When Crystal Dunn bagged her 13th international finish at Chicago’s Soldier Field this past summer, it was yet another example of the skill set that makes her a likely starter for the United States Women’s National Team. In the summer of 2015, during the Women’s World Cup, only those who follow women’s soccer very closely knew who Dunn was.
By the time the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio came around, Crystal Dunn was much closer to a household name. Today, it was learned that she’s off to play, on the club level, at Chelsea FC. Expect her star to rise even more, as the Blues have now unveiled her as the newest member of the Chelsea ladies team.
Welcome to Chelsea Ladies, Crystal Dunn! https://t.co/PGCqSSVwyq
— Chelsea FC Women (@ChelseaFCW) January 3, 2017
Obviously Dunn didn’t even make the USWNT in 2015, but in the future she could be poised to potentially become the side’s next great goal scorer. The foundation for her was laid in the National Women’s Soccer League in ’15 when Dunn was exceedingly dominant with the Washington Spirit of the NWSL last year.
When the USWNT were winning the Cup, Crystal Dunn was honing her skills by scoring goals, creating goals and developing into an even more dangerous player on the wing.
She’s also developed a great chemistry with Mallory Pugh (more on that here), and the duo are a great example of the future of U.S. Soccer.
Dunn is an example of why the NWSL is important, even though US Soccer badly neglects it. (And now Dunn is off to play in England instead) While Dunn was a big time scorer last year in the NSWL, she wan’t finding the back of the net much at all in 2016 club play. Perhaps the move to Chelsea is exactly what she needs.
With the National Team though, she’s been playing exceptional, and that’s what Ellis typically stresses, players who are in form. Have a listen to the Crystal Dunn media availability in the mixed zone following this USWNT exhbition:
Also, you’ll want to check out the new video series entitled “WNT Animated” that features the players of the U.S. Women’s National Team. Just released yesterday, the videos feature the players and personalities that will be headed to Brazil this summer, highlighting one-of-a-kind stories in animation form.
Crystal Dunn – “Short Story”
After initially being short on confidence, with the support of her family and teammates Crystal Dunn soon realized that lacking height would not be a detriment to her soccer success
USWNT 2016 Rio Olympic Profile/Feature Story Series
Julie Johnston
Carli Lloyd
Jill Ellis
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. and News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes regularly to the Chicago Tribune’s RedEye publication.
He also consistently appears on numerous talk shows all across the country. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram