Anyone following the Women’s World Cup has heard about it. The hype (positive and negative) surrounding the United States vs. Thailand game. The US team dominated the game 13-0. This is a phenomenal example of the highest level athletes living the second Soccer Mindset principle – I am aggressive and relentless!
The US Women were right to compete how they did (I won’t comment on the celebrations). They stepped on the field focused on scoring goals and breaking their opponent’s spirits and that’s exactly what they did. The US team did the right thing by putting up as many goals as possible on Thailand and here are the reasons why they took the right approach to that game:
- They treated the game like any other competition. Whether you are playing a friendly, scrimmaging at practice, playing an easy group game in the World Cup or playing in the World Cup finals, you should be competing with the same intensity. This way, every time you compete, you are building the habit of playing a certain style – aggressive and relentless!
- They treated Thailand as any other opponent. By treating all opponents the same, you are putting yourself in a position to feel less pressure in the games against the tougher opponents. If you play with the same intensity every game, even in the easiest games, then when the difficult games come around, you won’t have to “step up” your performance because you’re used to playing all-out every time you step on the field. This can be summarized by the attitude: “Everything is important, nothing special.” Treat all games and opponents the same – have fun and play with high intensity.
- The US Women showed mercy on Thailand and respected them as competitors. They treated them as worthy opponents. If the US team would have went easy, they would sent Thailand the message that they are a joke team who isn’t on the world level, almost spitting in their faces. The Thailand team knew what they signed up for when they first attempted to qualify for the World Cup. They knew they were going to face the toughest competition in the world. If they weren’t fully ready and didn’t want to take a beating, they should’ve stayed home.
No matter who you compete against – teammates at practice, the best team in the tournament or the worst, treat them the same. Put up as many goals as possible and when you see your opponents begin to break, score again and step on their throats (not literally)!
Aggressive and Relentless!