U.S. Women Demolish Denmark

The U.S. Women’s National Team resumed its Olympic Qualifying form by thrashing Denmark 5-0 during the first game of the Algarve Cup tournament on Wednesday.

Alex Morgan scored two goals (21′, 84′), while Abby Wambach (44′), Carli Lloyd (76′) and Sydney Leroux (90+3′) joined her on the scoresheet. Goalkeeper Hope Solo, who hasn’t allowed a goal in 2012, kept the net tidy and earned her fifth clean sheet of the year at Estadio Municipal in Lagos, Portugal.

In a 4-4-2 formation, the U.S. started to dominate about 15 minutes into the match.  The pressure on the Danish defense finally yielded a goal in the 21st minute when Morgan took a Heather O’Reilly pass and fired a shot that rattled the post before it trickled into the goal during the 21st minute.

The U.S. struck again in the shadow of the interval when Wambach slid into a pass from Morgan inside the six-year box to slot it home as the Americans marched into halftime with a two-goal advantage.

Carli Lloyd padded the lead in the 76th minute when she one-timed a pass from Lauren Cheney to make to put it out of the Danes’ reach.

But the Americans weren’t about to let their foot off the gas. In the 84th minute, Morgan delivered an encore when she raced into the area and sent a Tobin Heath ball into the back of the net.

Sydney Leroux capped the scoring in stoppage time with a deft redirection of a Stephanie Cox pass.

With the win, the U.S. sits atop the Group B standings, with a +5 goal differential giving it the edge over Japan, which beat Norway 2-1 on Wednesday.

The U.S. returns to action on Mar. 2 against Norway at Estadio Municipal. The game will start at 10am ET.