Nine months from the 2023 World Cup, the U.S. women’s national team is at an inflection point.
A recent trip to Europe produced a 2-1 loss to England followed by a 2-0 loss to a Spain team missing 15 of its best players as part of a wider dispute with the federation. The USWNT was without several starters even beyond the long-term injuries they have dealt with for most of the year, but the loss in Spain especially raised serious questions about the trajectory of this U.S. team.
Individually, poor performances across the board should mean nobody’s place in the starting lineup is a lock. Of equal concern is how England bossed the U.S. midfield, and how a relatively inexperienced Spain team comfortably played out of pressure and restricted the U.S. to just two shots on goal. A pair of home games against Germany loom in early November, and the USWNT absolutely needs to produce more confident performances, at minimum, before the team’s long winter break arrives.
