The US team had been heavily criticized for its performances going into Sunday’s round-of-16 match against Sweden but, despite its eventual defeat, the two-time reigning champion can be proud of its response.
Dominant for much of the match, the US outclassed its opponent and was only kept out by Sweden’s quite brilliant goalkeeper, Zećira Mušović.
On more than one occasion, Mušović produced a stunning save to prevent the Americans from scoring the all-important winner, forcing the game into a penalty shootout after it finished 0-0 after 120 minutes of play — 90 in regular time and 30 in extra-time.
In total, the US had 11 shots on target throughout the match, compared to Sweden’s solitary one.
But, in soccer, you have to make the most of your chances and the US failed to do so.
In the buildup to Sunday’s game, US striker Alex Morgan had identified the team’s lack of clinical edge as a problem and it proved fatal against Sweden.
The issue was highlighted in the penalty shootout. If Sophia Smith had scored her penalty, the US would be the team heading through to face Japan in the quarterfinals.
Instead, the young forward missed, giving Sweden a lifeline.
The match was eventually decided by the video assistant referee (VAR) which, after reviewing the action, deemed that Lina Hurtig’s winning penalty had crossed the line despite the US’ Alyssa Naeher initially appearing to save it.
Much will be made of the dramatic penalty shootout — which finished 5-4 to the Blågult — but, in truth, the US should have won the game way before.
A tough one to take for this American side, but it showed plenty of promise for the future.
Read the full match report here.
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