DENVER — When the U.S. women’s soccer team named its roster for this month’s games on Wednesday, including a visit to Subaru Park on Oct. 23, the return of Trinity Rodman was rightly heralded as the biggest news.

But just hours after the announcement, Rodman’s moment may have been derailed by an injury she suffered in a game Wednesday night.

The superstar forward was caught in a collision during the first half of the Washington Spirit’s Concacaf women’s Champions Cup game against Mexico’s Monterrey. She was subbed out, then carried off the field by Spirit staff because she couldn’t put weight on her right leg. At halftime, Rodman headed to the locker room on crutches.

U.S. manager Emma Hayes had picked Rodman as one of 26 players for this month’s three contests, starting in Chester, Pa., against Portgutal. It will be the USWNT’s first visit to town in 3 1/2 years, and a a tribute to superstar striker Alex Morgan’s retirement — on the field where she scored her first national team goal 15 Octobers ago.

It would have been fitting for the team’s latest superstar to top the marquee. Rodman was named to the national team for the first time since April, having missed the last two gatherings because of a back injury.

Though she scored a memorable goal against Brazil in the spring, that’s the only U.S. game she has played since last year’s Olympics. She also took four months off from her club, the Washington Spirit, to try to heal the injury — and she admitted she might never be 100% again. But she had been in as good form as she can be: five goals and two assists in her last seven games for the Washington Spirit.

“When she came [to U.S. camp] in April, I think she really felt she was in a good place, but the reality was, I think, so much adrenaline got her through that game in L.A.,” Hayes said in a news conference after the roster was announced. “Afterward, that reality hit home that there were some issues in her back that were unresolved. And collectively with club and country, we took the time to say, ‘Look, we’ve got to get it right for the long term.’ ”

This month’s games also mark the return of many of the U.S. program’s Europe-based stars who got a rest during the last FIFA window in late June and July: goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce, defender Emily Fox, midfielders Lindsey Heaps and Lily Yohannes, and forward Catarina Macario.

If you haven’t watched the U.S. since last year’s Olympic triumph, Tullis-Joyce is the current leader to be the successor to Alyssa Naeher in net. She has started three of the last four games when she’s been on the roster.

The European contingent gained a new member last month when winger Alyssa Thompson joined Chelsea. But the club’s third American, star centerback Naomi Girma, is out injured.

Two other significant players overseas, defender Jenna Nighswonger and do-it-all veteran Crystal Dunn, aren’t playing much for their clubs these days, so they’re out of the national team picture for now. Hayes acknowledged that Dunn’s situation is a particular concern.

“We’ve had regular communication with Crystal, but she’s only played 300 minutes since last year’s Olympics, which is not a lot of soccer — and she knows that,” Hayes said. “I feel bad for her, inasmuch as she’s doing everything she possibly can.”

She added that she spoke with Dunn last week and found a player doing her best as Paris Saint-Germain’s coaching staff chooses not to play her.

“She’s really calm in herself,” Hayes said. “She knows it’s important that she does get that [playing time], and that’s something that we hope changes at PSG because I still believe there is a future for Crystal with the national team — not just because of her experiences, but because of her qualities. But I’ve made it really clear that I want players to be competing and playing on a regular basis, and she understands that."

New names to know

Even as some veterans return, there are quite a few young players on this roster. Here are the names you’ll want to read up on: outside backs Avery Patterson and Lilly Reale; midfielders Claire Hutton, Olivia Moultrie and Jaedyn Shaw; and forwards Michelle Cooper, Emma Sears and Ally Sentnor.

Moultrie and Shaw admittedly aren’t new to the senior squad, even as both are 20 years old. Shaw was on the Olympic team last year but didn’t play because of an injury. Still, they’ve been in and out of the national team recently, and they’re both in this month. Many fans will be happy to see them.

There won’t be anyone on the squad with direct ties to the Philadelphia area. Voorhees, N.J., native Riley Tiernan of Angel City FC, the NWSL’s top rookie scorer this year with eight goals (tied for fifth overall), might have been a candidate if not for all the big names coming back.

But she could get a homecoming anyway, as the U.S. under-23 squad will run a training camp in Chester at the same time as the senior squad. Tiernan has been part of that group a few times, and this month’s edition will be announced Thursday.

The closest top player to a local will be Sam Coffey, whom area fans have adopted amid her rise to prominence. Being a Penn State product and having Philadelphia Inquirer sportswriter Alex Coffey as a sister are enough to qualify.

The squad will arrive in town early next week and train at the Union’s complex ahead of the game. Before the curtain rises on that, U.S. Soccer’s brass will be in New York on Monday to announce their bid to host the 2031 women’s World Cup. A delegation from Philadelphia is expected to attend, a signal of the city’s interest in taking part.

After playing here, the U.S. will have a rematch with Portugal on Oct. 26 in East Hartford, Conn., then face New Zealand on Oct. 29 in Kansas City, Mo. The first of those will be the retirement tribute for Naeher, a Connecticut native and Penn State alumna who stood down from the national team last year and has made this year her last at the club level.

Portugal is No. 23 in FIFA’s global rankings. The Navegadoras haven’t named their squad yet but could bring two names who are familiar to U.S. fans. Forward Nádia Gomes plays for the Chicago Stars (where she’s a teammate of Naeher), and forward Jéssica Silva previously played for Gotham FC and the Kansas City Current (she’s now in Saudi Arabia).

Another one to know is 22-year-old playmaker Kika Nazareth, part of Spanish superpower Barcelona.

USWNT October roster

— Goalkeepers (3): Claudia Dickey (Seattle Reign) Mandy McGlynn (Utah Royals), Phallon Tullis-Joyce (Manchester United, England)

— Defenders (8): Jordyn Bugg (Seattle Reign), Emily Fox (Arsenal, England), Lilly Reale (Gotham FC), Tara McKeown (Washington Spirit), Avery Patterson (Houston Dash), Emily Sams (Orlando Pride), Emily Sonnett (Gotham FC), Kennedy Wesley (San Diego Wave)

— Midfielders (8): Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns FC), Lindsey Heaps (OL Lyonnes, France), Claire Hutton (Kansas City Current), Rose Lavelle (Gotham FC), Sam Meza (Seattle Reign), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns), Jaedyn Shaw (Gotham FC), Lily Yohannes (OL Lyonnes, France)

— Forwards (7): Michelle Cooper (Kansas City Current), Catarina Macario (Chelsea, England), Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit), Yazmeen Ryan (Houston Dash), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville), Ally Sentnor (Kansas City Current), Alyssa Thompson (Chelsea, England)

USWNT autumn schedule

— Oct. 23: vs. Portugal at Subaru Park, 7 p.m. (TNT, truTV, HBO Max, Peacock)

— Oct. 26: vs. Portugal in East Hartford, Conn., 4 p.m. (TNT, truTV, Universo, HBO Max, Peacock)

— Oct. 29: vs. New Zealand in Kansas City, Mo., 8 p.m. (TNT, truTV, Universo, HBO Max, Peacock)

— Nov. 28: vs. Italy in Orlando, 7 p.m. (TNT, Universo, HBO Max, Peacock)

— Dec. 1: vs. Italy in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., 7 p.m. (TBS, HBO Max, Peacock)

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