Alex Morgan is a "global superstar" and it would be "very silly" if she was left out of the United States Women's World Cup squad, according to former team-mate Carly Telford.
The Stars and Stripes head to Australia and New Zealand in July aiming to land a third successive world title, having triumphed in 2015 and 2019, with 33-year-old Morgan hoping to feature at her fourth finals.
The San Diego Wave forward, who was also part of the side that were beaten by Japan in the 2011 final, will be desperate to be included in Vlatko Andonovski's squad, and add to her impressive tally of 121 goals in 206 caps.
Former England goalkeeper Telford, who was part of the Lionesses' squads that reached consecutive semi-finals in 2015 and 2019, knows Morgan well, having played alongside her in California before announcing her retirement in March.
Telford is adamant Morgan should not miss out on the finals.
"She's huge," Telford told Stats Perform. "Without Alex, I don't think the game would get some of the recognition that it's getting. I think she's a global superstar.
"She performs on and off the pitch. She's not just a footballer; she stands for quality, diversity, everything that is good about being a good person.
"She'll fight for women's rights to make sure that everyone has equal opportunities. She doesn't have to do that; she could just turn up and play football.
"Spending time with her and being in a team with her for 12 months and realising the work that she does on and off the pitch, she's an absolute ambassador to the game.
"She speaks so highly, so well about the game. I just hope she does go to the World Cup because she's a superstar, and it would be sad if she didn't. But I think she's playing well enough, it would be very silly to leave her out."
USA have been drawn alongside the Netherlands, Portugal and Vietnam in Group E, and face a potential last-16 encounter against either Sweden or Italy.
And though there is a slight veteran feel to the USA's likely roster, Telford insists their World Cup pedigree means they will take some stopping once again, and feels their character on the big stage is epitomised by Lyon forward Lindsey Horan.
"They're mentally monsters," she added. "Everyone might be like 'They're not as good as they used to be, they're ageing'.
"But I'll tell you what, when they cross that white line, it doesn't matter who they're playing. They will fight, they will scrap, they will battle, they will try and play good football. But at the end of the day, they're just ultimate winners.
"I think that when you've got someone like Lindsey on the pitch, she is the ultimate at that. She'll break play up, she'll bite, she'll scrap, she'll tackle, she'll drive everyone around her.
"I just think when it comes to the Americans, when they get into competition mode; they're just a different breed."
Tedesco 'still hurt' by France defeat at Euro 2024
Domenico Tedesco says Belgium are still hurting after their Euro 2024 exit to France as they prepare to meet them in the Nations League on Monday.
Belgium suffered a 1-0 defeat to France in the round of 16 at the Euros, conceding an 85th-minute Jan Vertonghen own goal to send them crashing out after a poor tournament.
It was a tight affair when the sides met in July, with both only managing two shots on target, though France's came from 19 overall attempts compared to Belgium's five.
And Tedesco would rather forget about that meeting as he targets a more positive result this time around.
"At the European Championship, it was a close one against France. We could have won too,” Tedesco told reporters.
"France were a bit better, they deserved to win, but we also had our chances. It would be a lie if I said that match is forgotten. It still hurts. I often think about the European Championship, but you also must look ahead.
"Looking back is not always the best solution. We have to be ambitious; it's been a long time since we beat France in a competitive match with commitment. Let us perform well, and then the rest will follow."
Tedesco also admitted that Belgium over-prepared for that meeting with France, with their adjustments to the game plan proving detrimental.
"The last match at the European Championship was different from the one now, it was a knockout match," he added.
"We learned that we adjusted our own plans a bit too much then. You always have to analyse your opponent, but we adjusted excessively."
Clarke believes Scotland 'deserved something' following defeat to Portugal
Scotland boss Steve Clarke has declared that his side "deserved something" from their Nations League clash with Portugal after losing 2-1 thanks to a late Cristiano Ronaldo goal.
Scott McTominay gave Scotland an early lead after seven minutes, but Portugal fought back through goals from Bruno Fernandes and Ronaldo to take all three points in Group A1.
Ronaldo's goal came in the 88th minute and was his 901st career goal.
It leaves Scotland on their longest-ever winless run as they remain without a win in their last eight competitive games in all competitions, but Clarke feels they should not have left Lisbon empty-handed.
"I'm disappointed to lose a game where it looked, for a large period, we would get something from it," he told the BBC.
"I'm really disappointed for my players because I think they deserved to get something from the game.
"If you ignore the results, [there are a lot of positives], but we're professional, so it's disappointing.
"We played well in these two games, but we don't have anything to show for it. I've told the players not to be too hard on themselves. They have to understand the work that we're doing."
Scotland did well to prevent Portugal from getting any further sight at goal, defending a total of 26 shots during the match with seven ending up on target.
The 16 shots the Scots had to defend in the opening 45 minutes were the most they have faced in a first-half since October 2012 when Belgium also let loose 16 efforts.
"With the amount of balls that go into the box, you know one of them can go in the back of the net and that's what happened to us," added Clarke.
"When you bring quality players from the bench like Roberto [Martinez] can do, you always know there's a risk, but I felt we handled it well.
"We'll go away and analyse these games, and hopefully, we can give the lads a few pointers for the games next month, which don't get any easier."
Gamechanger Ronaldo was brought on at half-time by Portugal manager Roberto Martinez, a move that was well thought through and had the desired effect.
"Ronaldo did 17 sprints against Croatia. He is the player who made the most sprints. So we need to protect the players. One more game in 72 hours is impossible to have a physical performance [equal]," Martinez explained.
"The question was whether Ronaldo played the first half and left or came in and finished the game. That was the decision.
"He is an asset to the national team. When he comes in, if the [team] needs goals, Cris gives energy and a feeling to the fans. The stadium is different.
"If Cris leaves, it's the opposite and facilitates what the opponent would like to do when playing away from home in Portugal."
De la Fuente insists Spain are doing 'something important' for the country
Luis de la Fuente believes Spain are doing "something important" for the country after they beat Switzerland 4-1 in the Nations League.
La Roja made an underwhelming start to Group A4 in a 0-0 draw with Serbia but looked back to their best on Sunday.
Fabian Ruiz's brace was sandwiched between goals from Joselu and Ferran Torres, with Spain able to clinch their first win of this season's tournament, despite Robin Le Normand's 20th-minute sending-off.
De la Fuente was particularly impressed with how his players dug in after going down to 10 men, hailing them for a resilient performance.
"I feel like we are doing something important for a country, that people identify with this group of players," De la Fuente said after the game.
"We grow from humility and sacrifice as a team. I am proud of this group of players, which never ceases to surprise me.
"If there's one thing I like to boast about, it's the pride I've always felt for this team. When these circumstances happen, one feels more proud, but to highlight a group of players that is a team, not a national team.
"This team has plenty of self-esteem and humility because what they are doing is historic.
"With 10 men, we have been able to interpret the game in a masterful way. I am very proud of this team and every day we see that we continue to grow and that we can improve."
Spain finished the game with just 33.7% possession, understandably low after having just 10 players on the pitch for 70 minutes.
They had nine shots overall, compared to Switzerland's 20, but got eight of theirs on target while the hosts only mustered three.
De la Fuente was particularly impressed by Joselu's performance, with the former Real Madrid man setting the tone from the front.
"I'm very happy for everyone, especially for Joselu because he deserves it," De la Fuente added.
"He had the best game since he's been with us, he did everything we asked of him, both when we had 11 and when we were down to 10.
"We were playing a very complete game. Pedri was playing a great game, but we understood that in order to have the chances we had, we had to make that change.
"We felt very powerful. With 10 players, we played the perfect game, we defended very well, we had a great goalkeeper..."
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