AUCKLAND, July 29 (Reuters) - The United States must find their rhythm after falling out of sync in their 1-1 draw against the Netherlands, midfielder Andi Sullivan said, with everything on the line for their final match of the Women's World Cup group stage on Tuesday.
The four-times champions face a do-or-die meeting with debutantes Portugal in their last Group E game, where they must win or draw to avoid the humiliation of missing the knockout stage for the first time.
"(Portugal are) a strong team, going to be a tough game, we know what's on the line," Sullivan told reporters on Saturday.
If the U.S. team and the 2017 European Champions both win next week, the winner of Group E could come down to goal differential.
"We're going to need to play fast and score a lot of goals," said Sullivan, who is competing in her first World Cup.
Persons:
Andi Sullivan, Sullivan, Lindsey Horan, Vlatko Andonovski, Nathan Frandino, Amy Tennery, Lincoln
Organizations:
AUCKLAND, debutantes Portugal, U.S, Vietnam, Portugal, U.S ., Thomson
Locations:
United States, Netherlands, Portugal, Wellington, Vietnam, U.S, Auckland