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The U.S. women's national team battled to earn a 1-1 draw against the Netherlands in a match that served as the first true test of the Americans' potential to win a third consecutive Women's World Cup title.

The reigning champions went down early after Jill Roord's 17th-minute goal but made up the difference in the 62nd minute when Lindsey Horan scored her second goal of the tournament. It was a match full of ups and downs as the USWNT attack was not at its best but improved as the match went on. The American defense, meanwhile, bolstered its case as the backbone of the team's title defense.

The draw serves as the most compelling argument yet that this World Cup is the most competitive in the tournament's history and that the USWNT's quest for a three-peat will be no easy feat. It also poses some questions about how the reigning champions handle the tasks ahead of them, firstly their group stage finale against Portugal on Tuesday when top spot in Group E is up for grabs.

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Here are three takeaways from the USWNT's match against the Netherlands:

1. Attack improves but lack of subs questionable

The USWNT's offensive struggles continued against the Netherlands, particularly in the first half. The team posted 18 shots during the match but put only four of them on target and frequently took too many touches as they approached goal and allowed the Dutch to successfully reset.

Things began to take a turn for the better after Rose Lavelle came on at halftime and especially after Horan's equalizer and seemed less halted by an organized Netherlands defense. The team showed promise on set pieces -- as demonstrated by Horan -- but the shot quality was not where it needed to be for the team to actually find a game-winning goal.

Vlatko Andonovski opted to make only one sub during the match despite having five at his disposal, switching on Lavelle for Savannah DeMelo at the half. He defended the decision in a postgame interview with Fox Sports.

"We had a good rhythm. We dominated the game, we controlled the game," he said. 

Considering the embarrassment of riches on the USWNT's bench, including an in-form Lynn Williams, it's worth asking if Andonovski could have bolstered his team's chances for a win with some personnel changes. 

2. Defense remains strong

It isn't all bad news for the USWNT. Despite conceding early on, the Dutch only registered five shots during the match. Roord's strike was the Netherlands' lone shot on goal, which only had an expected goals (XG) tally of .05. The Dutch attack was barely present in the second half, especially as the USWNT's attack ramped up its efforts with a half hour left on the clock.

Those five shots remain the only opportunities the American defense has conceded so far -- Vietnam did not have a single one in the USWNT's opener. The backline combination of Emily Fox, Julie Ertz, Naomi Girma and Crystal Dunn has only played twice together, but the group -- plus defensive midfielder Andi Sullivan -- are meeting the moment so far. Andonovski acknowledged their efforts post-match.

"I don't remember more than three shots," he said. "That's a great team there that we just faced and to keep that team on three shots in 100 minutes, that's a good performance."

The defensive unit's strengths provide a crucial foundation as the USWNT looks to improve during the World Cup and seem to be the key to their success so far.

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3. USWNT show resilience

The road to World Cup glory is always full of trials and tribulations and one intangible quality usually helps a team in need of a spark: belief.

Only four players who started the 2019 final against the Netherlands made the lineup, which meant a relatively inexperienced USWNT had to power through from a losing position in one of the biggest tests of their career. They passed first with Horan's goal and then with an improved performance following the equalizer.

"Nothing changed drastically from a tactical standpoint," Andonovski said. "We just pushed up Crystal and Fox higher from their starting position, we were just a bit more aggressive. The mentality is what changed the most. I think that it's not necessarily the mentality, it's the belief. This is a fairly young team, a team that hasn't been together for a long time.

"The belief is what got them going and got them through and I think as we go forward, we're going to see more of what you saw in the second half."

It likely will not be the last major test for the USWNT during this tournament with the quality of the opposition better than it's ever been. The ability to rally back and rescue a point against a talented Dutch team, though, may prove to be a valuable experience as the World Cup progresses.