W-League Feature
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
ORLANDO, Fla. – If there were any doubts about Lindsey Horan’s decision to forgo college soccer and turn professional out of high school with Paris St. Germain, the past 12 months have certainly made them moot.
In fact, while there have been some ups and downs as the 19-year-old has adjusted to life as a professional, the overriding trajectory for the young striker has been up. With 22 goals in 27 appearances for her club, and her selection as U.S. Soccer’s Young Female Athlete of the Year last week, things certainly appear to be on the path some envisioned for her as a member of the Colorado Rush.
“It hasn’t been easy, obviously,” Horan said recently while attending the U.S. Women’s National Team camp in Orlando. “I think this year it’s gotten a lot better and I’ve gotten a lot more used to it. I’m just hoping it continues on.”
The Stade de France is certainly a long way from Golden, Colo., Horan’s hometown, but it was her development as a member of the Rush that helped put her on the path she has forged. After coming through the club’s youth ranks, she began training and playing with the Rush’s W-League side at the age of 15, and two years later earned selection to the W-League All-League Team as she scored eight goals in 10 games.
The opportunity provided by the Rush, led by Technical Director Erik Bushey, remains something Horan is very grateful for.
“I think the Colorado Rush is probably one of the best clubs in the world. They’re such a professional club, and they taught me so much about the game,” Horan said. “The Rush is all about giving players the opportunity to train with whoever they want, and I think that really helped me because I could train with the W-League, boys, older kids, anything like that.”
While with the Rush, Horan also got the chance to play against some of her new U.S. teammates as they competed last summer for the Seattle Sounders Women. While the Sounders took a 2-1 victory in their meeting on May 31, Horan found the back of the net, and her play continued to impress throughout the camp prior to November’s contest against Brazil.
“I think Lindsey has done amazing here,” said current Seattle Reign forward Sydney Leroux. “It’s cool because we did play against each other in the W-League, she played against me and Hope and Alex and Steph and Megan in Seattle, so it’s pretty cool to see how well she’s done, and she’s doing well in France and we’re all very proud of her.”
For Horan, getting the chance to train and play alongside not only Leroux but also Abby Wambach and Alex Morgan for the national team is important as she tries to establish herself as a full-time member of the squad.
“I’m playing with three of the best forwards in the world right now,” Horan said, “and I can learn so much from them, watching them, training with them, take it back to my club and keep working on my game there. Hopefully in the future it will help me out.”
Horan is also getting to play alongside one of international soccer’s top players at the club level with PSG, with French international Marie-Laure Delie having returned to the side after spending the past five seasons with Montpellier. PSG’s lineup also includes former Pali Blues midfielder Tobin Heath, and with the side currently sitting third in France’s Feminine Division 1, Horan is enjoying her experience playing in Europe.
“I just like the culture, the football culture,” she said. “Everything is surrounded by football, and that’s building [in the U.S.], but it’s a little bit different over in Paris.”
That environment, and hopefully some more calls from Tom Sermanni into the national team squad, should set up 2014 to be a big year for Horan. With the U.S. set to defend its title at the 2014 FIFA U20 World Cup in Canada, and the opportunity to compete for a place in the squad for the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, Horan is focused on continuing her progression as a player.
“Individually, I just want to keep getting better and better, and for PSG just keep working hard to make my spot there, start every game,” she said. “I just want to keep getting better and better, hopefully make this team at some point at some point and keep getting called back in and keep being able to work with [Wambach, Morgan and Leroux], I think that would be really good for me.”