The U.S. women's national team and Spain met Saturday in an international friendly, a fixture that drew comparisons to a potential 2027 Women's World Cup final matchup. Speaking to reporters after a 2–0 defeat to the reigning Olympic champions, Hayes said the team's display had fallen short of what she expected.

Speaking to reporters in Washington, D.C. after the match, Hayes conveyed that the result had left her disappointed, though her resolve to press on remained intact. Philadelphia hosts a rematch between the two nations on Tuesday, marking their second consecutive non-competitive fixture.

Several aspects of the squad's performance caught Hayes's attention as areas she wants the group to work on. Two goals down within the first 14 minutes, the United States — ranked second in the world — spent much of the contest playing catch-up against top-ranked Spain.

Within the opening three minutes, a shot from around 30 yards out by Patri Guijarro found the side-netting after sailing past Claudia Dickey to put the first goal on the board. The back four drifted out of position ahead of Guijarro's strike, while the USWNT midfield offered no pressure on the ball.

Speaking to broadcasters after the loss, Hayes described a pre-match instruction her squad had received — to press opponents on the ball outside the penalty area, given that players left with room in that zone tend to finish — and noted the opening goal arrived from exactly that kind of distance. The second unfolded along comparable lines, with Eva Navarro drifting into open space to meet a cross at the far post without a defender near her, pointing to a collective failure in defensive shape rather than any shortcoming in individual ability.

From that point on, the team was unable to find a way back into the match — 10 shots on target, a penalty kick, and evident determination on the pitch notwithstanding. Hayes told reporters afterward that conceding two goals against the top-ranked side in the world, in the manner they did, left no room for recovery.

Their previous outing together as a unit had come in June, a 1–0 victory over Brazil in an international friendly. Adjusting to life back on the international stage posed a genuine challenge for the squad across those two days of competition.

Four defenders — Avery Patterson, Kennedy Wesley, Tierna Davidson, and Emily Fox — lined up together as a unit for the first time. Hayes noted that having moved through the initial hands-on phase, the outlook for Tuesday looks more favourable — adding that no amount of planning at that level substitutes for direct experience.

On the defensive end, the USWNT has room to sharpen its reading of space and positioning across the pitch. Hayes directed pointed attention toward Spain's second goal, noting that any defender operating in a man-to-man assignment needs to position themselves on the goal side of their opponent.

Defensively, a back-post delivery from Paralluelo exposed positioning gaps across the unit — with Davidson beaten wide, Patterson pulled toward two opponents at once, and Wesley caught between zones. Post-match remarks from captain Lindsey Heaps attributed both conceded goals less to Spain constructing sustained pressure and more to the team's own lapses in pressing and transition management. On the other end of the pitch, the squad left a number of attacking opportunities unconverted.

Thirteen attempts at goal produced a 3.0 xG tally, yet the net remained untouched by the time the final whistle sounded. Penetrating the space behind the Spanish defensive line with regularity, the U.S. side built stretches of clear territorial control — yet when clear-cut chances arrived, their finishing fell short of what the opportunities demanded.

Spain converted both of its opening attempts on goal — a return of two from two — while finishing with an xG of just 0.68. Hayes told reporters that the output illustrated the kind of efficiency she had been referencing, before asking whether the team had done enough to earn a goal, and answered in the affirmative.

Whether the team's performance across the match translated into the opportunity for a second goal is a question worth examining. A goal from Sophia Wilson in the 53rd minute was subsequently ruled out after a VAR check determined she had been in an offside position.

Five minutes later, Rodman had the ball at close range but sent her attempt straight to the goalkeeper. She subsequently told reporters that the team had struggled to convert in the attacking third — a shortcoming she placed herself within — and noted her finishing work inside the penalty box fell short of the standard she had set for herself.

Nanclares turned away a shot aimed at the centre of the goal, and Hayes later told reporters the match had felt like one of those days when the ball simply would not go in — while stopping short of attributing that to bad luck. Lapses throughout the contest — the conceded penalty among them — drew the bulk of the post-match criticism.