The United States Women’s National Soccer Team has shown out with two wins, post their Olympic competition. The team won bronze in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics this past summer, unable to make it into the contention for gold or silver.
After finishing the tournament, Carli Lloyd has decided to retire after their U.S. victory tour, which includes four “friendly” games in four different cities. Carli Lloyd, 39, an American soccer icon, is a two-time FIFA Women’s World Cup champion, two-time Olympic gold medalist, and two-time FIFA Player of the Year. Winning 9-0 and then 8-0 against Paraguay, the USWNT have shown their dominance and proven their reputation as number one in the world.
In their first matchup, Lloyd led an offensive explosion, tying a team record with five goals in a single match in the USWNT’s first match after the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Lloyd moved up to third on the U.S. all-time goal-scoring list. She now has 133 career international goals, passing Kristine Lilly (130 goals), and is only behind Mia Hamm (158) and Abby Wambach (184). Lloyd becomes the 10th player in USWNT history to score five goals in a game.
The USWNT’s home unbeaten streak now stands at 59 games, which includes 54 wins and five draws. During that stretch, the U.S. has outscored its opponents 213-27, including an 83-3 margin during its last 20 matches at home, all of which have been wins. It’s the USA’s 21st-straight home victory, dating back to head coach Vlatko Andonovski’s first match in charge of the team in November of 2019.
In their next matchup against Paraguay, the USWNT came out strong again, beating them by one less than the last matchup. The 8-0 rout saw a hattrick by another American soccer icon, Alex Morgan. Morgan took over the spotlight, scoring a header goal of her own off a perfect cross from Lavelle in the eighth minute. Morgan tallied her second of the night in the 14th minute after crushing a volley off a poor clearance from a Paraguayan defender. Morgan struck again in the 53rd minute after Smith received the ball high up the right flank and sent in a cross which she finished near-post to record her fifth career international hat trick and 114th career goal. With her three goals on the night, Morgan has now scored seven goals since becoming a mother and ranks second in that category behind only Joy Fawcett, who scored 13 goals for the USA as a mom.
After coming on as a substitute in the 61st minute, midfielder Carli Lloyd, playing in her third to the last match for the USA, continued to add to her prolific career total after scoring off a rebound following a set piece in the 78th minute. Lloyd has now scored eight in the team’s last three matches. Lloyd will play her final two games with the USWNT against South Korea.
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