The U.S. women's national team will be entering the 2024 Paris Olympics with some worries.
Following a narrow 1-0 win over Mexico on Saturday, the U.S. was held to a draw versus Costa Rica in its Olympic send-off match Tuesday in Washington, D.C.
It was a game the U.S. dominated from start to finish, especially in the second half. Costa Rica had some moments in the first 45 minutes, but ended the game with two shots in total and none on target, making it a dull game for Alyssa Naeher between the sticks.
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But it was completely lively on the other end, especially for Costa Rica's defense and goalie Noelia Bermudez.
The U.S. finished the game logging 26 shots in total with 12 on target, but couldn't net once.
Lindsey Horan, Trinity Rodman, Sophia Smith and Mallory Swanson were the most active players in front of goal, but none of the four had enough conviction with their shots. Even Jaedyn Shaw and Lynn Williams struggled, despite their ability to get into decent positions.
The Emma Hayes tenure started well when the U.S. scored goals for fun in consecutive friendlies versus South Korea in early June, but the story is different now entering Paris.
On the bright side, it's not that Hayes' tactics aren't working. The U.S. is showing it can control the ball, create chances and get into promising positions. It is not, however, showing it can consistently put shots into the net.
Changing that is an absolute must as the competition level increases at the Olympics, where the U.S. last won bronze in Tokyo.
The U.S. will open group play in Paris on Thursday, July 25, when it meets Zambia in the opener. It also has Germany and Australia in its group, so advancing is the bare minimum goal.
Things will get interesting if those trends continue, but the reliable chance creation means the goals could return very soon.