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February 26 – Mexico shocked the USA with a 2-0 win in the Dignity Health Park stadium in Carson, Los Angeles, on a stunning night of Gold Cup football. This may be the inaugural W Gold Cup but it is already delivering the drama, emotion and surprises of the men’s version.
This was end-to-end women’s football at its best with two teams putting everything on the line. Mexico were magnificent. The USA in the end looked dumbfounded as goals by Jacqueline Orvalle and Scarlett Camberos knocked them off their perch.
The win by the world ranked 35th team over the world’s second ranked team was not just an act of giantkilling, it was a historic night for Mexico and Concacaf.
The US, so long the playground bully of the women’s game – especially in their region – were out thought in the first half and outplayed in the second. Mexico pressed and pushed from the start, giving the US very little time on the ball and challenging their every movement. As the game progressed they got better as the US and their considerable powers waned.
Mexico have played the US 40 times but only won once, drawing one other. They have never beaten the US at a major regional tournament. They put that right tonight, and with style.
For the USA it was another stark reminder after a poor World Cup in 2023 that the women’s game is evolving and that they might not be, despite all their noises to the contrary.
Losing to a 35th ranked nation is bad enough, but losing to their biggest football rival in their confederation after so long at the top, makes it a lot harder to bear.
The US are not out of this tournament by any means, but they will have to find a sharpness and edge to their game that for long periods was missing tonight.
Most importantly they will have to find a way of turning pressure into goals, which means – for all their undoubted athletic prowess, strength and power – they have to get closer to goal. They are currently too predictable and too easy to defend…
Source link : https://www.insideworldfootball.com/2024/02/26/mexico-turn-world-rankings-upside-history-making-2-0-usa/
Author : Paul Nicholson
Publish date : 2024-02-26 13:37:23
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