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The World All-Stars
Now that you know the U.S., meet the best players from the field's other 15 nations
Posted: Friday July 23, 1999 06:29 PM
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Gao keeps China's hopes alive. Simon Bruty |
Compiled by Dimity McDowell
GOALIE
Gao Hong
China
Age: 31
Even on those rare occasions that Gao is out of position,
the acrobatic 5'9" keeper can usually recover before the ball is past her.
In five 1996 Olympic games she allowed just five goals (two to the U.S. in the
final), and in March's prestigious Algarve Cup she had three shutouts and
surrendered just one goal (against the U.S. in the championship game, which
China won
2-1).
Second team: Bente Nordby, Norway
DEFENDER
Lene Terp
Denmark
Age: 26
The Danish captain and stopper is the last player opposing
forwards want to encounter in the backfield, because she's often relieving them
of the ball by using her unique combination of toughness and technique. And once
she does, her right foot, which delivers some of the longest balls in the game,
usually redirects it downfield to start the
counterattack.
Second Team: Kim Sun Hui, North Korea
DEFENDER
Linda Medalen
Norway
Age: 33
Norway's captain is a former striker: Her eight goals in the
previous two World Cups put her third on the tournament's alltime scoring list,
and her 61 career national-team tallies are tops in her country's history. She
has the experience -- 12 years -- to read the field and an excellent sense
of timing that helps her tackle opponents
cleanly.
Second team: Gro Espeseth, Norway
DEFENDER
Fan Yunjie
China
Age: 27
Fan, who has played in more than 80 international games, is
a perfect fit for her team's aggressive style; China's defenders are very
effective at ganging up on opposing ballcarriers and pressuring them to make a
play. Fan is also a weapon at the other end: At the 1998 Asian Cup she brought
China its sixth straight championship by heading in an overtime goal to beat
North
Korea.
Second team: Steffi Jones, Germany
MIDFIELDER
Bettina Wiegmann
Germany
Age: 27
Germany's 1997 player of the year, a classic center
midfielder, has played in almost 100 international games. Her skillful footwork
allows her to hold on to the ball even when she's under pressure, making her a
strong link between the offense and defense. She can also score; she had two
goals in three games at the '96
Olympics.
Second team: Kristin Bengtsson, Sweden
MIDFIELDER
Hege Riise
Norway
Age: 29
With more than 100 national-team appearances, the quick,
crafty Riise is the proven key to Norway's attack. She can score herself or
deftly set up a teammate. Case in point: At the 1995 World Cup she earned both
the Golden Ball (awarded to the most outstanding individual competitor) and the
Silver Shoe (given to the second-best goal scorer; she had
five).
Second team: Mercy Akide, Nigeria
MIDFIELDER
Homare Sawa
Japan
Age: 20
This dribbling diva, who played in her first World Cup at
16, is Japan's top scorer. In five games of the 1997 Asian Cup she netted 12
goals, including seven in a 21-0 opening-round rout of Guam and two in the 2-0
consolation-match win over Chinese Taipei that clinched Japan's World Cup bid.
She's speedy, smart and, scariest of all for her opponents, still
improving.
Second team: Irina Grigorieva, Russia
MIDFIELDER
Sun Wen
China
Age: 26
Sun's blend of creative playmaking and technical ability
makes her a nightmare to mark and enables her to switch easily from midfielder
to forward. She has tormented the U.S. recently, scoring goals in each of two
recent pre-Cup matches. She also scored in China's 2-1 '96 Olympic gold medal
game loss to the
U.S.
Second team : Antonella Carta, Italy
FORWARD
Charmaine Hooper
Canada
Age: 31
Every inch of Hooper's 5'6" frame is pure
muscle -- or at least it seems that way. Not surprisingly, her game is very
physical and aggressive. The 14-year national team vet honed her skills at North
Carolina State, competed in a Japanese pro league for four years and now plays
in the W-League, a semipro circuit in the U.S. In February she scored both
goals in the World All-Star squad's 2-1 defeat of the U.S. national
team.
Second team: Brigit Prinz, Germany
FORWARD
Roseli
Brazil
Age: 29
The 5'1" spitfire, whose World Cup status is in doubt
because of a knee injury, is a scoring machine for the world's most-improved
team. Roseli's awesome dribbling skills were on display as she scored 15 goals
in six '99 World Cup qualifying
games.
Second team: Vivian Mensah, Ghana
FORWARD
Marianne Pettersen
Norway
Age: 24
In 1998 Pettersen was voted the best player in the
competitive Norwegian First Division (she was also the league's top scorer, with
36 goals in 18 matches), and she has twice won top player honors at the Algarve
Cup. A star for the 1995 World Cup champions, she's known for her ability to
score from almost any angle. In her first 62 games with the national team she
racked up 47
goals.
Second team: Julie Murray, Australia
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