USWNT suffers big loss: Goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher retires

On By Littum

The US women’s national team is losing its rock.

Alyssa Naeher, the only goalkeeper to record shutouts in both the World Cup and Olympic finals, announced her retirement from international soccer on Monday. Games in England on Saturday and in the Netherlands on Dec. 3 will be her last with the USWNT.

Naeher, 36, currently has 88 wins and 68 shutouts in 113 appearances for the USWNT, and her career goals-against average is 0.50. She is a two-time world champion and Olympic gold and bronze medalist.

“Having the opportunity to be a part of the USWNT for the past 15 years has been the greatest honor,” Naeher said in a US Soccer release. “This has been a special team to be a part of and I am incredibly proud of what we have achieved both on and off the field. The memories I have made over the years will last me a lifetime.”

Naeher had the unenviable task of replacing Hope Solo after US Soccer banned Solo for several episodes of bad behavior. The two were polar opposites in personality; Naeher was quiet and uncomfortable in the spotlight, always deflecting credit to the rest of the team. Some felt that not having Solo would hurt the USWNT and cost the Americans at the 2019 World Cup.

“No one has bided their time yet,” defender Julie Ertz said ahead of the USWNT’s opener in that tournament. “We know who she is. We train with her every day. We know how good she is.”

The world would soon see what Naeher’s teammates knew: she was as steely and steady in goal as she was in personality.

In the semi-final against England, she blocked Steph Houghton’s penalty kick in the 83rdrd minute and then smothered the ball so that the lionesses would not have the opportunity to score on the rebound. The save preserved the USWNT’s 2-1 victory and sent them through to the final, where they beat the Netherlands 2-0.

At this summer’s Olympics in Paris, Naeher made a spectacular save in the 119thth minute of the gold medal game to preserve the USWNT’s 1-0 win over Brazil. It was her fourth shutout of the Games, the most by an American goalkeeper in a single Olympics.

And while the U.S. women made their earliest ever exit at last year’s World Cup, it wasn’t Naeher’s fault. She allowed one goal in four games. She also added to her knowledge by taking – and making – a penalty in the round of 16 against Sweden.

She would do the same in the SheBelieves Cup title game against Canada earlier this year, stopping three of Canada’s four attempts and converting her own.

Naeher will play at least one more season for the Chicago Stars of the NWSL, where she holds the league records for saves and appearances.