Gorden overdue for USWNT cap, says Angel City coach Tweed

Sarah Gorden, defender for Angel City FC, has long been considered as a potential option for the United States women’s national team, and her club manager believes it’s time to make that talk a reality.

Angel City manager Becki Tweed told reporters on Friday that the USWNT should give her club captain more credit.

Before her team’s NWSL match against Bay FC, Tweed remarked, “I can’t quite wrap my head around the fact that she hasn’t played on the national team.”

“She has this presence when she steps onto the field. She is still, in my opinion, underappreciated.”

Gorden has never been capped but has been called up twice for the USWNT. She was brought into camps by Vlatko Andonovski in December 2019 and again in October 2020, but she was not given her debut on the national team.

More recently, Twila Kilgore’s final roster for the Concacaf W Gold Cup did not include the 31-year-old, despite his inclusion on the preliminary squad consisting of 51 players.

Tweed: Gorden’s goal is to become the “world’s best defender.”
But in the NWSL, Gorden has consistently received recognition for her contributions to Angel City and the Chicago Red Stars in the past. Throughout her career, the Illinois native has been named to the league’s Team of the Month four times and has appeared on the NWSL Best XI twice (2021 and 2023).

Tweed said, ‘She’s never done. “Every week, she asks herself, ‘How can I improve?'” As in, “Can I do a film?” [or] “My goal is to become the world’s greatest defender.” That’s the way she thinks. She never settles and is never at ease.

“I have nothing but praise for her. She is, in my opinion, a fantastic player and person. She is a mother. She just kind of goes about things quietly and under the radar because there are so many things that are right in her wheelhouse.

“It’s an amazing story when you really consider everything she has accomplished for the game, who she is, her career, and her background and current location.”

After sustaining an ACL tear during the preseason in 2022, Gorden returned to play every minute of Angel City’s 2023 NWSL league schedule. He continued to play for nine games into the 2024 season before spraining his ankle during the team’s 4-2 loss to the Washington Spirit on May 18.

Before making a comeback in the Houston Dash’s scoreless draw with them last week, Gorden missed two games.