US narrowly advances in Women's World Cup

US soccer fans started their Tuesday disappointed – and perhaps anxious – as the women’s team only managed a lackluster goalless draw with Portugal, missing out on being bounced from the tournament completely by mere inches. 

The result set off alarm bells throughout the US soccer community. But largely missing from the criticism and panic is a simple fact: what this team is attempting to do is near-impossible.

Winning three championships in a row is extremely hard to do at the professional club level in any sport, let alone the World Cup in international soccer – no nation has ever won three consecutive World Cups in either the men’s or women’s game.

The biggest enemies of sustained success in sports are waning motivation and, most often, time. The amount of effort, skill and sustained passion it takes to keep up success over a long period of time is beyond difficult and the years between World Cup editions only ratchet that tension up.

Professional teams have a hard enough time keeping a core championship group together and healthy for three consecutive years on a club level – the US women’s team is attempting to do the same thing eight years after winning the 2015 World Cup. The legendary generation of players which won that tournament is largely gone – just five players from 2015 remain on the squad in this tournament.

The teams that have pulled off three-peats are often legendary: The 1990s Chicago Bulls, the late 90s-early 00s New York Yankees and Los Angeles Lakers, the mid-century Boston Celtics and Montreal Canadiens, the New York Yankees (again) in the 1930s and 40s – all teams that live long in the consciousness of American sports fans.

But what about in club soccer? Since 2000, only an iconic Real Madrid side led by Cristiano Ronaldo won three UEFA Champions Leagues in a row from 2016 to 2018, while Spain is the only country to ever win three major international championships in a row – Euro 2008, the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012 – and those were still two different competitions taking place every two years, not very comparable to what the US women are attempting to do in winning three World Cups in a row.

This US Women’s National Team still has a path – albeit one that might be rockier and steeper than most observers expected even two weeks ago – to join those legendary ranks. If they pull it off, perhaps the disappointing draws from the 2023 tournament’s group stage will be seen as a case of survive-and-advance.

The Defending World Cup champs from the United States limped to the knockouts with a tense 0-0 draw with Portugal on Tuesday.

The reigning champion looked slow and sloppy against Portugal and will need to drastically improve if it's to win a third consecutive title in Australia and New Zealand.

Tuesday was an action-packed day down under — here's everything that happened today at the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup:

US Women's National Team (USWNT) coach Vlatko Andonovski said it was "insane" for anyone to question the team's commitment when asked by CNN to respond to criticism from former US star Carli Lloyd calling the team's performance against Portugal "lackluster and uninspiring." 

"Everyone is entitled to their opinion and you know, they can say whatever they want, but I just know how this team feels," he added.

Andonovksi, however, acknowledged that the team did not play well.

"It's not like we played well by any means, but we owned it. We know that it's not good enough," he said.

After the match, the team line seems to be that they're focused on what's next, and Andonovski was no exception, saying, "We're not happy with our performance, but we qualify for the next round. We're moving on."

When it comes to the US Women’s National Team at this Women’s World Cup, “it just hasn’t clicked,” TNT soccer analyst Julie Foudy said to CNN after the Americans advanced to the knockout stage following a scoreless draw against Portugal.

“They just haven’t been clicking. … The thing that I keep coming back to is it doesn’t feel like there’s a lot of chemistry. There’s not a lot of confidence and swagger that we normally see with this US team. I honestly think they need to stop thinking about the X’s and O’s and just focus on, let’s just go enjoy this and play and have fun and actually bring some joy back to it, because right now it’s a lot of choppiness – and clunkiness is the word I keep coming back to.”

The two-time reigning World Cup champion has made it to the round of 16. But what seemed like an inevitability at the start of the tournament was hugely in doubt until the final whistle of Thursday's final group stage match.

Although the Americans clinched their spot in the knockout rounds with a 0-0 draw against Portugal, even US coach Vlatko Andonovski acknowledged the team “did not play well.”

That’s an understatement, given the US came within inches of being knocked out of the tournament altogether. Portugal was unlucky not to shock the world, with a shot deflecting off the post in the last few minutes of the game.

After the game, two-time World Cup winner and former US star Carli Lloyd even said, “The player of the match was that post,” adding that her former teammates are “lucky to not be going home right now.”

Though the team has pushed back against any comparisons to previous squads, it's hard to deny, based on results, that the US squad which has shown up to this year’s tournament is a far cry from the one that left Paris victorious in 2019.

So what happens now? But looking ahead at the round of 16, veteran US Women's National Team (USWNT) forward Alex Morgan doesn’t think the team needs to make a big adjustment, other than “being a little more ruthless."

"You know, I feel like it's taking advantage of the chances that we have. We created — we created enough to put the ball in the back of the net,” Morgan said after the draw against Portugal. 

While that may be true, the fact remains that the US did not convert many of its chances, resulting in its lowest ever group stage point haul. The team has failed to win its group for the first time since 2011 — and for only the second time in World Cup history. The US now exits the group behind the Netherlands, whose dominant 7-0 win against Vietnam resembled more of what many expected from the US in this tournament.

Lauren James has introduced herself to the world at this year's World Cup and she's seemingly getting better every match.

She was great for the Lionesses against Denmark in their last fixture but was simply brilliant today against China.

James was involved in five of England's six goals and was named Player of the Match for the second time this tournament.

"Each day, each game, I’m looking to improve and get better," she told ITV after the match.

In addition to her three assists, James scored two world-class goals.

The second was perhaps the most impressive, latching onto a cross with a superb volley.

When asked by ITV about her ability to score from distance, James was humble about her process.

"Just hit it and see what happens," she joked.

A brilliant performance by England comes to an end.

The Lionesses looked a little shaky at the start of this World Cup, but they look so comfortable now and have matched their highest scoreline ever at a World Cup.

The team qualifies as the Group D winner and will face Nigeria in the last 16.

Meanwhile, it was a miserable night for China, which crashes out of the tournament after a chastening experience in Adelaide.

It wasn't the most convincing, but in the end, Denmark finally grinds out the attritional 2-0 victory over Haiti.

Pernille Harder scored opened the scoring from the penalty spot midway through the first half, before Sanne Troelsgaard wrapped up an important three points for the Red and White in the country's final group game.

The win, coupled with China's defeat against England, means Denmark advances to the knockout stages of the tournament where it will face co-host Australia.

It's been a long time coming, but Sanne Troelsgaard finally seals the victory in the final minute of added on time in the second half.

The 34-year-old slots the ball home after breaking clear to wrap up the three points and an impressive performance.