- Macario tore ACL last year
- World Cup status uncertain
- Stanford coach expects her to roar back
WHAT HAPPENED? Stanford head coach Paul Ratcliffe told GOAL that he expects the player who starred for his program from 2017 to 2020 to be the same explosive force she was pre-injury when she completes her recovery. While he's unsure whether she will be selected by Vlatko Andonovski for the Women's World Cup - the USWNT head coach has said she must get live match experience before the tournament to be considered - Ratcliffe believes she would excel if called upon.
Macario, 23, was a breakout star for the USWNT and Lyon in 2022 before she tore her ACL and is seen as a key to the future of her national team.
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WHAT THEY SAID: "Catarina has great character and determination," Ratcliffe told GOAL. "There's no doubt I have full 100% backing of her that she'll come through. Not only is she a great, great person, but she shows you in her life that she has been through adversity before and persevered.
"She's a hard worker, and she's so successful. [She brings to] the United States her creativity, her flair, her ability to score, creating goals for others. Just a phenomenal player."
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Macario reportedly could join an NWSL club on loan from Lyon to get game action in June before the World Cup and help convince Andonovski she is ready to compete. Her exact injury return timeline remains unclear, however she has said she is making progress and no setbacks have been publicly announced.
Ratcliffe, a legendary coach in the college soccer game, enjoyed one of the greatest stretches of his career with Macario and USWNT forward Sophia Smith in his squad, and he remains a firm supporter of Macario's character.
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InstagramWHAT NEXT? An announcement on whether Macario will join another club in June should come soon, as Lyon only have two more matches in their 2022-23 season - the final one coming on May 27 against Reims.