Andonovski hits back at Lloyd's criticism after USWNT draw - ESPN

AUCKLAND, New Zealand — United States women's national team coach Vlatko Andonovski hit back at criticism from former player Carli Lloyd, calling it «insane» to doubt the players' drive to win after a listless 0-0 draw vs. Portugal in the Women's World Cup on Tuesday.

The result was a disappointment for the No. 1-ranked U.S. team, the overwhelming favorite to beat No. 21-ranked Portugal, after having won the previous two Women's World Cups.

— Women's World Cup bracket and fixtures schedule

The path for the Americans also hinged on the results of the Netherlands match against Vietnam, played simultaneously in Dunedin. With a decisive 7-0 victory, the Netherlands won Group E, bumping the United States to second place.

Now the USWNT heads to a round-of-16 matchup against Sweden.

Asked about Lloyd's postgame remarks that the U.S. lacked «passion,» Andonovski said it didn't match what he saw.

«The one thing I want to say is that this team wanted to win this game more than anything else,» Andonovski said. «They've put everything they could in preparation for this tournament and every game that they go into, so to question the mentality of this team, to question the willingness to win, to compete, I think it's insane.

»I've never seen this team step on the field and not try hard or not compete. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, they can say whatever they want, but I just know how this team feels.

«It's not like we played well by any means. We owned it. We know it's not good enough. We're not happy with our performance, but we qualified for the next round. We're moving on.»

The U.S. won only one game in group play for the first time in tournament history, and scored just four goals over the three games.

«It's not the