England's post-Kane era finally looks far more rosy

It's too easy for Mayra Ramirez! Clinical Chelsea are looking ominous

How it feels to beat Lionel Messi

Santos, Doak & eight best Premier League loanees of the season

Saudi Arabia or MLS beckons for Pogba after Juve release

'Please leave him alone!' - Deschamps sends out Mbappe plea

Mendes responds to Ronaldo criticism of Portugal players

Ronaldo stunner the cherry on top for five-star Portugal 

Where's Leo?! Messi invisible as Argentina upset by Paraguay

Amorim told he's already made his first mistake at Man Utd

Kroos opens door to Real Madrid return 

How to watch Jake Paul vs Mike Tyson from anywhere

Vini's nightmare goes on as Brazil drop more WCQ points

Article continues belowArticle continues belowArticle continues below<script type="application/json" data-placement="fcplayer-semantic">{"type":"fcplayer-semantic","data":{"embedCode":"//cdn.fcp.codes/embed-code-template/embed-code-template.js#SEMANTIC_5704afb8-c10b-4ba5-9cb4-d7fb6098ef90"}}</script><ul><li>Sanchez expected to play at World Cup</li><li>Was told she would be dropped to the bench</li><li>Playmaker was devastated by the decision</li></ul>

'I worked my a*s off to be here' - North Carolina Courage & USWNT star Ashley Sanchez opens up on long-lasting effect of being  benched for entirety of disastrous 2023 World Cup campaign

Friendlies

England

The North Carolina Courage playmaker believed she would have an important role when she was called up for the tournament in Australia and New Zealand. However, she was disappointed to be told that she would instead spend the tournament on the bench as then-coach Vlatko Andonovski preferred to start Savannah DeMelo and then Rose Lavelle following her return from injury.

WHAT HAPPENED?

She told the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vm8jNgZCjiU" target="_blank">Friendlies with Sam Mewis</a> podcast: "I was told that I wasn’t going to play. I was trying to make the best of a situation, but it was definitely hard. When I was in it, I was [thinking], you don’t want to look back and have such a negative idea of something that you dreamed of your whole life, you know? But when you’re in the moment, you’re trying so hard to think of the positives, but you’re also like: 'Yeah, but I’m here, I worked my a*s off to be here, and I know I’m not going to play'.”

WHAT SANCHEZ SAID

The USWNT crashed out of the competition at the Round-of-16 with a penalty shootout defeat against Sweden. Sanchez soon returned to the NWSL and played a starring role for the North Carolina team, though it took some time to get over her World Cup disappointment.She said: "I felt like I’m going to come back, I’m just gonna play really great and prove everyone wrong, and then I was just kind of like: ‘Oh, I think I actually need to deal with this'. It’s not just going to go away because you’re playing well, you know? And that was probably…I hadn’t gone through anything that hard, I would say."

THE BIGGER PICTURE

The 25-year-old has made 27 appearances for the USWNT and registered three goals and four assists. She will hope to play a key role this summer when Emma Hayes takes charge of the team ahead of the Olympic Games in Paris.

WHAT NEXT FOR SANCHEZ?

'I worked my a*s off to be here' - North Carolina Courage & USWNT star Ashley Sanchez opens up on long-lasting effect of being  benched for entirety of disastrous 2023 World Cup campaign | Goal.com

Ashley Sanchez has opened up on her disappointment at being left out of the United States women&apos;s team at last year&apos;s World Cup.

&apos;I worked my a*s off to be here&apos; - North Carolina Courage &amp; USWNT star Ashley Sanchez opens up on long-lasting effect of being  benched for entirety of disastrous 2023 World Cup campaign