""I was frustrated this evening because I felt like a game of a whack-a-mole," Hayes said, hitting different parts of the table to illustrate the point. "I felt like if I put something out then I was whacking that. That's how the game felt for me as a coach, and I've been doing this for so long -- I hate them games.""
"Portugal scored both goals on corner kicks -- "no coach likes conceding on f---ing set pieces ever," Hayes eventually said with a smile as she walked away from the press conference, drawing a laugh from the room -- and the U.S. struggled to connect with and without the ball against a well-organized Portuguese team. "It felt really individual out there," said midfielder Rose Lavelle, who scored 35 seconds into the match."
Emma Hayes' U.S. women's national team fell 2-1 to Portugal at Subaru Park, with both Portuguese goals coming from corner kicks. Hayes described the match as feeling like a "whack-a-mole," expressing frustration at repeated issues and conceding on set pieces. Rose Lavelle scored 35 seconds into the match but said the team responded by trying to fix problems individually. Captain Lindsey Horan said the team sometimes felt isolated on the field. Portugal's organization disrupted the U.S. ability to connect with and without the ball. The performance recalled precarious moments from the 2023 World Cup draw with Portugal.
Read at ESPN.com
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