Netherlands forward Lineth Beerensteyn wasn’t upset to see the U.S. women’s national team get knocked out of the World Cup.
In fact, it was quite the opposite.
Beerensteyn slammed the USWNT on Thursday, just days after it fell to Sweden in the knockout round of the tournament. It marked the earliest exit the United States has had in the World Cup.
From Beerensteyn’s perspective, the Americans were incredibly cocky upon their arrival in Australia and New Zealand.
“From the first moment I heard they were out, I was just like, ‘Yes! Bye!,” Beerensteyn, who also plays for Juventus, said Thursday, via ESPN. “From the start of the tournament, they had really big mouths and were already talking about the final.
“I was thinking you first have to show it on the pitch before you talk.”
After failing to win its final two games in the group stage, the USWNT fell to Sweden in a penalty shootout in the Round of 16 at the World Cup on Sunday in Melbourne. The U.S. and the Netherlands match in the group stage ended in a 1-1 draw. Sunday’s loss to Sweden extended the USWNT’s winless streak to three games and kept their scoring drought to 238 minutes, both of which are the worst in its history.
The USWNT will now have to regroup, and will do so without several big names who have led the organization for years now. Both Megan Rapinoe and Julie Ertz have announced their retirements, and more are likely coming. That paves the way for young stars like Sophia Smith, Trinity Rodman, Alyssa Thompson and others to step in.
While it’s easy to see why the USWNT may have been a bit cocky coming into the event — the team was the betting favorite entering the World Cup after coming off back-to-back titles — that attitude clearly didn’t work out in the end.
“I’m not being rude in that way, I still have a lot of respect for them, but now they’re out of the tournament, and for me, it’s a relief, and for them, it’s something they will have to take with them in the future,” Beerensteyn said.
“Don’t start to talk about something that is far away. I hope they will learn from that.”
Beerensteyn and the Netherlands will take on Spain in the World Cup quarterfinals Thursday (9 p.m. ET, Fox).
