73' 2-0 USA subs in: - (4 of 6) #13 Alex Morgan for #23 Christen Press - (5 of 6) #12 Lynn Williams for #22 Mallory Pugh - (6 of 6) #2 Sydney Leroux for #15 Megan Rapinoe.
79' 2-0 Japan subs in (4 of 6) #14 Yu Nakasato for LF #15 Yuka Momiki. 80' 3-0 T.Smith lurks on Kitagawa(?)'s outside shoulder at 18m right touch. S.Mewis pivots at 30m box right, fires a pass down box right as T.Smith perfectly back-cuts Kitagawa lunging out to her spot, in alone in the void behind her. T.Smith touches to 6m mid-right, fires an outswinging ground pass to 6-top center. Morgan is there, hop-flicks right instep up centerline -- ball deflects off Sameshima sliding at 5m center, pops over Yamashita into 1/3 right back high. Morgan's first goal in forever, and T.Smith earns more call-up cred. 85' 3-0 Japan subs in (5 of 6) #22 Shiho Tomari for LM #5 Madoka Haji.
When we slow the attack down and are trying to keep possession, we still have a lot of players just standing around, and not enough runs off the ball. Everyone doesn't need to make a run, but someone needs to open up space. Its like players are thinking, "Hey, I know I'm covered but try to pass to me anyway."
Okay, my apologies to Pugh....she finally had a good touch -- and got a goal. And Morgan got a goal too....wonders never cease. I think Taylor Smith has a good chance to win that right back position.
FT: 3-0. Better result, for sure, but still not a convincing performance from the team, imo. Lots of pieces of the puzzle for Ellis still to work out.
Congrats to Australia! They definitely deserved it, coming in with a strong team that showed their experience. US finishes 2nd, Japan in 3rd, and Brazil last.
FT 3-0. Smith with two assists. We had a great many decisions-to-make near Japan's box top, and many times we made 0 pass + 1 shot, blocked by a body. Other times, we tried to make the cute/pretty pass, and it got blocked. Much of this is surely because we keep shuttling people in and moving the formation around, so nobody knows where anybody else will be, or where they like it. Plus, we just flat-out missed some passes behind targets in attack, forcing them to pull up and turn away instead of stay in stride. But that's an endemic problem: Japan did it a couple of times, Brasil did it all day long against Australia, and Women's Euro has been doing it for two weeks Trophy celebration. Rapinoe holds Cassius on her shoulders, then gives him a neck ride as he cackles with glee. Oxytocin floods the stadium
Definitely looked good in attack, but in the tournament as a whole, she sometimes looked shaky on defense.
E The only thing I saw shaky was that when she went forward players didn't always cover for the run. Defense is a team thing. Funny how these criticism come when we shut out top 6 teams.
I was referring to her defensive presence and positioning in the tournament as a whole, and not as much in this game, but more so in the last 2. Two instances of it in the Brazil game come to mind immediately, but then the entire back line was fairly poor in that game and we didn't have Sauerbrunn back there to organize during the first 60 minutes or so. Smith can use her speed to recover when she's put herself in a bad position, but I'd rather see her have good positioning in the first place. I think she definitely has potential, but she also has room to develop. All that to say, she just hasn't convinced me yet. I think she's earned another call-up, but I'm not going so far to say that she's going to be the next RB starter, unlike others here.
This year may still not end well. I saw blurry visions of a loss to a CONCACAF team late this calendar year, when going into 2017.
The only team in the world (right now) who can beat the USWNT, if the USWNT bring their "A-Game", is Australia (if Australia also brings their "A-Game"). They are now officially the first team (since Brazil in 2007) who are capable of beating the USWNT, if both teams bring their "A-Game". Here's what it takes to beat the US, if both teams bring their "A-Game" in the same match. At least a 3-headed monster who can score goals (triple threat), plus team speed to compete against the USWNT, plus confidence/swagger (and/or flair), to beat the USWNT. And at least one player who can "TAKE OVER" a match (Marta), and now that is Sam Kerr. Brazil had all of those in 2007. Marta, Cristiane, Daniela (with Marta as that Trump Card). Australia has all of those prerequisites right now. They have just enough speed. And a ton of everything else right now. USA did not bring their "A-Game" against Japan in 2011. Japan didn't have a 3-headed monster, and they didn't have the speed. Their "A-Game" beat the USWNT "B-Game" in that match. Australia has a ton of goal-scoring firepower right now. And they have broken the barrier of never beating the USWNT before.
IMO, Australia was clearly the best team in the Tournament. They deserve to win. Sometimes the USWNT not winning everything is also a positive for women's soccer as it shows that other countries are moving up and getting better and thus hopefully getting recognition in their own counties. I was on the Westfield Matildas Twitter following all the comments and they had many including congratulations from their Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs. Well Done!
Of course one of my main concerns was my Red Stars players getting out of this tournament in one piece. I'm a little worried about Julie Ertz, she took a beating yesterday. We need our players for the final push at the NWSL Championship.
Stray thoughts: Short is an excellent defender - head and shoulders above Klingenberg, who way too often leaves her defense out to dry by dallying about upfield. Short's passing and crossing is a bit erratic, for every two good passes she has one that is way off target or doesn't have enough loft on it. If she can tighten this up, she is a lock at LB in my opinion. In the fall I'd like to see Christina Gibbons get a look, at either fullback position or in midfield. She is suffering from FCKC's woes, but remains one of the most intelligent players in the league. Taylor Smith earned the right to stick around as competition for O'Hara. Unless Krieger is injured it's quite telling that she got 0 minutes even when O'Hara was subbed out. I think she is still a fine defender, and a better center back at this stage, but Ellis wants to integrate younger CBs like Dahlkemper and Sonnett around Sauerbrunn, and quicker players with recovery speed on the wings. Really liked Ertz in the midfield, it's refreshing to have a true ballwinner. And Mewis' passing range is wasted when she is the #6, she is a better box-to-box #8. I'll admit, I thought Rapinoe was done, and Heath was poised to be our attacking left-sided flair for next cycle. But injury has turned the tables, and Rapinoe looks to be in her best form and cardio shape since 2012. Also, who knew Rapinoe and Press would connect so well? Unexpected. Pugh is in a funk. The talent is obvious, but she is struggling with her end product. Yes, I know she scored a goal. But her creativity on the ball has been lacking, as are her runs to the endline and accurate pull-back crosses we saw from her in 2016. I guess I just disagree with Ellis on Allie Long's merits. I think her style of play is too slow and she too quickly resorts to passing backward. Colaprico is far overdue for a look in that position. Maybe Ellis doesn't like her small stature? But she punches way above her height/weight. And if you pair her with bigger players like Ertz and Mewis who can win head balls, you don't lose out in that regard.
I'm not sure about Smith, but I think another invite is in order. I like Dahlkemper better than Sonnet, but I think she needs more time time to shake the nerves, just like Ertz did in the beginning. Ertz is gifted in midfield, but will it work out with this team? I hope so... KOH still has it, and Rapinoe found her power again. Totally with you on Allie Long as a defender. I'm sure she's a great person, but please let this experiment be over.
I'm not sure that Dahlkemper is better than anybody in the pool right now. She had a couple of trying starts The only player who looked worse was Naeher in the Brasil match.. Maybe in a year or two...
That's the thing. They like her potential. She has a high ceiling. They want to develop her. They also trust her to not make any stupid plays. Not to mention, she also played at UCLA.
All great points, although I do disagree a bit about Long. But I completely agree on Rapinoe, Short, and Ertz, especially Ertz. It was great to have a true ball winner in the midfield. Brian can play that #6 role well when she's healthy and is a better distributer of the ball than Ertz, but when we need some bite in the midfield or some extra defensive chops, I wouldn't mind seeing Ertz in that role. On Pugh, I'm hoping that scoring the goal helped her get some confidence back. If you're low on confidence (which a jump to the professional level can do), its really hard to be creative on the field since you'll just resort to the easiest, safest options. I'll add that I was glad that Leroux got some time in this tournament. She didn't do anything amazing, but still good for her to get a run out. On that note, it says a lot to me that Krieger didn't even get a few minutes in a game; I wonder why Ellis even called her into camp.
I have been wrestling with my ideas of the roster. I've been watching as much as possible. Not just USWNT, but youth teams and videos from last years NCAA. My overall conclusion is that we have so much talent available it's really hadr to pick 20 + 3 keepers. Some of my established favorites are facing stiff competition. There's no question that the team needs experienced players, but how many? Rose Lavellw and Mal Pugh are thought to be phenoms, but I think it's just a trend. No doubt about their skill, but they won't be the last. As to the older players, Clint Dempsey is probably going to be a super-sub.
Short and Dahlkemper improved in this third match. I see glimpses of why they have been called into the team. Very glad to see Leroux back; I think she is a valid member of this team. Press had an outstanding game, also. Best performance from Horan in a while. Is there room for Mewis, Brian and Andi Sullivan on the roster?