The USA women’s national team have come under quite a bit of scrutiny for their behaviour in their record breaking 13-0 win over Thailand in the Women’s World Cup on Tuesday.
Former Canada star Kaylyn Kyle told a Canadian television programme that the US celebrations were nothing short of “disgraceful”. She continued, saying “As a Canadian, we would just never ever think of doing something like that. For me, it’s disrespectful, it’s disgraceful. Hats off to Thailand for holding their head high.”
Star-striker and now golden boot shoe-in, Alex Morgan, hit back saying it would’ve been “disrespectful” not to celebrate. “I think it’s disrespectful if we don’t show up and give our best and play our game for 90 minutes,” Morgan said. “It’s disrespectful to the Thai team. And I believe they wanted us to play them straight up.
“I’m going to celebrate Mal Pugh’s goal. I’m going to celebrate Sam Mewis and Rose Lavelle. This is their first World Cup and I’m so proud of them. It’s incredible for us all.”
USA didn’t hold anything back
Were they wrong to celebrate though? Surely not. They are in a World Cup, looking to defend their title, why should they play it like a friendly match? The way they played showed a competitive edge that most teams don’t possess.
They broke the record for the highest ever score in a World Cup match, of course they’re going to celebrate. For what it’s worth, Alex Morgan is bang on in her defence of her team. Those goals mean a lot to those players making their World Cup bow, they should be allowed to celebrate them. Those are memories that will last forever in the memory of Mallory Pugh, Sam Mewis and Rose Lavelle.
Her assessment of it being “disrespectful” to not celebrate is also true. Imagine they had shown up, taken Thailand for granted and not bothered celebrating goals. That would’ve been the most arrogant thing ever to happen on the world stage in football.
I’m of the opinion they did the right thing, but what do you think? Should the Americans have taken it easy and not celebrated their goals? Have your say in the comments below.
For more like this, visit our dedicated football page here. Meanwhile, follow us on Facebook for more opinions and analysis right to your timeline.