The United States Women's National Team took care of business on Sunday, defeating Chile and joining eight other nations in qualifying for the knockout stage of the 2019 World Cup.
The final tally of goals on Sunday against Chile for the USWNT was not quite the outburst displayed against Thailand, but it wasn't for a lack of trying.
Three first-half goals -- two by Carli Lloyd -- were more than enough for the USWNT to defeat Chile 3-0, guaranteeing the Americans a spot in the knockout stage of the 2019 World Cup.
If it weren't for Chile goalkeeper Christiane Endler, the final score might have been a lot worse.
Endler made several spectacular saves against the Americans attack, turning back forward Christen Press alone at least three times. Overall, Endler showed why she is a world class keeper, making six saves as the Americans had 26 shots (9 on goal).
Despite making seven changes to their starting lineup, the United States didn't miss a beat. They were on the attack earlier and often, converting two of their three goals off of corner kicks.
Lloyd got the scoring started in the 11th-minute with a left-footed strike. The goal was her ninth career-goal in the World Cup and she also set a World Cup record by scoring in her sixth-straight match.
Julie Ertz -- who moved back to midfield after starting the Thailand game in the defensive back four -- scored her first career World Cup goal with a perfectly placed header in the 26th-minute.
The pass was off a corner kick from the youngest of the USWNT squad, 20-year Tierna Davidson. Davidson also assisted on a corner kick for the third goal of the game, this time directed off the head of Lloyd in the 35th-minute.
Chile thought they scored a goal off of a set piece, which would have tied the game at 1 early. Unfortunately, members of Chile were offside, negating the score.
The USWNT has not allowed a goal in 180 minutes in this World Cup and, as a nation, has only allowed three goals in their last nine World Cup matches.
Jessica McDonald, Allie Long, and Emily Sonnett all saw the field in the second-half, meaning the only players not to see action in the 2019 World Cup for team USA are the backup goalkeepers. Despite some excellent passing -- and one failed penalty kick by Lloyd -- the Americans were not able to find the back of the net in the second half.
Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe, and Tobin Heath were among those who didn't play on Sunday.
They will be well-rested when the USWNT take on Sweden on Thursday to determine the top-seed from Group F. Thanks to everyone playing so well, United States head coach Jill Ellis will have some decisions to make come match time. Chances are, the lineup will more closely resemble the starting lineup against Thailand, with Becky Sauerbrunn likely getting the nod at fullback and moving Ertz back to the midfield.
Of course, I didn't foresee seven changes coming to today's lineup so we'll have to wait and see. If anything, the Americans proved today they could easily field two squads that would vie for the title "Best in the World".
I hope the other teams took notice.
Advancing to the knockout stage
The United States, with their victory, were assured of finishing in the top-two in their group, meaning a spot in the final 16 is theirs.All six groups have played two games and nine countries have punched their ticket to the next round:
- Group A: France
- Group B: German
- Group C: Italy
- Group D: England, Japan
- Group E: Netherlands, Canada
- Group F: United States, Sweden
Out of these nine, Italy has taken on the mantle of dark horse favorite. They were considered lucky in their opening match victory against Australia but a 5-0 victory over Jamaica showed they are capable of so much more.
Cristiana Girelli dazzled with a hat trick for the Italians. They finish the group stage with a match against Brazil on Tuesday (3 pm EST). A victory, tie, or a loss by less than two goals will guarantee the top spot in Group C.
France, a pre-tournament favorite, has looked the part, though not in the same dominating manner as the United States. They will face Nigeria on Monday and are still on a path to face the Americans in the quarterfinals if results continue to favor both teams.
England has looked solid in both of their victories, but have made things closer than needed in both. A lack of focus in the latter part of games has beguiled the England squad, something that will come back to bite them against better teams if not careful.
Netherlands and Canada have also been impressive, as has Germany, though the Germans have been less-than-explosive on the offensive end.
The group stage ends play on Thursday. Here are a few matches to keep an eye on over the next couple of days.
- Monday (6/17): China vs Spain (Noon EST), Norway vs South Korea (3 pm EST)
- Tuesday (6/18): Italy vs Brazil (3 pm EST)
- Wednesday (6/19): Scotland vs Argentina (3 pm EST)
- Thursday (6/20): United States vs Sweden (3 pm EST), Netherlands vs Cameroon (Noon EST)
photo credit: commons.wikimedia.org
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