There is a lot that one could say about Alyssa Naeher, and much of it has already been said in the past 24 hours after the longtime U.S. women’s national team goalkeeper announced her retirement from the international game.
She told The Women’s Game on Tuesday that she’d had an inkling since the beginning of the year that she might retire, noting that she’d accomplished what she’d set out to do.
In a 15-year career with the USWNT, Naeher has established herself as one of the best goalkeepers to ever wear the crest. But if you ask Naeher, the thought that she wanted to play for the national team one day came in stages as she made her way through the youth system. While she knew already at the time that she eventually wanted to play professionally, playing at the U-20 World Cup, she says, was transformative for her goals.
“To be able to go through a U-20 experience and to go to the World Cup at the youth level and to play for Tony DeCiccio at the time was incredible,” Naeher told the media on Wednesday. “You know, he treated us like…
