KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- The most welcome sight in Kansas City on Friday, where the heat index again soared early into triple digits, was the setting sun.Dusk didnt offer all that much in the way of relief, but it was welcome all the same.The second-most welcome sight was U.S. midfielder Morgan Brian waiting under the night sky for her turn to take the field during the second half of a 4-0 win against Costa Rica.She didnt play long in returning from a series of hamstring injuries, or add to the teams array of highlights, but it was welcome all the same.Thats not meant to take anything away from Crystal Dunn and Meghan Klingenberg, who combined on the first goal (or the combination of Dunn, Klingenberg, Lindsey Horan and Alex Morgan, if you zoom out beyond just the box score stats on a well-worked buildup). That marked the earliest goal for the Americans since February, a welcome return to early command.It isnt to take anything away from Mallory Pugh, the 18-year-old wunderkind who emerged from a pack of defenders and raced down the left side on a long solo run for the second goal. Pugh remains a revelation, someone who is worth watching every moment on the field.Nor from Carli Lloyd, whose header in the final seconds of the first half marked her first goal since the knee injury in April that kept her off the field for more than two months and who played all 90 minutes in the heat without complaint or issue.To single out Brians uneventful cameo isnt to take anything away from any of the starters for the United States, a group that looked far more active and menacing than in a humdrum win two weeks ago against a South African team of similar capabilities, or Christen Press, who came on as a second-half substitute and closed the nights scoring with a powerful finish.?The relevance of send-off success aside -- and this is the point at which its duly noted that the United States registered only a 0-0 draw against South Korea in its final game before the World Cup -- it was a good way to close the pre-Olympic portion of the schedule.The last game we played, against South Africa, it was slow, it was just so not like us, Dunn said. And I think going into this game, we were super focused. We wanted to leave a lasting impression to our fans who are here to support us.But in terms of what comes next, beginning with a group stage game against New Zealand on Aug. 3 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, nothing mattered more Friday night than Brians brief time on the field. Winter in the Southern Hemisphere will offer cooler temperatures than summer in the American Midwest, but the U.S. women will soon feel the kind of tactical heat that only their midfield can alleviate.A midfield that has a distinctly different look than the one that won the World Cup.I think the midfield is so crucial to this team, its the heart of the game, Brian said of the group as a whole. If were playing well, then our team is playing well, which is something we have to continue to do and continue to control the midfield.It needs her to do it.If last year was a test of belief in her ability, one she aced, this year is a test of her belief in her own body.In the space of about a year, Brian has gone from untested as the youngest player on the World Cup roster, to a figure of continuity. Consider that there is every chance Lloyd will be the only player positioned in front of the back line to start the Olympic opener after doing the same in the World Cup opener against Australia. Part of that is because Morgan was still working her way back from injury, but the United States will most likely feature major tournament rookies on the wings, Dunn and Pugh, and in the box-to-box midfield role, Horan.Right now, I feel Lindsey Horan is better suited to playing an eight, U.S. coach Jill Ellis said. She likes to get forward, shes dangerous.That leaves the No. 6 role, the conductor, which is exactly where the United States found itself a year ago when Brians emergence midway through the World Cup changed everything.Allie Long played well again Friday and continues to make the most of her late opportunity. The U.S. women can play big games with her there. They can play with other alignments, even pushing Lloyd back if needed. But their best option is with Brian there.As she did a year ago, all of the other pieces fit together better if shes there.No tournament effort is ever going to go seamlessly. Winning a title is partly about scoring more goals than the other teams in Brazil, but its also about managing everything that happens before the games even begin.The weather in Kansas City this week didnt help, the usefulness of a game balanced against the caution required in managing punishing conditions for both the game and practice sessions.The calendar this year didnt help. Instead of an early summer tournament, like the World Cup a year ago, U.S. players already have more league miles on their legs. Even the NWSL didnt help. Not when its schedule had Portland and its sizable national team contingent accumulating tens of thousands of air miles in a schedule front-loaded with taxing road trips.There will always be hurdles to overcome, but the United States needs Brian to clear the one now in front of her.For all her success in soccer, and for all the body parts that have been bruised, sore and stressed along the way, what she experienced this year was new. Following an MCL sprain, she pulled her right hamstring in March and then more recently tweaked her left hamstring.Thursdays light training session was her first for the national team in more than a month.And the countdown clock to Rio doesnt make it any easier for her to heal.There is always a stress factor, Brian said. Youre against time with an injury sometimes, but mentally, you cant really do anything about your body. You have to let it heal. Thats what we need is time.Her time on the field Friday was mostly uneventful. The closest she came to being part of the fun came after her pass into traffic caromed off Costa Rican players and bounced fortuitously to the feet of Long. The latter then calmly played in Press for the final goal. But if there was rust in Brians pass, perhaps more telling was the moment just before when she stretched out to corral a pass from Tobin Heath (whose own return from injury on the night was no small matter itself).In that moment, a ball almost out of her reach, she had to trust the legs that have let her down or that she asked to do too much too soon.She is healthy enough to practice and play. But trusting her body is its own challenge.Sometimes its trial and error, Brian said. I think a lot of athletes learn their body as they go. You learn from your mistakes. For me, Id never pulled a muscle until this year. Its going to happen as an athlete; you cant be healthy all the time. The right [hamstring], that was the first time going through the process, so I think I learned a lot from that. As you get injured, you learn from your body a lot more.And Im still a young player. A lot of these girls that are older have learned a lot through their years of experience. I think thats something Ive learned a lot this year, is about my body.This was a start, if not a game started.She was a little rusty tonight, Ellis said. But [its now about] getting her some minutes in training, more and more and build her for the first game.The U.S. women can hope they play in Brazil with the same energy and menace they did for much of the night Friday against Costa Rica.More important, they can hope to begin that tournament with a player who finished Friday on the field. David Alaba Jersey . Los Angeles star goalie survived those perilous gymnastics with no problem, and he eventually backstopped the Kings to a skid-snapping win. Quick stopped 27 shots in his return from a 24-game injury absence, Jeff Carter scored the tiebreaking goal with 7:55 to play, and the Kings snapped their five-game losing streak with a 3-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night. Juan Bernat Jersey . They were putting most of their energy into a record-setting offensive display. http://www.fcmunichpro.com/Kids-Leon-Goretzka-Jersey/ . -- Peyton Manning will have all of his wide receivers available for the first time in a month when the Denver Broncos begin their playoff run Jan. Bayern Munich Jerseys .ca. Hey Kerry, big fan of yours, just finished reading your book. I think that we all saw the Canucks/Flames line brawl just after puck drop. It was obvious that something was about to happen, even to the referees because the fourth lines were on to start. Mats Hummels Jersey . Vancouver Whitecaps and Toronto FC failed to make the postseason while Montreal Impact fell at the first hurdle losing heavily to Houston Dynamo in the Eastern Conference Knockout Round. When the Queen said she was a fan of her, Nicola Adams realized the extent of her trailblazing fame.The Olympic flyweight champion has planned to make the most of it, too, with feature roles in Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead on her agenda. After the small matter of the Rio Olympics and, possibly, Tokyo 2020, of course.It has been a whirlwind really, going to music award shows, movie premieres, TV shows, meeting the Queen, receiving my MBE in 2013, traveling halfway across the world with the [former] prime minister [David Cameron], Adams said.Its quite hard to put into words but I think Ive managed to stay grounded and keep the training going and winning medals.The one that came close to winning the Olympic gold medal was receiving my MBE from the Queen. She was saying good luck to me and wishing me continued support.She did say she was a big boxing fan and that she was looking forward to seeing me in Rio, so I guess I had to qualify. No pressure. On Her Majestys orders.The 33-year-old, who has been described as one of Britains most influential figures in the gay community, is not ruling out boxing at a third Olympics.Beyond the ring, the cheerful Adams admitted she wants to launch an acting career after parts as an extra in British soap operas before London 2012.Tokyo is on the cards, maybe turning professional as well, a bit of acting, but I need to get Rio done first, she said.Im thinking more The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones. And I dont just want cameos as Nicola Adams, I want to be the star. I used to do extra work on Coronation Street ?and Emmmerdale and I wanted to take it further, but training got in the way.ddddddddddddFlyweight gold at Rio 2016 would make Adams Britains first double Olympic boxing champion and that historic mark has been a significant motivation.She has already enjoyed becoming the first woman to win a Commonwealth Games boxing gold medal -- at Glasgow 2014 -- and last year won gold at the World Amateur Championships.Lofty post-boxing ambitions have not proved a distraction, and the Leeds-born Adams claimed she would arrive in the ring at the Rio Games in top shape.Ive improved since 2012, in everything, she said. My strength, my fitness, my technique, my speed.Thats the thing with boxing, youre never the finished article, there is always bits you can improve on, you can always be that much more rounded as a fighter technically, that little bit stronger or faster.At some point, time will be against me, [but] this is my peak, I feel as strong as I ever have. I won the Europeans this year, the World Championships this year, now I want to hopefully go on and win the Olympics.Its my passion, I love the sport and the thought that pretty much every time I step in the ring now, I make history, gives me that much more inspiration.To be able to complete the grand slam of titles, weve never had anybody in boxing do that before, male or female, so its nice to be able to go along and make some history and show everybody how great British boxing really is. Cheap Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys China Nike NFL Jerseys China Discount NFL Jerseys Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Wholesale China NFL Gear Stitched Jerseys Discount Jerseys Cheap NFL T-shirts Cheap Jerseys 2019 Black China NFL Jerseys Discount NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys 2020 ' ' '