For greater than a era, the US girls’s nationwide group has performed out a few of its finest moments on the world’s greatest phases, in entrance of the largest crowds in girls’s soccer. World Cup finals. Olympic gold medal video games. The group has, through the years, gained lots of these video games, a protracted line of days to recollect.
On Tuesday, although, on a cold evening within the depths of the New Zealand winter, the Individuals nearly endured a day they might by no means be capable of neglect.
The ending didn’t, ultimately, go fully unsuitable: The USA gamers held on desperately to protect a 0-0 tie with Portugal, a outcome that delivered them, safely however scared out of their wits, to the knockout rounds of the Ladies’s World Cup.
That should do after a sport wherein the US did not create sufficient scoring probabilities, wasted those it did after which flirted with disaster as a Portuguese shot hit the publish and caromed out in second-half harm time.
The close to miss was maybe symbolic of an evening that certified as the identical, of a sport wherein the US, a four-time winner of the World Cup, got here inside inches of a surprising — and, for them, unprecedented — group-stage exit.
Far to the south in Dunedin, the Netherlands had gained the groups’ group by thrashing Vietnam, 7-0, in a sport performed concurrently to the US’ dance with catastrophe at Eden Park in Auckland. That lopsided outcome was relegating the Individuals to second place within the group even because the groups performed, however provided that they didn’t lose to Portugal. Within the second half, survival had turn into the primary U.S. precedence.
The group had created probabilities, however not practically sufficient and none of them notably harmful. As the sport went on, and the stakes rose, they saved coming, after which going: photographs despatched excessive, or broad, or straight on the goalkeeper.
“This group gave every little thing,” U.S. ahead Alex Morgan mentioned. “We simply didn’t put the ball within the internet.”
An post-mortem of all that went unsuitable for the US can come later. Disconnected passes. Defensive failures. Substitutes despatched on too late, or by no means.
Morgan dismissed the outcome as “unfortunate,” which can be partially true. However the U.S. was additionally phenomenally fortunate when the Portugal substitute Ana Capeta slipped behind its again line early in second-half harm time and pinged a shot off the suitable publish.
By then the Individuals had already shifted into security mode, inserting a fifth defender as they tried to protect what they might. The clock wound down, after which ran out, and the aid on the U.S. aspect was palpable.
“An important factor,” U.S. Coach Vlatko Andonovski mentioned, “is we bought the job accomplished.”
Afterward, he gathered his group in a large circle on the sphere and spoke to the gamers briefly. However solely after the veteran defender Kelley O’Hara had been allowed to have her say first. She provided a quick however impassioned tackle, punctuated by hand gestures and steely-eyed stares into her teammates’ eyes.
“I simply advised them, ‘Pay attention, guys, we did what we needed to do,’” O’Hara mentioned. “‘This sport’s accomplished. Group stage is completed. We superior.’” She, like a number of of her different teammates, appeared to know that low bar won’t be adequate transferring ahead.
Others have been much less forgiving. On tv, the previous nationwide group participant Carli Lloyd excoriated her former group, and her former teammates, for his or her play, their preparations and their dedication, but additionally for what she noticed as their temerity in taking postgame selfies with followers and dancing after treading so near a humiliating exit. “The participant of the match,” she said acidly, “was that publish.”
Others famous the outcome had not are available isolation, and was the newest in a protracted string of just-good-enough scores over the previous few months. The Individuals had struggled to impose themselves on groups like Eire and Wales earlier than the World Cup; they did not dominate Vietnam of their opener; and so they have been outplayed for a half earlier than rallying for a tie in opposition to the Netherlands. Towards Portugal, they practically bottomed out.
Requested if he felt his group had deserved to win at Eden Park, Portugal’s coach, Francisco Neto, replied unequivocally. “What do you suppose?” he requested rhetorically. “After all, sure.”
“Sadly we didn’t win,” he added, “and we go residence.”
As an alternative it’s the Individuals who’re by way of to the spherical of 16 — more likely to a troublesome sport in opposition to Sweden, one of many world’s finest groups and a title contender in its personal proper, on Sunday in Melbourne. After Tuesday evening, that certified as reward sufficient for the U.S. group.
Its gamers could also be blissful to depart Auckland behind for a couple of days after their slender escape. They are going to be thrilled in the event that they get an opportunity to return deeper within the event.
