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JTMacc99

By JTMacc99
in 2021 Olympic Games

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shantown

shantown

We got up at 4:30am to watch, with the thought process that they’d win and the excitement would power us through the rest of the day. Now it’s 10am and I regret it! The USWNT was just not connecting in any sense, and I think not getting off to a good start really got to their heads. Hoping that now they shook off the jet lag or the “World Cup winners” pressure or the nerves or WHATEVER was tripping them up and this lit a fire under their butts!

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paulvdb

paulvdb

Group F has seen some prolific goal scoring in its first three matches. With 5-0 and 10-3 results on the opening day and now a 4-4 between China and Zambia. Zambia may only be 104th in the world rankings, but Banda is the top goal scorer in the tournament so far with 6 goals. And as I type this I see that The Netherlands have already scored their first goal against Brazil in the 3rd minute. So maybe another high scoring match coming up?

greyhorse

greyhorse

An uneven performance by the US Women en route to a tie with Australia.  They had some good chances but just couldn't put the ball into the back of the net.  Alex Morgan had the great header to score, only to be ruled offsides on video replay by what seemed like inches.  Several other weak shots that had no chance.  And there was a great free ball where it seemed like the US had 3 free in the box but just couldn't connect.

Frustrating watching the last 15 minutes when Australia seemingly just played keep away with four defenders on the back line passing the ball back and forth, wasting 1-2 minutes each time.  US seemed content just to let it happen.  Agree with the female commentator (sorry didn't catch her name) that she would like to see the US be more aggressive and try to move forward with more momentum and win rather than trying to play it safe for the tie.

Does Carli Lloyd always substitute late into the game?  I feel like she did the same in Rio?  Yes, she's old, but if she really is still one of the best, why doesn't she play more?  Surprised that she came in for Alex Morgan, guessing the coach wanted to get her some rest?

blackwing

blackwing

It seems to me that the women's teams still carry their big recognisable names on their Olympics squad (Lloyd, Ertz, Morgan, Rapinoe etc for the US, Buchanan for Canada).  But the men's field doesn't seem to have any name names?  Granted, I am a "major tournament" only kind of soccer fan, but I don't recognise any of the names.  Belgium, Italy, Netherlands and Great Britain / UK didn't even bother to enter a team.  None of the big stars for France, Spain or Germany are there.  Are they just tired from the Euros or is the Olympics not considered prestigious in men's soccer?

ZootSuitWyatt

ZootSuitWyatt

1 minute ago, blackwing said:

It seems to me that the women's teams still carry their big recognisable names on their Olympics squad (Lloyd, Ertz, Morgan, Rapinoe etc for the US, Buchanan for Canada).  But the men's field doesn't seem to have any name names?  Granted, I am a "major tournament" only kind of soccer fan, but I don't recognise any of the names.  Belgium, Italy, Netherlands and Great Britain / UK didn't even bother to enter a team.  None of the big stars for France, Spain or Germany are there.  Are they just tired from the Euros or is the Olympics not considered prestigious in men's soccer?

Olympic men's soccer is usually under-23 (I think under-24 this year because of being pushed back), with a few older players allowed. No age restrictions for Olympic women's soccer.

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paulvdb

paulvdb

16 minutes ago, blackwing said:

Belgium, Italy, Netherlands and Great Britain / UK didn't even bother to enter a team.

It's not that they didn't bother. They just didn't qualify. And as ZootSuitWyatt said, only under-23 players are allowed in the Olympics with a maximum of three older players allowed per team. FIFA won't allow full-strength teams in the mens' tournament because they want the World Cup to reamin the undisputed biggest tournament in soccer.

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blackwing

blackwing

29 minutes ago, ZootSuitWyatt said:

Olympic men's soccer is usually under-23 (I think under-24 this year because of being pushed back), with a few older players allowed. No age restrictions for Olympic women's soccer.

 

8 minutes ago, paulvdb said:

It's not that they didn't bother. They just didn't qualify. And as ZootSuitWyatt said, only under-23 players are allowed in the Olympics with a maximum of three older players allowed per team. FIFA won't allow full-strength teams in the mens' tournament because they want the World Cup to reamin the undisputed biggest tournament in soccer.

Makes sense.  Thanks both of you, I appreciate it!

Just Here

Just Here

And, Naeher with similar heroics for the USWNT, setting up a rematch of the 2012 semifinal between the USA and Canada.  Starting Lynn Williams looks like a genius move. Though, I question the utility of giving Lloyd the start, but given the forward options, it was probably the correct move, as it allowed Press or Morgan to be saved for the second half and then-potential extra time.  The USA looked out-of-sync for the last 20+ minutes of normal time, so I was a bit surprised that the USWNT pulled it out, especially via a penalty shoot-out.  (I was away from a TV during the extra 30 minutes, so I don't have any opinion on that section of the match.)

The USWNT also excises some of the demons from 2016 by not only winning a penalty shoot-out at the quarterfinal stage, but also converting all its spot kicks in the shoot-out (bonus: both Morgan and Press converted their kicks).  If the Netherlands had a healthy Sherida Spitse to take the penalty kick in regular time and/or a kick in the shoot-out, I think that the USA would have been the more likely team to go home early.

In the most entertaining match of the day, Australia gets it done in extra time versus Great Britain and an Ellen White hat trick, thanks in part due to another second-half penalty kick save.  (Only Sweden's Asllani converted a regular penalty kick during the quarterfinals.)  I was hoping that GBR would advance, but it's great to see a worthy Australia advance to a semifinal, especially with former USWNT assistant Tony Gustavsson at the helm.

In the Brazil match, defender Jayde Riviere picked up another yellow card, so she will not be available for the semifinal against the USWNT.

(For the NBCOlympics.com stream of the USA-NED match, the shoot-out begins at the 161:30 mark)

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Just Here

Just Here

1 hour ago, shantown said:

I will just say these games are giving me way too much stress way too early in the mornings. I end up being on edge all day, partly from the stress and partly from lack of sleep!

Have you heard that the next Women's World Cup (in 2023, hopefully) will be hosted by Australia and New Zealand? 😬

 

6 hours ago, galaxygirl76 said:

I has a sad. I was hoping for a medal but getting the US in the quarter final dashed that hope. The girls did great but it wasn't good enough.

With Mark Parsons taking over for the departing Wiegman, I'll be interested in seeing what he can do with the Netherlands in a year for the Women's Euro, although there won't be too much room for experimentation, as WWC qualifying begins right away in mid-September.  Though, NED's biggest weakness at the moment seems to be a lack of depth, especially concerning game-changing substitutes, which is not something that can be readily fixed in a year or even two.

 

49 minutes ago, pennben said:

Rematch of the US-Canada semi---I expect wildness.  Still feel like the US team is at least a half a bubble off---not feeling it for this tournament.  

I expect chippiness.  And, some blood.

 

On 7/27/2021 at 5:53 AM, greyhorse said:

Does Carli Lloyd always substitute late into the game?  I feel like she did the same in Rio?  Yes, she's old, but if she really is still one of the best, why doesn't she play more?  Surprised that she came in for Alex Morgan, guessing the coach wanted to get her some rest?

Through four matches, Andonovski seems to be splitting center forward duties between Lloyd and Morgan, giving each player alternating starts, and with almost even playing time so far, as each player has 192 and 198 official minutes, respectively (cumulative stats, PDF file).  Alternating players like that, especially for more attacking-oriented positions (as opposed to the goalkeeper and back line) isn't unusual, and is almost a necessity, given the more compressed nature of the Olympics tournament, versus a World Cup.  I rate Morgan as the better all-around player, though she has a history of injury issues, so limiting Morgan's exposure to injury risks is a wise move, especially in the opening stages of this tournament.  If Andonovski continues to alternate, then Morgan would be expected to be in the starting line-up against Canada, though given the physicality of Canada, I could see giving Lloyd the start and evening resting Morgan by subbing someone else in for Lloyd, if the USWNT has a comfortable lead at half-time and at the 60-minute mark.

 

As to why Lloyd doesn't play more, besides not having the legs for speedy runs, I think one of the main reasons is that she doesn't currently have the goal-scoring rate of other options at the center forward/striker position.  Specifically, Lloyd's old school physicality lacks the technical finesse of Alex Morgan or even Christen Press.  It's also worth noting that up to the 2012 Olympics, and going back to her NCAA days, Lloyd was primarily an attacking midfielder.  Emphasis on "attacking", as she was never really a classical #10 playmaker and was known for optimistic shots from outside the box, rather than racking up assists.  Nowadays, she is exclusively a center forward.

I'd also add that none of the top younger forward options have broken through to a regular starting position:  Mallory Pugh (age 23) has struggled to make an impact after debuting for the USWNT at age 17; Catarina Macario (age 21), who is on this Olympic squad, only recently acquired her FIFA eligibility for the USA and is viewed as a midfielder at the moment; and, Sophia Smith (age 20) only has a handful of senior USWNT caps and no goals.  I'm not saying that any of these players are prime center forward candidates right now, but if they were competitive options, then that would allow Press or Lynn Williams to move to the center forward position.  Another thing to keep in mind is that the USWNT has plenty of depth at all positions, so it's much more rare to have a young player break through while college age or younger, compared to Canada or even strong European teams such as Germany, Sweden, or England.

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Pandora

Pandora

Well, I’m bummed for the U.S. but they have looked sub-standard for most of the tournament, so it’s not a big surprise. Maybe they should have gone with more youth vs. experience, the lack of speed was noticeable. 
 

I’ll be rooting for Canada in the gold medal match because perhaps nobody deserves that medal more than Christine Sinclair.

I hope Melissa Naeher is okay. 

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blackwing

blackwing

I think the call itself was a bit questionable... especially with a place in the gold medal match on the line, I would have thought it would have taken a very egregious foul to get a penalty kick awarded.  But I guess the VAR thought otherwise.

Some would say this is karma for the London Olympics, when the Canadian goalkeeper was penalised for holding the ball too long.  That led to an indirect free kick, which inadvertently hit a Canadian player on the arm, which led to a penalty kick, which led to an American victory.  I believe the U.S. coach even admitted that she had never seen a goalkeeper actually called for holding the ball too long.  

I don't think this call was as egregious as the one in 2012, and the U.S. squad hasn't looked good during these Olympics, but oh well, I guess that's how it goes.

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Daisy

Daisy

On 8/6/2021 at 9:05 PM, statsgirl said:

I was exhausted after that and I only sat home watching. What a hard fought game! This may be the last Olympic game of Sinclair's career so it's great to finally win the gold.

Whoah. Pissy.

Honestly after what I read in the gymnastic thread re: NBC's broadcasting decisions, I pretty much am boycotting NBC's Olympic coverage (also. they didn't have a montage, and they don't have Bob Costas anymore. bleggghhh). Like imagine if you were a Canadian living in America (or or. Canadian athlete's relative living in America) - and you missed the greatest moment of your  relative's life.. For shame, NBC. (i get it needs to be America All the Time) but seriously. 

Other countries show your country's medalists respect, would be nice if y'all did the same. 

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