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In 2008, on the girls’s soccer Olympic ultimate, I sat down within the press tribune subsequent to one in every of my colleagues and pronounced that the USA had no likelihood of successful.
How might they? They had been dealing with a Brazilian staff that had run them off the sector within the 2007 World Cup. Abby Wambach had damaged her leg and missed the Olympics. Brazil was lastly going to get its first world or Olympic championship.
However the protection held up, Carli Lloyd put a speculative shot into the aim in further time, and the USA had gold as soon as once more.
This time, the USA must be favored. Brazil didn’t get out of its group in final yr’s World Cup after a 0-0 draw with Jamaica. The USA beat this staff 1-0 within the Gold Cup ultimate in March whereas tinkering with lineups below an interim coach. Brazil barely acquired by the group stage in these Olympics.
Final week, Marta’s profession appeared doomed to finish with the ignominy of a pink card. Now it might finish with an elusive championship – although she’s listed on the bench within the just-released lineups. Kerolin, the 2023 NWSL MVP, isn’t listed on the lineup in any respect.
However is Brazil the staff of future this time? They’ve overwhelmed France and Spain. The US assault has been inefficient within the knockout rounds.
Is it time for payback – and a long-awaited gold medal for probably the greatest gamers girls’s soccer has ever seen?
Beau might be right here shortly, within the meantime right here’s Karen Carney on right now’s recreation:
Initially of the Olympics few anticipated Emma Hayes to take the USA all the way in which to the ultimate in Paris, months after beginning her job because the coach of a struggling girls’s nationwide staff – however she has made an instantaneous impression.
My former supervisor at Chelsea will tackle Brazil – and one in every of my all-time heroes, Marta – in Saturday’s gold-medal match. I’m privileged that I’ll witness in particular person Hayes’s quest to develop into an Olympic champion. Some doubted what she might obtain in such a short while however once I booked my seat months in the past, behind my thoughts I believed Hayes and the USA could be within the ultimate. I suspected they might come up towards Spain, just for Brazil to dispatch the world champions comprehensively within the semi-finals, exhibiting how harmful the South Individuals are.
I’m certain Hayes would have accepted attending to study her group of younger and thrilling gamers however she all the time backs herself to get to a ultimate and has shortly introduced confidence to a gaggle who’re having fun with their soccer after turbulent occasions. Successful is clearly very useful however creating the fitting atmosphere has all the time been one in every of Hayes’s strengths.
Hayes has labored within the States and with loads of Individuals so she shouldn’t be a whole outsider and is aware of what makes people tick. Alongside her is the American Denise Reddy, her assistant in her final 4 years at Chelsea, so that they have a great understanding of what they need to create, which has helped speed up the method.
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