The top-ranked Americans have put their believe within the subsequent technology this yr and have been rewarded with a showstopping efficiency from the 22-year-old ahead, who additionally equipped the help for co-captain Lindsey Horan’s objective in the second one 1/2.
Vietnam have been slightly in a position to breach the general 3rd on their World Cup debut however goalkeeper Tran Thi Kim Thanh dived to his proper to save lots of Alex Morgan’s first-half penalty in one in every of a number of just right probabilities the USA spurned.
Smith scored her first within the 14th minute off a neat flick thru from Morgan and fired her moment from shut vary all through stoppage time on the finish of the 1/2, the strike to start with dominated out for offside however showed after a VAR assessment.
Horan, who assumed the captaincy this yr, made amends for an previous leave out when she were given at the scoresheet within the 77th minute after Smith reduce the ball again to the middle of the field having overwhelmed a defender at the proper flank.
The closely American presence within the crowd of 41,107 roared with excitement as Megan Rapinoe, who plans to retire on the finish of this yr, took the sector halfway thru the second one 1/2 however the 38-year-old additionally overlooked a just right scoring likelihood.
Midfielder Rose Lavelle was once additionally left pissed off as a shot within the eighty fifth minute ricocheted off the crossbar and some other likelihood went over the web in second-half stoppage time.
The US subsequent face the Netherlands on Thursday of their moment Group E recreation, a rematch of the 2019 World Cup ultimate, whilst Vietnam subsequent play Portugal.