Mexico defeats USWNT in Concacaf W Gold Cup with 2-0

Mexico won Group A of the CONCACAF W Gold Cup after defeating the US 2-0 in their third game. The USWNT dropped its first goal to Mexico since a regional competition in 2010. The U.S. made many mistakes with a subpar team that couldn’t break Mexico’s pressure.

“We just didn’t play nearly our best,” forward Alex Morgan said on Paramount+. Some pockets were located, but not enough. We missed opportunities. I think we broke down too easily and didn’t test the custodian.”

Mexico’s fast start and the USWNT’s mistakes

Mexico scored the opening goal of the match in the 38th minute after another defensive error by the U.S. A rapid transition confused veterans Becky Sauerbrunn and Alyssa Naeher. Sauerbrunn missed her clearance in a two-on-two situation due to Lizbeth Ovalle on her shoulder. Naeher was chipped after coming too late to attack Ovalle in the box.

It was a wonderful goal and a well-deserved reward for a Mexico team that had forced cumulative errors from the U.S. all half, especially from Sauerbrunn, Dahlkemper, and Coffey’s lethargic defense. As expected against 24-year-old Ovalle, 31-year-old Crystal Dunn struggled with Mexico’s quickness. Only defender Emily Fox pushed the tempo out of the back, broke into the middle when she could, and sent a low, away shot that forced a corner kick in the first half.

As a younger midfielder in a club still finding its identity, Coffey has the most to lose of those three players. The U.S. center-back squad has begun transitioning to the Naomi Girma era, while Sauerbrunn and Dahlkemper have had great years. Coffey looked intimidated for most of the first half, but she is still in the running for additional minutes and a starting spot. To be honest, her decision-making was no worse than many other field blunders.

We play forward and break lines. After the game, interim head coach Twila Kilgore remarked, “We’re running through their backline; don’t execute the final pass.” We get the ball back, don’t execute the final pass, and they receive a goal kick. Two or three back-to-back moments are fixable. We go back to the basics. You cannot afford those moments back-to-back in a game.”

Halftime adjustments

At halftime, Kilgore substituted Morgan for Sophia Smith and Emily Sonnett for Lynn Williams. Sonnett was clearly there to support Coffey and prevent Mexico from upsetting the midfield in a 4-2-3-1 formation. It stopped some of the hemorrhaging, but greater midfield possession meant more final-third entries.

That didn’t happen even when Kilgore substituted Midge Purce for Fox, Korbin Albert for Coffey in the 71st minute, and Jaedyn Shaw for Rose Lavelle in the 78th.

Trinity Rodman tried her hardest, and we observed Morgan’s remarkable transformation from assault target to carer. The team lost in stoppage time when Mayra Pelayo scored a spectacular long-range goal for Mexico.

Already pressuring Emma Hayes

Emma Hayes isn’t on this squad yet, although she’s likely involved in Kilgore’s actions. Hayes has less time to get this team into Olympic shape the longer it takes to figure out its flaws before he takes over in May.

While playing weaker opponents, the USWNT looked swift, aggressive, and imaginative. They appeared uncomfortable and lethargic against a tactically and technically skilled Mexico that had a fine tournament, repeating many of their World Cup shortcomings.

In general, playing a more senior roster against Mexico is fine, but playing a slow central defensive unit and a custodian who hasn’t looked well in a while against the hardest opponent in the group is incomprehensible. Even though it’s NWSL preseason, Girma, Tierna Davidson, or Jenna Nighswonger needed to be added to this lineup to contain Mexico, distribute out of the back, and break one or two lines of pressure.

Shaw, Olivia Moultrie, Albert, and others are promising young players on this roster. Why not trust such players to carry more of the squad in a wonderful circumstance to prepare for a major tournament? These games matter, but not as much as the Olympics. The US advanced after the third group game. Instead of relying on the familiar, test younger players for 45, 60, or 90 minutes.

Mexico ruled the game

The opener against Argentina wasn’t the most instructional, but Mexico has matured into this group stage. The U.S. made execution errors everywhere, but Mexico could have won this match 4-0 if not for the crossbar and Alyssa Naeher’s strong saves late in the second half. Pelayo’s incredible golazo in stoppage time gave Monday night the perfect ending.

Mexico’s disastrous 2022 CONCACAF W Championship, which they hosted and lost in the group stage, seems like the past. Pedro López Ramos’ team fulfilled his game strategy perfectly. They held their lead, pressured the USWNT, won corners, and had good long-range shots. It was more than Mexico playing to its potential—it was a superb performance that might inspire future program investment.

“There are always things to improve,” López Ramos remarked via interpreter after the match. “I want to be in a World Cup final. I loved attacking and defending every minute. I think the players got out freely. You saw what happened when they enjoyed the pitch. I hope this isn’t unique. Hope to replicate this result.”

What next?

The U.S. defeated Argentina on Friday to advance to the knockout rounds. Losing to Mexico means the USWNT finished second in Group A and will learn their quarterfinal opponent at BMO Stadium on Wednesday.

The quarterfinals will be decided on Tuesday, when Colombia plays Puerto Rico and Brazil plays Panama, and on Wednesday, when Canada plays Costa Rica and Paraguay plays El Salvador. The top two teams from each group and the next highest third-place teams’ advance. The Canadian and Brazilian teams have qualified, but Tuesday and Wednesday will determine their and everyone else’s next-round seedings.

The USWNT has almost a week off before playing again. “It’s important that we execute and learn from these moments moving forward, but I think with six days of training—which is more than we usually get—we can get a whole group ready, so we could call on anyone and know they’d be ready,” Kilgore said.