Dr. Jeffrey Mjaanes, a sports medicine physician at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush, is spending this week in Arizona helping the US Women's Soccer Team prepare for Saturday's friendly match against Sweden. Dr. Mjaanes has worked with the US Soccer Federation for the last 6 years but this is his first trip as a team physician for the full US Women's National Team (WNT). The team has been practicing in Arizona since last week and is led by Head Coach Pia Sundhage. Coach Sunhage is a native of Sweden and played for the Swedish national team in the 1991 and 1995 World Cups and the 1996 Olympics. Dr. Mjaanes joins Coach Sundhage as well as a team of assistant coaches, athletic trainers, massage and physical therapists and equipment managers all working to get the U.S. team ready for an Olympic run for next year's London 2012 Summer Games.

The US WNT is one of the most successful women's soccer teams in the world, ranking consistently in the top tier. The US team came in second place in the 2011 FIFA World Cup in Germany, losing to Japan in a heart-wrenching penalty-shootout in overtime. Many of the same players will be playing against Sweden this Saturday, November 19, in Arizona. Top players, including Abby Wambach and Alex Morgan, will be there to lead the US against Sweden. A notable absence may be US goalkeeper Hope Solo who has made her way to the last stages of the television show Dancing with the Stars.

Saturday's game will be held at The University of Phoenix stadium in Glendale, AZ. The game starts at 7pm MST (8pm CST) and can be followed on www.ussoccer.com. Dr. Mjaanes will keep us updated from Phoenix on the team's preparations this week, so stay tuned! Please visit the MOR Blog to read more.