USWNT player ratings vs Argentina: Lindsey Heaps leads, Jaedyn Shaw scores as Trinity Rodman injury concern clouds SheBelieves win

The USWNT opened up their SheBelieves tournament with a scrappy but effective victory over Argentina at GEODIS Stadium.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The U.S. women’s national team didn’t burst out of the tunnel in their SheBelieves Cup opener against Argentina. It was physical, chippy and uneven early, forcing the backline to think rather than simply circulate.

But when the moment came, the USWNT were clinical. Goals from Lindsey Heaps and Jaedyn Shaw secured a 2-0 win - one built more on composure than flair.

"The amount of pressure they put on us, they made it very, very difficult," Heaps said to TNT following the win. "In a game like that, it's speeding up the tempo...You get the ball, get it back into play quickly and try to catch them off. Because when we're trying to build and create, it's a bit more difficult and its hard to find a solution."

Heaps wore the captain’s armband, and she wore it like a player with 170 caps to her name. Surrounded by a starting XI that totaled just 99 combined appearances, Heaps became the reference point - absorbing double teams, delaying runs, and finding the pockets that others couldn’t. It was fitting that she opened the scoring, settling a lofted delivery from Emma Sears at the top of the box before calmly finishing past Solana Pereyra.

Argentina didn’t fold. They pressed the American backline, forcing Tara Rudd and Kennedy Wesley to play through midfield pressure instead of across it. Claudia Dickey weathered a few nervy moments in goal, and the match never quite lost its edge.

"[Manager] Emma [Hayes] talked about it in the huddle: How do we prepare if we play a team like this in the World Cup. Do we know how to handle it? Do we know what it takes? We're in tournament mode right now." Olivia Moultrie said.

Jaedyn Shaw provided the exhale. After scoring a brace the last time these sides met, she once again delivered, curling a second-half strike beyond Pereyra to give the U.S. breathing room. Even as substitutions rolled through and the tempo stretched, the edge remained - scrappy, vocal, unsettled until the final whistle. The only concern, outside of an uneven showing, will be for Trinity Rodman. The forward appeared to deal with a back injury in extra time, a worry due to her history with ailments in that area.
The USWNT will next face Canada on March 4 in Columbus, Ohio, in their second match of the SheBelieves Cup tournament.

"We got the 2-0 win, maybe it's not the prettiest, but now we got to face Canada, and it's a different kind of game we have to solve," Heaps said.

GOAL rates the USWNT’s players from their 2-0 SheBelieves Cup win over Argentina at GEODIS Stadium ...

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Goalkeeper & Defense
Claudia Dickey (8/10):
Dickey registered three saves, and her reflexes were sharp all night, cutting out danger before it materialized. She handled some USWNT defensive breakdowns seamlessly. It's a good day for a keeper if they get a shutout and a win, and she got that.
Tara Rudd (8/10):
Rudd looked very composed in the backline on Sunday. She was in lockstep with Kennedy Wesley and managed to use her body and anticipation to prevent any breakdowns defensively.
Kennedy Wesley (7/10):
Wesley held her own, and then some. She found her rhythm with Rudd and was able to keep a pretty cheeky, fast Argentinian front line off the board.
Gisele Thompson (7/10):
Thompson was fun to watch when she sprang up high. The outside back was effective in possession, but even more so dangerous and an asset when she took the ball and ran with it up the flank. More and more reps will benefit her.
Maddie Dahlien (6/10):
Dahlien was out-sized on a few occasions, which wasn't ideal, but also not entirely unexpected for such a young player. Dahlien was still able to hold her own, make some key runs, and also kept Argentina off the board during her minutes on the pitch.

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Midfield
Lindsey Heaps (9/10):
Heaps was lights out on both sides of the ball, finding pockets of space, despite being given little to no space from Argentina's midfield. Her goal was a nice touch and helped the USWNT set the tone for the rest of the game.
Olivia Moultrie (6/10):
Moultrie has had better performances for the USWNT and struggled to find the ball. When she did get it, she took care of it fine, but could have better utilized her positioning and off-the-ball movements.
Lily Yohannes (8/10):
Heaps and Yohannes playing next to each other just makes sense. Yohannes was not only impressive going forward, but was also locked in defensively. She made several shutdown tackles and was always tracking back, helping the U.S. in crucial moments.
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Attack
Jameese Joseph (6/10):
Joseph never fully found her rhythm and struggled to hold up the ball and then make a simple pass, like she's done so well before. She had some stellar moments with Jaedyn Shaw, where the two just seemed to know where one another were.
Jaedyn Shaw (8/10):
Shaw was not just effective going forward, but was very sound positionally defensively. Shaw's goal was magic, and really helped the U.S. put the game away.
Emma Sears (7/10):
When the USWNT were able to find Sears, she was superb. She works so hard on both sides of the ball, and the opening goal wouldn't have happened if it weren't for her service and work rate out wide.

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Subs & Manager
Claire Hutton (7/10):
Fit in seamlessly in the midfield, as expected. Like Yohannes and Heaps, just has a natural instinct to be excellent on both sides of the ball.
Lilly Reale (N/A):
Pretty much entered the game in the second half, then got subbed out due to an injury.
Emily Fox (7/10):
Fox is just a great outside back that feels like the only locked-in outside back for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup. She fit in easily playing alongside Wesley and even had a few opportunities going forward.
Ally Sentnor (7/10):
Ally Sentnor looked like she was going to score just moments after she entered the game. Her quick feet, nose for goal, and mindset make her always on the cusp of a goal.
Trinity Rodman (6/10):
When Rodman entered the game, it was like the GEODIS Stadium woke up. Her presence alone raised the energy, but she hardly got the ball and didn't do much offensively when she did get it. USWNT fans will now wait anxiously for an update on one of the team’s most important stars.
Alyssa Thompson (7/10):
Thompson came in, and it was a sister-sister moment as she got to play with her younger sibling, Gisele. Seeing those two together is always fun for the crowd as they're both fan favorites. She had a few key runs, but the game ran late, and she didn't quite find her rhythm.
Emma Hayes (8/10):
Credit to Hayes for once again starting a lineup with not a lot of caps, balanced with someone like Heaps. It worked well. She handled a very chippy game as professionally as possible.

Goalkeeper & Defense

Midfield

Attack

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