Girma tipped to be cornerstone of U.S. defense for years
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[June 23, 2023]
By Amy Tennery
NEW YORK (Reuters) - United States defender Naomi Girma completes
her meteoric rise from national team debutant to the Women's World
Cup stage next month and many are predicting she will be a key
player for the four-times champions for many years.
The 23-year-old centre back first played for the senior U.S. team
last year and quickly settled in to earn a place in Vlatko
Andonovski's World Cup squad.
"She’s threading balls down the middle of the field, skipping,
bypassing the midfielders, playing it into the forwards’ feet,"
retired two-time World Cup winner Carli Lloyd told Reuters.
"She’s playing well ahead of her time for the little experience
she’s had. It’s really impressive," added Lloyd who is now a Fox
Sports analyst.
Girma has overcome problems on her journey to soccer's biggest
stage, forced to withdraw due to injury from her first senior
call-up in 2019 and suffering a serious knee problem in 2020.
"For me it feels like a lot of hard work coming together," she told
Reuters.
"There was like a lot of work that went behind the scenes, because I
went out injured and not playing... it was really gratifying and
rewarding to feel like it was paying off and putting me in a better
position."
Girma will be particularly crucial for the U.S. after veteran Becky
Sauerbrunn, long-time bedrock of the defense, announced last week
she would miss the World Cup due to injury.
"Her potential is one of the highest bars of potential I've seen in
a person in a long time," said Briana Scurry, the goalkeeper in the
United States' 1999 World Cup-winning team.
Scurry, the host of the "Counterattack" podcast, told Reuters it is
"almost blinding how quickly" Girma has improved and believes the
Stanford graduate is a future team captain.
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![](../images/062323PIX/sports73.jpg)
May 26, 2023; San Diego, California,
USA; San Diego Wave FC defender Naomi Girma (4) plays the ball in
the second half against Portland Thorns FC at Snapdragon Stadium.
Mandatory Credit: Ray Acevedo-USA TODAY Sports/File Photo
![](../images/ads/current/graue_lda_4_2021.png)
"She can read the play really well so she knows
where to be in advance. And that's not something that a younger
player normally possesses," said the twice Olympic gold medalist.
"I wouldn't be surprised if she were a captain at one point in
time."
Girma is also keenly aware of her potential to inspire the next
generation, as the daughter of Ethiopian immigrants whose father
instilled in her a passion for the game and started a local soccer
program where she and her brother could play.
"When I was younger, seeing someone who had a similar background as
me, looked like me in any high position - it didn't even have to be
soccer-specific - competing at a high level was always so
inspiring," she said.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Jun/23/images/ads/current/LPL_small%201.gif)
"I'm hoping that kids can see me and get that similar feeling and
that same excitement."
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York, editing by Ed Osmond)
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