The USWNT closes pair of midwest friendlies as Carli Lloyd retires
2 min read
The U.S. women’s national team is set to square off against South Korea in Kansas City on Thursday night at Children’s Mercy Park. The match is the first of two friendlies for the USWNT against South Korea in a farewell series to Carli Lloyd as she retires. The USWNT is unbeaten in all 13 previous matches against South Korea.
Here’s how you can watch the match and what to know:
Viewing information
- Date: Thursday, October 21 | Time: 8 p.m. ET
- Location: Children’s Mercy Park — Kansas City
- TV: ESPN2 | Live stream: fuboTV (try for free)
Storylines
USWNT: The team continues its post-Olympic tour with two final games against South Korea. This time the matches will also serve as the final international games for veteran Carli Lloyd, who announced her retirement from the game after the Tokyo games. Lloyd will conclude her national team career with the two-game series and step away from the game at the conclusion of her season with NWSL club NJ/NY Gotham FC. USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski has called in 17 of the Tokyo Olympians and four NWSL players to round out the roster, with defender Emily Fox as the newest edition to the camp. Megan Rapinoe makes her return from injury, while Alyssa Naeher, Julie Ertz, and Sam Mewis are still rehabbing. Christen Press and Crystal Dunn have opted out of the games vs. South Korea.
South Korea: Ranked No. 18 in the world, South Korea have called in 23 players for the two games against the USWNT. Captain and midfielder SoYun Ji is South Korea’s all-time leading scorer with 59 goals in 127 international appearances. The 30-year-old Chelsea midfielder had two goals in 19 appearances during the Blues’ title-winning Women’s Super League campaign last season and scored in the Champions League semifinal against Bayern Munich. Sohyun Cho (Tottenham Hotspur) and Geummin Lee (Brighton & Hove Albion) also play in England’s FAWSL, while the 20 remaining players represent domestic clubs in South Korea. Despite being winless against the USWNT, South Korea’s most recent result against the U.S. is a 1-1 draw in October 2019, with Lloyd scoring the lone goal for USA.
USWNT vs. South Korea prediction
The USWNT defense will look different without Dunn, but can keep the clean sheet with help from the attack. Pick: USWNT 2, South Korea 0.
