USWNT Sneaks Past England in 1-0 Win

Sep 18, 2014; Rochester, NY, USA; USA forward Alex Morgan (13) controls the ball during the second half of a game against Mexico at Sahlen’s Stadium. USA won the game 4-0. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

The USWNT handed the Three Lionesses a loss in England’s first match of 2015. After being thoroughly outplayed in last Sunday’s clash with World Cup favorite France, the USWNT was looking to establish a new narrative as early as possible.

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It’s long been said that you don’t want to play this US team after they’ve lost. And the Americans did have a nose for goal, as shown by the 13-4 shot advantage. A rather disciplined English midfield kept Lauren Holiday, Morgan Brian, and a low-lying Christen Press busy, as they had to work hard to establish the possession game that head coach Jill Ellis has long claimed to desire. Carli Lloyd roamed often, leaving her “position” out on the left side to push down the center of the field, which should come as some comfort to US fans who enjoy watching her score.

Perhaps the brightest spot of the US attack came from watching Alex Morgan score her first goal of the year, particularly in the wake of her untimely departure from October’s CONCACAF qualifying tournament with another ankle injury. Unsurprisingly, the perfect header came off of right-footed service from Holiday after a prescient pass from Brian; despite getting a fingertip to the ball, there wasn’t much that keeper Karen Bardsley could do to stop it from finding the back of the net. The goal was Morgan’s 50th for the United States, and US Soccer would want me to point out that she’s the third youngest player to get to 50 goals after Mia Hamm and Cindy Parlow.

That said, the biggest and most consistent improvement came in the United States’ defense. Despite being marooned on the right side with little help from the midfield, Ali Krieger did a ton of work moving the ball up the right flank, and pressing the English defense with a variety of dangerous crosses. The defense of Whitney Engen and Becky Sauerbrunn stayed solid, but the man-marking of the centre-backs in the box wasn’t tested much by an English offense that played a mostly conservative game. I won’t mention the controversial second-half offsides call here, but it was comforting to see Ashlyn Harris earn a clean sheet against a top-ten team, particularly combined with an excellent parry of Fran Kirby’s shot on goal.

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It was also nice to see Kelley O’Hara and Crystal Dunn get on the pitch, though Ellis’ decision to bring them on (along with a perpetually under-utilized Amy Rodriguez) so late in the game feels like an afterthought. It’s unclear whether the coaching staff will hand out more meaningful minutes for lesser capped players like Dunn or Julie Johnston, or for players slightly lower on the depth chart like O’Hara, Rodriguez, or Heather O’Reilly.

Look for more analysis on the USWNT’s path to the 2015 Women’s World Cup in the coming days as we get ready for our coverage of next month’s Algarve Cup tournament, which kicks off on March 4 when the US takes on Norway.

Next: Ashlyn Harris Shows Solid Skills in USWNT Loss to France