August 01, (THEWILL) – In a nail-biting encounter at Eden Park, the United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) managed to clinch a spot in the last 16 of the Women’s World Cup, albeit with a shaky 0-0 draw against Portugal.
The defending champions, facing spirited opponents making their World Cup debut, struggled to assert their dominance throughout the match. Portugal, ranked 21st in the world, nearly secured a sensational victory in injury time, with substitute Ana Capeta’s shot hitting the post. With this draw, Vlatko Andonovski’s side finished as runners-up in Group E, setting up a challenging last-16 tie against the winners of Group G, likely to be Olympic silver medallists Sweden on Sunday.
In contrast to their dominant display in previous tournaments, the USWNT’s performance in the group stage of this Women’s World Cup raised concerns. This is only the second time in Women’s World Cup history that the United States has failed to top their group, the last time being in 2011, when they reached the final but lost to Japan on penalties. Andonovski has maintained that this is a youthful team, needing time to find their footing. However, to avoid an early elimination in the knockout phase, the American side must step up their game significantly.
The team’s regression from their impressive display in the 2019 World Cup is evident, having won just one of their group matches and scored far fewer goals. The USWNT’s last-16 tie against Sweden promises to be a stern test for Andonovski’s team. With an undefeated streak of reaching the semifinals in all eight prior World Cup editions, the pressure to perform is immense.
The team will have to show resilience and determination to overcome a Swedish side that finished third in the previous World Cup. As the knockout phase approaches, the spotlight will be on the American holders to regain their form and live up to their reputation as one of the tournament favourites.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
