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Welcome back to your weekly column from Sports Illustrated breaking down the women's soccer weekend through a U.S. women's national team lens.
We're roughly a month out from the next international window (and likely three weeks from the next USWNT roster announcement). The pressure is mounting, and the competition for spots is only growing more intense.
With the English Women's Super League making its return last weekend, all of Europe is now in full swing alongside the NWSL. It's a fantastic time to survey American talent performing across the globe, and a challenging time for U.S. head coach Emma Hayes to trim her selection pool.
Let's break down who saw their stock rise and fall over the past weekend.
Stock Up
Ashley Sanchez
Another week, another milestone for Ashley Sanchez. With her first NWSL hat trick in a commanding 6–0 victory for the North Carolina Courage over the Chicago Stars, Sanchez has become the first American to score 18 goals in a single NWSL season. She now sits just two behind the league's all-time single-season record of 20 goals, set by Temwa Chawinga in 2024.
Throughout the season, as Sanchez has led the Golden Boot race and surged into MVP contention, the conversation around a USWNT recall has been building steadily. There's really no way for Emma Hayes to avoid it now. It seems inevitable; Sanchez must be included in the next roster and earn her first call-up since January 2025.
No player is converting chances as consistently and decisively as Sanchez in the NWSL right now. The only question is whether she can keep it up. The 27-year-old is outperforming her expected goals by 6.28, more than any other player in the league. She's either on course for a record-breaking season of clinical finishing, or a regression toward the mean may be coming.
ASHLEY SANCHEZ HAT TRICK 🤯 pic.twitter.com/AyNFIl6blA
Yazmeen Ryan
Under the radar, Yazmeen Ryan has been quietly building a compelling case for a USWNT recall since the summer break. Following a goal and an assist in Denver Summit's convincing 3–0 victory over league-leaders Gotham FC last weekend, Ryan now has four goals and an assist since the NWSL resumed in July.
Hayes will appreciate the way Ryan drifted into space on the edge of the box, beat her marker and calmly slotted a low shot into the corner. It wasn't spectacular; it was precise. Ryan is efficient and effective, and her freedom to drift into various positions for Denver has made her a versatile and valuable playmaker.
Yazmeen Ryan finds the net to make it 3-0 against the league leaders! pic.twitter.com/F7MssRwlHm
Izzy Rodriguez
Score an Olimpico — a goal directly from a corner kick — and your stock automatically rises. Those are simply the rules. Izzy Rodriguez's goal-of-the-season candidate in the KC Current's 2–1 win over Bay FC was breathtaking and a testament to the quality of her left-footed delivery from wide positions.
Rodriguez offers a vital attacking outlet down the left flank for the Current, and she also held her own defensively, winning six of nine duels last weekend. With the fullback position feeling relatively unsettled on the USWNT outside of Emily Fox, there's a strong argument for Rodriguez earning another look given her crossing ability and shooting threat.
AN OLIMPICO?? 🤯
Izzy Rodriguez casually scoring DIRECTLY from the corner! pic.twitter.com/sb3Q3ELusY
Stock Down
Reilyn Turner
It's been an inconsistent season for Reilyn Turner. Early in the year, she appeared set for a breakout campaign, with her aerial ability and creativity in the final third on full display. However, a knee injury in the first match back after the summer break disrupted that momentum.
Turner has returned to the Portland Thorns and started in their recent 2–1 home loss to the Washington Spirit. Unfortunately, she struggled to make an impact and was substituted off after 63 minutes, registering zero shots and zero chances created.
Jordan Silkowitz
Jordan Silkowitz is another player who has made significant progress in 2026 but endured a difficult outing over the weekend. The Bay FC goalkeeper faced just three shots in the club's 2–1 defeat to the Current, and two of them ended up in the net. Neither came from a particularly dangerous position.
The first was Rodriguez's Olimpico, which, while stunning, is every goalkeeper's nightmare — watching that curling effort drift just beyond your fingertips. The second goal, which effectively sealed the win for Kansas City in the 89th minute, came from Rocky Rodríguez, who unleashed a thunderbolt from outside the box. It appeared Silkowitz read it a fraction too late, or didn't anticipate the shot going to her left post, and couldn't get down quickly enough to make the diving stop.
ROCKY RODRÍGUEZ ROCKET 🚀 pic.twitter.com/qTewSJRqUg
Naomi Girma
Following an impressive Champions League display for Chelsea, Naomi Girma was an unused substitute on the opening weekend of the new WSL season. Chelsea assistant manager Camille Abily revealed that Girma's recurring calf problems, which have troubled her over the past two seasons, are something the club is carefully managing at this time.
Chelsea were held to a 1–1 draw at home against Aston Villa. With Chelsea pushing for a winner, introducing Girma — a defender — from the bench wasn't a priority as they chased all three points.
"It's more about fitness," Abily said regarding Girma's limited playing time. "And also a decision, because we have many quality players on the bench, and we know with her calf, we need to be careful. So we didn't want to take any risks."
Chelsea continues to experiment with a back-three system, featuring three center backs supported by wing backs. Girma could potentially thrive in this setup, though it's not necessarily her most natural position. Hopefully, her fitness levels and tactical adaptability continue to improve.
Theo Lloyd-Hughes is a writer for Sports Illustrated Soccer based in the Southern United States. Originally from England, he can frequently be found in press boxes across the NWSL or at international fixtures involving the USWNT and other Concacaf nations.