SBC 2020 Game # 1: USA vs England …… Following LI’s Own, Crystal Dunn Michael A. Saunders Wednesday, March 4th: Despite the introduction of the new 2020 USWNT kit displaying 4 stars above the crest and the FIFA Badge indicating our being World Champions, it became fairly clear to yours truly before the opening SBC match against England, that it would not be your average friendly. Listening to Vlatko Andonovski’s pre- match press conference responding to the English press’ relentless questions on what they framed as a grudge match quickly dispelled that idea. With that scenario in hand, I wondered how our team would perform against a Top 10 opponent with this type of pressure playing for a new coach, knowing that the players are being evaluated for a role in the Olympics. Post press conference gave the media the chance to meet with the players. It provided this former Long Islander and 25 year resident of Rockville Centre the opportunity to discuss the coach’s new approach with the town’s South Side HS graduate & starting left wingback for the NT, Crystal Dunn. After congratulating her upcoming 100th cap, I asked her directly does she see a difference in her role with Vlatko as head coach. Her response was unequivocal, accentuating her instinct to go forward in an attacking role; but that she has learned the importance of her defensive duties. Nevertheless, she explained that Vlatko is mentoring the team to identify and create those moments to optimize the offensive side of the ball by finding space while minimizing the defensive risk; a factor she declared is exciting as it expands her role accordingly. No question, Dunn is a naturally attacking player. This is quite apparent watching her play with the NC Courage. It was the transformation from an attacking midfielder to a left-back during the WC where we saw her significantly improve her defensive intelligence and skillset. Of course, her pace is a real asset when it comes to recovery runs and covering depth but combined with her high footballing IQ, Dunn is able to negate several situations before they occur. Many teams at the World Cup pinpointed Dunn as the weak link of the USWNT yet game after game she excelled and was only given recognition after defeating France in the quarterfinal. The pundits could not say enough about how she shackled both Diani & later Cascarino when she was brought on. Now we will see whether her new “license” to go forward will increase the US’ attacking possibilities. Thursday, March 5th. Its crunch time and the USA does not disappoint. Perhaps it was the American Outlaws leading the entire stadium in singing an emotional rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner that motivated the team; but no doubt the 2-0 win was well earned. Yet the score did not reflect the supremacy the US squad had over the Lionesses. Dominating with a high press 4-3-3 formation, the US should have scored a few times in the first half. England could barely get the ball off their back line and were offering far too much space all around
their defensive third. It wasn’t a question of would we score, but when and how many. The U.S. finally broke through in the 53rd minute when Press scored a highlight reel goal from outside of the penalty area. Lloyd fed a pass to Press, who turned and sent a magnificent bending right-footed shot into the upper corner past England’s goalkeeper Carly Telford. Lloyd doubled the score in the 56th minute off a scoop pass from Lindsey Horan. The “cheeky” chip found Lloyd just inside the box who assertively executed with two quick touches and a strong volley.
Still the game was not all “rosy” for the USA. Even with the one-sidedness of the match, England exposed our defense more than once. Sauerbrunn had an off day with one glaring give away that could have cost the team a goal against. Dunn was caught out early in the match, staying forward with Parris behind her. Fortunately, Sauerbrunn cleared the ball. As time went on, one realized that the high press exerted by the wingbacks was purposefully done, relying on our centre-back coverage to thwart or clean up passes that went into space behind them. Clearly both wingbacks stifled the wing play of the opposition. Dunn confirmed the fine tuning introduced by Vlatko by her forays up field. She specifically won twelve (12) challenges, with near 45% occurring in England’s half of the pitch. Her passing was mostly clean by a 2 to 1 margin, although an argument could be made that crosses into the opponent’s penalty area could have been sharper. Still I would rate her as a strong 7 out of 10. The post-game press conference with Vlatko was revealing. No longer did we hear the English press asking questions about a rivalry being formed. When asked about his team’s superior play, Vlatko responded with a dead pan voice noting that the US team views every game as a challenge, not taking any team for granted. To that point, he emphasized that during his team de-brief of today’s match, every player expressed that they could do better; a fact that obviously pleased him. The only concession he gave to the media when asked was his admission that from his perspective, Julie Ertz has become the most indispensable player on the US Team. Now on to Red Bull Arena for the game against Spain who easily defeated a disappointing Japanese squad 3-1. Spain is my “dark horse” who I envision breaking into FIFA’s Top 10 ranking this year. They must not be taken lightly.
Contributed by Michael Saunders