Hayes insists USA defeat to Brazil was great experience for young team

United States Women's head coach Emma Hayes was not downhearted by their 2-1 defeat at home to Brazil in a friendly on Tuesday.

Catarina Macario put the United States ahead inside the first minute, though they were pegged back by a Kerolin equaliser on 24 minutes before Amanda Gutierres broke the hosts' hearts with a 95th-minute winner.

Hayes, though, insists that the match had been a useful exercise for her, having beaten Brazil 2-0 in another friendly just four days previously.

"We mustn't always measure progress by outcome. That was the youngest capped USWNT in 24 years," she told reporters in her post-match press conference.

"What a great experience for them to go into a game and feel the pressure of playing a really difficult opponent. If I only prioritise short-term success, of course I wouldn't make that many changes.

"But I'm not making decisions for the short term, I'm prioritising the progress from expanding the playing pool to getting to see what these players look like in a really difficult match."

Macario's opening goal was her 10th for the national team and, at 26 years old, she was the second-oldest player in the starting XI.

The lineup itself averaged just 17.9 caps per player at the start of the game, which is the lowest for a USWNT team in the last 24 years. Defender Emily Sonnett (107) had more caps than the rest of the team combined (81).

There was no doubt from Hayes that she was using the match as an opportunity to experiment with the team against top opposition.

Final from PayPal Park. pic.twitter.com/vvTzWxvVqT

— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) April 9, 2025

"We won't get the opportunity to play a team like Brazil until hopefully we go to Brazil maybe next year. I don't want to wait another year for me to get a look at these less experienced players against a top-level opponent," she said.

"I'm glad I made the decision, even if you feel a little bit of short-term pain within it.

"I took decisions to say that I want to see a few more first, and I want to see where they're really at. I'm a lot clearer now.

"I wouldn't know that if didn't put Alyssa Thompson in this position. If I play her against, say China or Ireland, I learn what I might already know. Today, I learned what I didn't know and I was really happy with it."

Despite conceding an equaliser halfway through the first half, United States performed well throughout the first 45 minutes, which was something that Hayes was keen to point out.

"To be fair to the group, we started the game really well. We had a good 45 minutes, competed considering how little experience so many of them had," she said.

"Probably should have scored more goals in the first half and I think that's a lesson of how you've got to take your chances at the top level."

But the home team struggled to match their earlier levels in the second period, failing to register a single shot on target while Brazil had three and generated 2.31 xG.

It is hard to argue that the winning goal for Brazil, which came just three minutes before the final whistle, was not deserved. Hayes recognised that there was work to do to keep the team's performance levels consistent over the course of a full game.

"I thought in the second half, we came out completely flat. Maybe that was quite a big effort for a lot of the players, mentally and physically, but I thought we started the second half so flat and never recovered," she said.

"A game is not 45 minutes long, it was a great first half, it wasn't good enough in the second half.

"I kept saying to the team: I want to put players in the frying pan and I want you to feel the heat. This camp was always about expanding and experimenting this player pool.

"It is becoming so clear to me on which players are really ready for us right now and which ones are not."