The Inevitable Happened: USWNT & Head Coach Vlatko Andonovski "Mutally Agreed To Part Ways"

 

    I had been meaning to write a quick post about this for the last few days after reports surfaced on Wednesday night that USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski had resigned. The most predictable coaching change in soccer history was confirmed yesterday by the US Soccer Federation as they named his assistant Twila Kilgore (who?) as the interim head coach. The timing of this probably does not matter one bit in the long run but the minute after the USWNT was eliminated by Sweden in penalty kicks at the 2023 Women's World Cup was almost two weeks ago now. Are we supposed to be stupid enough to believe that Vlatko actually had a chance to keep his job after the earliest World Cup exit (Round of 16) in USWNT history? Please, oh and his other major tournament was also terrible as the U.S. settled for a bronze medal in the 2021 Covid Olympics. He got fired, why is that so hard to say in public?

    The USWNT was coming off of back-to-back World Cup titles so anything less than a spot in the final would have been unacceptable. We could see signs of turbulence ahead when the Americans lost a couple friendlies leading up to the World Cup (something which never occurs) and generally showed many more signs of vulnerability than usual. Yes, the gap between the USWNT and the rest of the world is rapidly closing but it would be silly to pin all of this on poor Vlatko who was woefully overmatched from the start. Last time that I checked, we still have tons of great women's players who should have been good enough to work past poor coaching and the litany of injuries to quality players that they suffered in the lead up to the World Cup. 

    Given that I had never heard of Kilgore (who is thankfully an American) until yesterday and the fact that she worked under Vlatko is not a promising sign for her long-term future with the USWNT. Nope, they need to clean house ASAP and start over. I always say this when it comes to the USMNT and USWNT head coaches but let me once again repeat my core belief: the USMNT should always be led by a foreigner since we have never come close to a World Cup title and the USWNT should be coached by an American since we are the best country in women's soccer history. I will not pretend to have a list of hot coaching candidates in women's soccer ready to go in my head but with our storied history, there has to be a few worthy replacements that are currently working their way up the ranks. 

    I would also say that I prefer an American woman (like Jill Ellis) in charge of the USWNT. We were on top for so long that former American players figure to be uniquely qualified to handle the pressure not to mention they would be familiar with our youth program, the NWSL, the USWNT system etc. Following any World Cup (men's or women's), there are always players that will retire or not be good enough to make the next competition so you always need young players knocking at the door. It has understandably been all doom and gloom since the USWNT's rough World Cup in Australia/New Zealand but the cupboard is not empty by any means. With forwards like Sophia Smith and Trinity Rodman, a midfielder and captain Lindsey Horan plus defenders such as Naomi Girma and Emily Fox to name a few, we will be fine moving forward. However, make no mistake, the US Soccer Federation still has a big decision on its hands: I would have thought that the job of USWNT was almost idiot proof but not so much as Vlatko showed us all. Hire the right person and let's please move on to another great chapter for the U.S. soccer women's national team.

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After A Sleepy First Half, Horan Scored & The USWNT Salvaged A 1-1 Draw With Netherlands

 

    The much-anticipated rematch of the 2019 Women's World Cup Final between the United States (1-1-0) and the Netherlands (1-1-0) did not exactly live up to the hype as it ended in a 1-1 tie tonight in Wellington, New Zealand during the 2023 Women's World Cup group stage. Both teams had to settle for a point as the Dutch dominated in the first half and led for much of the match on midfielder Jill Roord's goal. The Americans lacked urgency and seemed tentative in the first half but responded with a solid second half that included the tying strike by co-captain and midfielder Lindsey Horan. Their head coach Vlatko Andonovski did them no favors though as he only used one substitution for the entire match-putting in midfielder Rose Lavelle for the overmatched Savannah DeMelo to start the second half. It felt like another move or two for the U.S. could have resulted in a win but I guess we will never know about that for sure.

    It was clear that the Netherlands' gameplan was to control possession which they successfully did 56%-44%. The United States took a bunch more shots (18-5) but only had three more of them on goal (4-1). The craziest part was that the Americans earned 10 more corner kicks (11-1) than the Dutch which seems like a misprint but it is true. Roord's goal in the 17th minute came after a series of defensive miscues by the USWNT that ended with her taking a quick touch at the top of the box then depositing a low and hard shot into the corner of the net past a diving Alyssa Naeher. Even though there was surprisingly only one card all game (a yellow for Lavelle five minutes after she came on in the second half), it was a very physical battle from start to finish. 

    Horan got taken out by her club teammate at Lyon (France) midfielder Danielle van de Donk in the 59th minute. She was understandably upset about it since between getting hit on the knee not to mention a hard fall on her head, she could have suffered a couple of serious injuries. Thankfully, she let that temporary anger fuel her as she was first to a subsequent corner by Lavelle and knocked in a powerful header to tie it up 1-1 in the 62nd minute. If you had any question as to why the normally quiet Horan was named a co-captain before this tournament, here was living proof. She stepped up when her team needed her the most. 

    From there, the U.S. had all the momentum and poured on the pressure hunting for another goal. Forward Alex Morgan scored in the 67th minute after a pretty touch on a through ball by forward Trinity Rodman but it was rightfully called offside. By the end, it felt like the Dutch were hanging on for dear life but it seemed fitting that it ended 1-1. Neither side really deserved to lose but conversely, you could say that neither was owed a victory more than the other. 

    In terms of excitement, this could not set up much better for the third and final group match as the U.S. meets Portugal (1-0-1) on Tuesday (3 am, Fox) while the Netherlands takes on Vietnam (0-0-2) at the same ungodly time stateside. Playing in their first ever World Cup, the Portuguese beat fellow debutant Vietnam 2-0 this morning. The U.S. will be favored but Portugal is not a layup so they have to come out faster from the opening whistle and not wait so long for the game to come to them. Without giving you too much of an ice cream headache, I will just say that the USWNT is up two goals in goal-differential on the Netherlands so if they win and as long as the Dutch do not blow out Vietnam (a possibility), the U.S. should finish on top of Group E. Lavelle should start against Portugal and I would also like to see Megan Rapinoe (who did not appear vs. Netherlands) get some playing time. Teenage midfielder Alyssa Thompson should see the field as well in my opinion since Andi Sullivan is nothing special by any means. 

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USWNT Began Their '23 World Cup With 3-0 Win Vs. Vietnam, Thanks To Sophia Smith (2G, 1A)

 

    You might have heard: the USWNT is trying to become the first team ever (men's or women's) to win three straight World Cups, no pressure or anything. Tonight, they opened their 2023 World Cup journey with a routine 3-0 victory over Vietnam in Auckland, New Zealand. American forward Sophia Smith had an incredible World Cup debut as she scored the first two goals for the USWNT then assisted on the final strike by midfielder and co-captain Lindsey Horan. The U.S. was far from perfect as they missed a penalty kick not to mention that they owned 66% possession for the game but only had three goals to show from it. Still, nobody got hurt and eight players made their World Cup debuts for the USWNT so the bottom line is that they will move on to bigger and better things soon enough.   

    In reality, this was a mismatch of epic proportions as evidenced by the final stats: the US outshot Vietnam 28-0 but only seven of those were on goal so you can see specifically where they will have to improve starting on Wednesday (9, Fox) when they face the Netherlands in a rematch of the 2019 Women's World Cup final. American goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher gets credit for one of the most fraudulent shutouts in sports history. The winner of that is basically guaranteed to win Group E since the other team in it is Portugal who is playing in their first World Cup therefore you cannot expect them to upset the U.S. or the Netherlands (most likely). Vietnam and Portugal figure to be at the bottom of the group barring some crazy results.

    Smith did not wait too long to open her World Cup account as she made it 1-0 in the 14th minute. It was a beautiful goal as Horan looped a pass to forward and fellow co-captain Alex Morgan who flicked it into the box where Smith outran her defender and unleashed a well struck low shot with her left foot. Vietnam did their best to waste time (not a bad tactic in soccer when you are that overwhelmed) in the first half and it seemed to pay off until forward Trinity Rodman (yes, she is Dennis' daughter) earned a penalty kick in the 44th minute. Morgan stepped up to take it (I think that whomever earns a penalty kick should almost always take it) but her shot was stopped by Vietnamese goalkeeper Tran Thi Kim Thanh. Luckily for the USWNT-like we saw in the 2022 men's World Cup-there was ample stoppage time. Smith scored her second goal seven minutes (!!) into stoppage time before the halftime whistle. Thanh punched the ball but it fell to Smith and while her shot was not a great one by any means, there were enough bodies to screen Thanh who had the ball go through her legs once again. 

    Teams have five substitutes to use in this World Cup and USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski made ample use of them in the second half. This morning, we were told that star midfielder Rose Lavelle and star forward Megan Rapinoe would both be on minute restrictions at least for this evening and that is exactly what happened as they both entered in the 63rd minute. Also notably, 18-year-old Alyssa Thompson-the No. 1 pick in the last NWSL Draft-made her first World Cup appearance in the 75th minute. Fittingly since they were the two best players in the match, Smith and Horan combined for the last goal. Smith took the ball away from a Vietnam defender along the end line and then she played it back to Horan who slammed it home from the top of the box. It was another awesome highlight provided by the two Colorado natives. Lavelle had a great chance to make it 4-0 a few moments later but her right-footed shot hit the crossbar and did not cross the goal line. 

    It will be interesting to see how the Netherlands fares against Portugal tomorrow morning (3:30 am ET, FS1) but as I said, expect a relatively easy Dutch victory. The U.S. will obviously get an extra day of rest ahead of their next showdown which should help them as well not that the Vietnam match was too taxing. It is doubtful that Smith will have this type of output against the Netherlands but I also believe that Morgan and Rodman should both play better as that super talented trio gets more used to each other on the field in a competitive environment. Outside of Horan, the American midfield looks like a possible weak spot (if they even have one) while the defense led by veterans Crystal Dunn and Julie Ertz should be solid. This is the biggest field ever (32 teams) for a Women's World Cup-eight more than in 2019-and there is more parity than ever but make no mistake, the USWNT is still the team to beat until that is proven otherwise.

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