By David Wilfong, NDG Special Contributor
Toyota Stadium in Frisco played host to the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team Thursday night in Frisco, giving DFW residents an up close and personal look at one of the most dominant sports teams in the world.
The result was about what many had expected. The U.S. downed the visiting Russian team in a 4-0 shut-out. Crystal Dunn and Allie Long chalked up two goals each in the contest that was played before a sell-out crowd of more than 15,000. Dunn’s goals were the 19th and 20th of her career, in 49 games played for the national team. Long’s goals were both off headers, and the game against Russia was her second brace.
But while the U.S. women are usually expected to win, the team had slipped to No. 2 in the world rankings as of the time the team arrived in Dallas. Germany had edged ahead and the U.S. was looking at a rare spot outside the throne of women’s soccer.
The U.S. was disappointed twice in a row in important recent tournaments. In the Olympics, the Americans were sent home in the first round of elimination play, falling to Sweden in what was likely the biggest upset of the games. Then in the She Believes Cup, held in the beginning of March, the U.S. was once again disappointed. After initially beating Germany, they lost to England and France, ending up in fourth place when the dust settled.
“I think we all need to hit the reset button and kind of learn from things that we can get better at from the She Believes tournament, but it’s a new camp and we have to start anew and get back to it,” said Dunn, who earned her spot on the national team after leading the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) in 2015 after barely missing the roster for the World Cup held the same year.
This is an off year for women’s international soccer, but with a lack of high-profile tournaments, the players must avoid losing focus prior to the qualifying competitions feeding into the 2019 World Cup.
“I think we have a huge amount of eagerness still on this team, which I think is going to translate into a really strong dominant side,” Dunn said. “A lot of us are still trying to get better. We’re trying to improve our game every single camp, and I feel like that’s exactly the mindset that we need every time we get together. We only have a certain amount of time together before we’re off to our own places again. So these camps are really important for us to – like I said – regroup, reset and get it together.”
While there has been some disappointment as of late for the U.S. women, the NWSL has now gone further than any earlier attempt at a professional women’s league in the U.S. A reliable league is seen as indispensable for cultivating a future generation of competitive athletes.
“It’s a different balance this year,” Ellis said. “It’s important for our players to be in with their league teams, and continue to grow and support the league. So you know, we are only coming together on FIFA dates as the league kicks off, but that’s something that we understand is going to help the league and the fan base there. So for us, yeah, it’s going to be looking at some players and getting out there and enjoying being together. Certainly, these two games will be a little bit of preparation for our matches in Europe in June, so we’ll see what we can come out of these two games with. It’s going to be important.”
Dallas does not currently have a team in the NWSL, though the coaching staff at FC Dallas has shown an interest in fielding one if the opportunity arises. Currently, the FC Dallas Women compete in the WPSL (second tier level of the women’s game), though its roster includes national team members from other countries and players who have seen time on an NWSL pitch.
