Were Alex Morgan’s Olympic Hopes Hurt by Not Starting Wednesday?

Former Cal star Morgan played only the second half of San Diego’s NWSL loss to Gotham FC

Alex Morgan / Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

We’re getting to the stage where we are analyzing every bit of information looking for hints as to whether former Cal star Alex Morgan will be a member of the United States’ 18-player roster for the Olympics.

The latest possible hint came Wednesday night, in The San Diego Wave’s 2-1 loss to Gotham FC.  For the first time this season when she was healthy enough to play, Morgan was not in the Wave’s starting IX for that game.  However, she did come in as a substitute to start the second half, although she did not score a goal and has not scored a goal in any of her NWSL games this season.

Does her being left out of the starting lineup suggest the Wave has lost some confidence in Morgan, which would reflect badly on her chances of making the Olympic roster? 

Or was it just a strategic move considering the demanding schedule the Wave faces this week. Morgan played 85 minutes in Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Washington, and that was her longest stint since her April 19 ankle injury, which sidelined her for a month. Maybe she was being rested in a road game four days later, especially with another road game scheduled for this Saturday.  It might be unrealistic to expect Morgan to be in good enough condition at this point to play all 90 minutes in all three games over an eight-day span.

The fact that five San Diego starters were replaced during the game gives some credence to the latter argument.

Everything is seen as reasons U.S. head coach Emma Hayes might or might not put Morgan on the Olympic roster.  Hayes is expected to announce the Olympic roster within in the next two weeks, and no player has been involved in more debate about her roster status than Morgan.

Her vast international experience and her 123 international goals are reasons she should be on the team, but her recent injury, her lack of scoring this year, and her age (she’ll be 35 when the Olympics begin) are reasons Hayes might leave Morgan off the 18-player roster and perhaps name her as an alternate.  One factor – that she is exclusively a No. 9 as far as her position – is seen by some as a reason she will make the roster but seen by others as a reason she won’t make the roster.

https://www.si.com/college/cal/other-sports/six-sites-predict-whether-alex-morgan-will-be-on-olympic-roster-01j041ft0hth

A week ago we reported on six reputable sites that projected whether Morgan would be on the U.S. Olympic roster, and now we present two CBS Sports programs this week that debated whether Morgan will be on the roster.

And then you watch these Alex Morgan highlights, and you say, “How in the world could you keep this player off the roster?”

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