The U.S. women’s national soccer team will play Germany in an Olympic match on Sunday. It should be a challenging contest between two sides who are keen to rebuild their reputations following terrible World Cup performances the previous year.
Following its victory in the 2019 FIFA World Cup—its second consecutive FIFA World Cup—the American squad has fallen from grace. The team performed horribly in last year’s World Cup, losing in the round of sixteen. They also failed to advance in the following Olympic Games in Tokyo.
The women’s team, currently in its fifth year without a major prize, exited the World Cup at its earliest point in history.
The U.S. women’s team, which was formerly regarded as the darling of the world, has encountered more challenging competition as more nations fund women’s sports. The realization of those investments coincides with the aging of some American celebrities, including as Megan Rapinoe, Ali Krieger, Kelley O’Hara, and Ashlyn Harris, who were once national champions.
Although the youthful athletes have shown themselves to be keen on the field, around half of this year’s squad has never competed in an Olympics.
Not only is the team relatively young, but the coach is also new. After leading Chelsea for more than ten years, Emma Hayes assumed leadership of the program in May. Hayes caused a stir when he largely relied on younger players for the Olympic team, but it paid off when the Games began last week.
The U.S. women’s team used an aggressive offense in its opening game against Zambia on Thursday, winning 3-0 and scoring three goals in the process. Due to a red card ejection late in the first half, Zambia played the entire second half with one player down, although Team USA managed to score zero goals during that period.
Hayes praised the win with moderating remarks.
Would you have been OK with a three-nil victory if you had asked me before the start of the game? Probably would have said no,” the coach remarked. “I don’t want to be too hard on the players, though, given the performance, the chances we created, and the way we found the back of the net.”
The German women are also going into the Olympics with a lot of baggage after their humiliating group stage loss from the World Cup last year. That occurred not too long after the team was unable to earn a spot in the Tokyo Olympics.
The German squad seems keen to get back on the international scene, if Thursday’s encounter is any indication.
Germany’s relentless attack that took advantage of openings and tight defense helped them win 3-0 over Australia. Even though they finished with the same score in their first game, the Germans also took a lot fewer shots than the Americans.
Importantly, should Germany and the United States draw in their match, the total goals scored by each team will determine which one advances from the group stage. A squad whose international prestige has faded runs the risk of having every squandered opportunity in the U.S. opener match become a haunting “what if?” moment.