I watched the match on delay when I woke and I watched much of it on fast forward so my perspective might not be correct.
There’s just no creativity. I don’t know what it is. They can’t break teams down and then when they are on the break it’s straight balls to straight runners, no creative runs into the channels, etc. I don’t want to put that on Vkatko. It’s too easy to blame the coach. But part of it is that midfield not winning balls high and then quickly attacking the other direction. The midfield is just ineffective and now your best attacking midfielder is out for the next match (Lavelle). But what I can blame vlatko for his his game management. Bringing a Rapinoe in in the 60th minute, when you know that the games going to open up because Portugal has to score makes absolutely no sense. And you took off your biggest threat (smith) to do so. Rapinoe has no legs in that 38 year old body, and it showed. Then he waited too long to get impact players in like Rodman running at tired legs. You don’t wait until the 80th minute to do that. That said, perhaps he’s playing for a tie at that point and was thinking more about not giving up a goal. But that goal he didn’t want to give up was ripped off the woodwork in the 92nd minute and would have sent the US home if it was two inches to the left. There was so much wrong.
Then you have Morgan, Rapinoe, and Dunn (3 leaders) dancing on the field after the match. What?????? After that performance that’s the last thing I’d be doing.
