U.S. women’s soccer coach Emma Hayes ready for opener – Whittier Daily News

Emma Hayes, seen coaching Chelsea in a Women’s Champions League quarter-final match against Ajax on March 19, 2024 in Amsterdam, will make her debut on the sidelines for the United States women’s team in a international friendly match Saturday against South Korea. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, file)

Emma Hayes says the groundwork is complete ahead of her debut with the U.S. women’s national team. Now it’s all about the details.

Hayes will be on the sideline with his team for the first time Saturday when the United States plays an exhibition match against South Korea in Commerce City, Colorado.

Hayes was named United States coach in November, but she finished the Women’s Super League season with Chelsea before joining her new team in person. Assistant Twila Kilgore coached the United States on an interim basis, but Hayes was involved from afar.

“I think there was a better tactical understanding than I expected. But for me, the most important thing was their ability to grasp information very, very quickly. Sponges, unbelievable sponges,” Hayes said of his experience with the players this week in training camp. “Whatever we threw at them this week, they accept it, they absorb it.

“This team is desperate to improve, and they are focused on performance and processes to get there.”

Hayes replaced Vlatko Andonovski, who resigned last year after the United States was eliminated from the Women’s World Cup in the round of 16, the team’s first elimination.

Hayes, 47, arrived in the United States last week after winning a fifth consecutive WSL title with Chelsea. After a whirlwind of media appearances and interviews, she traveled to Colorado for her first training camp with the team in preparation for this summer’s Olympics.

When asked Friday what she had learned about the players since arriving, Hayes joked: “Well, their names, for starters.”

“What you get on the pitch is great. You get a few jokes here and there, but just demand a lot of us and hold yourself to the standard,” captain Lindsey Horan said in describing Hayes. “Also the encouragement and the positive comments and giving us a voice as well.”

Forward Alex Morgan has experienced coaching transitions before.

“I think it’s something where you expect the unexpected. You know change is coming, now change is here,” Morgan said. “Having a willingness and openness to learn is extremely important at any stage of your career. And we learned a lot.

Hayes said Kilgore had the “building blocks” in place over the past six months.

“My job this week is to fill in the details. Will there be a transition from this? No, it’s based on that,” Hayes said. “I think there are a lot of things different, but the differences are in the details rather than major structural changes.”

After Saturday’s game against South Korea and a rematch Tuesday in St. Paul, Minn., Hayes will be tasked with selecting a tight 18-player roster for the Olympics.

She is expected to name the team before the team plays two farewell matches, the first against Mexico at Red Bull Arena in New Jersey on July 13 and the second against Costa Rica at Audi Field in Washington, D.C. DC, in July. 16.

The United States will open the Olympics against Zambia on July 25 in Nice.