Smith braces helps USA cruise to win over Vietnam in Group E opener | OneFootball

The United States got their World Cup campaign off to a hot start, downing Group E counterparts Vietnam 3-0.

Scorers: Smith 14′, 45+7′, Horan 77′

Coming into the tournament as favourites, the United States were keen to secure a signature routine victory against their Vietnamese counterparts.

It was one way traffic early on, as expected, but the star-studded American outfit struggled to break down a resolute Vietnam defensive block.

After knocking on the door from the first whistle, Sophia Smith picked the lock after being played in behind. The Portland Thorns star remained calm as the Vietnam keeper came rushing out, slotting home her first World Cup goal.

After Alex Morgan missed a chance to send the USA two ahead from the penalty-spot, Sophia Smith spared her strike-partner’s blushes by scoring her second of the night deep into first half stoppage time.

While it looked like the United States was poised to cruise to an emphatic victory, Vietnam sank even deeper in the second half as they went into damage limitation mode.

Their plan nearly worked, but a they were undone once again in the final 15 minutes, as Lindsey Horan capped off a superb counterattack to put the USA three-ahead, and secure the three points in their Group E opener.