Wambach injured in 4-0 win for U.S.
No Mia Hamm. No Julie Foudy. No Brandi Chastain. Now, add Abby Wambach to the list.
Possibly.
The U.S. women’s national team’s prolific scorer came out limping in the 27th minute of the team’s exhibition against Finland at the Home Depot Center on Saturday. It was the final tune-up before the start of the Women’s World Cup in China and could put Wambach’s availability in jeopardy.
The U.S. won 4-0 with goals from Shannon Boxx, Kristine Lilly, Lindsay Tarpley and Heather O’Reilly to extend its unbeaten streak to 47, but the team’s attention afterward was on Wambach.
“It’s a bummer that she could not finish today,” Boxx said. “It never looks good when she comes off the field because we do need her.”
Wambach, 27, did not rejoin the team for the second half. When she left the game she was limping noticeably and later went to the locker room at halftime not wearing her cleats or socks on her right foot. She was taken to a hospital for X-rays. A team spokesman said Wambach’s toe was being checked.
When asked if the injury could prevent Wambach from playing in the World Cup, Coach Greg Ryan said, “We sure hope not. I mean, we just don’t know. You hope she’s fine [and] it’s just a sprain, or something like that.”
An injury to Wambach would be a blow to the team’s chances of winning a third World Cup title. Before Saturday, Wambach had spoken about the team’s need to win the World Cup to re-enter public consciousness. Since the 1999 World Cup victory, when Hamm, Foudy and Chastain were major components, the team’s hype has cooled considerably, evidenced by Saturday’s crowd of 7,118.
Wambach, a 5-foot-11 forward, has been the team’s leading scorer this year with 11 goals, including nine in the last eight matches. Teammate Kate Markgraf recently said that Wambach had also become the team’s vocal leader as well.
On Saturday, all the goals came after Wambach was replaced by Carli Lloyd.
Because Finland is the only team the U.S. played this summer that is not in next month’s World Cup, it’s difficult to calculate how much Wambach’s absence would mean against a higher-quality opponent.
Boxx scored the first goal on a header that floated over the fingertips of goalkeeper Tinja-Riikka Korpela in the 30th minute. Boxx, who’s from Redondo Beach, has scored five goals in five games at the Home Depot Center.
Lilly, who set up the first goal with a free kick to Boxx, joined Hamm as the second player in U.S. women’s soccer history to have at least 100 goals and 100 assists with the national team.
The team departs for China on Monday.
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