Naomi Girma still seeking her full potential as a next-gen USWNT star

LOS ANGELES — With teenager Jaedyn Shaw and Alex Morgan, who is not a teenager, combining for three first-half goals, the U.S. women's national team routed Argentina 4-0 in group play of the CONCACAF W Gold Cup on Friday, running its unbeaten streak to 21 games.

Unbeaten in regulation time, that is.

The qualifier is important because four of those games ended in ties, including a scoreless draw with Sweden in the round of 16 at last summer's World Cup. Sweden ended up advancing on penalty kicks, sending the U.S. home short of the semifinals for the first time in tournament history.

And for defender Naomi Girma, there's no way to look at that result as anything other than a loss.

"As a competitor, if you don't win, there's always something to do," she said. "That's always how I will feel."

If anyone had reason to feel good about last year, it's Girma. She played every minute at center back in her first World Cup, anchoring a defense that gave up one goal in four games. That performance helped her win U.S. Soccer's female player of the year award and drew the attention of some of the biggest clubs in Europe.

Yet she is looking forward, not back; looking to get better, not rest on her substantial laurels.

"There's so much more to do," said Girma, who started 16 of the national team's 18 games in 2023, finishing third in minutes played. "I don't feel like I've tapped my potential yet. There's so much more that I can improve on.

"So yeah, I'm excited for the future."

The immediate future involves a chance at winning the W Gold Cup, the first tournament for the national team since last summer's World Cup debacle. With Shaw scoring twice in the first 17 minutes, Morgan — at 34, the oldest player on the field — adding another goal on a header a minute later and captain Lindsey Horan collecting a second-half penalty-kick goal, the U.S. (2-0) clinched a spot in the quarterfinals heading into Monday's group-play finale with Mexico, an 8-0 winner of the Dominican Republic in Friday's first game.

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