Megan Rapinoe & Co sent shockwaves across the world when the USWNT got eliminated prematurely in the World Cup. Touted as the favorites to win it, USWNT’s hapless attacking performances drew the ire of everyone. From Donald Trump to Bill Simmons, not a single person has spared the women’s team with their criticism.

While many criticisms had a layer of political agendas associated with it, comments from USWNT icon Carli Lloyd must have hit hard. The Fox Sports analyst has been particularly upset with Alex Morgan and the team’s attitude throughout the tournament. In a recent interview, she divulged in detail why she said what she said.

USWNT icon reveals why she bluntly criticized Megan Rapinoe & Co

In the final match of the group stage, USWNT barely scraped past Portugal thanks to the woodwork. After the match, the team was seen giggling and dancing with the crowd which completely irked Lloyd. The USWNT icon instantly criticized the team by questioning the team’s attitude. “I have never witnessed something like that. There’s a difference between being respectful of the fans and saying hello to your family”.

She then gave the team a reality check by saying they qualified because of the post. “But to be dancing, to be smiling. I mean, the player of the match was that post. You were lucky to not be going home right now.”

In the latest interview with The Athletic, Carli Lloyd was quipped why she made those blunt comments publicly. In reply, the striker cited her frank no-nonsense attitude as the reason behind it. “So I think maybe I was the only one brave enough to say it how it is,” Lloyd continued. “I’ve always been somebody that is blunt, that’s honest, that maybe comes across to the media as being selfish, arrogant, all these words that I’ve heard about me. And that’s been pretty wild to hear because it’s really not true,” said Lloyd.

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Later on, she went on to reveal that this outburst of hers wasn’t reactionary. In fact, it was building up since the Tokyo Olympics.

Carli Lloyd had a feeling about USWNT’s failure in the World Cup

Carli Lloyd was part of the last USWNT team that appeared in the Tokyo Olympics. In her recent chat, the icon shockingly revealed that the team had started showing signs of regression since then. She believed that the team hasn’t had the right coach since then which led her to foresee this shocking World Cup oust.

“I was at the tail end of what I saw was a regression with the team, which wasn’t good enough in Tokyo (at the Olympics, where the U.S. took bronze). The team was disjointed, was not a unit, and the coaching was not what this team needed,” said Lloyd. “So I saw this, I felt this, I experienced this. I wasn’t truly confident in this team winning the World Cup,” shockingly revealed the icon.

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Be it the government or a soccer team, it’s important for stakeholders to openly criticize and question the organization. This helps keep things in check. Kudos to Carli Lloyd!