USWNT coach Emma Hayes embracing ‘risk’ of player development at SheBelieves Cup

HOUSTON — Now is the time to take risks. At least, that’s the mantra United States women’s national team coach Emma Hayes is preaching these days.

“We do not have a World Cup today and my job is to prepare a team to compete come that period,” Hayes said ahead of the 10th annual SheBelieves Cup. The USWNT plays three matches in seven days, the first on Thursday night against Colombia here at Shell Energy Stadium before traveling to Glendale, Ariz. to face Australia (Feb. 23) and then to San Diego to play Japan (Feb. 26).

The next major tournament is two years away, so Hayes wants to spend time now giving opportunities to younger players with the goal of broadening the player pool. That way, when the 2027 World Cup rolls around, Hayes will have done the work to bridge gaps between players like captain Lindsey Heaps (formerly Horan), who has a team-high 161 caps, with someone like 19-year-old midfielder Claire Hutton, who just earned her first senior call-up.

“There’s no point in talking about the development of a program without providing opportunities for people to do it,” Hayes said. “But with that comes the risk and of course, it won’t look polished in its entirety. But I trust the process and I’ve been a coach for a long time to know that doing it this way will give us a much better chance down the road to compete at the top end when I know exactly what the top nations in the world are doing.

“And as I’ve said before, the biggest challenge we have had is that our programs – youth age group and U-23 has been about 50% of the programming for say, Germany and England and Spain. So we’ve got to close this gap to ensure that this program can stay at the top end.”

What does that mean for the upcoming SheBelieves Cup? The product on the field may not look like it did last summer when the U.S. won gold at the Paris Olympics. Star players Mallory Swanson, Sophia Wilson (formerly Smith) and Trinity Rodman of the famed “Triple Espresso,” as well as Rose Lavelle and Naomi Girma are all recovering from various injuries and were unavailable for selection for this roster.

While Hayes would prefer all her best players participate in every camp, it’s a chance for those who may not have been called in otherwise. The current 23-player roster includes four uncapped players, 10 with fewer than four caps, three who impressed during the “futures” talent identification camp in January, and four teenagers.

Hayes called up 19-year-olds Hutton and Gisele Thompson and 22-year-old Michelle Cooper, all of whom were at the futures camp and are participating in their first-ever senior camp this week. Hayes observed them in January and now wants to see them in a different environment with veterans. For example: Hayes believes Hutton “could have a big future for the national team,” but where is she currently in relation to a player like Sam Coffey? How does Cooper stack up with Yazmeen Ryan? Is Thompson an answer to creating greater depth at fullback behind Emily Fox?

“That’s what this year is about,” Hayes said. “Building and developing relationships and their understanding of what we’re looking to do and to see what they’re like under pressure.”

How does Hayes do this, exactly? Is it an eye test or does she and her staff use specific metrics to measure a younger players’ growth? 

“It’s a combination of things,” Hayes said. “I think seeing players perform in January is one thing and that might be in how they apply tactical information and how quickly they can adapt that to their game, whether that’s in possession or out of possession. Some players might be faster learners.

“The next is to see what it looks like in a game when you’ve got all the stimulus and the pressure of the crowd, of a top opponent, all of those things. The combination of those things will do one of two things: we give them the opportunity and that opportunity will either tell us that they are ready now or they’re ready later.”

If it’s the latter and Hayes and her staff decide a player needs to train with the U-23s longer, that is not a means of relegation.

“Far from it,” she said, explaining that it’s a developmental strategy that “we feel has been absent for a group that is not quite ready for the seniors.” 

Plus, Hayes will have greater access to those players now than former USWNT coaches. And that’s because there will be more youth and senior national team camps running concurrently moving forward, similar to the way Hayes conducted the one in January. In April when the senior team goes to LA ahead of a match vs. Brazil, there will be a U-23 camp going on at the same time. Hayes won’t be coaching that group, but she will watch training sessions and games when she can and hopes to continue this trend for as many international windows as possible moving forward. 

“We’re going to consistently develop 50+ players every international break,” Hayes said. “And for me, that’s an opportunity and one we must maximize.”

This is especially important at the goalkeeper position, where Alyssa Naeher’s replacement is very much up in the air. Hayes only called in two for this camp – Jane Campbell and Mandy McGlynn, while Phallon Tullis-Joyce is a training player and won’t play in a match this window. Casey Murphy, who backed up Naeher at the Olympics and has the most caps (20) of any goalkeeper in the player pool, was not called in. Neither was Claudia Dickey nor Angelina Anderson, who were at January camp. 

Hayes said all of those players are still in the mix, but this camp the focus will be on Campbell (eight caps) and McGlynn (one).

“I think for all the goalkeepers competing, they have to demonstrate they can make the important decisions under pressure on both sides of the ball,” Hayes said. “Of course [show] the qualities unique to play in goal for this team means that more often than not you’ve got to be absolutely ready to make a significant, big save in every game. You’ve got to be good with your decision making and execution in the deepest spaces to help the team progress up the pitch.”

Both Campbell and McGlyn will play during this tournament, as will a lot of less experienced players. The question will be who continues to get invited back over the course of the next several months as Hayes creates her core group.

“For those less experienced players that are getting their opportunities, it’s up to them to impress,” Hayes said. “It’s up to them to put themselves in a position, and this is the message I will give the team. You have to make it difficult for me every month. You have to make it impossible for me to put together a roster. 

“When you come into these situations, you have to display the growth mindsets required to be at this level and then you have to demonstrate that in both your training and on the field. Because I believe we have a great group of players to build around and I want whoever’s in this squad to take it with both hands and really relish the opportunity.”

Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of “Strong Like a Woman,” published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her at @LakenLitman.

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