USWNT Take 3-0 Shutout Over Vietnam To Open World Cup
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 (upbeat music)
00:03 - How would you describe the effort
00:05 for the US Women's National Team
00:07 in their opener in the 2023 World Cup?
00:09 - Yeah, I think it was a little disjointed.
00:12 You know, you saw some players in and out,
00:14 Rose LaVelle coming in the second half.
00:16 I thought that really made them better.
00:18 Maybe part of it was also Vietnam wearing down a bit
00:20 from their strategy.
00:21 Credit them for a good defensive approach.
00:23 But I think the stat that really sticks out to me,
00:25 the United States completed just 75% of its passes
00:29 in the first match.
00:30 That's like eighth in the tournament.
00:32 When you consider the level of opponent
00:34 and the level that we've come to expect
00:35 from the United States, that's a pretty low number.
00:37 And you know, really Vietnam not having much
00:40 in terms of attacking firepower
00:41 let the United States off the hook here.
00:43 You have to credit the United States.
00:44 They didn't allow a shot.
00:45 They did create four non-penalty expected goals.
00:48 So it was still a comprehensive performance.
00:51 But you know, Alex Morgan even made a comment
00:53 about this after the game
00:54 that it just didn't quite feel right.
00:56 And I would agree with that.
00:56 I thought Trinity Rodman and Sophia Smith,
00:58 the two young wingers and wide forwards
01:01 were really impressive.
01:02 You look at like their underlying ball progression,
01:04 bringing the ball into the penalty area.
01:06 But it was a very quiet game from Morgan.
01:08 It was a very quiet game
01:09 for the other attacking midfielders,
01:11 not named Lindsey Horan.
01:12 So I think there are some question marks
01:14 about how connected this team is.
01:16 And you know, can they break down a better
01:18 defensive low block than the one they saw last week?
01:21 I think there's still major questions about that.
01:23 And it's been a question about this team
01:24 for multiple years now.
01:25 This is not a new occurrence
01:27 that they've had these kinds of struggles.
01:29 (upbeat music)
01:31 [Music]