The United States will play an international friendly against the Netherlands this long holiday weekend. There’s warring senses at play - it’s hard to care about a friendly - indeed, any sports - at a time when coronavirus cases in the US continue to rise and will undoubtedly rise further after a weekend of traveling and gathering together, but in such a crappy year, there’s a real desire to hold on to the things that make us happy.
There’s also something of a ticking clock; this was supposed to be an Olympic year, but now with the games pushed to 2021 and things still looking dicey for the USWNT to get meaningful competitive games, whether traveling abroad or inviting teams here, surely the coaching staff will try to wring every last drop out of this meeting.