Women's World Cup: Morgan Reid Talks USWNT's Chances This Summer & Playing Alongside Her Idols

Orlando Pride defender & former United States Under-20 international Morgan Reid will be a columnist for 90min during the Women's World Cup in France, as Jill

Orlando Pride defender & former United States Under-20 international Morgan Reid will be a columnist for 90min during the Women's World Cup in France, as Jill Ellis' Stars and Stripes look to retain their World Cup crown this summer.

I'm really excited to see the team compete this year.

Preparation has been really solid and we've got an incredible group of players.

I've been lucky enough to play and train with a lot of the girls that have been called into the squad and they're an amazing group who have really bought into the process, especially over the last year and a half. 

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It'll be great to see us take it to another level and play for something as meaningful as the World Cup. We've had lots of mini tournaments both here in the States and elsewhere that have really helped build up to this summer, so I think that will help us perform at our best.

Obviously expectations are really high, but we've been playing well recently and I'm confident we'll go deep in the tournament.

The 1999 team was the staple of what United States soccer has been all about, and the opportunity to win back-to-back World Cups and establish complete dominance is what we're all hoping to achieve. We know it won't be easy and losing the odd game here or there often asks questions about a team's mentality and ability, but I'm confident in the players we have.

If I can seize the moment and just do my best every time I pull on the Pride jersey, than that's all I can ask of myself - hopefully my performances will do the talking then.

Personally, it's inspirational for me to see how some of my teammates juggle being team leaders at club level, as well as being leaders for the national team. They have to split their focus and make sure that we'll have the confidence to take our club to the next level while they are away, whilst also focussing on what they've got coming up.

We as a team instil the same confidence back to them and just encourage them to go out and do their thing. They don't need any advice, only to know how much we look up to and believe in them.

I'm proud because I have three girls that I practice and play with now (Ali Krieger, Alex Morgan and Ashlyn Harris) over in France, but also four of the North Carolina Courage girls that I played with too. 

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It's super exciting for me to see them all out there and I can't wait to see them take on this summer's challenge and play well.

What's even more exciting is that I'm playing alongside players at the Pride who have been playing at the world level for so long. Marta, Ali Krieger and Alex Morgan are players that I've looked up to ever since I was a high school player. 

I idolised them and now I get the opportunity to play and train with them every day. Watching how they prepare to be on the world stage is something that is really unique and cool for me to be a part of, because you begin to understand how dedicated and bought into the process they are - by the professionalism that they show day in and day out.

We know it won't be easy and losing the odd game here or there often asks questions about a team's mentality and ability, but I'm confident in the players we have.

On a personal level, I definitely have aspirations to break into the national team setup, and the fit since I arrived here at Orlando has been pretty awesome. I really couldn't ask for any more support and belief, and there's been a real sense of positivity around the players that have come into our side whilst the national team players are away.

Now, when they get back, some players will have been given the opportunity to step up and show the coaches what they can do, and it's a great chance to show the depth of our roster and continue looking to improve as a team.

If I can seize the moment and just do my best every time I pull on the Pride jersey, than that's all I can ask of myself - hopefully my performances will do the talking then.

ᴡᴏʀʟᴅ ᴄᴜᴘ ᴍᴏᴅᴇ ᴀᴄᴛɪᴠᴀᴛᴇᴅ 🕹#BehindTheCrest x @VW pic.twitter.com/ggcuU41isW

— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) June 9, 2019

In terms of competition for the States this summer, I see three main teams who pose a real threat at this tournament, Japan is one, alongside the hosts France - but I'm super impressed with Australia also. Sam Kerr leads the line really well and they've got a pretty solid defensive line, proven in their performance against us earlier this year.

They did slip to a surprise defeat against Italy in their opening game, but they have quality throughout their squad and shouldn't be written off just yet. They still have a good chance of making a run deep into the tournament, and they will be among the teams that we will keep a close eye on and prepare for thoroughly - knowing that we may have to face them.

This summer is a huge opportunity for other reasons too. It's super important that we continue bringing more awareness to the girls game. Obviously, it's a different style to the men's game but there is more and more appreciation for the technical aspect of the women's game and a realisation of how good the standard is.

Image by Toby Cudworth

The more attention that's brought to it and the more visibility that we get across the world can only help to grow the sport further. Especially here in the States, the NWSL has continued to improve year after year and we're trying to make the leagues that we have over here as solid as they are in Europe.

The global platform of the World Cup will certainly help with bringing that attention, and it's great to see such a worldwide interest now being taken in our sport.