FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – It was impossible to miss the smile on Emma Hayes’ face. Every time the camera panned to the U.S. women’s national team coach, she was either grinning or laughing. And she had every reason to – her team delivered the kind of performance you want to close out a 2025 slate.
Facing Italy again just days after a 3-0 win, the U.S. took care of business in much the same way. This one finished 2-0 instead of three, but the performance was just as convincing. To close out 2025, the U.S. put in one more shift – and it was the familiar faces who carried them, just as they have all year.
Cat Macario scored the first, finishing with a fantastic chip that only an in-form player can provide. Lily Yohannes assisted her, continuing her evolution at just 18. Then, for the second, Alyssa Thompson teed up Jaedyn Shaw, who did the heavy-lifting with a long-range curler that left the goalkeeper with nothing to do but aimlessly dive and wave at the ball as it soared past her. Shaw reflected on just how important it was for her to wrap up 2025 with a goal.
“Looking back on the year, I think it has been so much of a roller coaster of emotions,” she told BALLGM. “I think it didn’t start out how I thought it would be. I think just like trusting in my faith and trusting in God’s plan for me, that like it’s all gonna work out for the betterment of seeing what like my next opportunity is, and it’s all preparation for moments like these.”
Macario and Shaw’s goals were the biggest causes of Hayes’ happiness. But there were plenty of other reasons, too. This was a complete performance from a complete team, one that will now head into 2026 with plenty of optimism as World Cup qualifying starts next year. Hayes jokingly compared her team’s progress and potential outlook for next year to a superb winter stew that isn’t quite finished yet.
“I think, first of all, it’s still cooking, and it’s a little bit if I think about it, like being a nice winter dish…Like a slow-cooked stew, and [it] gets better with more time it’s on. The heat certainly gets more tender. I think when I watch our team play, I think you’re starting to see the maturity in the performances,” she said.
BALLGM breaks down the winners and losers from Chase Stadium…
Celia Balf contributed reporting from Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
This 2025 calendar year tested Shaw. There was a while there where she was seemingly staring down a crossroads. Well, whatever path she took at that crossroads was the right one because, right now, there’s no doubt that Shaw is blossoming into the best version of herself. She pointed to winning a title with Gotham FC and jokingly remembered that she’s still just 21 while reflecting on overcoming challenges.
“Just being here now, being able to reflect on those times is so special for me, and ending the year on like, such a high, like winning a championship… It still feels weird. But yeah, I’m, I’m so happy to be at this point and my career, and I’m so blessed to be around these amazing people to help me in these times,” she said.
With her goal on Monday, the Gotham FC starlet snapped her 13-game goalless run, finally getting that big USWNT payoff that she deserved. It took a while to get there, as Shaw battled back from a tough run of form to start the season, one that saw her spend time with the U-23s in an attempt to rebuild. Consider her rebuilt now, though, and perhaps better than ever.
Shaw will, quite obviously, be riding high. Fresh off a NWSL title with Gotham FC, she carried that momentum right into this game. As she heads into the offseason, the forward admitted she picked an ironic spot for a vacation.
“I will be going on vacation. I’m going to Italy, actually, which is ironic. It is ironic, but yeah, so I’m getting girls from Italy…So yeah, I’ll definitely be getting some rest and recovery,” she said.
Once she’s back from the Bel Paese, the USWNT will hope she carries her momentum into 2026 now because, if she can, the sky really does seem to be the limit for a player who, just a few short months ago, faced a fight to prove that was true.
Durante will be sore tomorrow. This was not a fun game with her, and not just because of the goals she conceded.
The goals, of course, were pretty unsavable, but that won’t make her feel any better. Macario’s chip was stunning, but hey, it happens. Shaw’s finish, meanwhile, was pretty unsavable and, again, it happens. In terms of pure goalkeeping, there was little Durante could do, so no real reason to feel bad there.
She will feel bad physically, though. Durante got hit hard multiple times on USWNT set pieces, forcing stoppages multiple times. The Italy goalkeeper surely got the wind knocked out of her at least one of those times. She didn’t leave the game with an injury, but her back will surely feel that in the morning.
There was a split second where one could see the wheels turning in Macario’s head. She looked up, then down, then up again, and then came to her conclusion: “Yeah, I’m gonna chip her.” The chip was perfect, and the ball went into the back of the net.
That’s what Macario can do.
In particular, though, that’s what she’s capable of when she’s in form. With her first-half goal, she now has five finishes in her last three USWNT appearances, taking her total to eight in the 2025 calendar year. That leads the team, and it’s no surprise: Macario has been leading this team all year long. This goal was among her best, but again, these types of moments have become commonplace for the Chelsea star. Yohannes, who threaded the needle in delivering the ball to the striker, believes the pair is starting to form strong chemistry on the pitch.
“Cat is just such a special player, and I know if she gets the ball in front of the goal, 10 times out of 10, it is probably going to be a goal,” Yohannes said. “So, yeah, I’m just, I think we’re growing a partnership. I think that’s super cool. You know, we have a great friendship off the pitch and to be on the pitch and assisting her…I’m just so proud of her.”
For several years, injuries robbed the USWNT of that. For so long, this team played without her and, in truth, they thrived. Now, with Macario back and in this type of form, the USWNT has something special going, largely because she is a special, special player.
Scoreline-wise? Yeah, this was a little better. Two-nil is better than 3-0, so they have that going for them. Performance-wise, though? Italy didn’t offer much, and they never really threatened the USWNT across the two matches in December.
This Italy team isn’t bad. They entered this window ranked 12th in the world, with the USWNT ranked second. In these games, though, there was a clear gap. On Monday, the U.S. had 66 percent of the ball and fired seven shots to Italy’s one. One team was significantly better than the other here, no matter what the rankings say.
With the loss, Italy now sit on a five-game winless run. They lost to England in extra time in the Euro semifinals before drawing Japan and then falling to Brazil in October friendlies. These two defeats to the U.S. were the final pieces of that streak. There’s no shame in those results, but for a team that seems so close, turning those losses into signature wins is what will push this program forward.
Hayes has never been concerned about age. This match was the fourth time this year that she’d started three teenagers. This time, the trio was Yohannes, Jordyn Bugg, and Claire Hutton, and all three showed well.
Starting with Yohannes, who was, as always, one of the best players on the field. Her assist on the first goal was magnificent. Her dummies were breathtaking. Every time she was on the ball, magic happened. That’s nothing unusual for the 18-year-old midfielder these days. Hayes mentioned she’s encouraged by Yohannes’ showing, but stressed there are still areas for development.
“You can’t put a ceiling on anyone. So we won’t do that. But she’s 18, and all of the things that she has, the super strengths for her, we want to keep developing them, but at the same time, we’ve got to upskill her in the things that going to be required for the top level,” Hayes explained.
Hayes mentioned she played the teenager further up the pitch because of the fact that she still needs to grow defensively.
“I still think there’s room to grow in that and but she’s a willing student…What will keep accelerating her learning, is her commitment to the growth of the areas that she needs to add to be a truly world class player,” she said. “Right now, she’s a world-class prospect, and that there is a distinction, because that bar is really, really high.”
Hutton and Bugg were good, too. With Yohannes playing higher up, Hutton did well as Lindsey Horan’s midfield partner. Bugg, meanwhile, was rarely tested in defense but, in the few moments she was, acquitted herself well. None of the three looked like teenagers, and that’s the biggest compliment you can give them.
Hayes will continue to trust them, and she should, as these young stars continue to earn their trust.
