The United States veteran Megan Rapinoe has said that her side is built to handle the pressure in their must-win final group stage match against Portugal on Tuesday at the ongoing FIFA Women's World Cup.
The four-time champions have never been knocked out in the group stage but that could change if they don’t register a win or a draw against Portugal.
The US defeated Vietnam in the opening match but could only manage a 1-1 draw against the Netherlands as they look to clinch their third consecutive title.
"Everybody's like, 'Okay, we have to perform better and we have to get this result'. I mean, I think that that is something that just always gets passed down through the generations of this team," Rapinoe told reporters.
"We go into these moments like, 'Hell yeah, this is exactly where we want to be'."
This year's performance has been compared with the United States' 2015 campaign, when they won their first match against Australia followed by a scoreless draw against Sweden. However, they defeated Japan in the final.
"Being on the U.S. women's national team it kind of always feels like this," said Rapinoe.
"This is just the pressure in general being at the World Cup - this moment is going to come no matter what. So it's not a bad thing, I don't think, for everyone to be like, 'Okay, let's like, you know, strap in and get ready for this game'."
The 2019 Ballon d'Or winner is featuring in her fourth World Cup but the ongoing event carries more meaning as she is set to retire at the end of her club season.
"We're unsatisfied with the way that we've played, but we know the areas that we can be better," said Rapinoe. "And I think there's some really simple fixes that we can do to put ourselves in a better position."
Rapinoe was also asked how her team would be judged if they didn’t go all the way in the mega event.
"I never thought about that," she gave a long pause before offering a response.