US coach Ellis relentless in pursuit of perfection

The 52-year-old English-born Ellis stands on the cusp of history in France, with a chance to become the first coach to win back-to-back World Cup titles after leading the USA to victory in 2015.

The straight-talking daughter of a Royal Marines commando, Ellis sees it as her role to keep the squad in a perpetual pursuit of perfection.

"Part of the job is to create an environment where they might potentially initially fail or struggle, to force them to dig in that well," Ellis said before a recent friendly international in Los Angeles.

That relentless, demanding approach approach hasn't always endeared her to the members of her squad.

In 2017, several senior players approached the then president of the United States Soccer Federation, Sunil Gulati, to raise concerns about Ellis's style of management. Gulati backed Ellis.

Some of those grievances have followed Ellis to France. Former goalkeeper Hope Solo, who was axed by Ellis after the team were eliminated at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, said the American women had enjoyed success in spite of Ellis's presence at the helm.

"Jill -- she's not the leader I wish her to be," Solo said. "She cracks under the pressure quite a bit. The United States knows how to find a way to win in spite of who the coach is."

Ellis has shrugged off the criticism, comfortable in the knowledge that so far, at least, her team appears to be firing on all cylinders.

A record-breaking 13-0 victory over Thailand in the team's World Cup opener on Tuesday was her team's seventh consecutive victory, extending an unbeaten streak to 10 games since their last defeat, a 3-1 loss to France in January.