Category: World Cup 2023

2023 Women’s World Cup Knockout Stage Day 4 Recap: France, Colombia advance

France and Colombia managed to avoid upsets on the final day of last-16 action

The fourth day of knockout stage games at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup was a bit more straightforward than the first three. There were no major upsets, and the teams that were supposed to win did so comfortably.

But before we get into the action, here is your daily reminder that you can follow the entirety of the World Cup right here at Pro Soccer Wire! Make sure to check out the full TV/streaming schedule, a power ranking of all 16 knockout stage teams, and the rankings in this year’s race for the Golden Boot.

Let’s see how the games played out.

Soccer fan Donald Trump offers nuanced critique of USWNT World Cup exit

The former president would like you to know that “the USA is going to Hell!!!”

Just like everyone else out here, Donald Trump is looking to explain exactly how the U.S. women’s national team fell short at the World Cup.

With a shootout defeat to Sweden on Sunday, the USWNT fell in the last 16 to seal its worst World Cup ever. The team’s previous worst finish was third place.

Perhaps the former U.S. President felt that Vlatko Andonovski should have gone to a 4-2-3-1 earlier than he did. Maybe he thought Ashley Sanchez should’ve been given a shot. Or maybe Trump concluded, after watching the SheBelieves Cup in 2022 and 2023, that injuries to Catarina Macario and Mallory Swanson were too much to overcome.

What’s that? He had a different take? Hmm, OK.

“The ‘shocking and totally unexpected’ loss by the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team to Sweden is fully emblematic of what is happening to the our once great Nation under Crooked Joe Biden,” Trump said on Truth Social. “Many of our players were openly hostile to America – No other country behaved in such a manner, or even close. WOKE EQUALS FAILURE. Nice shot Megan, the USA is going to Hell!!! MAGA.”

Oh.

Trump, of course, has a bit of a history with the USWNT, especially Megan Rapinoe, whose penalty he made sure to compliment.

In 2019, Rapinoe stated that she wouldn’t be going to the “f—–g White House” if the USWNT won the World Cup, to which Trump said (among many other things) “Megan should WIN first before she TALKS! Finish the job!”

Rapinoe and the USWNT would indeed finish the job, winning their second straight World Cup. This time around things didn’t go quite so well, which clearly delighted the 45th President of the United States.

But having concluded that “WOKE EQUALS FAILURE,” Trump may be a bit surprised to learn more about the team that eliminated the USWNT.

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Morgan: I’m not planning to hang up my boots anytime soon

Morgan started all four games of the World Cup but failed to find the net

Alex Morgan insisted she is not considering retirement following the U.S. women’s national team’s shock early exit from the World Cup.

The USWNT crashed out at the last 16 against Sweden on penalties, failing to find the net in a scoreless 120 minutes before being eliminated by a deciding Sweden penalty that crossed the line by millimeters.

Morgan started all four games of the World Cup but failed to find the net, including a missed penalty against Vietnam.

At age 34 and having just completed her fourth World Cup, Morgan was asked by ESPN about the game and her future with the USWNT.

“It’s hard to lose on penalties but we didn’t put it away in the game and that’s what happens,” Morgan said. “We went to penalties where it’s a flip of a coin and that’s what happens. It’s just a tough one.”

Asked if she had played her final USWNT game, Morgan said: “I’m not planning to hang up my boots anytime soon right now. So just one day at a time.”

Morgan has scored 121 goals in 211 USWNT caps, good for fifth in program history. She was top scorer in the NWSL with the San Diego Wave last season, scoring 16 goals in 19 games. This season, she’s scored five goals in 11 games.

Though Morgan may be sticking around, some key USWNT players will not be: Julie Ertz said after the Sweden game that she had played her final match with the national team, while Megan Rapinoe announced before the World Cup that she’d retire following the 2023 NWSL season.

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Lauren James went and lost her mind. It could be costly for England.

One of the stars of the World Cup may have thrown it all away in a split-second decision

Lauren James was having a dream World Cup heading into the knockout stage, but her debut on the world’s biggest stage now risks becoming something of a nightmare.

James was perhaps the standout player of the entire group stage, scoring three goals and adding two assists in just three games for England — all of them wins.

The 21-year-old has quickly risen to prominence to mark herself as a star of the global game, but she risks undoing all of her stellar work in Australia and New Zealand after a moment of madness against Nigeria in the round of 16.

Late in the game with the score tied 0-0, James ended up on top of Nigeria’s Michelle Alozie and — for reasons only she will ever know — instead of simply getting off, she clearly and deliberately stood on her opponent’s back.

After a VAR review, England was down to 10 players.

The Lionesses would still manage to overcome Nigeria by the slimmest of margins, winning 4-2 in a penalty shootout after a scoreless draw through 120 minutes. But their path forward without their top attacking player looks murky.

England has enough talent to beat either Jamaica or Colombia in the quarterfinal without the suspended James. But the concern is that she could face an additional sanction due to the blatant nature of her infraction.

“It was a moment that was in a split-second,” England manager Sarina Wiegman said after the game. “It was later in the game so players get a little tired. She is inexperienced on this stage and in a split-second lost her emotions. She would never want to hurt someone, she is the sweetest person I know.”

England’s Rachel Daly added: “She’s a young player – people forget that. They put a lot of pressure on her on the outside.

“It’s a team game, she’s been excellent for us and [we’ll] put an arm round her and help her through it.”

England will now face a nervous wait on the word from FIFA, who could add an additional two games to James’s suspension — ending her World Cup.

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2023 Women’s World Cup Knockout Stage Day 3 Recap: Australia, England advance

Australia and England reached the quarterfinals, with the latter needing a penalty shootout to do so

On the third day of knockout stage games at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, two more teams punched their tickets to the next round, while two others got sent packing. The two games that took place were England against Nigeria and Australia versus Denmark, the first of which ended up going to a penalty shootout.

Before we get into the two games, here is your reminder that you can follow all of the World Cup action right here at Pro Soccer Wire! You can get the full TV/streaming schedule, a power ranking of all 16 knockout stage teams, and the rankings in this year’s race for the Golden Boot.

Now, let’s get into the games.

Four reasons the USWNT had their worst World Cup ever

There’s plenty of blame to go around for the biggest failure in USWNT World Cup history

The U.S. women’s national team did something they’ve never done before, and probably won’t ever want to do again.

The USWNT is out of the World Cup earlier than ever before, exiting in the round of 16 after a scoreless draw with Sweden ended with seven cruel rounds of penalty kicks.

That outcome has consequences. Julie Ertz has already said this was probably the end of her run with the USWNT, while head coach Vlatko Andonovski — following up a disappointing Olympic performance in 2021 — is unlikely to be retained. There will be some soul-searching, plenty of after-action analysis, and potentially a new direction for women’s soccer writ large. The USWNT going out this early will likely have the kind of impact that is impossible to predict.

Before all of that, though, there’s the more immediate issue: a team that underperformed most of last year got back to some bad habits in the group stage at this World Cup. That condemned them to a match against a Sweden side ranked third in the world by FIFA, as opposed to a theoretically easier path to a third straight trophy ceremony.

Here are four main reasons things went so wrong for a team that could have won it all.

2023 Women’s World Cup Knockout Stage Day 2 Recap: USWNT eliminated by Sweden

The top two ranked teams in the world are now out before the quarterfinals

The drama has reached a whole new level at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup. On the second day of knockout stage games, the USWNT got bounced, meaning the top two ranked countries in the world (the U.S. is first and Germany second in FIFA’s rankings) are no longer in contention — and it all came down to penalty kicks.

But before we dive into the two games from the second knockout stage day, here is your reminder that you can follow the entirety of the World Cup right here at Pro Soccer Wire! Make sure to check out the full TV/streaming schedule, a power ranking of all 16 knockout stage teams, and the rankings in this year’s race for the Golden Boot.

Now, let’s dive into the games.

Rapinoe: ‘It’s dark comedy that I missed a penalty’

The veteran’s World Cup career ironically ended with a missed penalty

Megan Rapinoe said that missing a penalty kick in a shootout is “dark comedy” after the U.S. women’s national team crashed out of the 2023 World Cup.

After a 0-0 draw against Sweden over 120 minutes, the USWNT fell 5-4 in an agonizing penalty shootout as they were eliminated in the last 16.

Three USWNT players missed penalties in the shootout, with Rapinoe joined by Kelley O’Hara and Sophia Smith in missing the goal entirely.

Rapinoe is typically deadly from the penalty spot, having scored three penalties in the knockout stage alone during the 2019 World Cup.

Speaking to Fox Sports after her last World Cup game with the USWNT, Rapinoe noted the irony of missing a spot kick in the shootout.

“I thought we played really well,” Rapinoe said. “I’m so happy for us that we went out like that, playing the way that we did and having a ton of joy on the ball.

“I mean, this is like a sick joke. For me personally, I’m just like, this is dark comedy I missed a penalty. Alyssa [Naeher] came up huge though, kept us in it, obviously scoring one herself.”

She added: “This is the balance to the beautiful side of the game. I think it can be cruel and just [wasn’t] our day. But I still just feel really grateful and joyful. I know it’s the end and that’s sad, but to know that this is really the only time I’ve been in one of these this early (an interview after an early exit from the tournament) says so much about how much success I’ve been able to have, and just how much I’ve loved playing for this team and playing for this country. It’s been an honor.”

In his post-game press conference, USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski paid tribute to Rapinoe while expressing his surprise to see her miss a vital penalty.

“Megan Rapinoe is a legend,” the coach said. “If I had my life on the line right now, and I had to pick who was going to take the penalty, Megan Rapinoe is my choice.”

Watch Rapinoe’s post-game interview

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USWNT player ratings: Defensive spine shines in gut-punch penalty kick defeat

The USWNT finally played like themselves, but soccer can be cruel

Soccer has always been a cruel sport, and today it came calling for the U.S. women’s national team.

After three underwhelming performances in the group stage, the USWNT finally looked like themselves against Sweden, bossing one of the best teams in this World Cup.

Unfortunately, they found goalkeeper Zećira Mušović having one of the games of her life, and when she wasn’t making a big save, the errant finishing that has plagued this team appeared again, and the result was a penalty kick elimination after a scoreless 120 minutes.

It was a heartbreaker for the U.S., who missed a shot in the shootout that would have seen them advance, and then had to watch Sweden’s winning kick require a VAR check to reveal that the ball had crossed the line by a nearly imperceptible margin.

Still, when it comes to ratings, this was by some margin the best performance from the USWNT at this World Cup as a team, and for many players as individuals.

As a reminder, here’s the Pro Soccer Wire player rating scale:

Our scale:

  • 1: Abysmal. Literally any member of our staff would have been been able to play at this level.
  • 6: Adequate. This is our base score.
  • 10: Transcendent, era-defining performance. This is Carli Lloyd vs. Japan in the 2015 final.

Julie Ertz says she’s likely finished with the USWNT

The 31-year-old was emotional after her side crashed out of the World Cup

After the U.S. women’s national team crashed out of the World Cup in the last 16 against Sweden, Julie Ertz said she has likely played her last game for the national team.

Ertz played every minute of the World Cup for the USWNT, shifting back to defense and partnering Naomi Girma throughout the tournament after an injury to Becky Sauerbrunn.

The 31-year-old has only recently returned to the game after nearly two years away, taking time off after giving birth last August.

Ertz has earned 122 caps over her USWNT career, winning the World Cup in 2015 as a center back and in 2019 in the defensive midfield role she’s made her own in recent years.

Speaking to Fox Sports after the USWNT’s loss, a tearful Ertz revealed that her national team career was likely over.

“It’s tough. We’re proud of the way that we played, but we didn’t put anything in the back of the net. The penalties were tough as well. I think for me, it’s just emotional because it’s probably my last game ever being able to have the honor to wear this crest,” Ertz said.

“It’s just an emotional time,” she added. “It absolutely sucks and penalties are the worst. But it’s an honor to represent this team. I’m excited for the future of the girls.”

Asked about her USWNT legacy, Ertz responded: “Kelley [O’Hara] always says that we just rent these jerseys, and it’s our job to pass it down to the younger ones to continue that in their DNA.

“It’s been an absolute ride. I’ve learned so much about myself as a player, but even just as a person. So this team obviously competes and plays soccer but it does so much more and I’m just very grateful.”

Speaking to ESPN after the game, Ertz was more definitive: “Unfortunately this is my last time in this crest,” she said.

After making her USWNT return, Ertz signed with Angel City FC in April. It’s not clear if she plans to retire from the game altogether or if she is only calling time on her international career.

Watch Ertz’s post-game interview

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