Björn for Glas, Ilestedt for Fischer, Andersson for Eriksson; Zigiotti Olme for Rubensson; Jakobsson for Hurting, Blackstenius for Anvegård, Schough for Rolfö. 7 of 11! ‼️ Starelvan är här!🇸🇪Sverige-USA🇺🇸⏰ 21.00 i TV4/Radiosporten💥 Kom igen Sverige!#viärsverige pic.twitter.com/oNXJJdcYnP— Svensk Fotboll (@svenskfotboll) June 20, 2019 Dunn for Davidson, O'Hara for Krieger; Mewis for Brian, Ertz for Lavelle; Heath for Press, Morgan for Lloyd, Rapinoe for Pugh. 7 of 8 return. 📢 Taking the field today for 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 United States of America 📢 Lineup Notes: https://t.co/jAPNUSd6XY#OneNationOneTeam pic.twitter.com/FWcVMZszC2— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) June 20, 2019 #SWEUSA 🇸🇪🇺🇸#SWEUSA 🇸🇪🇺🇸#SWEUSA 🇸🇪🇺🇸#SWEUSA 🇸🇪🇺🇸#SWEUSA 🇸🇪🇺🇸#FIFAWWC pic.twitter.com/IaFZMIWmQK— FIFA Women's World Cup (@FIFAWWC) June 20, 2019
I guess most of the posting will happen on the US boards for this one, but completeness is completeness!
Maybe it makes sense: Canada doesn't look like a so much worse pairing than Spain in Round of 16, and avoiding France in the quarters could be a good reason for not being worth battling to death to win this one.
02' 0-0 Sweden have a couple of early throw-ins. 03' 0-0 Mewis at circle top wide left, switch center to Horan, right to Lavelle. Heath faces up LW Schough(!) defending way back at own 10m box right, jukes past her to 3m box right, crosses tight over goal. Rapinoe collects at 2m box left, wins a corner. 03' 0-1 Rapinoe left ck, driven low to 2m 3-left. Mewis jumps and stretches foot across Seger, micro sole-flick nutmegs(?) Seger -- meanwhile, Heath runs to 1m left post and boxes out Lindahl at left post. Ball skips through to 2m center, Horan back-cuts Schough and Sembrant and front-cuts Björn not moving toward ball, half-volleys into center back. Delay for video review of a possible foul on Lindahl ... DREAM START FOR THE USA! 🇺🇸🇺🇸@LindseyHoran pounces in the box and the @USWNT take the lead on the first corner of the game! #FIFAWWC https://t.co/LvYgUnXC6t— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 20, 2019 04' 0-1 ... no contact, goal stands! That was ruthless. Lindahl actually created the contact pushing off Heath into own goal. This must be Ellis' playbook: the 1st early corner kick is a flick downward, the 2nd will be a flick upward
20' 0-1 Jakobsson dribbles to 27m center, Dunn steps up to her, she slips a pass into Asllani's stride through box top 6-right, to 13m. Quick right foot shot with medium power to 3m center, Naeher smothers. USA's backline got caught high by that deep run, and maybe too many of them all stepped up to stop ball. There's the first well-worked chance of the game for Sweden but Asllani's shot doesn't trouble Naeher. #FIFAWWC https://t.co/bwpaM2zc8w— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 20, 2019 23' 0-1 Lavelle dribbles across 22m to arc top left, finally slips a through-ball to 3m 3-left. Rapinoe times her run perfectly and chases alone, relaxes a bit too much at the end and shanks one-touch soft left instep wide into left side netting low.
29' 0-1 Heath faces up Schough at 15m box right, jukes past her to 9m on Andersson, nutmegs her to 0.5m mid-right, backpass blocked over by Sembrant. Just @TobinHeath doing Tobin Heath things 👀 https://t.co/tggkYxJVbo— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 20, 2019 1141791404567478274 is not a valid tweet id
40' 0-1 USA outlet pass to Morgan coming back to own 25m wide left. Backpass to Dunn, she touches upfield, Björn's high press pings ball away -- to Jakobsson at 15m mid-right! Jakobsson touches to 10m mid-right, shoots right instep rising behind goal. Sweden's press is bothering USA a bit. 42' 0-1 Horan chips from circle center to 3m wide left, Rapinoe runs past the high line through arc top. Long backpass to Lavelle at arc top left, she turn-and-shoots through traffic, ball deflects down and skips to 2/5 left low, Lindahl collects. Sweden seem willing to give up the occasional longball down the wings, and just defend the crosses, come what may.
Swedish game plan is next level savage: Not bunkering right away but to let the US score and then bunker as to say they couldnt not coincidentally stumble a goal in and win this
45+1' (of +2') 0-1 Mewis diagonal pass leads Heath into 15m mid-right. Heath seems to ... lose the urgency, creeps as if overestimating our advantage -- finally goes hard down mid-right to 4m, turns back and sneaks a cross through 6-top -- off a torso, Sweden blast clear. 45+2' (of +2') 0-1 Sweden long diagonal pass to Jakobsson racing our backline through arc top box right, to 10m. Shross to 3m 2/5 left just misses Asllani(?)'s centerline run, Naeher dives right and punches ball right and away. We don't look secure in the back HT 0-1. We created some box entries, and then slowed down and did nothing with them. Sweden created a few, and they make their misconnections at high speed.
Is it just me or does Sweden look more dangerous from open play? US have more possession but don't look dangerous really.
Did not see first half--only highlights: How does Sweden allow a corner kick ground ball to roll nearly all the way across the goal mouth, whereupon it was kicked in--why not--by Horan? I don't think I've ever seen that before. Weak defending, to state the obvious. Also, the number 9 for Sweden had a great chance and made a complete mess of it, as they say: hits a weak shot right at Naehler. You gotta do better than that--awful strike.
Sweden 4(2)-(3)13 shots(sog), 0-4 corners, 0-3 offsides, 3-1 fouls, 6-3 tackles, 26-8 clearances, 38% possession, 70% (111/159) - (268/315) 85% passing. USA attacks, plays long over Sweden's high line, and crosses wide for corners. Sweden look to counter up the center. The possession is surely part of the game plan. So far, it's basically working; they let us have the ball and we saunter our way to not much.
I feel like Sweden's got a couple goals in them today. If they can JUST find a way to put a second person when Jacobsson is dribbling near our goal—it could create problems.