August 05, (THEWILL) – The United States women’s national team, the reigning title-holders, have admitted that luck played a significant role in their journey to the Women’s World Cup last-16 stage.
Coach Vlatko Andonovski candidly noted after scraping through to the knockout rounds with a goalless draw against Portugal, “The fact we are in, we are lucky, but we are moving on. Now we will do everything possible so that the same situation doesn’t happen again. We are doing everything we can to provide success and meet the expectations for everyone.”
Their lacklustre performances in the group stage drew criticism as they managed only one win against Vietnam, coupled with tense draws against the Netherlands and Portugal. However, Andonovski staunchly defended his players’ commitment and mindset: “For someone to question the standards, the mentality, the mindset of this team, after everything they do, I don’t think it is the right time for that… I’m happy with where they are at, happy with how they hold themselves accountable and keep raising standards.”
The upcoming clash in Melbourne promises to be a thrilling test of the defending champions’ resolve and abilities. Sweden’s coach, Peter Gerhardsson, showed confidence in his squad’s abilities when he said: “It’s not something I look at, historical facts, I’m rooted in the present. There are a lot of new players in both line-ups so history is less important… I have great confidence in the squad. We believe in this, believe we can win.”
The high-stakes encounter will be a must-watch for football fans worldwide as the two top-ranked sides go head-to-head in pursuit of Women’s World Cup glory. The victorious team from the encounter will meet whichever team progresses to the quarter-final between Japan and Norway, who are currently playing their last-16 match with Japan leading by two goals to one.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
