It was another victory, another clean sheet, and one step closer to another SheBelieves Cup championship for United States Women’s National Team last night. Trotting out a fairly inexperienced, but one of the strongest possible lineups, the team were able to dominate their Northern rivals Canada on their way to their second win of the tournament. That win didn’t just earn them some more bragging rights, it put them firmly in position to come away with the SheBelieves championship with a win over
Colombia in their final match this weekend. Even with two clean sheets, two wins and a championship within their grasp, there’s still plenty this team can work on as they begin preparations in earnest for 2027. Here’s what we learned after the latest win.
It’s Coming Home
United States has won seven of the previous 10 SheBelieves Cups, as they now look to secure eight in 11 tries. After their win over Canada they are now firmly in the driver’s seat to claim that eighth title. Win, and they will hoist the trophy as they look to build momentum going into some very important matches down the road, but Colombia aren’t exactly an easy team to get past. Most of the USWNT will know all about Leicy Santos who plays for the Washington Spirit in the NWSL for club, and everyone knows about the young phenom Linda Caicedo, who plays for Real Madrid. Those two are the heartbeat of this Colombia attack, and on their day can wreak havoc against anyone. That said, those are just two players whereas United States boasts a roster that up, down, and subs included is one of the most talented rosters on the planet. Nothing is ever easy at this elite level, but with so much on the line, it would be a shock if they didn’t come away with the trophy.
Being Clinical in the Final Third
If there’s anything to critique over the first two matches of this tournament, it’s the finishing from this team. We saw glimpses of it against Argentina, and more than glimpses last night against Canada. United States are a phenomenal team going forward, capable of creating space, finding open teammates, one-touch footy, but their biggest issue at the moment is finishing build-ups off with goals. Yes, it’s always win above all, but this team has made it clear this tournament is more than just these few matches, it’s about setting themselves up for more, preparing for the real challenges ahead in the next year and a half. We saw chance, after chance, after chance for USWNT against Canada and while they won, they absolutely left goals on the table. Respect to our neighbors to the north, while they had their moments, it wasn’t like their defense was this brick wall the United States had to break down. There was the Ally Sentnor miss on a 1v1 late in the first half, there was the Rodman shot that went wide, a couple of looks for Rose Lavelle from outside the box that didn’t really find their mark or make the keeper work too hard, and the list goes on. They ended up with the win, which is always the most important thing, but if this team wants to achieve the highest glory of winning a World Cup down the line, they will need to be a lot more clinical in the final third.
Grinding It out
To piggyback off the previous observation of being a lot more clinical in their attacking third, the way the team won tonight, and in their first match against Argentina, is how they’ve found success in recent years. While prior iterations of USWNT would drown you in an avalanche of goals most nights, this version of the squad flat-out just outlast teams. Much like a heavyweight prize fighter, they know they don’t have to get the knockout blow in the first three rounds. They know more times than not they are the better, deeper, fitter team and they are perfectly fine grinding it out until the second half, or deep into a match before finding that moment of magic. Defensively they are stout — proving that with two clean sheets in this tournament alone and not allowing a goal in their last seven outings — and they know all they have to do is continue applying pressure and eventually, the opposition will crack. We saw it last night, despite missing chance after chance the team didn’t panic. There was no tension, no anxiety, no worries. They knew all they had to do was keep knocking and eventually the door would open and thats’s exactly what happened when Sentnor made up for her previous missed opportunity with what would be the winning goal early in the second half. It may not be as exciting as years past for USWNT, but it is effective and right now that is exactly what this team needs.
The biggest thing we learned so far this tournament is that it’s going to take something really special to stop the United States. In a lot of ways, this team hasn’t even come close to being a finished product. So many players that took the pitch for USWNT last night hadn’t even hit the 10 Cap milestone for the United States, which in itself is damn impressive. If this team is able to see out results and get the job done while young and inexperienced, just imagine how deadly this team will look with just a little more time to cook together.
