The USA women’s national soccer team has always been widely successful. The team won four World Cup titles from 1991 to 2019, the most out of any country. With all this success, it was such a surprise to everybody when Sweden eliminated the USA in the round of 16 during the 2023 World Cup.
The USA team faced Sweden on Aug. 5. The team lost 5-4 in penalty kicks, a heartbreaking loss. The team faced lots of criticism following its play.
A major point of criticism that the team faced was toward the coach. According to Sports Illustrated, Former player Carli Lloyd called out Head Coach Vlatko Andonovski for not being committed to the team. She claims that has been a problem since the 2019 World Cup.
Soccer fans from all over have also questioned some of Andonovski’s decisions. Long time USA soccer fan senior Maryn Zavislak questioned the substitution decisions. “We have a lot of young talent on the team that Vlatko was not utilizing,” Zavislak said.
Along with all the criticism and the second-round loss, Andonovski stepped down as the head coach of the team. Andonovski went out with one of the worst performances in Women’s world cup history. With the disappointing year, Andonovski seemed to have no way forward.
Other fans have criticized the way the team played. “The team should have played with more heart,” Senior soccer fan Robert Drexel said. “They did not represent our nation well.”
Drexel and many fans know the team has the talent to win it all, as it is the best in the world. But the team did not play with passion, and it showed.
With this disappointing loss, there is going to be high hopes for the next World Cup. The team will always have the talent, and it should have the motivation to use its talent to the full extent.
“I think they are going to come in wanting it a lot more than this year,” Zavislak said. “They will be a more motivated team.”
Team USA sure has something to prove in this next World Cup. With the outcome of this year’s World Cup, it now has motivation to show that it is the best team in the world.
