As fans questioned whether the U.S. women's national team was ready for the 2024 Olympics after a disastrous World Cup campaign last year, head coach Emma Hayes asked for patience as the team worked through growing pains.
The answers came quickly in the USWNT's opener of the Olympics in France.
The Americans scored three goals in the opening 25 minutes to defeat Zambia 3-0 on Thursday and, despite a quieter second half, they looked convincing in the win. Trinity Rodman's brilliant spin-turn created space for a flashy opening goal before Mallory Swanson scored twice in a minute to punctuate the flying start from the four-time Olympic gold medalists.
The USWNT's performance featured a proficiency that was lacking in recent matches and an intensity that was rarely seen from the Americans at last year's World Cup. It is exactly the start the Americans needed amid doubts about their place among the world's elite after a round-of-16 exit last year -- the team's worst World Cup in history.
Yes, Zambia played nearly an hour of the match down a player, but the USWNT was dominant and scored three times well before Pauline Zulu was sent off for denying a goal-scoring opportunity. Lindsey Horan nearly found the net 30 seconds into the match after fullback Emily Fox danced into the penalty area. Rodman hit the crossbar nine minutes into the match and Swanson did the same five minutes later.
The breakthrough came just as it felt like history was repeating itself from the wasteful, scoreless draw in the Americans' send-off game against Costa Rica nine days earlier. The feelings of déjà vu were quickly erased in Nice, France, as Sophia Smith drifted to the left touchline, tiptoed around defenders and found Horan, whose ball to Rodman assisted the magical opening goal.
This was the USWNT attack the Americans hoped to have on the world stage last year, but one that never showed up at the World Cup.
Rodman has arguably been the USWNT's most important player -- certainly in the attack -- over the past year. Thursday was Rodman's 31st consecutive appearance for the U.S., and she is the only player to have appeared in every match since the start of 2023.
Amid the relentless change around this USWNT in transition, Rodman has been the constant -- a status she has earned through tireless two-way play on the right wing. Rodman's opening goal against Zambia, her first in a major tournament, was the climax of that ascent.
Swanson's influence on the field is the other major change from the World Cup. She was arguably the best player in the world at the start of 2023, but a torn patella tendon three months prior to the World Cup ruled her out of that tournament. Her return to the USWNT fold earlier this year was an immediate reminder of what the team missed from Swanson last year.
Hayes has lauded Swanson as a "connector" and someone she has "always admired." The coach's recent description of Swanson as "magnetic" might be the most appropriate -- where Swanson goes, so too does the U.S.
On Thursday, as was the case in previous games, Swanson lined up as a left winger on paper but drifted into central areas. It is from there that Swanson scored both of her goals on Thursday. "Fluidity" is often the word used to describe the front three of Smith, Swanson and Rodman, and Swanson's return is integral to ensuring it clicks.
The USWNT created nearly 5.00 expected goals against Zambia, per TruMedia. (Expected goals, or xG, are a measure of chance creation -- the higher the xG, the more dangerous a team was.) In 10 combined games at the 2020 and 2016 Olympics, the USWNT never even reached 1.75 xG in a single game, including in a 6-1 win over New Zealand in Tokyo (1.70 xG), highlighting how dominant Thursday's win over Zambia really was.
The USWNT was defensively sound, too, anchored by centerbacks Naomi Girma (the one bright spot from the 2023 World Cup) and Tierna Davidson. They contained Barbra Banda -- whom Hayes recently called the most in-form striker in the world -- relegating her to a quiet night that, at one point in the second half, included a desperate shot from 40 yards out.
If there is a trace of disappointment in Thursday's result, it would be that the Americans still wasted several opportunities that could have provided a fourth goal and an edge over groupmates Germany (3-0 winners over Australia) in the goal-difference tiebreaker. The USWNT will rue missing uncontested headers inside the 6-yard box by Rodman and Crystal Dunn.
Zambia -- a team that conceded 10 goals in a game at the previous Olympics -- looked awful, playing reactionary soccer on defense, even before going down to 10 players. But five substitutions and several positional changes were also factors in the Americans being less clinical in the second half. It was also the USWNT's fifth consecutive clean sheet under Hayes as the Americans did well to contain Zambia's clinical striker Banda.
Disappointment in not scoring more is the type of champagne problem the USWNT cannot worry about, a point Hayes has stressed repeatedly recently as she has talked about having respect for the rest of the world. The USWNT has been asked relentlessly about last year's World Cup and the Americans have repeated themselves ad nauseum that they have moved on from it.
Saying and doing, however, are two different things, and while the most important thing about Thursday's victory was securing three points and a healthy goal, it was equally an important part of smashing the lingering narrative of yesteryear.
One game does not suddenly make the USWNT the tournament favorites, regardless of what any bookmakers' odds say. But Hayes was insistent her team could not look past Zambia -- and they didn't. They took care of business in the opening game and put themselves in good shape to get out of a challenging group with mighty Germany awaiting on Sunday.
This performance is exactly what the USWNT needed -- and that isn't something that could have been said about any of the team's four matches at last year's World Cup.