Three of the USWNT’s biggest stars will miss the last games of the year

When the U.S. women’s soccer team gathers in Europe later this month for its year-ending games at England and the Netherlands, three of the program’s most famous names will be absent.

Sophia Smith, Trinity Rodman, and Mallory Swanson — the “Triple Espresso” forward line that powered the Americans’ dash to Olympic gold in Paris — have all been left off the roster for the games. Manager Emma Hayes is allowing them to rest and shake off injuries that accrued from a year of hard work.

“The decision was taken that their welfare comes first,” Hayes said in a news conference Monday.

All three players fought through the knocks to take their clubs into the NWSL playoffs. Smith has suffered from chronic ankle fatigue since returning from the Olympics, with Portland Thorns manager Rob Gale admitting earlier this month that “she’s barely been able to train.”

Hayes limited Smith’s playing time during last month’s friendlies on home soil, though in the time she got Smith scored a fantastic goal against Iceland. She and the Thorns finally ran out of steam in a first-round playoff loss at Gotham FC.

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Swanson missed nearly a year due to a torn patellar tendon suffered in April 2023, with the World Cup in that span. She returned to action with Chicago in March, scored the title-winning goal at the Olympics, then took a pounding in club games down the stretch – including a hard landing on her shoulder in September and an awkward fall in the Red Stars’ first-round playoff loss at Orlando.

As Swanson played through it all, Hayes looked at the bigger picture, and decided she’d seen enough.

“If you’re to look at the number of games Mallory’s played in this last year, it’s been a lot for her on the back of her from injury,” Hayes said. “When you’re in the back end of a season and you’ve played a lot, and your body’s tired, your mind’s tired, that’s where sometimes it can become risky.”

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Rodman has been dealing with back pain for two months. She has fought through it to help the Washington Spirit reach the NWSL championship game, beating Bay FC and Gotham in the playoffs, but Hayes didn’t call her in last month so she could rest.

Washington will play Orlando for the title on Saturday in Kansas City. (8 p.m. CBS3). Three players from those clubs are on the U.S. roster: Washington defender Casey Krueger and midfielder Hal Hershfelt, and Orlando defender Emily Sams.

While the big three absences won’t surprise close followers, it’s obviously disappointing. The U.S.-England game set for Nov. 30 at London’s famed Wembley Stadium will match the Olympic champions against the reigning European champions, and two fan bases that love to claim bragging rights over each other. More than 70,000 tickets have been sold.

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Three days later, the Americans will visit the Dutch, No. 11 in FIFA’s global rankings. They’ve slipped from the No. 4 spot they occupied just before the 2022 European Championship, but are still one of the continent’s powers.

This game will get extra attention because it will be the first time marquee prospect Lily Yohannes plays for her native country against the one where she now lives.

The 17-year-old midfielder was born and raised in northern Virginia, and moved to the Netherlands at age 10 when her father got a job there. She has played for Dutch club Ajax for the last few years, and earlier this month committed her national team future to the United States.

“She really wants to progress now with her international career, and she knows she has to work hard to with the playing pool being a strong as it is,” Hayes said. “But I think she’s an exceptional talent, and I’m delighted that we can develop a very young Lily Yohannes over the next few years to prepare her for her future with the national team.”

» READ MORE: Lily Yohannes, a top young soccer prospect, commits to the USWNT

The forward group will be led by U.S. veteran Lynn Williams along with big-time youngsters Jaedyn Shaw and Alyssa Thompson. The England game will be a special moment for Thompson in particular, as she returns to the stadium where she made her U.S. debut two years ago.

Forward Ally Sentnor (Utah) and goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce (England’s Manchester United) have earned their first U.S. call-ups. Sentnor is an NWSL Rookie of the Year finalist, and might have been on the last U.S. squad had she not just gotten back from the under-20 World Cup. Tullis-Joyce moved to England just over a year ago after two years with the Seattle Reign, and won the United starting job this season.

Though Manchester United isn’t yet as big of a deal in women’s soccer as it is in men’s soccer, the team is having a good season: in fifth place with a 4-0-3 record and just two goals conceded.

“I want to see what she looks like with the demands we place on her, and all the other things you can’t see or hear through a television screen, or when you’re sat live,” Hayes said. “I think she’s had a good start to her career at Manchester United.”

We’ll see if Tullis-Joyce or Haught gets any playing time in the upcoming games. Longtime starter Alyssa Naeher isn’t going anywhere yet, but the Penn State product is 36 and will be 39 when the next World Cup kicks off in 2027. Now is a fair time for Hayes to start planning for her successor.

“I just want to try and build out the goalkeeping pool a little bit,” Hayes said. “This is a really good moment, considering [Tullis-Joyce] plays in England and she is very familiar with the style of play.”

» READ MORE: USWNT goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher remains a quiet leader, even with all her big-game heroics

Goalkeepers (3): Mandy Haught (Utah Royals), Phallon Tullis-Joyce (Manchester United, England), Alyssa Naeher (Chicago Red Stars)

Defenders (9): Tierna Davidson (Gotham FC), Emily Fox (Arsenal, England), Eva Gaetino (Paris Saint-Germain, France), Naomi Girma (San Diego Wave), Casey Krueger (Washington Spirit), Alyssa Malonson (Bay FC), Jenna Nighswonger (Gotham FC), Emily Sams (Orlando Pride), Emily Sonnett (Gotham FC)

Midfielders (6): Korbin Albert (Paris Saint-Germain, France), Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns), Hal Hershfelt (Washington Spirit), Lindsey Horan (Lyon, France), Rose Lavelle (Gotham FC), Lily Yohannes (Ajax, Netherlands)

Forwards (6): Yazmeen Ryan (Gotham FC), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville), Ally Sentnor (Utah Royals), Jaedyn Shaw (San Diego Wave), Alyssa Thompson (Angel City FC), Lynn Williams (Gotham FC)

Saturday, Nov. 30: vs. England at Wembley Stadium, London, 12:20 p.m. (TNT, Telemundo 62, Universo, Max, Peacock)

Tuesday, Dec. 3: vs. the Netherlands at ADO Den Haag Stadium, the Hague, 2:45 p.m. (TNT, truTV, Universo, Max, Peacock)