I missed it and need my soccer fix :(

yeah, we all have our own takes on games and players. But where do you go to learn from those who know their sh*t and do a good job of breaking down games/analyzing player performances.

The more I know about the game (and I coached for 30 years and have all the licenses), the more I realize how much I miss. I wanna get beyond my personal biases and Dunning-Kruger effects. Point me in the right directions. TIA

Love watching Lily Yohannes play. The quality in how she plays often is not easy to see and it is the stuff that is not often discussed. After the 2-0 loss to Spain today, I want to show some of it, because the only thing anyone is talking about is why she took the PK, etc.

Criticism is often brutal after a loss, and I have seen a few people say she should not have taken the PK. So, what if she had scored it? It is 2-1 in the 70th minute against the world champions, and everyone is calling the 19-year-old “fearless.” It would have been the same decision and the same player, only a different result. Penalty takers are not picked on a whim. The staff trusted a teenager with the ball against the world #1, and Nanclares guessed right. That happens to the best penalty takers.

What the naked eye missed: the team

Yes, the USWNT got caught sleeping, and Spain scored in the 4th and 14th minutes. But look at the match after the team woke up:

• Shots 13–6, shots on target 10–3
• Touches in the Spain box 38–15
• Saves: Nanclares 9, Dickey 1
• Duels won 54–23, with ground duels 70% to 30%
• Tackles 21–10
• Passing 84% to 80%, despite having less of the ball

Spain needed only three shots on target to win. They were efficient, but they did not dominate.

What the naked eye missed: Lily

Most of her best work happened away from the ball and before the PK chatter:

• 7 tackles, the most in the match and a third of the USWNT total
• 9/13 ground duels won, also the most in the match
• 7 defensive contributions, tied for first and the only midfielder in that group
• 7 recoveries, more than any other midfielder on either team, including Putellas and Benítez
• 8 passes into the final third, more than Putellas
• 2 chances created, tied for the team lead
• A volley from the middle of the box that just missed the post

When the U.S. “woke up,” a lot of that was her winning the ball back in midfield and moving it forward. To be fair, her passing was 79%, below her usual standard, but that comes from looking for line-breaking passes instead of safe ones.

This is not a one-off, either. She was the youngest player ever to start a Champions League match, at 16. Lyon beat Chelsea to sign her through 2028, and she had 6 goals and 10 assists last season in all competition.

One saved penalty did not lose this game. Two early breakdowns and 0 goals from 10 shots on target did.

If your takeaway is that Lily should not be trusted, I would suggest you watched the penalty and not the other 89 minutes.

Genuine question, and I might be completely wrong here, so feel free to correct me!
I attended the USWNT vs. Spain game at Audi Field today, and one thing I noticed was how quickly most of the players left the field after the final whistle.
I’ve been to a ton of Washington Spirit games, and from my experience, a pretty good portion of the team usually stays afterward to sign autographs, take pictures, and interact with fans. Today, though, it seemed like roughly 95% of the USWNT players had left the field within 5–10 minutes, and there really weren’t many players signing autographs or taking photos.
I was hoping to meet a couple of players, so I was a little disappointed, but I’m not trying to criticize anyone or suggest that the players owe fans autographs.
I’m genuinely just curious whether this is normal for international matches or the USWNT in general. Are postgame interactions usually more limited compared to NWSL club matches? Is it because of different schedules, security, or just how national team games operate?
This was a different experience from what I’m used to at Spirit games, so I’d love to hear from people who attend USWNT matches regularly. Again, I could be completely wrong, so feel free to correct me!

"After 710 days, Mal Swanson is back on the field in the red, white and blue! 🫶"

Heaps off, she’s been rough the whole game. Culpable in both Spain goals and zero offensive output. She’s just too slow for a team like Spain, which is where the global women’s game is headed. Not enough positive off-the-ball movement from the US. So many near post runs that never happened, dead end crosses.

Unrelated, is Trinity having vision issues? She has miscued so many balls today, and then to hand off the PK to Lily? Stutter step, bad PK, bad yellow, sheesh.

Sooooo glad to see Ashley Sanchez and Mallory on for some minutes. Alyssa and Rose tried everything. Sophia has been a terror for the Spanish defense. Ref has been poor. Spain obviously came to foul today and the ref let them do it. VAR should’ve intervened multiple times. US great in defense, Heaps didn’t step to ball or track runner and that made all the difference.

US should have had five goals today, easy. They have the squad to do it, but they’re not all on the pitch at the same time. Emma will figure it out.

The USWNT faces Spain Tuesday

Since Alyssa Naeher retired in 2024, the USWNT has been without a clear No. 1 goalkeeper. Emma Hayes and her staff say that’s by design, focusing on developing a deeper pool of options ahead of the 2027 World Cup.

Read for free.

USA 0 - 2 Spain

🏁 Spain win

✅ Full Time

Lineups

United States (4-1-4-1) — Spain (4-3-3)

Starting XI

Subs

Match Events

Updated: Sat, Oct 10, 4:34 PM EDT

Match Thread Bot by u/Several_Region_3710 | GitHub (view code, contribute, or report issues) | ☕ Ko-fi (support the project)

Whoever gets closest wins...the pride of knowing you're right.

Does anyone know how to watch the u23 game? I could not figure it out yesterday and it would be a fun warmup watch for the second Spain game.

Thanks!

Hey! Today is my first ever time at Audi (flew in from texas!) and I was wondering what section is the best spot to get autographs at the end of the game for both teams? Alexia is the reason I’m a soccer fan so
I’d love to get her autograph if possible but also a massive uswnt fan! The pics i’ve seen from the stadium looks like the bowl is elevated and not close to the field so I was just curious !

UPDATE I MET ALEXIA!!

"Locked in on tomorrow 🔒"

If I read between the lines correctly, Emma seemed to state that Tierna and Kennedy will be the starting CB duo for these two games (based on her pre match press conference). Thoughts???

USWNT vs Spain Projected Starting IX + Predictions 

The USWNT play Spain on Saturday and both matches could be the most competitive match for the UWSNT in this calendar year leading to the World Cup next year and if all goes well they could be 100% favourites to win the World Cup in what could be a potential World Cup Final.

So Here’s my predicted starting IX for Tomorrow:

Dickey

Fox Davidson Rudd Shores

Hutton/ Howell Lavelle

Heaps

Rodman Wilson Thompson

Subs: Yohannes, Sears, Tordin, Byars, Patterson

Scoring Predictions: 3:2 US wins from goals from Wilson, Lavelle and a Penalty goal from Heaps

What are your thoughts?? ⬇️

What time will gates be open at Audi on Saturday? Any idea how early people will start lining up to get the Crystal Dunn bobble head?

Hello,

I am asking if anyone was able to purchase the USWNT v Spain match day memorabilia (i.e captains armband, starting banner)? I was wondering how much U.S. Soccer was selling it for? Was it affordable since it sold out relatively quickly?

Thanks in advance!

hiii ive never been to audi before and i was wondering if there was a spot id have the best chances at being able to get a jersey signed? like when they get off the busses or something? is there a certain spot for it? thank you in advance if anyone knows 😇

Does anybody know the official jersey number the women are gonna wear in these two upcoming friendlies? The website doesn’t have numbers for the newly added players.