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2019 World Champions USA will face an uphill battle to have star forward Meghan Rapinoe fit ahead of the 2023 World Cup kicking off next month
The reigning FIFA Women’s World Cup champions, the United States of America, have been left sweating over the fitness of star player Megan Rapinoe as the 2023 FIFA WWC draws near.
USA suffer Rapinoe blow
The Stars and Stripes won the 2019 Women’s World Cup in style, with Rapinoe scoring six goals and assisting three more as she won the Golden Ball and Golden Boot at the tournament.
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They will be looking to defend their crown in Australia and New Zealand this year, and with the tournament set to kick off in just over a month, they have been dealt a potential blow to their title defense with Rapinoe being forced off at halftime in the game between OL reign and Kansas City current with a calf injury.
With all teams expected to name their final squads for the World Cup on the 9th of July, the 37-year-old forward faces an uphill battle to be fit in time to make the team.
Rapinoe expected to be sidelined for a few weeks
OL reign coach Laura Harvey has done her best to calm fears over Rapinoe’s fitness, saying that the forward only suffered a minor injury and will be back in no time at all and will certainly be fit for the World Cup kicking off next month.
Speaking after the injury incident, she said, "She's [Rapinoe] doing okay. It's probably something that will last a couple of weeks, but it's not going to be a lengthy injury.”
The USA kick off their title defence against Vietnam on July 22, before taking on 2019 finalists the Netherlands, and finally Portugal in the group games.
They will be hoping to have Rapinoe back for all three matches, but only time will tell how well the forward heals and whether she can participate in any of the matches.
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