2015 Women's World Cup
- Thread starter Titans Bastard
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Both US goals showed up on ESPN.com's score ticker a full 3 minutes before it came up on the Fox Sports Go feed.
Leroux's speed is the one big advantage the US has.
Leroux's speed is the one big advantage the US has.
lars10 said:
Except that the US plays better when they don't fire long balls at a target forward. It's great in set pieces in last 35 yards or so, but with Leroux and Morgan, they have speed and in theory, with the skill of the team, holding possession instead of firing it long would seem to be the best idea.
Some of the men's teams have had way worse than just socks. Brazil had their "all black everything" kit, and Germany had Green and White for the Euros one year.lars10 said:
Yeah I don't think there is another target/hold up forward on the roster. There is the girl who skipped college to play for PSG (can't remember her name), but I think she's hurt.lars10 said:
Edit- Lindsey Horan. She is hurt. Though also USSF and the national team coach are down on her because they are trying to discourage players from going to Europe because they want to build the league at home (which they are heavily invested in).
lars10 said:
Maybe against other teams but the Aussie centerbacks have had little trouble marking her out of the game on set pieces and the one open opportunity would have been open for anyone.
Further, the US is no longer set up to feed AW, who has been the greatest target forward in the women's game. Especially without Heath to give corresponding width and quality crosses.
Leroux and Press are forwards, very good forwards, and both of them are a step behind Morgan (when healthy), making AW the 4th best choice among the available candidates. If she weren't carrying the name of AW, she wouldn't be on the pitch and that's always a bad thing: playing someone because of their name and past accomplishments instead of what's best for the team.
For someone reputed to use her head better than any female player in history, Wambach sure is shitting the bed tonight.
Heath on for Press - now, with a second legit winger, maybe pumping crosses into the box will result in something. Puzzling that Press came off instead of Wambach but I'm starting to think Jill Ellis is going to manage-by-numbers and not take any chances at all, which bodes poorly for later rounds.
Australia completely gassed and an easy goal is the result.
Edit: on replay, that's just an awful defensive play. Just kept backing up until she gave that shot away.
Edit: on replay, that's just an awful defensive play. Just kept backing up until she gave that shot away.
Hope Solo kept them in the game early but yeah it's hard to argue with the brace.DrewDawg said:
OK, now I like the Press-Heath swap. Taking Leroux off for Morgan makes it look like Leroux-Press will start up top next game, while AW recuperates on the bench from going 90. That's good management by Ellis. Happy to be wrong there.
Brian on for Rapinoe. It would not be all that surprising to see Brian play a bigger and bigger role as the tournament goes on.
Titans Bastard said:
The question is: where? Rapinoe's understudy is not a big role. There's 4 central mids for 2 or 3 spots, 4 forwards for 2 spots...I mean, these are problems only in the sense that Ellis can be second guessed mercilessly if something doesn't work because the other options are so fucking good.
BTW, Carli Lloyd as a defensive or holding midfielder is...interesting.
It's so weird watching the World Cup and not hearing that dramatic music as the final whistle is blown and the play by play announcer summarizes the match and its meaning. I hope FOX brings a little more flair to the broadcast as the stakes increase in this tournament.
soxfan121 said:
The extra game this time (R16) increases the chances of yellow card suspensions, minor injuries, and the need to rotate the squad to keep everyone fresh - which is relatively painless for such a deep squad. I think there will be opportunities to go around as time marches on.
SoxFanInCali said:
And power. She reminds me of AJ Green or Jordy Nelson catching a deep post when she is pushing an angle with speed and the defender who is quickly losing ground also can't knock her off stride (or the ball) as they realize they are beat in the foot race. When she is on, she is by far my favorite American soccer player to watch.
soxfan121 said:
I am grateful for her past contributions, and this assumes Morgan and healthier and more confident than she looked today, but I hope AW sitting forces Ellis to realize you are right and AW is best saved for the last 20 minutes of a close game. The misses in the box are going to happen and perhaps she was saving energy, but the Aussie attack sure seemed to have a much easier time getting into midfield on her side.
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DrewDawg said:
DrewDawg said:
Is this "hoe" thing some sort of slam?
As for Lloyd, she just seemed to be out of sync and not prepared for a lot of 1-touches. But who would you replace her with? Not Rampone, obviously. And to my eyes, Klingenberg got worked over much worse on the left side than Lloyd did in the middle.
The Sui-Japan match seemed to be played at a better skill/technical level than USA-AUS. From a casual glance (maybe 50 minutes of each match).
I wish I could take this post out for mini golf and Jell-O shots.Gunfighter 09 said:
Wambach is a dinosaur. She's a relic of the time when the USA could get away with playing old English-style power football based on speed, strength, and VO2 max. She needs to be a Plan B if she gets on the plastic pitch at all. Playing her against France or Japan would likely be a mess.
I'm with DLew, but maybe a bit more fearful of Wambach's impact. It's clear she's not satisfied if play isn't going through her. She intimidates her teammates and they're forcing things when there are better options available. As Wambach gets more frustrated it seems like things can snowball, dragging the whole side down. Never mind that she looked utterly gassed.
While the end game produced the desired result, I'd have liked to see them deal better with the pressure in possession. As Australia started to close things down during keep away, the ball would cycle back to the central defenders at midfield. Instead of dropping the ball to Hope, they'd be forced into a longer pass through the air. That's what the other teams will be driving toward. Once the ball is off the ground the potential for missed control, closing down, or straight interception go up considerably.
While the end game produced the desired result, I'd have liked to see them deal better with the pressure in possession. As Australia started to close things down during keep away, the ball would cycle back to the central defenders at midfield. Instead of dropping the ball to Hope, they'd be forced into a longer pass through the air. That's what the other teams will be driving toward. Once the ball is off the ground the potential for missed control, closing down, or straight interception go up considerably.
Australia demonstrated the way to beat the US is by flooding the center and use triangle passing right down the middle. The defensive marking was terrible and if we didn't have Solo we would have easily been down 2-0.
The gap between the midfield and the back line was the area that Australia was able to exploit for the first third of the game. I think they started dropping back as a result of the goal by the US and perhaps fatigue?
I didn't see any tactical adjustments by the US to relieve the pressure on the back line. They will need to adjust quicker or the top teams will exploit this.
The gap between the midfield and the back line was the area that Australia was able to exploit for the first third of the game. I think they started dropping back as a result of the goal by the US and perhaps fatigue?
I didn't see any tactical adjustments by the US to relieve the pressure on the back line. They will need to adjust quicker or the top teams will exploit this.
Grant Wahl agrees with the speculation in this thread:
@GrantWahl: Wouldn't be surprised at all to see USA start Heath wide, move Press up top & bring Wambach off the bench against Sweden.
@GrantWahl: Wouldn't be surprised at all to see USA start Heath wide, move Press up top & bring Wambach off the bench against Sweden.
Spain carrying the play but tied 1-1 with Costa Rica at minute 65. I think the CRC keeper prayed to the father, son, and holy post.
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Sure...but it's weird to say "so and so talked a good game" AFTER that team beat you.
If the team was a standard 4-4-2. outmaneuvered, and short of ideas, one would think Australia would have been winning until they ran out of gas. Hope Solo is part of the team, her, saves aren't fluky things, they're what she does. Megan Rapinoe is part of the team--her individual brilliance isn't something to be pushed aside as the reason they won. She's SUPPOSED to do those things.
If the team was a standard 4-4-2. outmaneuvered, and short of ideas, one would think Australia would have been winning until they ran out of gas. Hope Solo is part of the team, her, saves aren't fluky things, they're what she does. Megan Rapinoe is part of the team--her individual brilliance isn't something to be pushed aside as the reason they won. She's SUPPOSED to do those things.
Holy shit, that's one hell of a gaffe. Korean defender taps the ball right onto Formiga for a goal instead of, you know, clearing it or making a decent pass to her keeper (which still probably would've been dangerous).
And yet it isn't any of the flag colors. Which was the point, they just picked the colors at random at one point.Spacemans Bong said:
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DrewDawg said:
Yeah, while they certainly lobbed some in Wambach's direction, most of it predictable and futile (the howler far-post miss aside), they also did a bunch of other things that, you know, worked. Like the subs, for example - to me, Heath was a monster out there. Leroux is just faster than everybody and definitely had a hand in grinding Oz down.
I figured you posted it just for schadenfreudic purposes, though. And I do love me some sour grapes.
Oh, and Deadspin also has stories about each World Cup team: http://screamer.deadspin.com/here-is-everything-you-need-to-know-about-every-womens-1710083127
This includes Thailand, which needed some divine intervention to get here:
This includes Thailand, which needed some divine intervention to get here:
Cellar-Door said:
It's the DFB's colours, which is apparently the reason (not playing Ireland).
Anyway, my beef with the US kit, and all the away kits you mentioned, is that countries generally have settled on traditional looks by now. The US, for most of its nascent history as a soccer playing nation, has worn white with various bits of red and blue trim. Our away shirt isn't as settled as England's, where people would revolt if it wasn't red, but it's generally been something flag related. Nike just seems to have pulled neon yellow and black out of their ass because some focus group thought it looked cool, and that is lame. As are the non-traditional away kits and the really awful home kit Mexico is wearing.
Ratings are up: http://www.socceramerica.com/article/64154/tv-report-us-womens-opener-sets-viewership-rec.html
That's a larger audience than the Champions League Final:
That's a larger audience than the Champions League Final:
