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#1 Mallory Pugh (Striker, USA/Washington Spirit):
She made it to the squad of one of the world's leading nations in women's football, USA, while still studying in high school. Touted as the next big thing for USNWT, Mallory Pugh has decided to travel on a road less taken, a much talked about prospect coming out of high school, Pugh decided to forgo her college education from UCLA and decided to go pro, all at the paltry age of 18.
Pugh signed up with the Washington Spirit, a side playing in The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) a professional women's soccer league, run by the United States Soccer Federation.
She made her pro debut against Kansas City, on 20 May 2017, Pugh finished the season with 6 goals in 16 games and was Washington's leading goalscorer in the tournament. The 2018 NWSL season was a disappointing one for Pugh, partly due to a PCL strain in her knee which forced her to miss 8 games, as she finished with just 2 goals in 15 matches.
In the international arena, Pugh has been a consistent fixture in the USA's youth teams curriculum from the age of 13. She played a major role in the 2015 CONCACAF Women's U–20 Championship victory, leading from the front scoring 7 goals and providing 3 assists across the tournament. Pugh was awarded both the golden ball and golden boot for her performance.
She made her debut for the senior side in 2016, coming on as a substitute for Alex Morgan, Pugh made an instant impact and scored her first senior international in the 83rd minute, adding to her glowing reputation as a first-team prospect. Still only 20 years old, Pugh has already made 45 appearances for the senior team, 33 of them as a starter and has found the back of the net 15 times in total.
A player possessing great ball control and the ability to beat defenders with pace, Mallory Pugh is USNWT's future star and alongside names like Alex Morgan and Carli Lloyd would look to make a mark in the upcoming 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup.
