“It’s Insane” – Unhappy With USWNT’s Result, Coch Vlatko Responds to Carli Lloyd’s Criticism on Team’s Mentality After Portugal Draw

During the final game of the World Cup group stages against Portugal, the USWNT delivered a disappointing performance, resulting in a goalless draw. Although they advanced to the Round of 16, their mediocre display in the group stages left many unsatisfied.

While the fans had some harsh words following their poor game, former USWNT captain, Carli Lloyd, strongly criticized the team’s performance. However, those claims were boldly shut down by the team’s coach, Vlatko Andonovski.

Vlatko Andonovski responds to Carli Lloyd’s criticism

After narrowly surpassing Portugal, the USWNT secured a second-spot finish in Group E by earning 5 points from 3 games. Following the match, various kinds of reactions flooded the internet, with Carli Lloyd’s criticism making the headlines. Eventually, Vlatko was made aware of those criticisms and didn’t hesitate to send a response.

Following the post-match conference, he said, “One thing that I wanna say is that this team wanted to win this game more than anything else, and they’ve put everything they could in preparation for this tournament and in every game that they go. So, to question the mentality of this team, to question the willingness to win, to compete, I think it’s insane.”

He continued, “But I have never seen this team step on the field and not try hard or not try to compete. So, everyone is entitled to opinion and they can say whatever they want but I just know how this team feels.” The Macedonian coach insisted they are aware of their poor performance but no one should question the team’s determination.

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“And 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 you know we qualified for the next round. We’re moving on,” he concluded. Indeed, it’s quite a direct hit from Vlatko toward Lloyd. But let’s hear what the former USWNT star said about the team.

Carli Lloyd blasts USWNT

It was a close call for the USWNT, as a loss other than a draw would have sent them home. Certainly, American fans are not happy to see the 4X champions struggle so much. While it was still a bittersweet situation for them as they qualified for the next round, Lloyd definitely didn’t let Vlatko’s side feel that way. The former player-turned-pundit had some harsh words for the ladies. Lloyd, who was present as a Fox Sports commentator after the match, expressed criticism towards the team for their post-game celebration.

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“I have never witnessed something like that. There’s a difference between being respectful of the fans and saying hello to your family. But to be dancing and smiling, I mean the player of the match was that post. You are lucky not to be going home right now!” Indeed, these are some harsh words from the former skipper. After all, the reaction is pretty natural, as the USWNT didn’t put their best foot forward at the start of the tournament. Whatever the case, things aren’t looking good for the USWNT, and it could soon upset them if they don’t gear up in the later stages of the competition.

What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments.