St. Paul, Minnesota Oct. 27 (BUS): American women’s Carli Lloyd was sent into retirement with a 6-0 win over South Korea on Tuesday night.
Lloyd didn’t score in her last game, but it didn’t matter because the night was all about it. Fans chanted Lloyd’s name before the match, and one of them held a banner that read: “World Cup again, please?”
Lloyd retires after a career that included two World Cup titles and a pair of Olympic gold medals. She scored three goals in the first 16 minutes of the United States’ victory over Japan in the 2015 Women’s World Cup Final, according to the Associated Press.
Lloyd’s last game was his 316th with the national team, the second most international for any player. The United States scored 134 goals, the third most in the team’s history, along with 61 assists.
Lloyd was substituted in the 65th minute and sobbed as she departed to a standing ovation by the 18115 crowd at Allianz Field. She removed her cleats and took off her shirt, revealing another shirt with her married name, Hollins, emblazoned on her back.
Lloyd, 39, has hinted that she is nearing the end of her career ahead of the Tokyo Olympics. The United States won the bronze medal this summer, with Lloyd scoring twice in a 4-3 win over Australia. She announced plans to retire shortly thereafter.
She became the first American to score in four different Olympics, and her 10 goals in that event were the most for an American player.
After the team’s 0-0 draw last week against South Korea in Kansas City, Kansas, Lloyd passed her number 10 jersey to Lindsey Horan, who will wear the number starting in 2022.
Lloyd made her national team debut in 2005 and her career culminated with her third in the World Cup Final. Her third goal against Japan was a powerful shot from midfield.
At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Lloyd scored in the 1–0 overtime win over Brazil for the gold medal. Four years later, she scored both goals in the gold-medal match against Japan at Wembley Stadium, becoming the only player to score winning goals in successive Olympic finals.
Born in New Jersey, Lloyd also played professionally for 12 years, spanning stints in the now-defunct Women’s Professional Football League and the Women’s National Football League. She will finish her professional season with NWSL’s Gotham FC, which has two regular season games remaining.
Against South Korea on Tuesday, Houran put the United States ahead in the ninth minute with a goal that collided with the opposing player. It was her twenty-fourth career goal.
His own goal put the Americans 2-0 up before the end of the first half.
Alex Morgan, who replaced Lloyd, scored in the 69th minute to make it 3-0. Megan Rapinoe added a goal in the 85th minute and Rose Lavelle scored in the 89th minute. Lynne Williams crowned the goal in stoppage time. The United States extended its unbeaten streak at home to 62 games.