The 1999 WC documentary has it. They talk about Norway. Beating us in the 1995 WC semis and in the 2000 Olympic Gold medal game. I cannot remember if it was Scurry or Lilly or Akers or who says it in the interviews. Cannot remember if it was "The best team you've never heard of" or "The 99ers" or "Dare to Dream" but I saw it a LONG time ago. It is "Dare To Dream" part 1. At around 22-23 min. I have seen later versions of it where that scene is edited or cut when shown on TV. Sorry I cannot find a gift link, but the headline has it. www.nytimes.com/athletic/2718430/2021/07/20/uswnt-rivalries
My friend Bob Rosenberg, who was my age back when I was 30, used to say "Retirement's a lot like working, only the pay's not as good and you don't get vacations."
After the last match I said one of the things we should do with a shithousiing team is create contact away from the ball. Sonnett did it brilliantly! Bumped that player twice, then when the player lashed out, sold it like a time share. It was awesome. Perfection. one thing we need to learn is when you’ve got the lead, the other team is shit housing, they knock you ass over tea kettle, whatever you do, do not accept a hand to help you up. Milk the Fck out of it. Sit there and rub something like it hurts. And if the fouler gets irritated, even better. A) they are losing their cool and, B) they may try to pull you up involuntarily, at which time your teammates can run over to protect you, killing more time and getting into the opponent’s heads even more. I’ll repeat, I loved it when Yohannes kicked the ball ⚽️ into the player that wasn’t giving her 10 yards, and Sonnett should have done the same. loved all the falling on the ball when knocked over.
The run by Lavelle and the slip pass from Wilson were beautiful. Lorena had the shat covered but it was beautiful combination play.
I don't blame Sonnet, some referees don't call that and they would not be entirely wrong. The LOTG or the Advice to the referees ssys if the opponent is walking back from the ball and you choose to kick the ball and hit her, and she does not actively reach out and stop the ball, it's play on. This is true with keeper's release also, that's why you don't see the keeper kicking the ball away into the opponent when the other player pretends to run back but in the path of the keeper. It's too risky if the ref let play continue.
To my thinking, Brasil playing that way is a clear admission that they don't believe they can win any other way. And that's a shame as they look very talented. And their coach should be fired. He was a complete baby.
Yeah, I don’t get how they’re going to make American fans welcome at next year’s WC when they mugged our players & booed out national anthem? We still make the largest amount of woso fans in the world & maybe even with thr most money to spend
A play started by Yohannes with a nice steal, IIRC. The part of Dare to Dream is shorter, but for the sake of completeness.
After thinking about this overnight...and most is thinking prior to the about 70th/75th minute when the Brasil melted down. All of the defense did very well. To me, I would say Sonnett, Wesley, Patterson, and Fox in order. Fox last only because she went off at the half. But between the four of them, very close call. Heaps was quite good both at dealing with the physical nature of the match, but also finding space. Cooper, too dealt with the physical nature of the match. Her touches were less than optimal, but did enough for this match. Sears height was challenging to Brasil, though offensively she didn't so all that much. Again, I don't think Yohannes was fully up to the task, but it was a big improvement over Saturday. Wilson was excellent in her movement constantly drawing Haas out of position. Dickey was so composed, and her distribution was excellent. The finishing, though, needs to be improved. The match should have seen the US score at least 3 goals. The CR was also very good. It was a very difficult match, very physical, and she called the match fairly tight, and was not shy about giving cards. All in a somewhat hostile environment. Brasil seemed to change when Dudinha went off injured. And I also give a lot of blame to Elias for not keeping his head, and not instructing his staff to do the same. That leaked onto the field. As others have said, it was not a beautiful match, but the US survived and won. And it was a good win, against a challenging opponent, in a hostile environment.
Somebody better rein them in, because if something like this happens next year in the WC, say in the final or the semis, it would be a huge black eye for the women's game. IMO
Yeah, that is disappointing if this is their actual style. They do have some very, very talented players. Saying he should be fired might be a bit too far. Remember Brasil beat us with largely the same tactics on Saturday. He was less than professional last night, yet has done a lot to develop the team (somebody said up thread he has looked at 200 players, which sounds like an @lil_one comment). A stern talking to by the FA and some kind of warning or fine by FIFA should occur (will depend on the match report, which should be interesting reading - is it public?) , but for one match that did not include any violent conduct I don't think warrants a firing.
Also, a thought: there has been a bunch of discussion about players having long hair and the risk of red cards - Angelina got a red card v. Denver for that, and A Thompson has been on the receiving end of at least two hair pulls. I will note that Brasil was very physical, but never pulled any player's hair even as the match got emotionally charged at the end.
I can’t think of a time listening to Hayes that I wasn’t impressed. We’re in good hands - steady as she goes!
Listened to the Brasilian coach, Elias, post match presser...interesting. Mentioned that the Spanish CRs in both matches "didn't even pay attention" to the Brasilian 4th official. Said that the officials "disrespected" Brasil players and staff, but also said they were not to blame for the loss. Said that European officials give more ET. Said there was "xenophobia" from Europeans (@Number007 is that the correct context, meaning that he used prejudice as well (if you are able to translate? In other words, was that term used the same way as it would be in English? This specific instance is at the 3:24 mark of the video below.) Multiple times talked about the prejudice coming from European the officials - was very clear it was from the officials (CRs and ARs). Was similar to Hayes saying that no player is safe to be starting or even be on the team, because Brasil has a lot of talented players. One of the journalists said this might have been the biggest crowd for a women's match in Brasil. Also, more fans than the derby match (men's club) early this year! Angelina (from a post match interview according to a reporter's question) said some of the US players were insulting her. Elias brushed that off, said it is part of the game. Had no immediate update on Dudinha's injury. ------------------------ Said multiple times that the US deserved the victory, and deserved it in multiple ways. Also said multiple times, in multiple ways, that the players are not known well and should be profiled more. Their recognition needs to go beyond the support in the stadium(s). Here's the interview, and I turned on the dubbing, so some might have gotten lost in translation. It's 27 minutes.
Looking at the U.S. I would say that the following players improved or solidified their chances of being on the world cup team: Wesley -- excellent in the second half of the second game. Sears -- always dangerous and seems to have a knack of getting free down the flank. Wilson -- obviously the best U.S. offensive player against Brazil Sonnett -- clever player, looked like a leader out there. Peterson -- looked good Cooper -- Better on defense than on offense. Is a change of position in order?
Marta? Perpetually classless? Cannot agree with that. Football is not about etiquette. You do what it takes to win the game and let the referee figure out the line. Marta will always be class to me ♂️
Surprised at all the Wilson love. Her finishing was poor and without a massive deflection, she does not score. For me, she has to do better.
I haven't seen anybody express that Wilson was brilliant last night. Lots of positives, sure, and there are some, but a lot of us have also said the finishing needs to be better (from the entire team, not just Wilson).
From an outsider viewer (not rooting in particular for the USA nor for Brazil), the most interesting thing in this match is... the record number of Red Cards! Do you know if there are any highlights that are especially dedicated to that part of the match? I don't want to see the actions, I want to see all of the Red Cards, including the post-game ones!
A bit more thought on the players who played (who made an impact on me). Dickey - Cool, calm, collected...and good distribution. Set the standard. Patterson - Met the physicality of the match, and was also a threat up and down the left side. Passing was not to standard, but that was the team. Wesley - Brilliant. Didn't let a player get by her, fought for the ball, and was a danger on offensive corners. USWNT named her a WOTM. Sonnett - Also brilliant. While Wesley was a stay-at-home, Sonnett got up pitch some, and also fought hard for the ball. Was also always in the official's ear. To me, she was USWNT WOTM. Fox - Was excellent, and was all over the pitch as well. Her injury was on the attacking third, on the left third, and was fighting for the ball. Yohannes - Grew into the match. Had some good touches, had some good passing, and was more aggressive than Saturday. Still, Hutton is a better DM. Heaps - Really grew physically into the match, and was constantly finding open space to receive the ball. Looked like she wanted to win. Lavelle - The smallest US player on the pitch, did not do much in a match so physical. Still, had was a danger on the ball and her experience showed. Sears - Big and tall and that, alone, caused Brasil difficulties. She had moments, but otherwise, I was unimpressed overall. Still, she was the right player for the match. Wilson - Finishing aside, her movement was outstanding all match. While Haas was marking her, it was on the left, on the right, in the middle, up field, down field. And Wilson had a lot more space to work with. Cooper - This is her type of match, one where she can impose herself, physically. Fought often for the ball, and won often. Again, her touches on the ball were not good enough, but that mattered less due to the nature of the match. Rodman - Surprise sub for Fox, but she was up for the match, and immediately was a threat playing mostly as a winger. Brought her attitude as well, which was nice to see. Hutton - Defensively, was a step up from Yohannes and it showed. Also met the physically of the match, but also played smart (that yellow in the 82nd minuted was the right thing). Moultrie - Another player who seems to do well in these types of matches. Against Argentina, she went right up the line, but didn't cross it. Was similar here, and while it was an injury risk going into the corner late, that is the type of player she is. Sentnor - Was the last sub, and on too late to make an impression. A few other notes: The Wesley/Sonnett pairing was excellent - each made the other better. The CR calling the match close effected Haas. If you look at a Heaps-Haas match up late in the first match, Heaps complains about a non-call and Haas smiles. In the second match, while Haas was marking Wilson just before the goal, there was more space given where in the first match I think Haas would have been closer and even "foulded" Wilson. Hayes prepped the team for this match. Elias in his post match comments ceded that Hayes did a better job. Technically, it was not a convincing victory, but it was a good victory. Again, I'll say the finishing should have been better. Wilson, Cooper, Lavelle, Moultrie, Sears (giving Sears - first half - and Rodman a break) all should have scored. Lorena was clearly WOTM.