Emma Hayes observes…

Emma Hayes, head coach of the United States women’s national team, expressed her satisfaction with her team’s emotional control during a “scrappy” 2-0 win against Argentina on Sunday, marking the opening of the 2026 SheBelieves Cup in Nashville, Tennessee.

“This is the essence of tournament football,” Hayes remarked post-match, indicating that there are valuable lessons for her young team as they gear up for next year’s World Cup.

Captain Lindsey Heaps netted the first goal in the first half, later assisting Jaedyn Shaw for the second goal in the second half.

However, the match concluded on a somber note for the USWNT as forward Trinity Rodman appeared to suffer a back injury during stoppage time after being challenged from behind by Argentina’s Milagros Martín.

Rodman received medical attention for several minutes before consulting the trainers on the sideline. She did not return to the field for the last moments of the match.

Hayes noted that she had no immediate update on Rodman’s condition, who has faced back injuries intermittently over the last two years.

Martin received a caution for her challenge, one of two yellow cards issued by referee Deily Gomez during the match. The other was given to Sofía Domínguez for a rough challenge on Shaw earlier in the game.

“It’s crucial for us to recognize that we have a choice about how we engage in certain situations; we can choose to step back,” Hayes explained. “I believe Jaedyn and Olivia [Moultrie] managed those instances well.

“Provocation is inevitable, particularly against different types of opponents. How we manage that is a reflection of our growth. Imagine a scenario where this occurs in a World Cup setting; if we lose our composure for even a moment, it could mean going down to 10 players. We’re eager to experience these dynamics. If we were seeking perfection, I would approach things differently, but my goal is to prepare the entire squad for these challenges.”

Hayes noted that the team demonstrated “much better emotional control” than they did in a surprising 2-1 defeat to Portugal last October, a match she frequently referenced during the Sunday discussion. She acknowledged that while Sunday’s win against Argentina wasn’t flawless, there is clear “growth” from the loss to Portugal.

Argentina matched the USWNT player for player, which Hayes described as “the hardest thing to do in football when building up against a team that does that.”

Heaps opened the scoring in the 19th minute, curving a left-footed strike from just outside the box into the net.

United States forward Emma Sears created the opportunity near the endline, cutting back to Heaps at the top of the box.

With this goal, Heaps has now found the net for the USWNT every calendar year since 2015, having made her senior debut in 2013.

Shaw added the second goal in the 56th minute with a shot that slipped through the grasp of Argentina’s goalkeeper Solana Pereyra.

The U.S. is set to face Canada in Columbus, Ohio, on Wednesday, and Colombia on Saturday in Harrison, New Jersey, to wrap up the SheBelieves Cup.

In an earlier match on Sunday in Nashville, Canada triumphed over Colombia with a score of 4-1.