The US absolutely ran rampant over Mexico to open their World Cup qualifying campaign with a statement win of 6-0. Mexico was, in a word, dreadful, and the US showed no mercy, charging to the top of the standings over what was expected to be their toughest group opponent. Here are my three thoughts on how they went from 1-0 at halftime to 6-0 by the final whistle.
Flank play
It took the U.S. until the second half to really be effective from the wings. As we saw in the Tournament of Nations, it takes Crystal Dunn some time to readjust back into what is nominally an outside back role, one she doesn’t regularly play for her club team, and this was the case tonight. Despite her advanced starting position, she didn’t offer the desired end product. Tobin Heath, too, often double-teamed on the opposite flank, gave away possession too much. When they did get a cross off, it was more hopeful than anything and rarely found a runner.
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