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Megan Rapinoe is dealing with a hamstring injury but is expected to play today against the Netherlands in the World Cup Final. Rapinoe missed the semifinal match against England as she dealt with a strained hamstring, but noted after the game that she expected to play on Sunday. Rapinoe continued to emphasize this in the days leading up to the World Cup final.
“As of now, I’m expecting to be ready for tomorrow. I feel good,” Rapinoe said, per Sporting News. “That’s all I can really say right now. We have one more training session…I’m pretty open and honest with you. Nothing hidden. I expect to be good to go for tomorrow.”
USA manager Jill Ellis noted that she expects to have the entire USWNT squad ready to go in the final, including Rose Lavelle who is also dealing with a hamstring injury.
“Having this extra day [of rest] has been huge,” Ellis told Sporting News. “At this point no one has been ruled out so that’s encouraging for me as a coach.”
Christen Press started in place of Rapinoe against England, and it will be interesting to see if the forward will play the entire game. Given the magnitude of the game, we expect Rapinoe to start against the Netherlands.
Prior to World Cup Final, Megan Rapinoe Challenged FIFA to Invest More Money in the Women’s Game
Rapinoe has never been one to be shy about voicing her opinion. Prior to the final, Rapinoe took on FIFA and challenged the organization to invest more money in the women’s game.
“Money, Money, Money, Money. Money from FIFA, money from federations,” Rapinoe explained to Boston.com. “Money from advertisers, sponsors, rights-holders, TV. All of that. And obviously not just blindly throwing cash at things, but investing in infrastructure, in training programs and academies for women, in coaching for women. All of it. I don’t think you get to the point of having an incredible business by running it on a budget that’s a dollar more than it was last year. You have to make up-front investments and really bet on the future.”
Megan Rapinoe Is Battling Alex Morgan for the Golden Boot
Heading into the final, Alex Morgan has a one-goal lead on Rapinoe in the Golden Boot race with six goals. Today’s match will greatly impact the race, and Rapinoe has been known to score multiple goals in the same game during the tournament. Rapinoe scored two goals against Spain and France during the knockout round.
Earlier in the tournament, Morgan admitted that she would like to see a USWNT player win the award, but noted the team was much more focused on winning back-to-back World Cup titles.
“I’d first like to say that I’d like someone on our team to win the Golden Boot,” Morgan noted, per Yahoo Sports. “Of course it would be a great accolade,” she conceded, before making sure to add, “That’s not my goal, my goal is to help this team win a World Cup.”
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Megan Rapinoe’s Injury: Will She Play Today vs. Netherlands in World Cup Final?