CHRISTEN PRESS

Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan have been included on the U.S. national soccer team roster for the upcoming CONCACAF W Championship, which will determine four of the region’s teams in the 2023 Women’s World Cup.

Carli Lloyd scored a career-high five goals and the United States routed Paraguay 9-0 on Thursday in the national team’s first game since the Olympics.

Jessie Fleming scored on a penalty kick in the 74th minute and Canada earned a 1-0 semifinal victory over the United States in the Olympic women’s soccer competition.

Mental health has been a discussion in sports the past year but became the topic of these Olympics when gymnast Simone Biles chose self-care over sporting success.

The Americans rebounded from their opening loss to Sweden with a 6-1 rout of New Zealand in front of the First Lady in the women’s soccer tournament at the Tokyo Olympics.

While it certainly wasn’t the Olympic start the U.S. women’s soccer team had anticipated, a rare loss didn’t skewer the squad’s hopes for gold.

The U.S. women's national team has become adept at shutting out all the outside distractions at big tournaments and the Tokyo Olympics are no different.

With the Olympics right around the corner, the final rosters and teams are shaping up, and that includes the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team.

Carli Lloyd is headed to her fourth Olympics.

Sam Mewis scored in the 76th minute and the U.S. national team beat Portugal 1-0 in the Summer Series on Thursday night.

The United States shut out Canada in the round-robin tournament opener and then downed Brazil 2-0 on Sunday. Rapinoe scored in the 16th minute with a well-timed strike on a through ball from Rose Lavelle for the early lead. It was Lloyd's 124th international goal and it came in her 299th appearance with the national team. It was her 108th international goal, moving her into sole possession of fifth place on the team's career list. The United States improved to 4-0 against Argentina.

The United States sits atop the SheBelieves Cup standings with two wins. But not only a goal, the way we played our attack in the first 20 minutes," Brazil coach Pia Sundhage said. It was Press' 10th goal in her last 13 national team games and 59th international goal. Alex Morgan made her first start for the national team since giving birth to daughter Charlie last year. The U.S. beat Canada 1-0 in its SheBelieves Cup opener on Thursday, while Brazil beat rival Argentina 4-1.

Tottenham Hotspur's Alex Morgan gestures to her teammates during the English Women's Super League soccer match between Tottenham Hotspur and Reading at the Hive stadium in London Saturday, Nov. 7, 2020. Morgan came on as a 69th minute substitute, the game ended in a 1-1 draw. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)LONDON – Supported by her baby daughter in the stands, American superstar Alex Morgan made her debut in English soccer on Saturday. Morgan came on as a substitute in the 69th minute for Tottenham in a 1-1 draw against Reading in the Women’s Super League. She didn't manage to score in her first match in around 15 months, having given birth to Charlie in May.

Tottenham Hotspur's Josie Green, left, tackles Manchester United's Leah Galton during the English Women's Super League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United at the Hive stadium in London Saturday, Oct. 10, 2020. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)LONDON – England’s soccer leadership has a couple of priorities for the women’s teams. For the third season, England is home to Europe’s only fully professional women’s league, which is subsidized by the FA but is proving increasingly attractive to foreign broadcasters buying rights. “We will make that call and announce in November,” Sue Campbell, the FA director of the women’s game, said on Monday. The Women’s Super League is still operated by the FA but it would be willing to cede control for another body that could enhance its development.

LONDON – Alex Morgan's Tottenham debut won't now be for another few weeks, but Tobin Heath and Christen Press are up and running — and scoring their first goals for Manchester United in contrasting fortunes for the American arrivals in the Women's Super League. Two weeks after their first appearances for United, Heath struck the ball into the left-hand corner and Press came off the bench to net at the far post to complete a 4-2 victory over West Ham. Fellow two-time World Cup winner Morgan is yet to get on the field for Tottenham after signing last month because she has yet to regain match fitness. Like her compatriots, Morgan came to England in search of game time ahead of the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics in 2021, with the American season curtailed by the pandemic. “Can’t wait to get on the field with this team in the next few weeks.

FILE - In this March 8, 2020, file photo, United States forward Christen Press looks for a pass during the second half of a SheBelieves Cup soccer match against Spain, in Harrison, N.J. Press says she wants to honor Kobe Bryant by playing for Manchester United wearing a No. The American's usual No. 23 was already taken when she signed for a season with the English club earlier in September, 2020. (AP Photo/Steve Luciano, File)

23 jersey already claimed, Christen Press had a decision to make when she joined Manchester United. 24 Kobe Bryant dying in a helicopter crash at the age of 41. “When I wasn’t able to wear my normal number, I definitely chose this (24) with a little nod to Kobe, because I’m an LA girl,” Press said. “For most of my career, I would have said I’m a nine,” Press said, referencing the traditional jersey number for a center forward. “I’m reluctantly accepting that I’m a veteran player and that I’m now one of the oldest players on the team, but younger than Tobin," Press said.

LONDON – Stepping back inside Old Trafford this week took Tobin Heath back eight years, to one of the wildest Olympic soccer matches ever played. Heath will soon be hoping to play at Old Trafford again. “This is huge for a club like this to have a women’s team,” Heath said. Strange too for Heath that the scheduled November meeting with Arsenal will be at the Leigh Sports Village on the outskirts of Manchester rather than Old Trafford. “I had all the feels when going back there," she said, “and any footballer’s dream would be to play for Manchester United and to play at Old Trafford.”___More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports