The US make it a Great 8

The US claimed their eighth SheBelieves Cup with a tight 1-0 win over Colombia. Hayes made minimal lineup changes: 18-year-old Lily Yohannes returned to midfield, and Houston Dash’s Avery Patterson replaced Gisele Thompson in defense. The Americans maintained their Canada game plan, seeking control, but Colombia came in needing a three-goal miracle to advance after their 1-0 win over Argentina.

With a mountain to climb, Colombia took control in the first half, getting the better of chances as their star, Linda Caicedo, skated through the US midfield to create many chances for the Colombians. One of their biggest came in the 31st minute when Washington Spirit midfielder Leicy Santos found striker Maithé López inside the box with a cheeky back-heel pass and forced defender Emily Sonnett to make a tackle right before López could get her shot off. Despite the US dominating in possession, Colombia got more dangerous chances like this and challenged the US defense early, earning 8 shots compared to the United States’ 3 shots in the first half. The best opportunity for the US came in the 45th minute when defender Avery Patterson, pushing forward, sent a cross into forward Rose Lavelle, but a soft shot was easily saved by Katherine Tapia, the Colombian keeper.

The second half was a much different story; the US made a lot of substitutions around the 60-minute mark, replacing all of the attackers apart from forward Alyssa Thompson and bringing in Captain Lindsey Heaps to control the midfield. These subs truly changed the game, bringing more possession and attacking threats. Since Emma Hayes has done such a good job rotating her squad in this tournament, the subs don’t feel foreign to this game or the tournament, so they come in and play their game, and it’s comfortable for them, which is how they orchestrated the late goal, which came in the 82nd minute. Heaps finds Alyssa Thompson with room on the left wing, who lays it off for Jaedyn Shaw as Thompson makes a run to the top of the D, and Shaw finds her with the return pass that lands right on Thompson’s right foot as she hits a perfect strike that hits the bar and falls into the goal in a moment that has been coming for Thompson all night. This is the 21-year-old’s first US goal of the calendar year and her fourth international goal in her young career.

The US would go on to win the game and their 8th SheBelieves Cup. Defender Emily Sonnett, who has played in all 11 editions of the tournament, sets the record for most individual cups won, as she has been a part of all eight of the US wins. This tournament is a great barometer of where the US is in terms of the lineup they will be bringing to the World Cup in 2027. With so many injuries and time off taken by some of the big stars who won the US gold in 2024, they have been out of the rotation, giving others a lot more playing time. This will improve the depth a lot, but could leave some very good talent out, depending on what Hayes ultimately decides. Stay tuned, as I will be providing a projected US lineup that will be updated after every US camp. The first edition will be released soon. The US will return to action on April 11th as they face 8th-ranked Japan in a three-match series.