United States women’s national team head coach Emma Hayes sung the praises of 17-year-old midfielder Lily Yohannes again on Friday, saying Yohannes has a bright future with the program.
Hayes also reiterated the need for patience from the public, however, citing Yohannes’ youth and relative inexperience.
“She’s got unbelievable maturity and coachability, and someone who I know is going to become an important part of our program,” Hayes told reporters. “But I’m invested in that development, and we have to be patient with that considering her tender age and her lack of international and high-level experience.”
Yohannes rejoined the USWNT this week for upcoming games against China and Jamaica. Saturday’s game against China will be played at Allianz Field in St. Paul, Minnesota — the site of Yohannes’ first cap and first goal nearly a year ago to the day.
“It’s crazy to be back here,” Yohannes said in a video released by U.S. Soccer. “That was such a special moment for me, so to be back here is kind of full circle.”
Yohannes has six caps after formally deciding to represent the USWNT last fall.
The Netherlands, where the Virginia-born midfielder and her family have been based since she was 10 years old, recruited Yohannes to play for the program but Yohannes ultimately chose her native country.
Yohannes currently plays for the storied Dutch club Ajax Amsterdam. She signed a professional contract with the club at 15 years old. In 2023, as a 16-year-old, she became the youngest player to ever start a UEFA Women’s Champions League match in Ajax’s historic group-stage win over Paris Saint-Germain.
Sources told ESPN’s Emily Keogh earlier this month that English champions Chelsea — Hayes’ former club — are interested in signing Yohannes via transfer this summer.
“As I keep saying to everyone, she’s 17,” Hayes said. “She’s got a couple of years of experience as a professional. I think the next two years of development will be important for her.
“I think it’s been an unbelievable development pathway for her to be at Ajax. That, for me, I think, has advanced her positional play in a way that I think makes her stand out beyond her years.
“She’s physically developed in the last 12 months. Tactically in possession, when she plays for her club team, they generally have the ball against sort of mid-to-low blocks. So, I think she’s developed that side of her play.”
Yohannes narrowly missed out on making the USWNT’s Olympic roster last year. At the time, she had not yet decided whether to represent the U.S. or the Netherlands.
The U.S. went on to earn a fifth Olympic gold medal, a world record. The Netherlands did not qualify for the tournament.
Yohannes recently starred for the USWNT in a 2-0 win over Brazil in April in a 2024 Olympic gold-medal game rematch, coming off the bench in the second half and earning a penalty kick a few minutes later. She started the following match against Brazil, a 2-1 loss a few days later.
Yohannes also started as a box-to-box midfielder for the USWNT in a 2-1 February loss to fellow world power Japan. She helped set up the lone U.S. goal that day.
And she provided a secondary assist earlier in the SheBelieves Cup in a 2-0 win over Colombia by providing a line-cutting through ball to teammate Yazmeen Ryan.
Hayes tried to temper immediate expectations after those results. She did so again on Friday.
“I think for us, playing against opponents like Brazil and Japan, were extremely high-level games that will serve her well in the future,” Hayes said.
“But as I always keep saying, she’s got a lot of development to do, and I think it will be up and down. And I think that we’ll see really good moments from I think we’ll see indifferent moments. I think it’s what you can expect from a 17-year-old.”
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