime to give the US a 4-3 victory over Canada in the semifinals. The US won the gold medal.
The most recent Olympics were delayed in Tokyo. There were no opening ceremonies because of carbon dioxide. Fans from other countries were not allowed. Morgan couldn't bring her baby with her. The U.S. didn't play well in front of empty stadiums.
Morgan might think about the first 2012 Olympics when she thinks about the next Olympics. Morgan said that the Olympics weren't really creating a fun environment and that he felt like he was bringing his best self to the event. Sweden defeated the U.S., 3-nothing. A disappointing finish for a player and a team accustomed to being at the top of the world was caused by Morgan's injury.
The questions began when that happened. The head coach might have stuck with the veterans for too long after recalling 17 of the World Cup winners. He will have to turn to the next generation when the World Cup comes around. The younger players were the focus for the next few national team camps. He made it clear that no one's spot is guaranteed just because they played well two years ago. You need to show that you're doing well.
Alex Morgan wasn't called in for the next few national camps. Morgan was at home with her family when Andonovski called. He told her she wouldn't be going to camp.
She was surprised by this one.
Morgan said it was a difficult discussion. It's not easy for anyone to have hard conversations with Vlatko. I was disappointed, but at the same time, I need to make sure I'm on the next roster.
She joined San Diego Wave FC in the National Women's Soccer League in order to prove herself. She said that it was not a bitter reply. I don't want to think that I'm trying to get back on the national team. I'm trying to prove to myself that I'm worthy of scoring goals in the NWSL and being on the national team, as well as to prove to the people that traded me and why I'm here.
I want to return to the national team. To make San Diego the best and most successful expansion team in the history of the NWSL. I'm on one team and one team only in San DIEGO.
Morgan had never had the chance to focus all her energy on one team. She said she was going to make the most of the time she had left.
To know what it means for Morgan to stay put in one place and make a home is worth considering her last 15 years. After college at Cal-Berkeley, where she was always looking for extra ways to get better, training on her own, with her coach, and in pickup games with the men's team, her professional career took her all over. She's played for a number of teams. Her husband has a list of cities and teams. They have been doing long-distance for a long time. Morgan traveled the globe for the national team.
It was a decision that happened fast that affected her more than she anticipated. After giving birth to her daughter, she had to figure out how to get game fit for the delayed Olympics in 2021.
My husband asked me if I wanted to play abroad for the rest of the year. She laughs and says that he didn't realize how serious she was going to be about it. She said that the idea was a great one.
Her agent called every team, trying to find a place for her to play for four months so that she would be ready for the Olympics. Morgan and her mother-in-law went to north London.
She says she is grateful to them for being so accommodating of her. Here I am, still breastfeeding, going over there, not 90 minutes fit, not even 30 minutes fit, thinking that I am because I've been training alone. I knew I had a long way to go.
It's not uncommon after having a baby to have a knee injury. I've never been away from my daughter for that long. After that, my milk dried up. I couldn't produce enough being away from her that long, not having an area or time to pump. Before and after meetings, I would pump.
I'm so thankful for my husband's support because he was away from me and my daughter for a long period of time. It was the step I needed to take. The team was so welcoming to me that I had the best time there, even though a lot of people called me crazy for it.
The club was founded in 1865 and has a long history. When Morgan walked down the street in her Spurs gear, people cheered and gave her a nod of approval, or they booed. Managers Karen Hills and Juan Carlos Amoros took the amateur, fourth-division team through three promotions to the top division of English women's football.
In the beginning, Hills made jam sandwiches, trained the women at night, and drove the team bus. This woman cared about Hills and Alex Morgan. Morgan had the chance to help Hills carry on the dream she had nursed for 11 years.
The field felt like a forgotten schoolyard. Morgan said she hadn't played on a field like that since she was 12. The team did not have a weight room. Morgan says that you were working out next to people with gym passes.
The locker room was locked up because it was a public place. They were playing on a surface that was questionable and they were hoping for more. It was challenging, and I think that's what made the players and the coaches like each other. Morgan says the challenge was enjoyable. She does not mean the challenge of playing on rocks, but the challenge of seeing if the team can take the team to a new horizon.
Things happen when Morgan shows up on your team. She spoke with the director of women's football about the need for better training facilities. It was not as professional as it could have been. The club did better after I pushed them to do better. The women are playing in the same facilities as the men. I am proud of my participation in that. It was amazing to see that evolution in person.
After one training session penalty kick, a teammate was quick to celebrate, mimicking Morgan's goal celebration against England at the World Cup -- one that had caused some minor outrage overseas. She drank from an invisible cup of tea and looked at her teammate as her teammates laughed.
After winning the World Cup and an Olympics, and traveling with the U.S. State Department, she has returned to San Diego. She grew up in Diamond Bar, California, and it's where her husband's family is from. She was once again given the chance to help build a club.
She has been able to get to know San Diego in a way that was never possible while traveling the world. They go to street markets and local fairs with Charlie, ride their electric bikes down to the beach, build sand castles, and see the lions at the park. Morgan would like to be a part of her community, a supporter of others, and promote local businesses on her social channels. She played with guys from the USL's San Diego Loyals and with her husband in a pickup game before the preseason.
Morgan says he tries to be on the team of the coach. He is really good. Ten or so years after it all began, they are still playing together, still finding each other on the field.
She and her family were able to attend the Wave FC games when the NWSL started. They played their games at the Torero Stadium. They packed the house because it felt special. Morgan gives 20 tickets to youth girls' teams to attend home matches. Alex's Home Break is a surfer's term that means the place where your face is easy to recognize and you feel welcome.
She leads the league with 11 goals on the season. Wave supporters hung a banner on the rails with a portrait of her on the back of her jersey, but instead of Morgan, it said Four-GAN.
Morgan takes the field again, this time with her daughter, when the game is over and the fans are gone. Morgan says that she is just waiting for her time.
In June, Andonovski sent a text to Morgan asking when she would be free. She said she's free any time. She had no idea what was going to happen when she was about to drive.
While she was driving, he called her. This is not the kind of conversation you have when you're driving. She had been invited back with the national team for the first time in eight months. He told her that she was going to the World Cup/ Olympics.
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She posted a picture of herself and Megan Rapinoe on the social networking site. She said to go to camp with a half-smile.
Morgan has been a veteran for many years. There were 17 World Cup veterans on the 2020 Tokyo Olympic team, but now there are 22 and 23 year olds around. The veterans are playful, mischievous, and full of smiles.
The pressure on the young players to show they have what it takes seems to have freed up the veterans. They look happy out there.
"Watch out, Alex and Pinoe, I'm coming," she said to the camera after ripping a beauty into the side-netting. Rapinoe broke out into the dance known as the whip after O'Hara called out to her in the Haiti game. Rapinoe played the ball to Morgan to show their understanding of one another.
The same way that O'Reilly and crew once did for them, Rapinoe, Morgan and O'Hara are trying to get the rookies to be playful. If I could follow in their footsteps, I would be fine.
Morgan thought she didn't bring her best self and didn't make it fun in the last Olympics.
Morgan was removed from the national team. I'm playing soccer because I really enjoy it. I'm having a good time. I'm playing because I want to keep playing and not because I need it to fulfill myself or feel valued in myself. The joy that can be felt in playing can be felt all around.
O'Reilly says that the veteran's job is difficult, but he also cares about his job. Alex is a fierce competitor. She wants to leave a mark on her career She wants to show she's in the top three of all time. Are you interested in taking my starting job? You need to do better than this. You make the team challenging for the next generation by bringing them up with you.
After Alex Morgan scored her 10th goal of the season, Sophia Smith, the 21-year-old who is the second-leading goal scorer in the league, and who scored two goals on the same day, took to her social media account to remind her to slow down. Morgan said that he came from the brace queen. Those goals were brought to the table by the crown.
Smith was quiet on the night in the first match. Morgan had two goals. A casual act of brilliance was the first goal. She is more likely to impress you with her creativity than she is with her speed.
She thinks she's scored with the outside of her foot. She scores a second time.
This is what happens when you bring something up with someone. Morgan is using this idea outside of her team.
There was an interaction after their W Championship game against Haiti. Morgan was asked for her jersey by a young Haitian center-back. You can see Morgan peel off her shirt in the video. Louis looked confused, like, you want mine. Morgan smiles and says she wants yours. Morgan plays with her body language and holds out her palms. You can hear Louis' teammates laughing and cheering in French while assuring her that Morgan is serious.
Morgan makes a change to the dynamic. Louis now knows that Alex Morgan has her jersey as well. It's not a star bestowing someone with her jersey, now it's a star of one team trading with a star of another As Morgan walks away, she passes a group of girls who are laughing at her.
Alex Morgan is more than just a leader. She is a leader around the world. There was an idea that Morgan might not make the national team. It seems like the most ridiculous thing anyone has ever said.
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