American Lynn Williams, in center, celebrates with her teammates after scoring an opposite goal to the Netherlands in a women’s set-up in the quarterfinals of the 2020 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 30, 2021, in Yokohama, Japan.
YOKOHAMA – The football team has promised to be able to trade the trade, the players swore that the poor functionality we saw as an organization was an aberration, that now in the last eights they would know how to react.
Did you doubt it?
“You’re surprised, come on,” said Megan Rapinoe, who won Friday’s quarter-final victory over the Netherlands in a penalty shootout. “That’s who we are.
“This team never gives up, even when we play like s – or we play or we play in the middle. “
In the organizing game, that’s how his 3 games went: puaj, well, meh. For the first time in their history, the Americans remained goalless in two organizational matches. The whispers about age and questions about the coach have become loud.
But on Friday against the Netherlands, despite the fact that there were disorders with timing (four more goals cancelled out for offside) and possession, the U. S. team did what it does best: win and advance.
“This team isn’t used to losing, it’s not even used to having a bad game,” said coach Vlatko Andonovski, coach in his first major tournament. “It’s not easy to take care of that tension and recover. “
By beating the Netherlands, the same opponent they defeated in the 2019 World Cup final, the four-time Olympic gold medalists and four-time world champions are back in a familiar place: in the semi-finals, one step away from a title shot.
It’s another one from five years ago in Rio, when the Americans were expelled before the medals were circulated for the first time in their history. This team is not only looking to erase this memory, but also the first in history to achieve the rare double. of the championship: two consecutive world titles and Olympic gold.
The U. S. team will face its northern neighbor, Canada, in Monday’s semifinals, its first meeting in a primary tournament since a thrilling semifinal at the London Olympics, the last time the Americans won gold.
Friday’s star, the team’s soft-voiced goalteer, Alyssa Naeher, who played her most productive game since succeeding former starter Hope Solo. Usually not much was asked to do even keeping a company hand around the net, Naeher lag hugely behind in the game.
He scored a penalty in the 81rd minute. After regulation ended in a 2-2 draw, he stopped a close-range shot from brilliant Dutch forward Vivianne Miedema, who set an Olympic record with 10 goals in this tournament, in the 103rd minute.
And then, in the penalty shootout, Naeher made the difference: in the cavernous outdoor stadium, the one in the 2002 World Cup final between Brazil and Germany, maybe he heard his teammates screaming with encouragement, he saved the first shot, through Miedema, and The 4 Americans – Rose Lavelle, Alex Morgan, Christen Press and , ultimately, Rapinoe – made their shots coldly.
“These two stops, they relieve the team,” Rapinoe said. It’s huge. This gave all the shooters a lot of confidence. “
Andonovsky has been criticized in recent days for his tactics, but his strategy in large part paid off On Friday: In a surprise, he inserted Lynn Williams, who grew up in Fresno and played school ball in Pepperdine, as a starter. competing in her first major and only team member as a substitute, but when rosters expanded for outdoor team sports, she became eligible to play.
After the Dutch took a 1-0 lead, Williams and Carolina Courage teammate Sam Mews connected for two quick purposes: first, Williams brought a defender to his former roommate Mews in front of the purpose and Mews headed toward the scoreboard. Minutes to go, Mews returned the ball from the head to Williams, who kicked it to give the United States its first lead.
“This team thrives under pressure,” Williams said, adding that they were surprised to start. “I had nothing to lose. I came here as a substitute. Just excited to do what I can. “
Andonovsky starts from the same formation for the time being, and the Dutch tied the score for some other purpose from Miedema. That’s when he made the replacements. The 4 players he brought in the so far part were the 4 who fired the shots on purpose.
But it was Naeher who made the difference, in his greatest functionality of all time with the selection.
“I leave that to you,” he said when asked if he would describe things that way. “I just need to help my team win a gold medal. I’m proud of what I can do to get closer to that goal. . »
And to put the U. S. team back in its place, have you ever doubted it?