U.S. Aiming to Make History (Jill Ellis interview)

United States head coach Jill Ellis reflects on winning the World Cup barely twelve months into the job and looks ahead to Rio. She describes a position with zero margin for error, where one defeat in a year has cost coaches their jobs, and says she insulated herself from heavy media and ex-player criticism by staying off social media entirely. She defends her use of veterans, particularly Abby Wambach, and explains the shift away from a team that spent ninety per cent of its training time attacking towards a more balanced side. With Wambach, Shannon Boxx, Lauren Holiday and Lori Chalupny retired, she is blending seventeen-year-old Mallory Pugh and other newcomers into a squad chasing an unprecedented World Cup and Olympic double.