Lindsey Horan Admits USWNT Wasn't Fully Prepared For World Cup Days After Complaining About Carli Lloyd's Criticism

Now having over two weeks to reflect on the USWNT's worst-ever performance in a Women's World Cup, members of the squad have had an ample amount of time to reflect and determine what exactly went wrong. According to co-captain Lindsey Horan, the team simply wasn't prepared for the tournament.

While Horan didn't fully point the finger at coach Vlatko Andonovski, who recently stepped down, she did admit that training camps and practice sessions didn't allow them to get the best out of every player.

"When a coach comes in, it's like, hey, how do we get the best out of every single individual player putting the most simplicity into a 10-day camp every few months and getting the best out of your team, and without overcomplicating everything?" Horan said on the RE-INC YouTube show.

"Because yes, I could talk about the last four-year cycle, and we don't need to get into every single thing, but that's not what we did. We did not get the best out of every single individual. I don't think everyone was fully prepared, and that's on us as well."

Lindsey Horan, the USWNT co-captain, admitted that the team wasn't prepared for the Women's World Cup. (Photo by Alex Pantling - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)

The USWNT entered the 2023 Women's World Cup as back-to-back champions. While there's very real pressure to become the first-ever three-peat winners of the event, claiming that the team wasn't "fully prepared" for the biggest tournament the sport has to offer sounds like a cop-out.

The co-captain of a team, whose job it is to make sure everyone is prepared, willing to admit that her team wasn't actually prepared also speaks to the questionable culture inside the team room.

READ: MEGAN RAPINOE GOES AFTER ALEXI LALAS, CONSERVATIVES FOR USWNT CRITICISM

Horan also claimed players on the team "weren't enjoying individually playing," which is quite the statement after videos of the team dancing and singing went viral after a lackluster 0-0 draw against Portugal in the group stage that barely saw the USWNT escape out of.

Former USWNT star Carli Lloyd was a vocal critic of both the team's performance and behavior after finishing second in the group. She received backlash from many, including Horan, despite being spot on with her assessment of the team's effort.

Horan was asked about Lloyd's criticisms and questioning of the team's passion after the scoreless draw against Portugal and claimed the former player had "no idea" what was going on.

"For me, I always want to defend my team and say: you have no idea what’s going on behind the scenes, you have no idea every single training what we’re doing individually, collectively, etcetera," Horan said.

“So, for anyone to question our mentality hurts a little bit but at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter. I don’t really care. It’s what’s going inside of the team and getting ready for that next game.”

Horan's comment about Lloyd was nothing short of moronic given that she played 316 games for the USWNT and led them to not one, but two World Cup victories while wearing the captain’s armband on multiple occasions.

Horan may believe that saying the team wasn't prepared for the World Cup may take a bit of pressure off the squad, or quiet down some of the critics, but in reality, it makes the already unlikeable team even less likable.

Follow Mark Harris on Twitter @ItIsMarkHarris