SheBelieves Cup 2023 kicked off on Thursday with two games, Japan – Brazil and USWNT – Canada. Brazil and USWNT recorded wins to start their campaigns. USWNT rode on two first-half strikes from Mallory Swanson to take all three points. Megan Rapinoe praised Swanson for her brace and four-game scoring streak.

Rapinoe didn’t feature in the opening game against Canada. The USWNT superstar is chasing the unique feat of completing 200 international appearances. She will have to wait longer as the player remained on 197. Earlier, Alex Morgan was honored before the game for achieving 200 appearances for USWNT. It will be interesting to see where Rapinoe ends after the ongoing tournament after coming back from injury.

Megan Rapinoe praises Mallory Swanson for her brace

Swanson was in tremendous form and opened the scoring inside 10 minutes. She scored with a great strike from the edge of the penalty box in the seventh minute after Morgan laid her off. In the 34th minute, the forward latched on the disastrous back-pass from a Canadian defender to score her second and give the team a comfortable lead.

USWNT held on to the lead and won the game. They now sit top of the table level on points with Brazil but with a better goal difference. She is on a scoring streak and has scored five goals in the last three games after scoring against New Zealand in both the friendlies last month. 

Rapinoe, who didn’t play any part in the game, was full of praise for the forward. She shared a one-word response, “ballin,” on her Instagram story for the forward. Rapinoe will be eager to contribute to the team in the remaining games, as she is also chasing 200 caps for USWNT.

USWNT will play Japan next before taking on Brazil in the last game of the tournament. All four teams will play against each other once before they decide the winner on points after the completion of the fixtures.  

All eyes were on Canada, who is fighting against Canada Soccer

Canada Women’s National Team was on strike last week as Canada Soccer cut funds for preparations for this year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup. They are also fighting for a year over pay equity. However, the urgent meeting that was held on Last Saturday between the players and Canada Soccer resulted in players returning to training.

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They are participating in the SheBelieves Cup despite having no solution to the issues in the last meeting. They protested by wearing training jerseys inside out before the game. Also, CANWNT wore a purple jersey over their regular jersey with the message ” Enough Is Enough” during the national anthem before the game against USWNT.

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Let us know your thoughts on the performance of USWNT against Canada in their opening game.