The USWNT’s friendly against Australia on Saturday (well, Friday in certain parts of the States), was in many ways a changing of the guard. Lindsey Horan took over the vaunted No. 10 jersey from Carli Lloyd. Alana Cook and Tierna Davidson started together at center back. And Casey Murphy looked like a star in the making between the sticks.

Murphy made eight saves in her first career U.S. start, helping the USWNT blank the Matildas 3-0 on Saturday afternoon in Sydney, Australia. 

There was a large sense during the USWNT’s last two friendlies against South Korea that the team was growing stale.

Carli Lloyd’s playing career is coming to an end. But first, two final farewell matches later this month against South Korea. On Wednesday, coach Vlatko Andonovski named his USWNT roster for the upcoming friendlies, which are little more than a chance to send Lloyd off in style. 

Lloyd announced in August she will retire after the 2021 NWSL season, calling an end to an historic career.

By defeating the Chicago Red Stars 3-2 at Cheney Stadium in Tacoma, Washington, on Sunday afternoon, the OL Reign clinched a spot in the NWSL playoffs with three matches remaining in the regular season.

The Portland Thorns still lead the Shield race with 39 points, but the Reign is just one point back and six points clear of third-place Houston (the top two finishers receive byes to the playoff semifinals).

The Reign reached the postseason in fine style. After Mallory Pugh had given Chicago a 14th-minute lead, the Reign responded through Jess Fishlock in the 31st. 

This is what Reign fans were hoping for when Olympique Lyonnais became the NWSL club’s majority owner last year. This is what fans of all the other NWSL teams were afraid of when one of the league’s best-supported clubs joined together with the most dominant force in European women’s football.

OL Reign’s Lyon connection paid massive dividends in a 3-0 win over the Orlando Pride on Sunday. Two Lyon stars linked up for one of the prettiest goals you’ll see all year, an intricate piece of passing that highlighted the quality of Europe’s best footballers.

The U.S. women’s national team cruised to an 8-0 victory in a friendly on Tuesday night in Cincinnati, hometown hero Rose Lavelle providing a goal and three assists in the process. It was a second straight win over Las Guaraníes after a 9-0 triumph on Thursday in Cleveland, essentially part of U.S. Soccer’s bronze-medal victory tour after the Olympics. 

After a disappointing third-place finish at the Olympics, the USWNT set out on what was supposed to be a victory tour of sorts with a pair of friendlies against Paraguay in September and two more against South Korea in October. With the U.S. only “celebrating” an unsatisfactory bronze medal, the four-time world champions took out their frustrations on a Paraguay squad that may have wished it had just stayed home.

New signings Vicky Losada and Khadija Shaw were among those on target for Manchester City as it ran riot in the first half to secure a handsome 4-0 victory over Everton in their FA Women's Super League opener on Saturday.

Alex Morgan, Becky Sauerbrunn and five other prominent NWSL stars signed on to a letter sent to the U.S. State Department asking the American government expedite the evacuation of Afghan women’s national team players from the country where the Taliban recently took power.

Carli Lloyd was not good enough. Megan Rapinoe was not good enough. Alex Morgan was not good enough. Crystal Dunn was not good enough. Tobin Heath was not good enough. The USWNT was not good enough. 

Carli Lloyd running sprints alone after defeat may be the lasting image of the USWNT’s 2020 Olympic run, but her questionable inclusion on the team will be a talking point for years to come.