Jeff Kassouf
CHESTER, Pa. — United States women’s national team coach Emma Hayes applauded the courage of her substitutes after the team overcame a two-goal halftime deficit to secure a 2-2 draw against World Cup champions Spain at Subaru Park on Tuesday.
Hayes deployed five changes around the 60th minute and added three more substitutes with ten minutes remaining. Forward Ashley Sanchez scored for the U.S. shortly after halftime, while Mallory Swanson — inserted during the first wave of substitutions — netted the equalizer in the 86th minute.
“They showed remarkable fearlessness,” Hayes said of her bench players. “Sometimes that’s exactly what’s needed — when you’re coming into a game with nothing to lose, the mission is clear. I truly admired their bold approach in the second half.”
Swanson had not scored for the United States since her gold-medal-winning goal at the 2024 Olympics. She spent all of 2025 on maternity leave and only recently returned to the national team.
“I’m incredibly grateful,” said Swanson, smiling after the match. Both defender Kate Del Fava and midfielder Pietra Tordin made their U.S. debuts when they entered in the 80th minute.
Del Fava delivered the long pass to Michelle Cooper — another reserve player praised by Hayes — that led directly to Swanson’s goal.
“The strength lies in the depth of our squad,” Hayes noted.
Switching to a 3-5-2 formation in the second half, Hayes utilized Cooper and Alyssa Thompson as wingbacks.
“Emma told us the game wasn’t finished and that we needed to come in and change the outcome,” Thompson explained. “We knew our roles and embraced an aggressive mindset.”
The U.S. conceded two goals separated by five minutes around the 30-minute mark, falling behind 2-0 early for the second time in three days.
Two-time Ballon d’Or recipient Alexia Putellas opened the scoring for Spain with a tap-in following a series of defensive coordination errors from the U.S.
Salma Paralluelo extended Spain’s lead five minutes later after U.S. goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce mistimed a clearance, gifting possession in a dangerous area.
However, Sanchez — who started despite previous comments from Hayes about coming off the bench — scored for the U.S. just four minutes into the second half. This marked her first international goal since 2022 after a near two-year absence from the squad.
Swanson, Cooper, Thompson, Lily Yohannes, and Jaelin Howell all entered around the 60th minute. Del Fava, Tordin, and Emma Sears came on in the 80th minute. Both teams agreed to use eight substitutes for the friendly.
Yohannes nearly secured a late victory in stoppage time, but Spain goalkeeper Misa Rodríguez dove low to deflect the shot wide for a corner kick.
“Then we gained momentum,” Hayes reflected. “It can be challenging bringing on substitutes all at once, but they entered at the perfect moment and influenced the game positively. Honestly, I felt we could have won it in the final moments.”
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