NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — The Irish goalkeeper reached to punch the ball away and cracked Abby Wambach’s nose with her forearm. Wambach began to bleed profusely. Her nose tilted slightly to the left, like a weather vane.
After a check for concussion symptoms, Wambach remained in the exhibition match on May 10. She had played a full 90 minutes in only four of the previous 31 games for the United States national soccer team. She needed to regain her sharpness. The Women’s World Cup was approaching. The nose was broken. Wambach did not care. She would get it fixed after she retired.