The United States Women’s National Team are two matches into the 2023 Women’s World Cup, and while they currently lead the group with 4 points and a +2 goal differential, they’ve left themselves with a bit of work to do. Despite a 3-0 victory over Vietnam in match 1 and a 1-1 draw against the Netherlands in match 2, the USWNT are in need of a result against Portugal in order to punch their ticket to the knockout stage.
Against the Netherlands, a game that mimicked the Vietnam contest in being physical, USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski only opted for using one sub in the match, bringing on Rose Lavelle at halftime to replace Savannah DeMelo.