Julie Ertz: The Only Version That Matters for the USWNT Today

Julie Ertz at her peak is one of the best players in the world, but Julie Ertz at her best should not be the expectation for her return to the field in April. It could be the case, but it can’t be assumed.

Ertz was a shocking addition to the United States women’s national team’s April training camp roster announced on Tuesday. With the news comes hope for U.S. fans less than four months from the start of the 2023 World Cup. Ertz, more than any of the countless recent absences for the U.S., left a gaping void in the team that only she could fill.
The return of Ertz in the context of the United States’ general struggles in midfield against top teams will evoke hope, but one of sport’s greatest fallacies is expecting that what was before will be again. That is a paradox for the entire U.S. team at this World Cup. The program is in search of an unprecedented third straight World Cup title, and anything short of that will be a failure, but many of the players on the final roster will be playing in their first World Cup.

Ertz has not played a match since August 2021 at the Tokyo Olympics and she is currently without a professional team, although that will change soon according to a statement she released. U.S. head coach Vlatko Andonovski

said Ertz is negotiating with multiple teams. She is a free agent in the National Women’s Soccer League (and globally, to be clear).
In August, Ertz gave birth to her first child. For most of the past few months, all signs have pointed to Ertz being done with soccer. There had been no tangible updates about her return and, behind the scenes, the expectation was that she would not continue playing. By February, Andonovski remarked publicly that Ertz had not been playing or committed to a club team, saying “she’s someone that we’re probably not gonna be able to count on in the World Cup.”

Tuesday, however, brought news of her return, news that Ertz has been training with an MLS boys academy and a personal trainer. Andonovski went and watched her in person, he said.

“I don’t think I’m going to say anything new if I say that Julie Ertz, at her best, is one of the best players in the world,” Andonovski said on Tuesday. “We saw that in 2019, we saw that in 2015, and the time in between.”

Julie Ertz was voted U.S. Soccer’s 2019 Female Player of the Year, beating out FIFA World POTY, Ballon d’Or winner and recipient of SI’s Sportsperson Megan Rapinoe.

The 27-year-old midfielder won the award for a second time and aside from Rapinoe the competition was obviously tough, as it included her World Cup winning teammates such as Alex Morgan, Rose Lavelle and Alyssa Naeher.
Ertz, who claims two World Cup winning medals to her name, also became the 10th player to win U.S Soccer’s POTY multiple times.

“It’s been a whirlwind of a year and one that I’m extremely grateful for,” said Ertz to the national team’s website. “My team lifted me up in so many ways and our experiences on and off the field in 2019 just encapsulate the love I have for the National Team and for wearing this crest and what it represents.”

Despite not always attracting as many headlines as offensively-minded players such as Morgan, Heath or Rapinoe, Ertz was a fundamental part of the USWNT this summer in Paris. Acting as a key factor in Jill Ellis’s midfield, she was the connector between defense and offense and was often asked to move the chains and protect the team’s backline in a 4-3-3 system.

Watch Also: https://www.youtube.com/@TravelsofTheWorld24