Angel Metropolis FC midfielder Hina Sugita (7) controls the ball in the course of the second half towards Portland Thorns FC at BMO Stadium.
Angel Metropolis FC midfielder Hina Sugita will likely be out for your entire 2026 season with an ACL tear in her left knee. The workforce introduced the information in an announcement on Tuesday, two days after Angel Metropolis’s 4-0 win in a season opener towards the Chicago Stars on Sunday.
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Sugita didn’t play within the season opener.
“Hina is a world class athlete and teammate,” Angel Metropolis head coach Alex Straus mentioned in an announcement, .
“We’re devastated for her, however know she’s going to convey the identical focus and dedication to her rehab as she does on the pitch. The complete workforce and membership are behind her. We’re ready to help her on her street to restoration and look ahead to having her again,” Straus added.
Sugita was coming into her first full season with Angel Metropolis after becoming a member of the workforce throughout a commerce with the Portland Thorns in September. She performed 4 seasons with the Thorns, then she performed and began in 4 video games of the 2025 season with Angel Metropolis.
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The Thorns traded Sugita to Angel Metropolis for defender M.A. Vignola and $600,000 in intra-league switch funds.
Sugita was meant to be a robust veteran addition to the workforce that may bolster the midfield. Along with her expertise within the NWSL, Sugita has recorded 51 worldwide caps with the Japanese Nationwide Group, together with two World Cups in 2019 and 2023.
Sugita Was Not the Solely Participant Out With a Knee Damage within the Season Opener
Angel Metropolis ahead Jun Endo additionally missed Sunday’s season opener with a knee damage. Endo tore her ACL throughout preseason two years in the past, which required her to overlook all the 2024 season and half of the 2025 season.
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Endo began in six video games of the 2025 season for Angel Metropolis. Final month, she shared that she is coping with some points along with her surgically repaired knee however her ACL remains to be intact.
“It’s not a brand new damage and I didn’t re-tear my ACL. There’s simply nonetheless a major imbalance between my left and proper facet,” Endo wrote on social media in February.
Like Sugita, Endo is a member of the Japanese Nationwide Group and has 44 worldwide caps.
Picture Credit score: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Pictures