US players have reacted to their loss against Sweden. A penalty shootout took place during the Women’s World Cup in Melbourne. The rest of the world looks to have caught up with the US. The Americans, who were once dominant in the Women’s World Cup, looked to have crashed on penalties after they ended up with a scoreless draw.
This was during round 16 on Sunday. This has gone down in history as being one of the earliest exits ever, for the champions. The shootout of 1999 had a very different outcome, It was supercharged and the US earned their spot at the top of the ranks. They also became known across the world. They were able to beat China, with a sellout crowd cheering their name. Brandi Chastain doffed her shirt, as she celebrated.
Lacking Energy
One main issue that a lot of people have, is that the team lacked a lot of energy. They did show frantic bursts but at the end of the day, they were very much timid and they were also somewhat disorganised. The champions squeaked by in the group stage and they came away with a win against Vietnam but ended up drawing against Portugal and the Netherlands. It looks like they have fallen victim to the parity that is happening within women’s soccer right now. Teams such as the US, who were once known as being powerhouses, were sent home. You also had Germany and Brazil who although are top names, also ended up struggling. If you want to keep up to date with women’s football then you can do so by signing up with a sports live streaming service.
Andonovski’s Reign
Andonovski has taken over the job for Ellis, who once led the US team on their journey to back-to-back victories. During his time with the team, he has managed to go 51-5-9. He has released a statement saying that he never came into the job thinking that he had to do something to save himself. He was shaken and said that he was focused, and always did what he could to keep his team on top form. He knows that the team have a lot of challenges ahead of them and that he wants to do what he can to help them represent the country.
US Soccer
US Soccer have released a statement. They have said that they are very disappointed that the journey for the US team has ended and that they do want to thank the players as well as the coaches. They want to thank them for the effort that they have put in, and they also want to show appreciation to the fans. They have said that they are going to conduct a review of what has happened and they are also going to try and pinpoint any areas of improvement if they are capable of doing so. They hope to embrace the hard work that they need to put in so that they can become champions once more.
One of the scorers for the team was Lindsey Horan, who is the co-captain. She managed to come away with two goals. Even though it did not end up with what they wanted, they have said that this is a huge experience for the younger players of the team. Andonovski has also come out to say that the group of players are going to try and make a mark in the future and that they are going to do their best to deal with the current backlash in a positive way.
