The USWNT kicked off their quest for redemption after last year’s poor Algarve showing against Norway on Wednesday in their first match of group play.
Jill Ellis employed a similar lineup as the team’s previous match against England with a few minor adjustments. Hope Solo returned to the lineup, having been reinstated after her 30 day suspension by US Soccer. Lori Chalupny returned to the left back position while Julie Johnston also got the start on the back line with captain Christie Rampone unavailable and Whitney Engen dealing with an injury. Another change for the US occurred in the form of attire as the team debuted their new 2015 away kits for the first time.
The US earned two corner kicks in the very early stages of the match but most found themselves in a heap of trouble as a goalkeeping miscue could have proven costly. Norway sent a long cross from the right flank which Solo came off her line for but was unable to field cleanly while colliding with a Norway player. Becky Sauerbrunn smartly covered the line while Ali Krieger squared up with the attacker and was able to get her body in front of the shot, sending it out of play.
The first solid chance for the US came in the 9th minute as Carli Lloyd pressured on a Norway throw in allowing Alex Morgan to win the ball and tap it back over to Lloyd. Lloyd dribbled in and around the defender and found herself one on one with Norway’s goalkeeper who smartly went down and sent the ball out of play.
The US did well to maintain possession throughout the first half, creating several decent chances to get on the scoresheet. Christen Press just missed wide on a redirect from an Ali Krieger cross and hit the post on her best attempt of the half while Wambach and Morgan both had chances of their own that either missed the target or were sent out of harms way by goalkeeper Silje Vesterbekkmo.
Despite solid play on both sides of the ball, the US found themselves on the wrong end of a 1-0 scoreline by the end of the first half. Norway set up a beautiful counter, moving the ball down the right flank and getting numbers in the box. Ada Hegerberg was left completely unmarked in front of the goal and was able to head the ball in, giving Norway a 1-0 lead going into the half.
The US started the second half where they left off, continuing to maintain possession and move the ball well, however on the defensive side, allowed Norway to create several more chances than they had been afforded in the first half. Similar to the start of the match, Norway found themselves with another early opportunity due to a poor clearance off a corner. Hope Solo was able to make a point blank reaction save to prevent Norway from doubling the lead.
After having one of, if not the best scoring opportunity in the first half, Lloyd leveled the match on an absolute beauty of a goal in the 57th minute. The US did well to move the ball around in Norway’s end of the field. Lloyd received the ball right outside of the box and took a few touches to give herself some space before letting it rip past Vesterbekkmo to even the score.
Lloyd would score the game winner from the spot a mere five minutes later. An open Christen Press received the ball at the top of the box and attempted to one time it towards the goal when it came off the arm of a Norway defender. The referee awarded a penalty and Lloyd cooly lifted it into the upper netting to give the US a 2-1 lead which would be the final score.
Overall, not a bad game for the US. In fact, it is probably one of the better they have played recently. However, one glaring issue that needs to be addressed is the midfield. Ellis has been utilizing Press and Lloyd on the outside of the midfield instead of Lloyd’s more traditional role in the central midfield and Press’s in an actual forward role.
While each player has been able to give strong performances in recent matches, their tendency to drift towards the middle creates somewhat of a clumped up midfield area. This mainly becomes an issue when the outside backs, who are known for coming forward, tear down the flanks but have nowhere to pass the ball to except for a crowded midfield. If Press and Lloyd stayed on the outside where they were intended, this would allow for more attacking options without putting more of the flank work on the outside backs.
It has been highly opined that Lloyd should not even be playing on the outside of the midfield. However, this seems to be the formation Ellis wants to use and the role she wants stop see Lloyd in so in that instance, it becomes an issue of her and Press trying to stay wider to provide options to the outside backs coming down the flanks. Hopefully we will see more of that throughout the tournament and this issue ironed out before the World Cup begins.
The US plays Switzerland on March 6th at noon ET on Fox Sports 1.
