MIAMI — The US’ participation in the Women’s Earth Cup is more than, ending in the cruelest of defeats.
It was tense, the type of match which will cause the stomach to churn, but it is Sweden which progresses to the quarterfinals, stopping the two-time defending winner from profitable a historic 3 consecutive environment titles, with a thrilling penalty shootout victory in Melbourne on Sunday.
The match was determined by the video assistant referee (VAR), with referee Stéphanie Frappart – following examining the action – deeming that Lina Hurtig’s penalty had crossed the line regardless of the US’ Alyssa Naeher getting her hands to the ball and initially showing to preserve it.
Sweden’s gamers celebrated joyously, though there were being tears from the US squad, its participation ending in the spherical-of-16, the earliest the US has at any time departed a Women’s Environment Cup.
“So happy of the staff, of the gals on the area,” coach Vlatko Andonovski mentioned afterwards. “I know we have been criticized for the way we performed and for distinct moments in the group stage. I feel we arrived out today and showed what we are all about, confirmed the grit, the resilience, the fight, the bravery.”
With the rating goalless just after 120 minutes of participate in – 90 minutes of regulation time and 30 minutes of additional-time – the match experienced to be decided by penalty kicks.
Sweden’s Nathalie Björn was the initial participant to pass up from the spot, supplying Megan Rapinoe, who has now played her previous major match for her nation, the probability to place the US forward in the shootout, still Rapinoe – typically the most reliable of penalty takers – skipped to give Sweden hope all over again.
Rebecka Blomqvist of Sweden and the US’ Sophia Smith proceeded to also overlook from the location. With the scores tied at 4-4, up stepped substitute Kelley O’Hara for the US and her effort and hard work strike the crossbar, presenting Hurtig with the opportunity to get it for her staff.
Changing of the guard
The nearer a workforce receives to attaining background, the bigger the expectations turn into, the more microscopic the concentration on its every travail. The load of turning out to be the to start with to acquire a few successive Environment Cups in the long run proved as well significant, though there is some solace in defeat as this was the US’ most effective efficiency of the tournament.
The US has by no means prior to unsuccessful to arrive at the semifinals of a Globe Cup, so this will be a chastening encounter for a region that has for many years been a standard-bearer in women’s soccer.
Four a long time in the past, when it won its second successive title, the US was the dominant facet of its era, but situations have modified and the activity has moved on.
A lot has been created about the American squad’s struggles in this match. There was just just one victory in the team stage and a goalpost arrived to the team’s rescue towards Portugal, stopping the Portuguese from scoring a late winner which would’ve ended the US participation in this match.
A good deal has been claimed about the US’ mentality this very last 7 days, also – previous player Carli Lloyd was particularly vocal in her criticism adhering to the 1-1 draw with Portugal – but to place this defeat down to the disintegration of the country’s famed winning mentality would be also simplistic.
“That is our top secret sauce, it truly is the insatiable want to acquire,” Rapinoe explained to CNN Sport before the begin of the tournament. But defeat doesn’t indicate the team lacked the need to earn. It did, nonetheless, absence the killer instinct of previous, dominating Sweden – the US experienced 21 shots on intention, 11 on goal – without staying ready to puncture its protection.
That goalkeeper Zećira Mušović was Sweden’s star player suggests significantly about the tale of the match. That the Swedes only had 3 touches in the opposition penalty box in the very first fifty percent and experienced its first shot on concentrate on, through substitute Sofia Jakobsson, in the 85th moment suggests much about how the winning team performed. But it is Sweden which progresses to the final eight to deal with Japan on Friday. Sport can be brutal.
A unpleasant reduction
There ended up changes to the US workforce from the 11 that started off versus Portugal. In arrived Trinity Rodman and Emily Sonnett, the latter performing a essential defensive part in midfield as Andonovski switched development to a 5-participant midfield.
The new starters played the brightest in the initially fifty percent and, as the sport progressed, the US became a lot more at ease in possession. Even though, for a staff ranked 3rd in the environment, Sweden did very little to take a look at the opposition.
Dominating possession and generating a number of chances – the vast majority of which fell to Rodman, who twice pressured saves from Mušović with strikes from distance – the US had the superior of the first 50 percent.
Captain Lindsey Horan came the closest to breaking the deadlock, her header from a corner hitting the crossbar in the 34th moment, which triggered the US substitutes to rise to their ft on the sidelines.
It was a nervy recreation – as knockout matches on a phase these kinds of as this are – and the longer the match progressed, the much more strained the event grew to become.
Quickly just after the restart, Horan compelled a high-quality close-variety diving save from Mušović, and once more Sweden’s goalkeeper arrived to her country’s rescue when she prevented Alex Morgan from scoring minutes from total-time with another stop from position-blank assortment.
In further-time, Mušović stood business, initially in opposition to Morgan and then Smith, the latter seeking to defeat her at the in close proximity to publish in the 107th moment.
However, for all the possession, for all the endeavor, for all the tries on Sweden’s goal, the US was not medical enough, which was a dilemma through this event.
This becoming a knockout match, there experienced to be a winner, and so the sport went to penalties to luck, to nerve and to the most unpleasant of losses for the loser.
