WASHINGTON, DC – Crystal Dunn He may not be a member of the US women’s national team, but the finger of the women’s World Cup winner is not necessarily far from the pulse, even in leisure. Just before the reigning Olympic champions square off in a friendly against the reigning world champions, the theme of the week has been succinctly outlined.
“I don’t want us to win easily.”
The simple logic is that there are no shortcuts to the top, especially in the women’s soccer landscape that is more competitive with each passing day. The USWNT nor did they seek to obtain it easily, on the Sabbath after all; but they left with a 2-0 aggregate loss to Spain, who saw their flaws as their defining voice and qualities. The U.S. team were outmatched and imperfect, careless considering they were up against an enemy that would always question them and did so as soon as the opening whistle sounded. Eighteen months before the World Cup, though, the issues aren’t as bad.
“I don’t think it’s always necessarily bad to lose,” Trinity Rodman said post-match.
Emma Hayes’ side grew into the game, so much so that they stood out in the final of Spain 13 to six and up to 2.26 goals expected Spain 0.43. The visitors’ attack was limited to no shots in the second half, a sign that the USWNT’s game plan had its merits. In the end, they were tied in a rough start – Patri Guijarro and Eva Navarro scored the opening goal within 14 minutes, the US team’s defensive operations were exposed in different ways, despite the impressive goals from the Spanish goal.
“One, it’s a big hit, but we really need to do better than that,” Hayes said. “The second goal, they took the ball to their goalkeeper and after the ball we got numbers but we didn’t do our collective job well enough.”
The USWNT’s defenders and midfielders didn’t let up in the first 15 minutes, although they redeemed themselves in the second half. Hayes went out with Tierna Davidson and Kennedy Fuller at center back, playing the first match, although the head coach had little choice – Noomi Girma was ruled out of the friendlies against Spain with an injury. To upset the goal of Navarro Fullon will be brutal but far from the only one, the midfield of the US Lindsey piles up, Lily Yohannes and Rose Lavelle strike their attention in both Spain. There were as many individual offenses as collective ones, Hayes argued.
“If you defend and at the moment you jump and drop into the back line, well, a midfielder, whoever you are, you always have to be exposed because it’s too far in front and there’s too much space at the back,” Hayes said. “I didn’t think we had the right collective in the first half, and so we put some midfielder to be in a better position to be able to control the quality of the players when they play close. You can’t have big gaps, but when it’s 2-0 down, maybe it makes a little doubt in your head about the drop and those things, so the middle like the game, I think. I don’t think about one unit. [we] not to finish “
Navarro’s goal threatened to sap the energy from the USWNT, to the point that the team had to meet before returning to play.
“We have to keep it,” Yohannes said of the discussion. “It’s early. We have a lot of time and then a few strategies that someone saw something. It was just said and we keep the communication, the positive energy.”
The tactical changes at mid-season helped, with Lavelle also taking a more wide role on the right, restoring some balance after he moved heavily to the left in the first half. They also allowed the US team to do exactly what it set out to do, its creative shot to encourage enough despite being able to score what Hayes described as a constant problem. In testing the depth of the USWNT and the team’s roster options, not all concerns have been quelled. Heaps is not well-suited to play as deep in midfield on the pitch against the Spanish side, making Hayes an attractive choice there despite having Claire Hutton as an option even if Sam Coffey was sidelined through injury. The attacking stacks of their strong suit remain their strong suit, but the USWNT’s midfield can look uncertain at times, a problem Hayes inherited but may yet find the perfect solution.
Even though the USWNT improved in the midfield, it was not difficult to notice that their midfield goals were accomplished, even if they were far from the only ones.
“I think it was me and Lindsay [in] the pivotal parts together, trying to stay close to each other when they are pressing high, giving options to our back, getting second balls, winning our duels,” John said. “That’s our role and that’s what we tried to do. I think there were good moments when we were, I think, they won a lot of duels and went into transition with them, but like I said, when we tried to kind of fall back, they were good playing against low blocks, and when we can’t press the ball, it’s tough.”
The piles came together.
“The two goals weren’t directly taken away by us playing or breaking through,” noted Heaps. “I mean, they had quality in their finishing, but mostly because of our lack of not stepping to the ball or maybe giving us the passing moment and clearly behind the cross that we can maybe prevent… Defensively, we came to stay compact and keep tight lines but be able to get enough pressure and especially not to play through us too quickly.”
The USWNT’s qualifying schedule ahead of the Cup has built up to this point, though. Friendship against Japan in April and Brazil In June, they continue to provide experiences for next summer’s potential knockout matches, which come down to the edges and subtle moments that can come and go in a flash.
“When you play the best team in the world, you have to do everything right in the first instance,” Hayes said. “You can’t guarantee that 2-0 against the best team in the world, especially the way we conceded them goals but to ‘study and feel that we are enough to score a goal? What did we do? Is it enough to ever score more than one? Absolutely. We just didn’t make, necessarily, the right decisions and the quality that we know. [have] But I think there’s a lot of really good things about what we’ve done, but not them.”