The United States Women’s National Team will face New Zealand tonight, in their penultimate sendoff match before they travel to France. It isn’t expected to be a particularly difficult challenge. That’s nothing against New Zealand, who have a solid team that is justifiably going to the World Cup. But the big fish from Oceania are still a fair ways behind the big fish from the bigger confederations. These sendoff matches are meant more as tune-ups than serious tests. And for that purpose, New Zealand should be a good opponent. Tom Sermanni’s side keep a fairly tight ship, leaking few goals while also posing a modest attacking threat—which should combine into a decent test run for some of the US team’s group stage opponents.
USA v. New Zealand: What to Watch For
