Key events
And here’s the report on what was an awful day at the office for the Matildas, thumped 4-0 by Japan.
If you need getting up to speed, here’s The Guardian’s report on the USWNT’s 2-0 win over Colombia last week.
Japan’s red hot form has continued in today’s earlier fixture, putting up another four-spot as they downed Colombia 4-1 thanks to goals from Momoko Tanikawa, Mina Tanaka (who now has two braces in two games), and Maika Hamano.
Nadeshiko Japan are one of several powerhouse nations that have undergone a period of generational renewal in recent years but in just the second-game of the Nils Nielsen-era, the 2011 Women’s World Cup champions look like they’re well and truly surging upward.
Getting in behind the Japanese defence, Colombian talisman Linda Caicedo gave her side their first goal of the tournament just before halftime.
How long has it been since the USWNT made eleven changes to their side between games? Smooth by Carlos Santana, featuring Rob Thomas was top of the Billboard charts the last time it happened, while The Talented Mr. Ripley had supplanted The Green Mile atop the box office.
USWNT XI
Starting XI: Mandy McGlynn, Emily Sams, Korbin Albert, Lynn Biyendolo, Alyssa Thompson, Jaedyn Shaw, Tierna Davidson (C), Emma Sears, Gisele Thompson, Claire Hutton, Crystal Dunn.
Subs: McKeown, Nighswonger, Sentor, Heaps, Yohannes, Sonnet, Coffey, Macario, Cooper, Ryan, Fox
USWNT boss Emma Hayes, meanwhile, has gone fully Gary Oldman in Léon the Professional. Who’s she rotated? EVERYONE.
The English coach has 11 changes made to the starting line-up that downed Colombia last week – just the sixth time in the 758-game history of this side that they’ve changed all eleven players from one game to the next and the first since January, 2000.
As part of the young talent being brought through the American setup, 19-year-old Kansas City Current midfielder Hutton will make her international debut, while teenage Angel City defender Thompson has been tapped to make her first-ever international start. McGlynn will receive her second cap, Sams her third, and, on her 24th birthday, Sears her fourth.
In her 66th cap, Davidson will wear the armband for the USWNT for the first time.
Australian XI
Starting XI: Tegan Micah, Winona Heatley, Steph Catley, Caitlin Foord, Mary Fowler, Alanna Kennedy, Hayley Raso, Holly McNamara, Ellie Carpenter, Charlotte Grant, Kyra Cooney-Cross
Subs: Arnold, Lincoln, Heyman, Hunt, Prior, Murphy, Torpey, Van Egmond, Yallop, Gaelic, Gorry, Freier
As flagged by Tom Sermanni, the interim coach flagging that there would be rotation throughout the tournament coming into it and hinting at changes following the drubbing by Japan, the Matildas have made four changes to the XI that lost 4-0 to the Nadeshiko.
There increasing momentum behind her to supplant Mackenzie Arnold for the starting goalkeeper role, Micah gets the start between the posts, while Heatley comes in for Clare Hunt, who had a week to forget between her thrashings at the hands of Arsenal in the North London Derby and then Japan, in defence.
In an awkward situation where her lack of minutes at club side Tottenham almost means national team staff need to get some minutes into her, Grant comes in for Tameka Yallop — suggesting that Steph Catley will kick inside and play centrally in a back five.
Most exciting, however, is the return of the Mac; Holly McNamara, the best young talent in the A-League Women and arguably right up there with Fowler and Cooney-Cross in the Australian ranks, coming into the starting XI to make her first start since facing Thailand at the 2022 AFC Women’s Asia Cup, a gap of 1122 days enforced by two separate ACL injuries.
She replaces Gorry in the XI, albeit she’s likely to be deployed much higher up the pitch – thriving as a nine with Melbourne City this season.
Preamble
Joey Lynch
Howdy all, Joey Lynch here and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage this morning’s SheBelieves Cup clash between the United States and Australia. Today is the second matchday of the annual invitational tournament, with both sides heading to State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona off the back of vastly different experiences in their opening fixtures of the tournament last Thursday in Houston, Texas.
Powered by goals from Catarina Macario and Ally Sentnor, the USWNT downed Colombia 2-0 in their first game, extending the unbeaten run they have built across the past 12 months to 21 games. The Australians, in contrast, were smashed by Japan in the preceding fixture, outplayed in every pretty much every facet of the game as they suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat.
Kick-off time under the roof in Glendale is at 3pm local/5pm ET/9am AEDT.
This content is reposted from the source: https://www.theguardian.com/football/live/2025/feb/24/usa-vs-australia-shebelieves-cup-womens-football-international-live-updates-start-time-scores-state-farm-stadium-glendale
