Carli Lloyd has always been a competitor. She's always had a mentality that was cutthroat, disciplined, and often difficult to understand from the outside. The 42-year old was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame last weekend, recognized for her 17-year professional career that included two World Cups, two Olympic gold medals, an English FA Cup, as well as two FIFA Women's Player of the Year awards.
When most soccer fans think about Lloyd, they recall the relentless striker who carried the U.S. women's national team to multiple world titles. They think of a determined athlete who saw winning as the only option, and wouldn't let anyone, or anything get in the way.
The New Jersey native was known, in her prime, as a player who was hard to relate to. Her standards were incredibly high, training regimine secretive and elaborate, and focus seemingly narrow.
On Saturday, in Texas, the world saw a different side of Lloyd.