News Soccer

As the youngest member of the U.S. women's national soccer team, Alex Morgan said she's in "a great position now."

That position has been on the bench, though. With the Women's World Cup starting Sunday in Germany, many observers think the 21-year-old former Cal forward should be playing more.

"She makes things happen," ESPN commentator Bob Ley said after the Americans' shaky victory over Mexico three weeks ago. "They're a better team with her in there."

ESPN colleague Brandi Chastain, the former World Cup star, thinks Morgan should start.

"Right away, she could force teams on their heels," she said. Though Lauren Cheney and Amy Rodriguez can score, she said, "I think Alex Morgan complements Abby Wambach much better. She's in or around and behind players. She moves off the ball very well."

North Korea. The Americans were No. 1 in the world in the most recent FIFA rankings, but they need to finish better than they did in beating Mexico 1-0.

They dominated play with a 34-4 shooting advantage but couldn't score until Cheney's 27-yard blast in stoppage time. Coach Pia Sundhage inserted Morgan in the 76th minute, and her speed and skill caused Mexico some problems.

Morgan seems content with paying her dues - to a point. In an interview before the Mexico game, she said, "I'm in a great position now. My goal was to make the roster. Right now, my role is to come off the bench and raise the energy. I'm never going to be content to be a bench player. I hope to eventually become a big part of this team."

She has been the No. 4 forward behind Wambach, 31, who scored nine goals over the last two World Cups; Rodriguez, the former USC player, and Cheney, out of UCLA. Kelley O'Hara, the 2009 college Player of the Year at Stanford, also waits in the wings.

Sundhage told The Chronicle last month, "The best way (Morgan) can help is coming off the bench." She described Morgan as "fast and strong. She puts away chances, left-footed or right."

Morgan has scored seven times in her first 19 appearances. With a World Cup berth on the line, she came off the bench with five minutes left to score one of the biggest goals in recent years, in stoppage time of a 1-0 win over Italy in the first leg of a two-match playoff series. She had made herself known on the international stage with the winning goal against North Korea in the final of the 2008 Under-20 World Cup.