Trinity Rodman's back, Jaedyn Shaw in form, and big decisions ahead for Emma Hayes: Five keys as USWNT face Canada

Sunday’s SheBelieves Cup opener between the U.S. women’s national team and Argentina left a few injury concerns in its wake.

The biggest scare came late in the second half when Trinity Rodman had only been on the field a few minutes before being shoved from behind and sent to the turf, forcing her to exit the match. Given the injury battles that defined much of her 2025 season - including back issues that limited her to just one USWNT appearance - the moment quickly raised alarms.

After the match, head coach Emma Hayes said she hadn’t yet seen Rodman and couldn’t provide an update. By Tuesday, though, the outlook had improved, with Hayes confirming Rodman had been cleared and returned to training ahead of the matchup with Canada.

Not every update was positive. Outside back Lilly Reale - the 2025 U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year - left camp after suffering a foot injury during the Argentina match. Reale entered at halftime for Maddie Dahlien but lasted only a few minutes before going down.

“Lilly Reale has a foot injury and has gone home back to Gotham [FC],” Hayes said Tuesday. “And Trinity Rodman is fine and training today.”

Reale’s absence is a setback for a U.S. backline still sorting through personnel combinations, though Rodman’s return offers a boost as the U.S. prepares to face Canada.

Claudia Dickey played the entire first match of the tournament and did so without many hiccups. She has been the frontrunner among the keepers for quite some time. Yet, the U.S. women’s national team goalkeeper battle remains somewhat open heading into the matchup with Canada.

All three keepers arrived in camp with relatively limited international experience. Claudia Dickey leads the group with seven caps, while Mandy McGlynn has five and Phallon Tullis-Joyce has four - just 16 combined appearances between them.

Hayes turned to Dickey in the tournament opener against Argentina, and the Seattle Reign FC goalkeeper handled the moment well. In a match that quickly turned physical, Dickey showed composure in the box and looked comfortable playing out of the back, linking up cleanly with her back line and the checking midfield options, often Lindsey Heaps.

Still, the decision moving forward may have less to do with one strong performance and more to do with the bigger picture. Matches like these double as preparation for the 2027 World Cup cycle, and with a rivalry game against Canada next, Hayes could opt to rotate.

If that’s the case, McGlynn or Tullis-Joyce may get their chance in goal on Wednesday.

It's becoming a bit unfair how stacked the USWNT's midfield is. 

There's Lindsey Heaps, Claire Hutton, Sam Coffey, Lily Yohannes, Olivia Moultrie...plus Ally Sentnor, Rose Lavelle, and Riley Jackson that can all drop in. It's the spot on the field that the USWNT really just has depth beyond depth. Against Argentina, Hayes went with Lindsey Heaps, Lily Yohannes, and Olivia Moultrie in the middle. 

Heaps, the USWNT's captain, was on another level dictating the entire flow of the game, which was testy at moments, especially with limited calls and officiating missing a lot of chippy moments. Heaps and Yohannes play together for OL Lyonnes, so the chemistry is evident and effective. Moultrie is a natural playmaker who is a magician on the ball and fit in well, especially underneath Shaw and Jameese Joseph. 

Against Canada, it's likely we'll see a player like Heaps swapped out with another veteran like Sam Coffey to lead. It's also very possible that Yohannes gets swapped for Hutton and we see some Riley Jackson or Rose Lavelle action too. Lavelle seems like the obvious choice in a game like Wednesday's match against Canada, especially given her long history and being the second-most capped player on the team with 116.

Tara Rudd and Kennedy Wesley got the nod as the center back pairing against Argentina and handled the test well.

Rudd was positionally sharp, frequently stepping in to deal with Argentina’s technical front line, while Wesley stayed disciplined and helped the U.S. circulate possession out of the back.

Still, the USWNT’s most established pairing remains Emily Sonnett and Naomi Girma - and they remain the most likely duo to start in bigger moments. Hayes is still evaluating the depth chart behind them, though, using these matches to see which younger players can handle the role.

Against Canada, it would be little surprise to see Girma and Sonnett reunited in the middle.

Elsewhere in the backline, injuries have already forced some reshuffling. With Lilly Reale leaving camp and Avery Patterson called in after Jordyn Bugg’s departure, Patterson could see minutes out wide. Emily Fox may also be in line for a larger role after playing only brief, disjointed minutes against Argentina.

Jaedyn Shaw and Ally Sentnor have quite a few things in common, but the biggest one is that they both are natural goal scorers. 

Shaw can play the No. 9 or 10, as can Sentnor, and the two contribute to both positions very similarly. While Shaw is a natural 10, she's made a case for herself in that center forward spot. She showed that against Argentina, finding those small windows like a poacher to score. 

While Sentnor didn't score in the last game, she was inches away, and understands her role is to put the ball in the back of the net. She told GOAL on Saturday that playing the No. 9 feels like "home" to her, as she grew up playing in that spot for club and also in college. 

If one of the two, or both, are on the field against Canada, the USWNT's chances of scoring are very likely. The outside forward spot is a tight race at the moment, with players like Alyssa Thompson, Trinity Rodman, Emma Sears, etc. leading the pack, so getting a solid No. 9 and No. 10 is becoming more critical as games go on. 

Another layer to all of this is the uncertain timeline for the return of Catarina Macario, Sophia Wilson, Mallory Swanson, Lynn Williams and Michelle Cooper.