Alex Morgan Leads USWNT to Crazy Victory over New Zealand

Playing in its first game since winning the CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying tournament, in a game only available for viewing via a live stream on ussoccer.com, the USWNT was forced to fight back from behind to secure a 2-1 victory over visiting New Zealand on Saturday night in Dallas.

Solidifying her status as a bona fide American superstar, Alex Morgan scored both goals, both in stoppage time, to lead the USWNT comeback.

Here are four thoughts from the match.

Alex Morgan Must Start Every Game for the U.S.

Morgan, who rarely starts for the U.S. despite her unbelievable form, must become an automatic pick to the starting 11 for coach Pia Sundhage each game.

In the last two games, both of which Morgan started, she has been a dominant force from start to finish. In the CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying tournament final, Morgan scored two goals and set up the other two in a 4-0 victory over Canada.

Today, Morgan drew a penalty kick in the ninth minute (Wambach missed it, hitting the post) and Morgan scored the tying and game-winning goal in the 90th and 93rd minutes respectively.

In addition to the goals, Morgan terrorized the New Zealand defense all day, getting in behind their defense, running at defenders and creating chances for herself and her teammates.

Megan Rapinoe Should Also Be an Automatic Starter

Rapinoe, who provided the hero service to Abby Wambach’s dramatic goal against Brazil in last summer’s World Cup, energized the game as soon as she entered.

Her ability to run at defenders, her composure on the ball in tight space and, of course, her outstanding service all aided in the U.S. comeback.

In fact, while the rest of the U.S. team was panicked in the last few minutes looking for the equalizer, Rapinoe was busy tearing the New Zealand defense to shreds.

Rapinoe eventually provided the assist on Morgan’s equalizer in the 90th minute.

The U.S. Needs to Stay More Composed When Down a Goal

Even though the U.S. dominated long stretches of the match and created dangerous chance after dangerous chance, the U.S. players seemed to lose all sense of the match after going down a goal.

The players seemed panicked, often resorting to launching the ball aimlessly down the field and repeatedly, and needlessly, giving away possession.

After an Olympic qualifying tournament which the U.S. dominated from start to finish, it would seem the team’s confidence, and game plan, would not be shaken so easily.

Pia Sundhage Might Still Have Some Tweaking to Do

Sundhage’s move to a 4-2-3-1 after the World Cup was an effort to provide the U.S. with a more dominating midfield presence. And, while it did that, the U.S. struggled to find goals in the 4-2-3-1 and wasted one of its best talents, Alex Morgan, on the bench with Abby Wambach starting up top as the lone striker.

In the last two games, going with a 4-4-2 to get Wambach and Morgan both on the field at the same time, the U.S. has lost some of that possession in the middle 1/3. And, one of the benefits of playing the 4-2-3-1 was using Lauren Cheney as the attacking midfielder/withdrawn striker, a role at which Cheney excelled.

Finding a formation to suit the U.S.’s diverse and dynamic talents is not an enviable one. In addition to Morgan and Wambach up top, Cheney is a fantastic withdrawn forward, Rapinoe and Heather O’Reilly can provide outstanding flank play, and Carli Lloyd and Shannon Boxx are two of the world’s best center/holding midfielders.

If Sundhage can manage to find a way to keep everyone in their most natural positions and take advantage of their many, many strengths, the U.S. will be unstoppable come London.

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