Winning debut for Emma Hayes as coach of the US women's soccer team.
Mallory Swanson and Tierna Davidson each scored two goals in the friendly match against South Korea, which Hayes called a "good start" to her time managing the US Women's National Team, also known as the USWNT. Hayes, a former Chelsea manager, addressed reporters after the match, saying, "I think you can see we're building something."
Hayes went on to explain that while there are certainly areas of improvement in the team's play, overall she was satisfied with how the first half went. She noted that the team followed the coaching, though there could have been a few more moments when they pushed the attack to exploit openings in the South Korean defense.
The match began with the USWNT having several close chances at scoring. At the 34-minute mark, Swanson broke through and received a well-timed pass from Sophia Smith to score the first goal of the match. Shortly after, a shot from Lindsey Horan was blocked by a diving Kim Jung-Mi, leaving the audience of DSG Park in Commerce City, Colorado feeling dejected.
But their spirits were lifted just two minutes later when Catarina Macário's corner resulted in Davidson scoring her first goal on a looping header over the defense. The second half saw a nearly identical sequence, with Swanson grabbing the rebound on a corner and finding Davidson for a second header goal. Finally, Swanson scored her second goal to end the match with a final score of 4-0.
Hayes has taken over from previous USWNT coach Vlatko Andonovski, who guided the team in their disappointing performance at the 2021 Women's World Cup, where they failed to qualify for the semifinals for the first time. Hayes' next game will be on June 4, once again against South Korea, as she prepares the USWNT for the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
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During the post-match press conference, Hayes mentioned wanting to see more aggressive attacking plays from the team in future matches, specifically in relation to football. Later in the game against South Korea, Swanson capitalized on a corner to score her second goal, showcasing the potential for offensive threat in the USWNT's football strategy.
