I hope Jill Ellis is done experimenting and is ready to start putting her best starting eleven on the field. Lindsey Horan will be in that group in France assuming she gets back from injury, but elsewhere Ellis was still shuffling players in the latter part of last year when the team should have been solidifying. The outside backs, at least one midfielder, and one forward still seem up in the air. In addition, Crystal Dunn will be an almost certain starter, but Ellis has been playing her all over the field. She needs to make a decision and give the team a chance to jell around whatever position Dunn ends up playing. (My crystal ball says left back.) Morgan Brian is the surprise absence on this roster. Until recently she seemed a lock, but she has had injury issues and hasn't seemed 100 percent since coming back. If Rose Lavelle is finally 100 percent healthy, that may move Brian onto the bubble.
Balancing the bench is tricky. The way things have been going in recent years, at least two or three of the projected starters will be hurt by the time June rolls around. The injury rate in women's professional soccer is surprisingly high. It's not as bad as the NFL (nothing is as bad as the NFL), but I'll bet it's higher than the NBA or NHL.