The U.S. women's national team can breathe a big sigh of relief after beating New Zealand by a comfortable 6-1 score in Saitama on Saturday.
- Report: U.S. score six vs. New Zealand
The win is enough to neutralize the threat of crashing out of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which looked surprisingly real for the USWNT after their shock opening loss four days ago. But in truth, the score line against New Zealand was more flattering than the performance itself. The Americans looked better, to be sure, but the concerns raised by the opening loss to Sweden don't appear to be in the rearview mirror just yet.