Photo Copyright Lewis Gettier for The Equalizer

PARIS — United States women’s national team coach Jill Ellis says her team will not defend the World Cup next year, but will instead “attack” it, outlining that half of the players involved in the current setup were not part of the team which lifted the trophy in 2015. The current world champions on Saturday were placed in Group F of the 2019 edition alongside Sweden, who they have faced in every World Cup group since 2003, as well as Thailand and Chile.

When asked whether there would be pressure on her players as defending champions, she highlighted how different the makeup of the roster is with many now involved having never played at FIFA’s showpiece event.

“I think so much of it when you are a team that has won it, it’s all about how you approach the next game and the next World Cup,” Ellis said. “I think for us, it’s not about defending the World Cup. This is a completely different team playing a different style, a different system. It’s about attacking the World Cup, so that’s the approach – we’re not defending anything.”

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