It’s clear at this point that the USWNT will always be a work in progress under Emma Hayes.
There was speculation the team’s core would become apparent as World Cup qualifying looms at the end of the year. The up-and-down Japan series with its wholesale lineup shifts showed that Hayes continues to evaluate young players and that there’s still plenty of competition for key roles on the team.
“These young ones are getting a lot of experience now, and they’re a lot more confident that I was when I was first coming into the team,” Lindsey Heaps said. “That’s credit to Emma and the experience she’s giving them, but also to them stepping into teh roles that they’re playing and doing it seamlessly.”
Are we cooking yet?
Hayes often used cooking metaphors over the course of the series to explain her thinking.
“When I go back and assess everything from our appetizers, our main meal, our dessert, I will find things that need improving upon. It might be presentation in some part, it might be just texture, it might even be just a little bit of seasoning, but you can’t do that until you really analyze it,” she said.
The players that impressed most in this camp were the youngsters like Gisele Thompson, Claire Hutton and Kennedy Wesley. Jameese Joseph and Michelle Cooper are also on the rise. Claudia Dickey made a case at goalkeeper.
It’s Not a Straight Line
After a 2-1 victory in the opener in San Jose, Hayes swapped out her entire lineup and the United States fell 1-0 to Japan in Seattle, snapping a 10-game winning streak. The team rebounded with a more traditional lineup to win the finale 3-0 in Colorado on Friday.
In addition to ongoing player development, Hayes appeared to be exploring how different combinations worked, or didn’t.
“You can’t become elite without rehearsal and failure and learnings and all of them things, and it doesn’t go in a straight line,” Hayes said. “Of course, I want to win every game of football, but not at the expense of what we’re trying to achieve. And we need a lot of players to be better developed tactically at the highest level, because that’s where the highest end of the game is, not the game of old, of USA showing up being really just physical, aggressive, athletic. We have to be more than that. That’s the reality to compete, and we are becoming more than that.”
Elite Exposure
The three-game set against Japan was important for players like Wesley because it provided sustained exposure to an elite opponent, as well as the level of competition the team might face at the World Cup.
“I think one thing, at least for myself, that I’ve learned is that you have to be mentally switched on and focused for 90 minutes straight,” Wesley said. “I think they are so dynamic in their movements offensively. So if you take a second off, they can punish you, and that’s obviously such a high-level opponent. So I think the level of mental focus and fortitude that you have to have for 90 minutes is really important, and I think I’ve grown a lot in that, and I’m sure we have as a group as well.”
It’s hard to believe Hutton is just 20. She wore the captain’s band for the match in Seattle and looked like a seasoned veteran.
“There’s a quote the devil’s in the details, and I think that’s very important,” Hutton said. “Every touch counts, every moment counts.”
In the final match, Hayes was also focused on details, especially against the technically proficient Japanese team, but also looking to gauge the team’s mentality following a loss. And that cooking metaphor came back.
“I wanted to see the finishing part tonight. I wanted us to be clinical, and so it took a while to get to that part,” she said. “Now, if you want 200 people at your restaurant every night, you better make sure your cooking is on point all of the time, not some of the time.”
LINKS!
The NWSL is again considering a calendar shift
Most NWSL players oppose the schedule shift
Trinity Rodman’s jersey is the NWSL’s best seller
Front Office Sports spoke to Sophia Wilson
Sports Business Journal on the NWSL’s growth
The NWSL is developing a new brands policy.
The Athletic asks whether its time to put the final in a big stadium
Allie Long signs with the Fort Lauderdale USL Women’s Super League team
Sydney Leroux may be coming back
The CONCACAF W Championship field is set
Columbus effort to secure NWSL team faces criticism
Deadline looks at the new 99ers movie
World Cup qualifying is already happening. The BBC has an update
Another qualifying update on Wales
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