USWNT's Trinity Rodman diagnosed with MCL sprain, avoids serious injury after tearful exit in Washington Spirit win

Rodman's injury came just hours after she was named to the USWNT's latest squad. The Spirit winger has not been with the national team since April due to a long-term back injury.

Rodman was seen in tears as she was helped off the field during Wednesday's match, with the winger seemingly unable to put pressure on her right leg. Later in the evening, she was seen on crutches while wearing a brace on her knee. Many were left fearing the worst, but Spirit boss Adrian Gonzalez provided something of a positive update, even if it now seems that Rodman could end up missing at least part of the NWSL playoffs.

"She's at the facility today starting the rehab; she's doing good," Gonzalez said. "The results that we got are the best scenario. Obviously, an injury is not always a good situation. It's not as bad as it could be. She's starting now the rehab.

"She has an MCL sprain. It's not too big, too much, but we need to see how she's doing every day, start the rehab today, and try to support her in this situation."

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Gonzalez offered some insight into Rodman's injury, but was unable to provide an exact timetable for her recovery.

"All players are different," Gonzalez said. "We are taking care of every player as an individual in terms of how we prepare [for] the weeks, the games, and trying to individualize as much as possible the loads. Obviously, every player has a different background, and we always are taking care of those details.

"Right now, we need to focus on day by day, try to help her to recover, to heal as best as possible, and let's see how she's progressing every day."

The injury will be bad news for Emma Hayes and the USWNT, who were looking forward to welcoming Rodman back into the fold after several months away from the team. Rodman had missed time with the Spirit from April to August battling a recurring back injury, but the winger had been back to her best since returning a few weeks back and now has seven goal contributions in under 1,000 minutes of gametime.

"I know she's excited to come back in and play for a national team, but she's doing it in a place where I think she's had to build a lot of foundational work around her back," Hayes said on Wednesday, hours before Rodman suffered her injury. "She's one of the best players in the world, and we've had to play without her for more than a year. So I'm, of course, super excited that she's back in - but most importantly that she's here with us in a healthy place."

The Spirit are set to be the No. 2 seed in the upcoming NWSL playoffs, which are set to kick off in three weeks time. Last season, the club made it all the way to the NWSL Championship game before falling to the Orlando Pride in the season finale.

The Spirit are set to face last season's Champions in a final rematch on Saturday before concluding the season on Nov. 2 with a visit to the Utah Royals.