The Emma Hayes era is off to a winning start.
Mallory Swanson and Tierna Davidson each scored a brace against South Korea on Saturday, as the U.S. women’s national team won 4-0 in Hayes’ debut match as head coach.
Swanson and Davidson may have provided the goals, but plenty of other USWNT players turned in solid performances at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Colorado. We’ll rate every USWNT player below.
As a reminder, here’s our scale for these ratings:
- 1: Abysmal. Literally any member of Pro Soccer Wire’s 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 Maradona vs. England in 1986.
In her first cap in almost three years, Campbell was unsurprisingly not tested much. The Dash goalkeeper came off her line well to clear a couple times, but she didn’t look comfortable on Korea’s one shot on target, fumbling the ball out for a corner.
It was a quiet game for the Arsenal right back, who often stayed home to allow Jenna Nighswonger to attack on the left flank. Didn’t record any defensive actions either, as she was taken off at halftime.
Davidson entered the match with two career goals between club and international play, and improbably left it with four. The center back scored not one, but two headers from corner kicks to double her career tally in one afternoon.
Outside of her unlikely brace, Davidson showcased her excellent long distribution on several occasions, helping the USWNT quickly convert defense to attack.
Girma once again showed how important she is to the USWNT on both sides of the ball against Korea. On Saturday, her distribution took center stage, as she completed 93% of her game-high 104 passes. Her entry pass on the USWNT opener, in particular, was picture perfect.
The USWNT left back position increasingly looks to belong to Nighswonger, who turned in an excellent display on both sides of the ball against Korea.
Nighswonger was actively involved in much of the team’s attack, which favored her left side of the field for much of the first half. But even though the Gotham FC star was prominently featured in the attack, she also managed a game-high eight defensive actions and five interceptions.
It was another strong effort in the middle of the park from Coffey, who is key to the team’s counter-press. The Thorns midfielder stepped up well to win possession several times in the first half, keying some counterattacks.
Coffey mostly kept it simple in possession, completing 49 of 55 passes. She will want a first-half chance from the top of the box back, though, as she skewed her shot well off target.
Horan looked at home as the No. 8 in Hayes’ three-player midfield, connecting passes well through the center of the park and spraying three accurate long balls as well. The Lyon star arrived well for a first-half chance at the top of the box that was saved by Kim Jung-mi.
The Colorado native pitched in on the defensive end as well, winning five duels.
The biggest takeaway for Macario from Saturday is that she made her first USWNT start in over two years. That major positive was slightly balanced out by the Chelsea attacker not having her best day.
Playing in a midfield role, Macario looked a little sluggish in possession as she lost the ball a team-high 14 times. She did get on the scoresheet, however, with a corner-kick assist for Davidson’s first.
She may not have gotten on the scoresheet, but Rodman gave Korea’s defense plenty to think about with her constant threat on the right flank. The Washington Spirit star showed dangerous one-on-one ability and a relentless work rate, winning a game-high seven duels and drawing a game-high three fouls.
Playing as the No. 9, Smith did her best work as a creator rather than a finisher. The Thorns star didn’t get a shot off, but contributed a game-high three key passes and showcased some strong hold-up work, especially on her excellent turn and through ball on Swanson’s opener.
The pre-injury Mallory Swanson looks to be nearly back.
Swanson was the player of the match against Korea, tallying two goals and an assist as she showcased why she should be one of the first names on the teamsheet — even with the embarrassment of riches the U.S. has in attack.
The forward had an excellently timed run and ruthless finish for the USWNT opener, and then showcased her ability in transition on her second goal.
Krueger came on at halftime for Fox and played a similar role to the Arsenal fullback. The Spirit fullback, as usual, did her defensive work well and provided an outlet in possession in attack.
It was a dynamic cameo off the bench for Lavelle, who quickly got involved with her uncanny ability to glide forward with the ball. The Gotham star picked up a deserved assist on the USWNT’s fourth and Swanson’s second.
By her standards, it was a quiet 30-minute cameo off the bench for Shaw, who still nearly scored with a header off a corner kick that just went high.
Is Dunn now, finally, a forward for the USWNT? It appears that may be the case, as she was given 30 minutes to play in a wide attacking role against Korea. The Gotham attacker didn’t make a major impact as the game was slowing down, but she nearly scored off Lavelle’s cutback in the 75th minute.
A first cap for the 27-year-old that many would argue should have come several years earlier. Staab had some early nerves with a few loose passes to start, but settled down for a solid display in a game that was never going to challenger her much defensively.
Albert replaced Horan with 20 minutes to go and got involved with some good passing combinations. The PSG midfielder also nearly scored a long-range goal in the 80th minute.