Lindsey Horan sets a fiery example for young USWNT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Don't mess with Lindsey Horan.

That was an important lesson opponents — current and future — learned from the U.S. women's national team's 1-1 World Cup draw against the Netherlands on Wednesday at Wellington Regional Stadium.

In the 62nd minute, Netherlands midfielder Danielle van de Donk made a rough tackle on Horan on the left wing. A foul was not called, but the U.S. co-captain was down on the turf for a few minutes rubbing her knee. When Horan got up, she found van de Donk — her friend and teammate with French club Lyon — in the penalty box and that's when the chirping began.

It got heated — arms waving, fingers pointing — enough that the referee had to break them up. Asked after the match what the official told players, Horan said she didn't remember because "it was too long."

Seconds later, Horan responded with an equalizing goal. Rose Lavelle, who came in at halftime, sent the perfect corner straight to Horan, who headed it into the back of the net to secure what would be a 1-1 final scoreline.

"That's where you get the best from Lindsey," Horan said of herself after the game. "I don't think you ever want to get me mad because I don't react in a good way, usually. I want to win more. I want to score more. I want to do more for my team.

"So that moment, that tackle, made a shift in my head. I want to do everything for my team and that's to win every game. That's how football is. It's competitive."

Heading into this match, Horan was sitting on a yellow card. If she was cautioned against the Dutch, she'd have to sit out the USWNT's third and final group-stage match against Portugal on Aug. 1 (coverage begins at 1 a.m. with kickoff at 3 a.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app).

So Julie Ertz smartly reminded her of that before things got out of control.

"She was like, ‘Please don't get another yellow card. Just score this goal to shut everyone up,'" Horan said. "And that's what happened. So that was incredible. In the back of my head, I had full belief that Rose was going to put [the corner] on a dime, which she did, and I scored, and it was really cool."

While her goal is to win as many titles as possible for the USWNT, Horan has also thought about her own opportunity at this World Cup and the type of big moments needed to cement her own legacy. Horan, 28, is playing in her second World Cup and was named co-captain before the tournament began. She actually told a story last week that two years ago, she revealed to coach Vlatko Andonovski that her dream was to captain the U.S. side at a World Cup.

[USA-Netherlands takeaways: USWNT finds resolve in second half to force a draw]

Horan, a former NWSL champion and regular season MVP with the Portland Thorns, currently plays her club football in Europe, and feels her game may not be as well-known these days to American fans.

"I think about that quite often," Horan told FOX Sports earlier this year. "I don't know if I feel appreciated for the type of football that I play, especially on the national team. But I don't really care. I want our team to win and I want to play the best football I can play, and I want to be the best player I can be for this team.

"I obviously would love to have big moments in this World Cup and do whatever I can to help the team win. That is the most important thing."

Against the Netherlands, she was the spark and jolt the USWNT needed.

"She's passionate," Ertz said. "She wants to win and that's that at the end of the day. Period. Done."

In making a statement, Horan also set an example for the younger players who are experiencing their first World Cup. Horan, Ertz, Alex Morgan, Crystal Dunn and Alyssa Naeher were the only veterans to play a full 90 minutes against the Dutch. Horan getting pushed around and immediately transforming anger into a heroic moment for the USWNT is indicative of the spirit of this squad.

Maybe van de Donk thought she had her friend right where she wanted. Then Horan made her pay. (The two did make up after the final whistle, laughing and putting their arms around each other. Horan said that's the kind of battle she expects from a respected opponent.)

"The resilience and relentlessness that this team has is sometimes crazy," Andonovski said. "When she's down and hurt she comes out on top of everything. And that's Lindsey. That's Alex. That's Crystal. That's JJ [Ertz]. I mean, they all have it.

"And it was good to see that right in front of the younger players because it rubs off. And then you can see that they're pretty much picking up the mentality and the belief and are able to make a difference."

[USWNT 'learned a few lessons' from clawing back against the Netherlands]

It's also the right kind of adversity the USWNT needs to get under its belt before the knockout stage as that's when the stakes get even higher.

"You're gonna see more and more of this," Horan said. "Netherlands is such a great team so it's good for us in the group stage to get that kind of pressure against such a great opponent.

"Now we move forward, we learned a few lessons from this game and the focus is on Portugal."

Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of "Strong Like a Woman," published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her on Twitter @LakenLitman.