To be respectful to opponents is to play hard against them.
Jill Ellis
There's always things you can refine and polish.
Coaches understand that pressure is part of the rush of coaching. The challenge of trying to outplay your opponent is part of the fun, the adrenaline, the preparation, seeing your team evolve. It's why coaches become coaches.
Players don't change drastically. Maybe they get more in form if they're a goal scorer, or they get healthier if they've been injured.
We've got to make sure we have players that can break teams down because there's no space in behind; we need to problem-solve in a different way.
When you go to a World Cup, in midfield you need to have players who can score from distance, who can get in the box and obviously play-make.
The players come out and want to be as fresh as they can, press, keep a team in their end, create chances, create set pieces, and really try and get the upper hand early.
I took a $40k pay cut to leave my technical copywriter job and work for $6k a year.
Ultimately, we've got to make sure our players understand that the margin for error is very small against these top teams in the world, and we've been punished several times for that.
You've got to make sure you're listening to the people that are important to listen to. And then everything else, you kind of have to tune out and do your thing.
When you have a group of players with self-belief... nine times out of 10, players can be very talented to make the roster, but they need that quality, and it is pivotal at a World Cup.
I think that's how it has to be in a tournament format. You can't dwell on games.
World Cups aren't moments to invest in players.
My own personal opinion is putting three finals in one day isn't supporting the women's game.
I have a lot of fond memories of my life in England.
Our intent is to attack for 90 minutes.
If we're about winning world championships, we can't just have all of our focus be on the Olympics.
I went into coaching never worrying about what I was coaching for other than trying to make sure that I can prepare my team, select my team, have an amazing staff around me.
You have to pay the same amount of detail regardless of opponent when so much is on the line.
When I used to recruit in college, my sole job was to out-recruit what I had. And if I did that, I knew we would grow and be successful.
You've got to turn over every stone; you've got to look for every advantage. You need to make sure you're doing everything you possibly can, not just on the field but off it, to give your team an advantage - from having a sleep expert coming to talk to your team to having an independent analysis of your team done.
I have a tremendous staff around me. It's a really good family vibe in terms of our environment.
I had zero opportunity to play football over the years.
Opportunity only knocks so many times.
You have to be able to adjust with the moment, whether it's an injury, a result.
I grew up playing in the schoolyard with the boy, and on the side of the grounds my dad coached on. I have a lot of fond memories.
My whole British culture in growing up is still with me for sure. I'm very grateful for that.
Every game you play, you gain. There's always valuable lessons.
We have to constantly be looking to improve.
I haven't seen many pretty games in a World Cup.
I never thought I'd end up coaching. It wasn't the plan.
I think I'm just a naturally curious person.
Little things that I've emphasized are turning in pockets and looking to penetrate and finding these spaces and playing at a good tempo when we're in the middle third.
World Cups are about winning.
I was just fortunate to move to the States and have an opportunity to play organized football.
I was a Pompey lass - I can't say I supported Pompey all the time.
It's important that our team has confidence.
You spend a lot of time as a coach going through every possible scenario. That's the kind of level of depth and versatility you have to go through. When I did that, things started to really fall into place.
The challenge for young players is always stepping into the next level in terms of how much faster the game is.
I'm an American except when I'm in the supermarket or at the candy store.
You can't just live cautiously, I think, when you're in a knockout game.
One of the things we recognized coming out of 2015 is we had to get more and more high-level competition.
If I walk into a room, I'm quite content to sit in the corner and chat with people who walk by. But coaching forced me to come out of my shell.
Many, many years ago, when you named alternates, and they wouldn't travel with you - I think you're dealing with a small roster. Now you travel with these alternates, which you can replace at any time, obviously, if it's a medical situation, so you have it in your back pocket.
What I know about Ali Krieger is no moment is ever going to be too big for her.
When you go through a tournament of seven games, there are peaks and valleys. You kind of ride the players that are hot.
Sometimes it is the mentality that is really important. To have players with self-belief makes my job a lot easier, as they are certainly motivated and hungry.
Why have a rule if you're not going to enforce it?
My dad's always had an unbelievable, positive attitude about everything.
It's part of the beauty of the job in dealing with this is you have to have a plan, and that's why you can't only train 11 players; you train your whole team.
