USWNT Coach Vlatko Andonovski Slams Former Player Carli Lloyd’s ‘Insane’ Criticism After Tied Game

usmagazine.com:

The United States women’s national soccer coach Vlatko Andonovski responded to former player Carli Lloyd’s criticism after the team’s last game ended in a tie.“The one thing I want to say is that this team wanted to win this game more than anything else,” Andonovski, 46, said on Tuesday, August 1, in a post-game press conference. “They’ve put everything they could in preparation for this tournament and every game that they go into, so to question the mentality of this team, to question the willingness to win, to compete, I think it’s insane.”He continued: “I’ve never seen this team step on the field and not try hard or not compete.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, they can say whatever they want, but I just know how this team feels. It’s not like we played well by any means.

We owned it. We know it’s not good enough. We’re not happy with our performance, but we qualified for the next round. We’re moving on.”Andonovski’s comments came shortly after Lloyd, 41, called out the team for their lackluster performance against Portugal during the post-game show. (After retiring from the sport in 2021, Lloyd has become an analyst on Fox Sports.)“You never want to take anything for granted.

You put on that jersey and you want to give it everything you have, for the people who came before you, for the people who come after you,” she said. “I’m just not seeing that passion.