USWNT's Olympics dilemma: Who will Emma Hayes choose to play the front line?

How the heck is Emma Hayes going to choose a group of forwards to take to this summer's Paris Olympics?

Of all the questions surrounding the United States women's national team as Hayes takes over two months before a major tournament, this is a big one.

That's because there's a surplus of talent and only 18 total roster spots are available. While we don't yet know how many forwards she will take, for reference, former U.S. coach Vlatko Andonovski brought five to the Tokyo Games in 2021. Hayes called up seven forwards for her first training camp this week, which will include a friendly doubleheader against the Korea Republic, on June 1 outside of Denver and on June 4 in St. Paul, Minn.

Alex Morgan, Sophia Smith, Mallory Swanson, Catarina Macario, Trinity Rodman, Jaedyn Shaw and Crystal Dunn, who has traditionally played left back for the USWNT, are the players in contention. Mia Fishel, who played for Hayes at Chelsea, would have been part of this list, but she tore her ACL ahead of the Concacaf W Gold Cup in February. Lynn Williams, who recently became the NWSL's all-time leading scorer, was not invited to camp. 

While this is the final USWNT camp before Hayes names the Olympics roster, the new U.S. manager told a group of reporters last week that "the roster is not determined" and "it's very much open." Players not training with the national team this week can still make their case through performances with their clubs.

Even so, this is an incredibly competitive player pool. And Hayes, known for her creativity, will have to figure out how to get the most out of this group. The U.S. has not won a gold medal at the Olympics since 2012.

"All of us can play anywhere on the front line, we can interchange, we all are so different, but we mesh so well," Smith said last month during the SheBelieves Cup. "And I think this is just the start of us all getting chemistry together."

Hayes joined the USWNT after spending 12 years at Chelsea, where she coached some of the best forwards in the world, like Sam Kerr and Lauren James. So what excites her about her new group? 

"All of them," Hayes said. "Like, I'm really excited about them. I like their personalities. I can feel the hunger, the ambition to do really, really well, and I just haven't had the chance to get to know them yet. So that's what I'm most looking forward to." 

As camp gets under way, here's a look at the forward puzzle Hayes must solve: 

Alex Morgan
Age: 34
Caps: 223
Goals: 123 

Morgan is the veteran here. She leads this current roster with 223 caps, is a three-time Olympian, and will be 35 by the time the USWNT kicks off its first group stage match vs. Zambia on July 25. 

Morgan has been battling an ankle injury and missed recent club matches for the San Diego Wave, though she returned on May 23 and played 27 minutes of a 0-0 draw vs. Angel City. 

It was notable that Hayes called Morgan up, and we're about to find out how Hayes thinks she fits with this younger group. Morgan notably failed to score a goal during last summer's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. Months later, she wasn't initially called up for the Gold Cup roster, and was only added after Fishel was injured. 

Morgan ended up proving herself quite significantly — starting four of six matches during the Gold Cup, and both in the SheBelieves Cup. Her presence on the field can't be denied and there's no question her experience is valuable.

"It's about putting the whole group together, and it's not about young or old or less experienced or more experienced," former interim head coach Twila Kilgore said last month when asked about Morgan's role specifically. "It's about getting the right combinations of players with the right amount of experience and different strengths and weaknesses where they can cover each other in different areas and also have some chemistry and make sure that they're all able to highlight their strengths.

"I think what we saw from Alex at the Gold Cup, especially coming in late after not an initial call up, is what a true professional is. And all of that veteran experience that she has is behind her. She can pick and choose from all these different experiences that she has to understand what she needs, what the team needs in a particular moment, and I think you see a lot of leadership."

Big picture, Morgan still gets the loudest cheers from fans during pregame, and she's a pillar of the national team for everything she's accomplished on and off the pitch.

"Alex is a voice that we need with experience," Rodman said last month. "To have that veteran status is really good for us to build off of and also just energy-wise, I think she sets the tone really well."

Sophia Smith
Age: 23
Caps: 46
Goals: 18 

Smith, 23, was propped up to have a breakout World Cup last summer. With Swanson unavailable due to injury, it was going to be Smith's superstar moment. After scoring a brace in the Americans' opening match vs. Vietnam, she didn't find the back of the net again. She missed a game-winning PK in the shootout vs. Sweden and later acknowledged that the experience was overwhelming and took a toll on her mentally.

Nine months later, Smith is back in form and has rediscovered the joy in playing. She scored a critical goal in the Gold Cup semifinal, then two in the SheBelieves Cup from different positions that earned her tournament MVP. The reigning NWSL Golden Boot winner could win the award again this year — she's currently tied with Zambia's Barbra Banda with eight goals.

"Something I know about her is she wants to be the best at everything," Kilgore said of Smith last month. "She's willing to hold herself accountable, she's willing to work harder than everybody else, and she will compare as she's doing it. 

"And her future is just, there's even more for her. There's even more for her. And I'm excited to watch how she makes her claim on the game." 

Mallory Swanson
Age: 26
Caps: 90
Goals: 32 

Miraculously, Swanson is back like she never left. Last April, she ruptured her patellar tendon and missed the World Cup. Before the injury, Swanson was in the form of her life — she had scored seven goals in the USWNT's first five games of 2023 and Andonovski built his offense around her. The U.S. struggled to score goals at the World Cup without her.

Almost a year to the date of her injury, Swanson returned to the USWNT and nearly scored a goal against Japan in the SheBelieves Cup. The 26-year-old has appeared unfazed by the trauma — a week-and-a-half after surgery, she experienced symptoms of septic joint and needed emergency surgery. She's shown incredible mental strength, plays fearless, and is scoring goals again — she has three so far this season for the Chicago Red Stars. Teammates describe her as a bright spot on and off the pitch, and gush about how proud they are for her comeback.

"It's so fun playing with Mal because she could take [opponents] on one vs. one, she could combine, she could come inside, she could stay wide, she can get in on goal and finish chances," Morgan said. "She's a really special player and didn't even miss a beat when she came back." 

As it pertains to the USWNT, Swanson is determined to make this Olympics roster after not being called up for the Tokyo Games in 2021. She has not been to or played in a major tournament since the 2019 World Cup (and even that was sparingly for the then-21-year-old).

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Catarina Macario
Age: 24
Caps: 18
Goals: 8 

Macario had a long and winding road back to the USWNT. She was on a high in the spring of 2022, becoming the first American — male or female — to score in a Champions League Final when she helped Lyon beat Barcelona. But a few weeks later, she tore her ACL. And while it can take several months to recover from an ACL injury, it took Macario 20. She has openly described that time as the "hardest period of my life." 

Macario made her valiant return to the pitch in March and scored goals in her first two club games off the bench for Chelsea, the first one within six minutes of being subbed on. She earned a USWNT call up in April.  

Hayes recruited Macario to Chelsea while she was still injured and oversaw much of her rehab. Macario said her old boss, who is now her new boss, was hugely supportive during the whole process. 

Hayes knows what Macario can do — she's explosive, versatile and can play striker or attacking midfielder. And now that she's healthy — she started most games for Chelsea down the last stretch of this WSL season — it will be interesting to see how Hayes uses her on the national team.

Trinity Rodman
Age: 22
Caps: 36
Goals: 7 

It's funny to think of Rodman as a USWNT veteran. But at 22 years old, she's become a regular starter and playmaker, and has seven goals and seven assists in 36 national team appearances. Her most recent assist came in the SheBelieves Cup final when she beat a defender and slipped a perfect pass to Smith, who found the back of the net to take the lead over Canada.

Initially, it took Rodman time to get comfortable playing for the USWNT. Andonovski used to say that he was waiting for her to be more "ruthless." 

"I'm still trying [to get comfortable]," Rodman joked recently. 

Since the World Cup, however, Rodman has become more assertive and confident on the pitch. She's instinctual, intentional, and has become one of the best at tracking back defensively. 

"In Trin's words, she's got a different level of focus," Kilgore said last December. "She's very clear on what she's identified as areas she wants to work on, areas we're asking her to work on. She's been very detail-oriented in her approach to those things. We see that in training, you see that in games, and she's starting to play more and more with the people around her as well." 

Jaedyn Shaw
Age: 19
Caps: 12
Goals: 7 

Shaw's emergence has been one of the more exciting developments over the past seven months. The 19-year-old earned her first cap last October, and has scored seven goals in her first 12 appearances, including becoming the first player in program history to score five goals in her first five career starts. She's one of two teenagers on this roster (16-year-old midfielder Lily Yohannes being the other), and leads the USWNT with five goals in 2024. 

Despite her age and inexperience, Shaw doesn't act or play like a rookie. She can score in various ways and comes up in big moments. She can play multiple positions (as a winger or the No. 10), is strong and powerful on the ball, and recognizes when she needs to be the focal point of the attack. She scored four goals at the Gold Cup, including a massive one in the semifinal, and won the tournament's Golden Ball.

"Jaedyn is a pro," Kilgore told reporters during the SheBelieves Cup. "She's very humble, she's hardworking, and she wants to be better.  

"And while the world is saying, ‘Yeah, she's here, and she's arrived,' and I agree, she's doing a great job, be patient. Because there's more. A lot more for her."

Crystal Dunn
Age: 31
Caps: 145
Goals: 24 

Hayes put her stamp on this roster by naming Dunn as a forward instead of a left back, where she's played much of her USWNT career.  

"Seeing all the conversations with Crystal over the years, I've coached Crystal [at Chelsea in 2017], so I know how for her it's been important to find a home," Hayes said. "The reality is, I know what she can do at left back, so I don't need to see that this camp. But I do want to see some different things from her. So for me, it's less about, ‘Oh, is she going to play that position?' I would like to see her a little bit further forward this time around, already knowing what she can do at left back."

Dunn, who has played in two World Cups and is the third-most capped player on this roster, can play anywhere on the field — and has. She started as a forward when she first made the senior national team in 2013 — she has scored 24 goals, almost all from that position — and has played in the midfield a few times, too.  

But she's been an outside back almost exclusively since 2017. And that's while still playing midfield and forward for her club. In 2022, she scored a game-winning goal in stoppage time of the NWSL semifinals to send the Portland Thorns to the final, and in 2015 she was the youngest player in league history to win MVP and the Golden Boot.  

Playing different positions has been frustrating, though, and Dunn opened up about it in GQ last year. She said that when she steps into camp, "I feel like I lose a part of myself. I no longer get to be Crystal who scores goals, assists, is this attacking player. I step into an environment where I have to be world-class in a position that I don't think is my best position." 

While Dunn has been world-class on the back line for years, Hayes may unlock something new for the USWNT attack.

Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of "Strong Like a Woman," published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her on Twitter @LakenLitman.