Ok, Germany know that they're stronger at penalty shootout, so they decide to waste all of their chances... good strategy.
24' 0-0 Kemme outruns the field through box top left, loses ball at 10m mid-left, slumps to knees. 25' 0-0 Behringer passes across circle top to Maier. Maier dribbles to arc top mid-right, shoots left instep to 3m center. Lindahl dives and blocks ball to 6-top left, Mittag runs on and volleys wide left?? 28' 0-0 Marozsán serves to box top mid-right, headed away. Seger dribbles to circle back left, long switch springs Schelin through midfield box right. Schelin dribbles to box top mid-right, shoots over right 90. 29' 0-0 Sweden another sends Schelin down wide right, 1 step past Kemme. Kemme prevents any cut inside, Schelin tools her, into endzone. 30' 0-0 Sweden two right corners, cleared. 31' 0-0 Asllani juggles waist-high, Behringer sticks a shoe in and clips Asllani's inside right ankle. Foul. 32' 0-0 Sweden switch right to Schough at 25m box right, 1-v-1, she spins and holds up. Flick right to RB Saumelsson overlapping up wide right, Kemme slide-tackles ball over endline. 33' 0-0 Sweden ping in the back -- their 3-back are almost at circle back, everybody else is higher than that. Sweden
Finishing is off but their passing is sublime. The sense of urgency to go to goal is much better than what we saw from our teams.
And Germany also looking much better than they did in the group stage. This game has certainly been more open and entertaining than I expected.
I agree. What a difference a year makes(yeah, I said it again). All four of the teams looked rather pedestrian at last year's WWC, yet here they are providing some of the most entertaining footy we've seen in the women's game. Who would have thought that Sweden would have the world talking about the women's game like this? LOL I'll take it. Oh, Caroline!
34' 0-0 Behringer spins down box right to 4m, cross blocked over. 35' 0-0 Behringer right ck, cleared. Germany now have center circle, Sweden organize way behind that. Steal, Germany retreat behind midfield. 36' 0-0 Schough(?) steals from Kemme, quick pass left to Jakobsson 1-v-1 at 35m mid-right. Jakobsson drives on her through box top mid-left to 10m, contested sliding shot deflects wide left. 37' 0-0 Asllani left ck, to 3m center, Schult punches away. Asllani crosses from box top left touch, over the header scrum at 6-top 1/3 left -- drops untouched at 6-top 3-right, Sembrandt(!) unmarked and steps to it -- quacks it off her right instep backward to spot Schough regains at arc top wide right, drives past Marozsán to 9m, slices a poor cross behind goal.
Mittag runs and runs but doesn't seem to produce much. Couldn't Mandy Islacker be more clinical? I would be tempted to make that change in 2nd half, at Neid's place...
42' 0-0 Behringer(?) arm-wrestles around Sembrandt(?) at endline mid-right, pokes ball back to box top right. Marozsán(?) slices a shot spinning wide left, into near touch. Kemme chases it down at 9m left touch, but can't keep it in. 43' 0-0 Däbritz spins-cw-and-shoots from arc top mid-left, wide left but Lindahl dives and slaps it widerand over. 44' 0-0 Germany left ck, to 4m 6-right, Fischer heads rightward. Germany circulate to arc top wide right, Maier soft chip hits Mittag in the chest at 7m 6-right and bounces to Lindahl. HT 0-0. Sweden are trying, and they're one longball away from a footrace. If these goals were only about 2' larger in each direction, it would be about 3-3
Yeah, this game has certainly not been what I expected. Sweden with more possession than Germany! Half-time Match Statistics:Shots on Goal/Shots: #SWE 1/6 - #GER 3/11Corners: #SWE 6 - #GER 4Possession: #SWE 52% - #GER 48%#Rio2016— Womens Soccer United (@WomensSoccerUtd) August 19, 2016
46' 0-0 Schelin chases to 3m wide left, dribbles away to 15m. Backpass to Asllani at 21m, mid-left, quick shot sails to Schult. 48' 0-1 Germany pass to 25m box right, one-touch inside-out pass to Leupolz at box top right touch. Leupolz crosses toward spot, Fischer sit-kicks ball to box top center. Marozsán settles it unmarked, shoots right foot between 2, over Lindahl into back right high. 51' 0-1 Rubensson undercuts Maier jumping for a header, flips her over backward. Maier stays down. Yellow card on Rubensson. 51' 0-1 Trainers, Maier wants to resume -- stays just inside right touch. Did she leave and return, or just stay on? 54' 0-1 Germany right throw-in at 12m, to Leupolz darting to 3m wide right, cross blocked over. 55' 0-1 Germany right ck, to 8m 5-left. Popp heads a pop-up to left post, Lindahl catches high. 55' 0-1 Sweden subs in (1 of 3) #11 Stina Blackstenius for #10 Sofia Jakobsson.
It makes sense that it's the classiest player in this German team the one who scores! Dzenifer Maroszan is something special in women's football, since at least U-20 WWC 2012.
56' 0-1 Dahlkvist(?) springs Seger up wide left to 15m. Ground cross to 15m arc left, Blackstenius taps back to Schough at arc tangent left. Schough shoots up centerline, deflects wide right. 57' 0-1 Sweden right ck, cleared. 60' 0-1 Leupolz turns to 13m box right, ground cross to 15m center, Mittag(?) taps square left to Däbritz at 14m mid-left. Däbritz's shot blocked back, she regains at arc top mid-left -- spins cw, grabbed by Schelin. 61' 0-2 Germany fk at arc top mid-left, Marozsán inswings it off left post 1/4 high -- bounces down and up to 4m 1/3 left, Sembrandt half-volleys into own goal Clearance didn't clear the bar