By Tommy Kane
Published: June 11th, 2019
The United States Women’s National Team started off their 2019 World Cup debut on Jun. 11, 2019, with a match against Thailand in Reims, France. The U.S. is coming off a 2015 World Cup Championship and faced a squad that has only been to one other World Cup (2015).
The match resulted in a recording-breaking performance from the Americans. They obliterated Thailand, 13-0, and broke the record for most goals scored by a team in a FIFA Women’s World Cup match. Alex Morgan also tied the record for single-game goals in a FIFA Women’s World Cup match (5 goals).
There is a lot to be said, so this article will work a bit differently. The first half will be reviewed in more detail, and then the second half will be more general.
Quick Start for the U.S.
The United States pushed the pace early and controlled the possession. They came out with fire and were looking to score quick, unlike most of the other elite teams in the tournament.
They did just that. In the 12th minute, Morgan received a lob pass from Kelley O’Hara and headed the ball in to give the U.S. a 1-0 lead.
The Americans continued the attack and cashed in the 20th minute. Rose Lavelle (shown below) scored her first World Cup goal by firing a strike outside the box. The ball deflected off of Thailand’s goalie, Sukanya Chor Charoenying, and went in the net.
To round out the first half, Lindsey Horan took advantage of a Tobin Heath set-piece. Her first World Cup goal gave the U.S. a 3-0 lead heading into halftime.
A Barrage of Goals
The United States scored ten goals in the second half. This is one of those moments where a video would be better. Click here to see the highlights.
Nonetheless, the USWNT continued their dominance from the start of the second half.
Most notably, there were four goals scored within six minutes of each other, including Sam Mewis earning her first two World Cup goals. She has played well as of late for the team and looks to continue that well into the tournament. Morgan and Lavelle also scored their second goals of the match during that timeframe.
Mallory Pugh scored her first ever World Cup goal in the 85th minute, along with Megan Rapinoe starting off strong in match one with a goal of her own, which was in the 79th.
As mentioned above, Morgan (shown middle below) scored five goals in the 13 goal victory, tying for the most goals scored by an individual in a World Cup match. She set the bar really high for herself in this game, despite having a goal-drought coming in. She now leads the pack with the most goals in the tournament.
Rounding out the match was Carli Lloyd scoring a goal in her fourth World Cup. In the 92nd minute, the veteran put the icing on the cake and brought the American Outlaws to their feet once again for a final hurrah. It should be noted that she did not start the game and came off the bench in the second half.
A Historically Dominant Performance
The 13-0 win against Thailand was unexpected, to say the least. People predicted a scoreline of 5-0 or maybe even 8-0, but definitely not 13-0. This was done without Becky Sauerbrunn on the back-line, due to being out with an injury. This also was done with a U.S. team that had their struggles earlier in the year.
Heath and Julie Ertz, two players who usually are on the scoresheet, did not score in the blow-out. Heath played well on the ball and facilitated passes to give opportunities. Ertz played centerback, due to Sauerbrunn’s injury. She did a great job going back to her original position, but she should play midfielder when Sauerbrunn eventually returns.
Cycling back to the statistics, the possession was 75% for the United States. They also had 21 shots to only Thailand’s two shots. They really buckled down with the ball and rarely gave Thailand any light, which isn’t always the case against weaker opponents. That being said, they played better against a respectable Thailand than they did when they first faced them in 2016.
Respect was shown when the Americans continued to play 110%, despite being up by a large scoreline. They gave it their all and they didn’t stop until the final whistle.
No team was as dominant in the first game as the USWNT. France played to a 4-0 game against South Korea, but they didn’t dominate the way the U.S. did. Still, that could be argued. What can’t be argued is that the defending champions look scary out the gate.
The one concern that could arise is that the Americans were not tested defensively. The defense has been a sore spot, so it will be interesting to see how they fare against better offenses like Sweden.
Two More in the Group Stage
Group F, which the United States is seeded in, is known to be one of the weaker groups in the 2019 World Cup, but nonetheless, this World Cup is being deemed as one of the ‘most competitive’ thus far. Currently, the United States leads the group with three points.
The Stars and Stripes will play Chile on Father’s Day, Jun. 16, 2019. It is Chile’s first time playing in a Women’s World Cup. That game will take place at noon EST.
The most anticipated match for the United States in the group stage is on Jun. 20, 2019, at 3:00 PM EST. They will take on a notoriously difficult Sweden side. The two foes have faced each other five out of the last six times in the group stage of that respective World Cup. Sweden also knocked the U.S. out of the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil via penalty kicks.
As usual, all games will be telecasted on Fox Sports or Fox Sports One.
GO USA!
The All-American Eagle 