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The United States Women’s National Team continued their authoritative World Cup form against Chile on Sunday in France, defeating the South American team 3-0.
The U.S. currently leads Group F with six points and a +16 goal differential. The Swedish National Team remains behind team USA with six points and a +6 goal differential. Both teams have already advanced to the next round of play in the Round of 16, meaning their game on Thursday, June 20 will determine seeding.
One of the biggest story lines on the day remained the USWNT’s play against the Thai team last week when they scored 13 times. The team was criticized for both running up the score and for their celebrations, which many deemed excessive. To respond, team captain and Delran, N.J. native Carli Lloyd granted the crowd a polite golf clap after scoring her first goal of the match on Sunday.
It was also a historic game for Lloyd, who scored twice (11’, 35’) to set a new record by scoring in six consecutive World Cup matches, and also earning her 10th World Cup goal. She had a chance to score her second World Cup hat trick with a penalty kick in the second half but her attempt went wide. It was also a big day for Julie Ertz, wife of Eagles tight end Zach Ertz, who scored her first World Cup goal.
The biggest pregame story was Manager Jill Ellis’ decision to make seven starting lineup changes from the Thailand game. Ellis subbed out three defenders, one midfielder and the entire USWNT attack. Despite Ellis’ decision, the U.S. still showed why they are considered the best in the world as they still managed to play with amazing chemistry.
The U.S. women certainly dominated throughout the whole match, as they earned 68% of possession, and took 26 shots to just one shot taken by the Chile team. Despite this, the U.S. women showed that they aren’t perfect, as just nine of their shots were on goal. Chilean goalkeeper Christiane Endler was sensational, robbing the Stars and Stripes on a number of occasions in the second half. She finished with six saves on the day.
All eyes now look to Thursday’s game, when the U.S. face their most difficult challenger so far in Sweden. That game airs at 3 p.m. on FOX.