When the U.S. Women’s National Team came off the field at halftime in its group stage match against the Netherlands, the team was a goal down and entirely out of ideas. There’s no getting around it: The first 45 minutes were rough for the USWNT. The Dutch women had the game in a chokehold, running circles around the Americans in midfield and racking up the vast majority of ball possession.
When the second half started, things looked different from the start. The Dutch looked tentative and quiet; the Americans looked hungry and raw. What changed to give momentum back to the USWNT? How did they wrestle the game back into their control?
Rose Lavelle. The OL Reign forward is coming off of a nasty knee injury, and while she’s capable of playing, she’s not yet ready for a full 90-minute match. USWNT manager Vlatko Andonovski leveraged Lavelle as a late substitution in the opening game against Vietnam to test her fitness without running her ragged, and he did the same thing here, subbing her on for midfielder Savannah DeMelo at halftime to add bite to the USWNT offense. Lavelle’s impact was immediate. She’s one of the USWNT’s most creative and kinetic players, and her intelligent attacks were the key to unlocking the previously impenetrable Dutch defense.
But her biggest impact wasn’t tactical; it was mental. Rose ran onto the field pumping her fists and screaming for the crowd to get behind her. She was ready for battle, and her readiness inspired her teammates to keep fighting.
Good, old-fashioned fury. USWNT captain Lindsey Horan spent most of the game getting tackled by her Olympique Lyonnais teammate Daniëlle van de Donk, and by the 62nd minute, Horan was fed up. She ran to the referee after a particularly feisty challenge and demanded that van de Donk be punished.
