Emma Hayes brings back joy as US attack thrives in Olympic opener

The English coach was brought in to transform a team that had stumbled badly at last year’s World Cup. The early signs are encouraging

For US women’s national team manager Emma Hayes, just one roadblock seemed to be troubling her team as they made their way to France for their Olympic opener: the invisible brick wall that had been erected in front of goal.

In the team’s two pre-Olympic warmup friendlies, Hayes’ squad had 43 shots. Just 18 landed on target, and only one resulted in a goal. The team showed in a 1-0 win over Mexico and a 0-0 draw with Costa Rica that they had improved as an attacking unit over the course of Hayes’ first games in charge, but their ability to finish off plays was in question.