The USA got two victories from two until the beginning of 2021, a pair of debutant scorers getting the first and last goal of the game
The US women’s national team easily defeated Columbia 6-0 on Friday night in Orlando, following the 4-0 victory on Monday against the same opponent.
The pair of games ended the January team camp, which saw a USWNT in full force trying to impress head coach Vlatko Andonovski ahead of this summer’s Olympics in Tokyo (where the tournament will continue ).
Here are three of the biggest dishes from Friday’s game at Exploria Stadium.
Catarina Macario scores the first USWNT goal
This week saw the debut in the USWNT of Catarina Macario, who in all respects is ready to be the next major star of the team. The Brazil-born striker, who recently signed with European power Lyon directly from Stanford University, earned his first qualification on Monday before scoring the national team’s first goal on Friday in the third minute.
“The cat is a different type of player than I think I ever had. It’s a different number than the number 9 I ever had,” Megan Rapinoe said of the 21-year-old after Friday’s game. “He leaves more, he plays more like a new fake.
“Physically, she is already ready to be at this level and it is a huge leap for many people to go to college at this level to be able to compete physically.
“He will be one of those funny players you like to see – someone who will excite the fans, someone who will come up with something creative or a nutmeg.”
Sam Mewis leaves injured
The USA had a major scare when Sam Mewis collided with a Colombian defender in the middle of the second half. The Man City midfielder seemed to have a significant pain on the pitch after his left ankle rolled under him. She managed to slowly get out of the field under her own power before being seen on the ice bench wrapped around her ankle.
Mewis has been in stellar form for USWNT and Man City. Rapinoe called her “the best player on our team right now” after the game, so any injury problem would be a major concern for the club and the country.
Andonovski said Mewis will be examined after the match, adding that her high pain threshold made it difficult to determine her immediate prognosis.
“She is very strong and very tough,” the USWNT coach said. “It simply came to our notice then [how she was] she said, “I’m fine, I’m fine,” but we do all the exams and follow all the protocols to make sure she’s okay.
“She’s tough and we don’t know what ‘good’ means in her world. We’ll soon know how she feels.”
Crystal Dunn and Midge Purce in attack
Crystal Dunn and Midge Purce are both natural attackers who have been moved to the USWNT defense. Dunn, in particular, turned from a dynamic attacking midfielder to a solid left-back who played during the USWNT run at the 2019 World Cup.
Fans demanded that both players have a chance to attack for the USA and on Friday night, Andonovski forced. Purce won the title first by scoring her first USWNT goal with a header from Carli Lloyd’s cross in the 86th minute.
“We know Midge is a good striker,” Andonovski said of a player who was mostly used as a right-back alongside the national team.
“Obviously, we saw something in her that can help us or help her become a good defender and we will continue to work as we move forward. But when we need an attack, she’s obviously good enough and she’s shown that she can do a good job there. “
On Dunn, he added: “Crystal has to be the most versatile player on the field. I feel literally comfortable putting Crystal in any position on the field and I know he will meet the standard set.”