HARRISON, N.J. (AP) — Alyssa Thompson scored in the 82nd minute to break a stalemate and the United States defeated Colombia 1-0 on Saturday to win the SheBelieves Cup.
It was the eighth straight shutout for the United States, which hasn't allowed a goal since a 3-1 victory over Portugal in October. It was also the U.S. team's eighth overall victory in the SheBelieves Cup tournament, now in its 11th year.
Earlier in the day at Sports Illustrated Stadium, Canada overcame Argentina 3-2 on penalties after a scoreless draw.
With the victory over Colombia, the United States went undefeated in the SheBelieves Cup tournament. Canada finished second after a 1-0 loss to the United States on Wednesday, and Colombia was third. Argentina finished the four-team, round robin tournament in last place with no goals scored.
“I thought we were sluggish the first half. I thought everything we did was a step off. I thought we were too deep in the midfield. I thought we were slow to press the ball. I thought in general, our play was average,” U.S. coach Emma Hayes said. “But we're playing a good opponent that can transition well. So I think having that test was a good moment for us.”
The United States is 13-0-2 all-time against Colombia. The only time Las Cafeteras have scored against the Americans was in the group stage of the 2016 Olympics, a 2-2 draw.
Following a scoreless first half, U.S. defender Naomi Girma was subbed out because of calf tightness. Afterward Grima told reporters she left the game as a precaution.
Thompson, who plays for Chelsea, took a cross from Jaedyn Shaw and deftly scored in the upper corner of the net off the bar, out of reach of Colombia goalkeeper Katherine Tapia.
“I think it’s been a tremendous year for Alyssa, for both club and country,” Hayes said. “The consistency in her play, I think, is a stand out for me, in terms of being able to do things over 90 minutes and do it game after game, including a clutch moment like today. She’s been doing that for Chelsea all year.”
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It was Thompson's fourth international goal and earned her the tournament's MVP award. She said she wasn't sure it was a goal when it came off her foot.
“I wanted to get another shot on goal, so looked at it, went off the cross bar and in,” Thompson said. “That's when I knew it was going in.”
The United States has gone 805 minutes without conceding a goal.
“I think we've shown how to win when we're not at our best. I think we've shown the versatility; I think we've shown the depth; I think we've shown the maturity,” Hayes said. “As a coach, I'm happy about those things. And of course I love shutouts, but more importantly I love that we haven't given up a lot of chances.”
Before the match, the United States honored former midfielder Tobin Heath, who formally retired last year after struggling with a nagging knee injury.
Heath, who won the 2015 and 2019 Women's World Cups with the United States, played her last national team match in 2021. She made 181 appearances for the national team in a career spanning 13 years, scoring 36 goals.
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