By ANNE M. PETERSON AP Sports Writer
ST. LOUIS — Alana Cook scored her first international goal on her 26th birthday and the United States beat Ireland, 1-0, in an exhibition on Tuesday night as the teams prepare for the Women’s World Cup this summer.
It was the Americans’ first game without Mallory Swanson, who tore the patellar tendon in her left knee during Saturday’s game against Ireland in Austin, Texas.
Swanson was the top scorer for the U.S. this year with seven goals, and she had scored in six straight games, tied for the fourth-longest streak in team history.
It appears unlikely that Swanson will be able to play in the World Cup. She returned home to Chicago after the injury and she announced on social media that she had surgery on Tuesday morning.
“This is hard,” she wrote on Instagram. “I’m in shock and don’t have much to say other than thank you to everyone for the messages. I feel the love and prayers, and holding them close to my heart.”
The United States shuffled its lineup for the match at City Park in Swanson’s absence. It was the final opportunity for U.S. coach Vlatko Andonovski to look at players before announcing a 23-player World Cup roster, which is due in mid-July.
The coach said he’ll analyze the game in the coming days. It wasn’t immediately clear whether he would make a like-for-like swap for Swanson or whether he’d try a new tactic going forward.
“So with losing Mal, conceptually we may look slightly different, because you look at this team, it was going to be built around Mal and (Sophia Smith) and their attacking power,” Andonovski said. “Now with Mal not being there, we’re going to have to make a decision. What are we going to go for? Like-for-like and try the same way, or is Mal going to be replaced by a group of players?”
Emily Fox, who scored in Saturday’s 2-0 victory over Ireland, was available off the bench. Casey Murphy started in goal rather than Alyssa Naeher, and Rose Lavelle…
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