The fire that sparked the USWNT against the Dutch: Lindsey Horan’s fight, goal and reconciliation
In the 60th minute of the USWNT’s World Cup group-stage match against the Netherlands, Lindsey Horan looked like she was in agonizing pain. She held her taped-up right knee, which former club teammate Amandine Henry once called her “patate” — a reference to how it would swell up and look like a knobbly potato. Horan then stopped for a brief and energetic chat with the Netherlands player who had tackled her in the potato, Lyon teammate Danielle van de Donk, and then promptly scored a fantastic header to level the game and earn the United States a critical point.
It was the tonal shift the game needed after the U.S. was put on the back foot by Jill Roord’s opening goal in the first half. After Horan’s outburst, the U.S. went from letting the Netherlands set the tempo to getting more aggressive as a team in closing them down and putting more pressure on them in the final third. The team’s new captain saved the U.S. from its first World Cup loss since 2011.
In the mixed zone after the 1-1 draw, U.S. center back Naomi Girma flashed a giant, toothy grin when asked how the Horan confrontation got the team fired up. “I loved it,” she said. “She’s a competitor and she’s gonna come out and fight. I think to see that response from her as our captain is really great. And I think that just pushed our team and you could feel the shift in the game.”
Get pissed Horan!!!! Let’s go now.
— Abby Wambach (@AbbyWambach) July 27, 2023
But after the game, it was all hugs and smiles between Horan and Van de Donk.
You often hear from club teammates who have to face each other on the international stage that professionalism means leaving things on the field, and this was certainly a hefty dose of professionalism given just how beyond irate
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