HARRISON, N.J. — Of all the developments in the U.S. women’s national team so far in 2020, none is more striking than the arrival of Christen Press as a regular game-changer in the attacking end of the field. Press has been a force for the U.S. in victories over England and Spain in the SheBelieves Cup—scoring one blinder of a game-winner and assisting on another—and building even more on her MVP performance during the Olympic qualifying tournament.
If coach Vlatko Andonovski had to pick his first-choice starting lineup tomorrow for a gold-medal game, it’s likely that Press would be in it on the left wing in place of reigning world player of the year Megan Rapinoe (who has dealt with nagging injuries for much of the time since the World Cup).