Sophia Smith's mindset summed up by bold Team USA message at Paris Olympics

United States women's national team phenom Sophia Smith has claimed that on Team USA can still find another level - a scary thought for opponents amid the USWNT's scintillating Paris 2024 Olympics form. Smith and Co. have been so good that head coach Emma Hayes gave them a reward following a dominant Sunday win over Germany, allowing them time off to explore France.

Smith, 23, has looked unstoppable alongside strike partners Trinity Rodman and Mallory Swanson. Hayes’ side began its Olympics run with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Zambia before sweeping Germany aside in a 4-1 rout over the weekend.

However, Smith has said that the team hasn’t maximized its abilities yet despite scoring seven goals in two games, including six goals and three assists between the clinical front-line partnership. The USWNT only needs a draw to secure top spot in its final group stage game against Australia on Wednesday. Smith has urged her teammates to continue to search for improvements.

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“This is probably only game six or seven of us playing up front together,” Smith told The Athletic after scoring a brace against Germany. “We’re clicking really well, really fast. I think this is only like 70 percent of what we can do.”

It appears the mindset that Team USA still has plenty more to offer and a number of gears to find was echoed by Hayes, who was far from completely satisfied after Sunday’s victory. "I thought that we were our biggest problem. There's still things that irritate me about us, but that's for me to fix,” she said.

The USWNT is into the quarter-finals of Hayes’ first major tournament in charge. She took over the job following the conclusion of the Women’s Super League campaign following a trophy-laden 12 years in charge of Chelsea.

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And she acknowledged that the players’ determination is matching her demands. "There's things I'm learning about the team tonight from a character perspective that I want to see, from a resilience perspective I wanted to see," Hayes added. "When you play a top-level opponent, you get to see all sides and I saw all sides of us tonight, which was pleasing."

Smith has been on her own personal redemption mission during these Games after she missed a crucial penalty against Sweden in the 2023 Women’s World Cup round of 16 match, as the U.S. was dumped out after a penalty shootout.

After missing her attempt, Smith admitted to feeling heartbroken and reflected on her disappointment during a podcast appearance. "The World Cup experience was really tough. We knew that we had to stick together because it felt like us against the world," she said.

"I obviously didn't do my part and put away my penalty. That's something I have to live with and obviously still makes me feel sick to this day. But I think it's just how you respond to that, and we can come away from it learning more about each other and ourselves.”