USA-COLOMBIA
Colombia boss Marsiglia calls up 23 players ahead of friendly games vs. USWNT
Tricolor boss Angelo Marsiglia has named 23 players for the matches to be played in Utah and California later this month.
Colombia’s successful run at the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand is now a thing of the past as Las Cafeteras resume their preparations for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games with two imminent friendlies against the United States.
The Colombian FA has presented the list of 23 players called up for the games in the US with the team to be overseen by Angelo Marsiglia following the departure of Nelson Abadía at the end of August.
The squad is spearheaded by Linda Caicedo, Leicy Santos and Daniela Montoya with the main feature of the squad being the absence of Catalina Usme. The national team’s all-time leading scorer is out due to an injury she suffered in América de Cali’s last match in the Copa Libertadores Femenina 2023 against Corinthians in the quarter-finals.
Atlético Nacional star Yoreli Rincón, who recently expressed her desire to return to the national side has not been called up either.
Colombia will also be without Mayra Ramirez and Diana Ospina due to ongoing physical problems. The Levante striker, a first-choice starter at the World Cup, “has a joint strain in her left knee,” according to her club. The America midfielder, meanwhile, suffered “an injury to the lateral meniscus”.
Goalkeepers: Catalina Pérez Jaramillo (Werder Bremer), Natalia Giraldo Alzate (América De Cali) & Sandra Milena Sepúlveda Lopera (Independiente Medellín).
Defenders: Ángela Daniela Barón (Atlético Nacional), Daniela Alexandra Arias Rojas (América De Cali), Ana María Guzmán Zapata (Bayern Múnich), Carolina Arias Vidal (Independiente Santa Fe), Daniela Caracas González (Espanyol), Jorelyn Daniela Carabalí Martinez (Brighton), Manuela Vanegas Cataño (Real Sociedad) & Mónica Ramos Santana (Gremio).
Midfielders: Daniela Montoya Quiroz (Atlético Nacional), Leicy María Santos Herrera (Atlético Madrid), Lorena Bedoya Durango (Real Brasilia FC), María Camila Reyes Calderón (Independiente Santa Fe), Lady Patricia Andrade Rodríguez (Real Brasilia FC), Ana Gabriela Huertas Linares (Independiente Santa Fe) & Marcela Restrepo Valencia (Atlético Nacional).
Forwards: Elexa Marie Barh (América De Cali), Ingrid Yobana Guerra Meneses (Atlético Mineiro), Ivonne Chacón (Valencia C.F.), Linda Lizeth Caicedo Alegría (Real Madrid) & Yisela Cuesta Bejarano (Ferroviaria FC).
When will Colombia face the USWNT?
The US will face Las Cafeteras on 26 October at America First Field in Sandy (Utah) with a 9 p.m. ET start before squaring up again on 29 October at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego with a 5:30 p.m. ET kick-off.
The Colombia squad will train in Bogota from Friday 20 October and will travel to the USA on Monday 23 October.