Kieran Pender has the match report. See you tomorrow for something completely different.
As for Australia – while they’re still technically alive in this tournament, I’ll offer up a few words on the assumption that the unlikely results they need won’t happen.
The core players of this team are still in their 20s. About half of them are tested weekly in England. Others play in France or the USA.
They somehow weren’t ready for Zambia’s potent attack. And their tactics today were atrocious. Sitting back against the USA is a recipe for disaster, recent 0-0 draw vs. Costa Rica notwithstanding.
The team deserves better. So do their outstanding supporters, who would love to see this talented roster play with confidence.
Speaking of coaches, Emma Hayes is having a dream start to her US tenure. Managing the egos of the US women’s team is a difficult task, and there will surely some difficult conversations about accepting Korbin Albert, who was booed by US fans when she entered a game shortly after she shared social media posts that upset members of the LGBTQ community – a community that includes many a past and present US team member. (In fact, Tobin Heath and Christen Press have finally confirmed what fans have said with confidence for years – they have been a couple for eight years.)
The US women needed a tough coach who wouldn’t let the players dictate terms. They’ve got one. And she’s tactically astute as well, having spent so many years facing the best of England and Europe during a long, successful run at Chelsea.
This team also has some breakthrough talents. Sophia Smith and Trinity Rodman might not have looked ready at the World Cup, and Mallory Swanson missed the Cup with an injury. They’re ready now. Naomi Girma is the latest in a long line of outstanding US center backs. Rose Lavelle and Lindsey Horan are in their primes, though Lavelle still has issues remaining fully fit.
Updated
Full time: USA 2-1 Australia
Give Australia credit for a late surge. But the lesson here is that a team that fancies itself a medal contender should play the USA straight-up rather than packing it in and hoping Smith, Rodman and Swanson misfire.
Australia harbor a slim chance of advancing. They will likely be seeking a new coach.
Naeher punches clear. Australia play it back, but they’re offside, and that should do it.
Replay confirms that the offside call was correct.
90 min +7: A long throw-in. Cleared. It’ll be an Australian corner. Arnold comes forward. This is the last-ditch effort.
90 min +6: Kennedy again has the ball in a dangerous spot, but Krueger intervenes, perhaps a bit lucky not to be called for impeding – what used to be called “obstruction” and is almost never called, anyway.
90 min +5: That Australian goal, incidentally, is only the second one conceded in the Emma Hayes Era.
An Australian attack breaks down, but they have ramped up the pressure and nearly win it back.
90 min +4: I think Germany scored again. Yeah, they did. Good for them.
Australia’s touch lets them down deep in their own end, and they give up a throw-in.
90 min +3: There are seven minutes of stoppage time. Australia will press forward to save their Olympics.
And a CHANCE as Kennedy sends a header just wide as Naeher comes out ineffectively.
Goal! USA 2-1 Australia (Kennedy 90+2)
A cross, a Michelle Heyman flick-on, and Alanna Kennedy beats Emily Sonnett to the ball to poke it home.
Well now …
Updated
89 min: CHANCE for Australia! A flicked header from Catley goes just wide of the far post. Naeher would’ve struggled to get there. That was their shot.
88 min: Australia have a 4-to-1 numerical advantage on a loose ball in their own penalty area, and it takes forever for them to clear it.
Finally, they get up the field and earn a corner kick.
87 min: Australia are having to defend far too much here, scrambling back to contain the fresh-legged US attack.
The Matildas get up the field, but Girma cuts out the cross.
84 min: The game is racing at full speed now, but the USA finally realize they can calm things down, and they do so.
Australia show no signs of being able to get back in this.
Tameka Yallop will enter in an attempt to change that.
82 min: What … how?
Smith brilliantly cuts inside and shoots. It hits the inside of the near post. It trickles across the goal line. It hits the inside of the far post. At last, Arnold collects.
How that didn’t go in is a mystery. Or at least a question for a physics professor.
81 min: I often get nasty email when I say a player took a dive, but … Jenna Nighswonger just took a dive. The ref buys it, to Ellie Carpenter’s consternation.
I wonder how much the game would change if we had VAR for potential simulation.
Updated
79 min: CHANCE for Australia, as Nighswonger switches off for a second and allows Australia to keep the ball in play. It ends up with a hard shot from outside the penalty area from van Egmond, and Krueger is there to block.
Croix Bethune, an injury replacement on the US roster, comes in to replace Mallory Swanson.
78 min: NBC’s Jon Champion points out that, for all the pre-Games controversy, Albert’s teammates flocked to her after the goal. Maybe, but the celebration didn’t last long.
Goal! USA 2-0 Australia (Albert 77)
An atrocious pass from the Australian defense goes straight to Albert, who traps it 25 yards out and then blasts it into the upper corner. Screamer.
Updated
75 min: Swanson with a cross to the far post for Horan, who tries to reach a foot onto it but can’t.
74 min: Hydration break.
Current standings:
9 USA
6 Germany (+2 goal difference)
3 Australia (-3 goal difference)
0 Zambia
Reminder: Brazil finished with 3 points and a -2 goal difference, so there’s no way Australia would be ahead of them with a loss. If Australia lose, they’d likely need Colombia to either hold Canada to a draw or lose by a lot. Or maybe New Zealand could beat France by three goals.
73 min: Australia are really going for it now. They press as the US defenders and Naeher pass the ball around the back, and they force a turnover but can’t maintain possession.
71 min: The USA’s passing got sharper as the first half went on, but they just had a discombobulated effort to surrender possession.
Australia’s effort to get forward is snuffed out as Krueger shields the ball out of play for a throw-in.
70 min: A US corner prompts a few aggravating seconds of positioning in the penalty area. It’s eventually cleared.
68 min: The US subs are pretty easy to figure out. Lynn Williams is a straight swap for Rodman. Krueger replaces Fox at the back. Albert is likely playing the same No. 6 role as Coffey, though picking up a yellow card right away was maybe too literal of a replacement.
67 min: Albert wastes no time picking up a yellow card for rugby tackle on Foord. That wasn’t smart. She’s on thin ice with the US fan base already due to some social media things.
Australia put the ball in a dangerous spot, but they’re offside.
Bear in mind – all Australia need is one goal. That’s it. They’d be through.
64 min: Aerial cross toward Heyman, who isn’t far off.
NOW we get the USA subs …
IN: Lynn Williams, Korbin Albert, Casey Krueger
OUT: Trinity Rodman (on a yellow card from a previous game, therefore a risk to miss the quarterfinal), Emily Fox, Rose Lavelle
Sam Coffey, who was lucky to avoid a second yellow in this game (she already has two for the tournament), remains out there. That’s odd.
64 min: Sophia Smith tries a 360-degree spin move to get past two defenders, but when the ball was played to her, she was already past them. Offside. Easy call.
62 min: The ball goes out of play, and … we still don’t have the subs. Strange.
Australia keep possession for a few passes before losing control.
61 min: The USA prep a hockey line change, but they can’t make it yet.
Australia on the attack, and it’s Raso – thankfully not subbed out – with a shot that gets blocked.
The USA try to break the other way, but the ball is too far ahead of Smith, and Arnold collects.
59 min: Here come the subs. Michelle Heyman, who scored the winner against Zambia, replaces … Raso? Oh, come on. Is Australia removing its most dangerous player.
Ah … no. It’ll be Torpey instead.
Emily van Egmond replaces Gorry.
That is a lot of experience coming into the game.
57 min: And it’s 3-1 Germany. Lea Schueller is wide open 10 yards out to take the cross to her feet and slam home her second goal of the game.
56 min: Torpey makes a nice move on the left and whips a cross in the air, though a shot might have been a better idea.
This is so much better than the first half. Soccer rewards patience, doesn’t it?
55 min: I’ve looked up the goals from Germany-Zambia – Klara Buehl put Germany up 2-0 in the 47th, and then who else but Barbra Banda? The NWSL’s scoring leader scored in the 49th.
Back in this game, Sam Coffey flirts with a second yellow card. NBC’s Julie Foudy is perplexed that she’s still in the game, having already picked up a yellow that will keeper her out of the quarterfinals.
54 min: Rodman sends a dangerous cross to Smith, but she was offside.
This is indeed the more entertaining encounter for which we all hoped.
53 min: Shot on goal for Australia! Raso was perhaps a bit impatient there, but she sends a knuckling ball in on target to test Naeher’s alertness.
52 min: Lavelle figures “Why not?” from 22 yards out, and her shot deflects off a defender’s head for a corner.
The USA haven’t been strong on set pieces in recent years, lacking a target forward like Abby Wambach, but they scored on one here.
From that corner, it’s a 25-yard shot by Naomi Girma, who misses her first international goal by about a foot.
51 min: Smith presses forward on the left and forces a shot that simply slams into the Matildas defense.
50 min: Hayley Raso turns Sam Coffey one way and then another. Such a dynamic player. The next touch, though, is off the mark.
49 min: I missed two goals in the Germany-Zambia game. It’s 2-1 Germany.
I don’t think any plausible result in that game would really help the Australian cause, though.
48 min: This time, it’s Swanson passing to Lavelle, and the result is the same – a corner kick.
Joe Pearson notes that replay works well in rugby as well. Indeed it does.
46 min: Remember how I hyped this game at the outset? OK, NOW it should be entertaining.
Australia are already committing more players forward, and the USA nearly make them pay on the break with Lavelle’s pass forcing Carpenter to hoof it out of play.
Substitutions:
Jenna Nighswonger is coming in for Crystal Dunn, which is curious at this point. Dunn was among the USA’s best players in that half.
For Australia, Clare Wheeler replaces Kyra Cooney-Cross.
Dechlan Brennan writes:
Up late watching the Matildas in Melbourne.
All tournament they have seemed off the pace and generally sluggish (hugely lucky against Zambia) and watching them sit back like a lower league side rather than a team that finished fourth in the last two tournaments is really grim.
Huge expectations in AUS, follow them everywhere but this is almost feeling like a damp squib.
I’d have to think Gustavsson has about 45 minutes left in his tenure as Australia’s coach if they don’t change things up.
Germany-Zambia has resumed. USA-Australia has not.
A VAR editorial
A lot of pundits on TV and in the written-word press would love to see VAR dismantled and sold for scraps.
Allow me to offer two contrarian perspectives:
1. I would venture to say most of these pundits are not referees. When you’ve run around a field and had to sell a call based on action you didn’t see clearly, your perspective on having another set of eyes, including electronic ones, will change.
2. One of the things soccer (or, as the Australians call it, soccer) fans should note during the Olympics is how well replay systems work in other sports. Field hockey has an efficient system. It’s accepted in volleyball. It’s indispensable in fencing. Cricket has it down to a science.
If it’s not working in soccer, may I suggest actually fixing the system rather than trashing it?
Here ends my editorial. Time to check the mailbag.
Halftime: USA 1-0 Australia
The half ends with another US buildup, culminating in a weaker-than-expected Swanson shot.
As it stands now, Australia would almost certainly be going out of the competition. They’ll have to go toe-to-toe with the USA in the second half, which might give us a more entertaining affair.
45 min +9: Smith runs at the retreating Australian defense and plays to the left for Swanson, but her touch eludes her. Not really Swanson’s best game at this point.
45 min +7: For much of the half, the USA passed the ball around 40 yards from the Australian goal, facing little to no pressure.
Now it’s different. They’re passing the ball around 60 yards from the goal.
45 min +6: I know it looks like I skipped some time, but I didn’t put timestamps on all the updates during the VAR check.
Germany-Zambia will have seven minutes of stoppage time, so they’re nearly done. Still 1-0 Germany.
I’ll give a VAR editorial at the half.
45 min: We’ll get 10 minutes of stoppage time. Maybe 3-4 minutes for the VAR check, but I don’t know where the rest of it is coming from.
NOW we get a VAR check.
I’m generally of the opinion that the US women benefit from bad calls more often than not (see 2012), but I’d have to say this would be a surprising decision to overturn the call.
And indeed, after about 30 seconds of seeing the actual video on an actual screen, the call stands.
Updated
The referee looks like he’s checking a replay on a mobile phone. I’m not kidding. He’s on a headset, mostly listening.
Oh dear – the referee is going over to take a look.
Actually, he’s talking with both coaches first, which is interesting. Now he’s talking to someone else. Now he’s talking with both coaches again.
And then he points to the center spot. Goal stands. Australian coach Tony Gustavsson, a longtime US assistant coach, is furious.
NBC is speculating that the VAR system has malfunctioned.
We stop again – now Gustavsson gets yellow.
Goal! USA 1-0 Australia (Rodman 43)
Stop the presses. The USA scored off a set piece. The corner kick goes to Smith, who plays it back into traffic. Rodman streaks through a small hole in the defense and pokes the ball into the net from close range.
We have a VAR check – a US player was in an offside position, but speaking as a referee, I’d say she didn’t interfere with play. Not that I ref at this level, but the Under-10s love me.
Updated
42 min: Worse, there’s an air of inevitability here. If Australia play this deep for the rest of the game, they will concede a goal. No doubt about it.
(Please don’t remind me of this post if it ends 0-0.)
Save by Arnold as Dunn passes to Rodman at the upper corner of the 17-yard box, and the forward lashes a tough shot on target. Arnold palms it over.
But …
41 min: Robert Speed is unhappy: “This game is embarrassing. Australia playing so deep, and when they do win the ball, can’t string 2 passes together and concede possession to the US immediately. It looks like a half-pitch training session.”
I can’t really argue with that, recent Australian attack notwithstanding.
40 min: SAVE BY ARNOLD as Horan had a header deep inside the 6-yard box off a beautiful cross from Fox. The header was on target and well struck, but Arnold quickly got her hands up and deflected it off the bar.
38 min: A USA counter! Australia are caught upfield, and the USA race forward. Once again, it’s Dunn, who covers more ground that the stadium’s sprinkler system, taking a shot that should’ve been harmless but is bungled by the normally reliable Arnold, who is lucky that the ball ends up in the top of the net rather than in it.
37 min: A bit of danger near the USA goal, as Hayley Raso finds space on the left flank to cross on the ground, only to see Crystal Dunn alertly intercepting.
I think Raso and Dunn were Washington Spirit teammates at one time, but I’d have to look it up to be sure.
36 min: We are once again compressed with 21 players within in the USA’s attacking third.
Australia manage to win possession and move forward.
34 min: Bit of a strange no-call there, as a US midfielder mugs an Australian counterpart to keep possession.
32 min: The USA pad their pass-completion percentage by knocking the ball around 30-50 yards from the Australian goal, unimpeded by any sort of pressure. I hope Naeher has some music to keep her entertained.
32 min: Joe Pearson checks in again …
How am I doing? Fine, thank you! As for events today, nothing much has been really in my wheelhouse. I kind of kept it on in the background. I did watch the women’s trap shooting final, which was kind of cool, but I had to depend on the judges and announcers. I couldn’t see a single trap. Maybe I need new glasses, or a better tv. Or both.
Maybe you’ll see an offside trap here.
30 min: CHANCE for the USA, with Smith placing a deft 10-yard lob over a gaggle of Australian defenders to put Swanson in at close range against Arnold, but the Australian keeper cuts out the danger. Clever from Smith, though.
28 min: Torpey is down, and the referee sensibly calls for the teams to take a hydration break.
Scorching shot for Germany, well saved.
26 min: A couple of powerful tackles, and the referee (from France, incidentally) plays advantage while Horan gathers herself.
I’m shocked by the USA’s lackadaisical passing. I wouldn’t want to be in the locker room with Emma Hayes at halftime.
24 min: The crowd in Marseille is limited to the lower half of the stands, but it’s a noisy one. Australia are very well-supported here.
And now they have an attack, and a shot goes just wide. Mary Fowler is on the receiving end of an efficient sequence of passes, and she drags the shot just a bit beyond the far post. I’m not sure Naeher had that covered.
23 min: The USA take a quick throw-in before the assistant referee interjects to say it’s Australia’s ball at midfield.
They throw it back into their own half.
22 min: Australia attack, but Trinity Rodman, who has proven adept at tracking back to win the ball, does just that.
21 min: In fairness, the USA are starting to press a bit now. The ball ends up at the feet of Dunn, who has a bit of space but declines the shooting opportunity, instead making a short pass that’s easily intercepted.
20 min: Dunn draws a foul at midfield. The free kick is basically a square pass.
Sigh. How’s everyone doing today? What other events are you watching?
19 min: Australia have 47 players behind the ball.
The USA are sending Crystal Dunn and Emily Sonnett up into the attack.
I would presume Naomi Girma and Alyssa Naeher are playing a nice game of cards in the other half of the field to pass the time.
17 min: The USA are sending forth some imprecise passes.
15 min: The Group C games have concluded. Those standings:
9 Spain
6 Japan (+2 goal difference)
3 Brazil (-2)
0 Nigeria
So the upshot is that Australia cannot lose this game and finish ahead of Brazil. If the USA win, barring a Zambian wipeout of Germany, the Matildas would need a fortunate Group A result to advance if they lose this game.
14 min: Keeper holds it … holds it … holds it.
Arnold keeps the ball at her feet while the USA show no interest in pressing. I may have oversold this game’s entertainment value.
12 min: A US attack is a bit too ambitious.
Alexia Putellas has scored in the 17th minute of stoppage time to double Spain’s advantage over Brazil. I’ll calculate scenarios at halftime.
10 min: Having seen a replay of Germany’s goal vs. Zambia, I’m reminded that Zambia’s defense has not yet caught up to its offense.
Live group standings:
7 USA
6 Germany
4 Australia
0 Zambia
9 min: CHANCE for Rodman, and it’s a superb save for Arnold after the US forward makes a cutback move in the box to create plenty of space for her to whip a hard shot on goal.
The rebound falls to Smith, who has little time to react and shoots over the bar.
Germany have apparently scored already.
8 min: Australia try a counter, but I think it would’ve been called back as offside. That’s Australia’s first real effort at getting forward.
In Germany-Zambia, players are having a hard time staying upright.
6 min: CHANCE for the USA, with Horan barreling down the middle and playing to her left. It’s played across, but no one can get to the ball.
4 min: In case you’re wondering who else is in jeopardy …
USA: Trinity Rodman
Australia: Caitlin Foord, Alanna Kennedy
Updated
3 min: Yellow card to the USA’s Sam Coffey, which means she’ll miss the quarterfinals.
2 min: Looks like a potentially serious injury for German defender Kathrin Hendrich.
Kickoff
Here we go …
Updated
Quick thought from Peter Oh on Spain-Brazil: “Re: Spain - Brazil. It’s always good to see the famous yellow of ... Spain’s shorts?!”
It’s an odd choice, isn’t it?
The Spain-Brazil game will have at least 16 minutes of stoppage time, and it’ll surely be more because Brazilian players have reached the stage at the game in which they’re falling to the ground. It’s as much exhaustion as it is gamesmanship.
I will not, therefore, be watching the rest of that game. I’m already planning to use my phone to keep an eye on Germany-Zambia. Only so many screens.
I’m still watching Spain-Brazil, and there’s a group of young-sounding fans uncomfortably close to the commentator’s microphone yelling something that sounds like “Zika!”
Do they think Hope Solo is playing?
Joe Pearson, whom I see from the main Olympics coverage today was watching when Marta picked up her red card, politely takes issue with my post on the knockout rounds …
Would it be a bad thing if the USA won!? There is no worse tempter of fate than to try to pick your future opponent. It is known.
Coincidentally, I listened to a podcast today about the 2012 badminton scandal in which several players were dismissed from the Games for giving, shall we say, an unspectacular effort in the hopes of gaming the system, so maybe I’m feeling a bit cynical.
I have mail …
Chris Paraskevas writes:
G’Day Beau, I was supposed to get some sleep before the 3am kick off but I decided a midnight movie would keep me awake nicely. The problem is, I chose “Don’t Look Now” (the Nicholas Roeg one where Donald Sutherland trips out in Venice). Hopefully the Matildas’ Olympic campaign doesn’t come to a similarly messy end tonight.
We haven’t looked convincing at any point since the World Cup (and indeed, throughout it). The Olympic qualifying campaign was more akin to a travelling roadshow / circus - Harlem Globetrotters style. Great for pumping up the brand but not the best litmus test for Tony G’s tactics.
I fear the worst tonight and will be up for another 8 hours at least once this caffeine hits... hopefully Lavelle has an off day (she is class).
She is indeed, but I sense that falling behind against Zambia awakened a very talented team. They’re one of few teams with the attacking panache to make things difficult for Naomi Girma and company. That said, the best way to stop the Smith/Swanson/Rodman trio might be to surreptitiously change the USA’s lineup card.
Would winning this game be a bad thing for the USA?
The first-place team in this group will face the second-place team in Group C, the Group of Death. If current scores hold, that’ll be Japan.
The second-place team in this group will face the second-place team in Group A. That’ll likely be France or Canada, but given Canada’s six-point penalty, Colombia would just need a draw to take that second spot. And in any case, Japan might be a tougher out than Canada at this point.
If a third-place team advances from this group, they’ll play the winner of Group A or Group C. Nothing like a lovely matchup against Spain to get a team’s attention.
And just as I hit “send,” Spain finally break through the stubborn Brazilian resistance to take a 1-0 lead.
I would expect the next 20 minutes to be extremely dull.
What's at stake
For some reason, the Olympic women’s soccer tournament is only 12 teams, which gives us the awkward format in which each group’s top two teams and the two best third-place teams go through.
That means the USA are through, regardless of today’s results.
The Group B standings:
6 USA (+6 goal difference)
3 Germany (0 goal difference)
3 Australia (-2)
0 Zambia (-4)
In an absolute worst-case scenario for the Americans, in which Australia win today by at least four goals and Germany beat Zambia by at least two, the USA might drop to third place, pending other tiebreakers. But because Canada have suffered a massive six-point penalty and gone out and won two games anyway, there’s no way the third-place team in Group A can match the USA’s six points.
The Group A standings:
3 Colombia (+1)
3 France (0)
0 Canada (+2)
0 New Zealand (-3)
So there’s no way the third-place finisher would have more than three points, which means Australia would qualify with a draw.
If Australia lose, they’d have a slim chance of advancing. A Canadian loss or draw against Colombia would likely clinch a spot for the Matildas, barring a shocking result in the New Zealand-France game.
Finishing ahead of the third-place team in Group C is even less likely. Here’s how they stood before kickoff:
6 Spain (+2)
3 Japan (0)
3 Brazil (0)
0 Nigeria (-2)
Current scores:
Spain 0-0 Brazil - the big news is that one of the game’s all-time greats, Marta, was shown a red card for a high foot into a Spanish player’s head. She left the field, possibly for the last time on a major stage, in tears.
Japan 3-1 Nigeria
Even with 10 players, Brazil aren’t likely to concede three goals in 25 minutes plus stoppage time, and Spain would have no incentive to get them.
Updated
Australia lineup
What jumps out to me here is how much experience the Matildas have on the bench.
STARTING XI 🗒
— Matildas (@TheMatildas) July 31, 2024
Here's how we line up for our game against the USA 👊
⏰: 3:00am AEST
📺💻📱: Channel 9, 9Now & Stan Sport#Matildas #TilitsDone #Paris2024 #AllezAUS #Olympics pic.twitter.com/uH575KOmwj
The back line is Steph Catley, Clare Hunt, Alanna Kennedy and Ellie Carpenter.
Kaitlyn Torpey and Katrina Gorry anchor the midfield behind the Arsenal duo of Caitlin Foord and Kyra Cooney-Cross, along with the peripatetic Hayley Raso. The ever-dangerous Mary Fowler is up front.
Even without Sam Kerr, the Australian lineup boasts seven players in The Guardian’s global top 100 – Foord (32), Fowler (56), Carpenter (58), Catley (60), Arnold (77), Raso (87), Cooney-Cross (89).
Arnold (Portland) and Torpey (San Diego) play in the USA, as do substitutes Emily van Egmond (San Diego) and Cortnee Vine (North Carolina).
USA lineup
As reported on this rather elegant graphic …
Our XI to close out Group B 🇺🇸 #USWNT x @Visa
— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) July 31, 2024
The change is Emily Sonnett replacing Tierna Davidson in central defense alongside Naomi Girma, though don’t be surprised if Sonnett, who has done some time in midfield, plays a bit further up.
Another versatile player, Crystal Dunn, is at left back but will be expected to contribute offensively. Emily Fox is on the right.
Rose Lavelle, Lindsey Horan and Sam Coffey will play amorphous roles in midfield. Lavelle, on her day, is one of the most astute playmakers the USA have ever had – typically, the USA don’t have a traditional No. 10, but she can fit the bill.
Mallory Swanson has the central role up front between Sophia Smith and Trinity Rodman.
Preamble
Welcome to the group-stage finale in women’s soccer, a rekindling of the multihemispherical rivalry between the USA and Australia, and a matchup between two teams coming into this game on a massive high.
The US women played one of their best games in recent memory last time out, beating a talented and tough German team 4-1. Sophia Smith, Mallory Swanson and Trinity Rodman are breaking through as one of the most potent attacking trios the USA have ever had. Naomi Girma has quickly become one of the world’s top center backs. Rose Lavelle and Lindsey Horan have been inconsistent, but at their best, they’re tough to contain.
Australia’s hopes were all but gone 56 minutes into their game against Zambia, a team boasting the two most expensive players in women’s soccer. Racheal Kundananji’s second goal, added to Barbra Banda’s customary hat trick, gave the African side a 5-2 lead. An own goal brought Australia back into it. Steph Catley, an ever-reliable player not known for her goal-scoring exploits, scored a brace to tie it. Then Michelle Heyman, who came out of international retirement when the world-class striker Sam Kerr went out injured, netted the winner.
Get the popcorn. If you’re in Australia, get the caffeine. Let’s watch what could be a gem of a game.
Beau will be here shortly, but here’s how the Matildas kept their hopes alive with a wild win in their last game:
The greatest escape? In the history of international football, there have been comebacks. There have been thrillers. And then there was whatever the hell played out between Zambia and Australia in Nice on Sunday night.
The Matildas recovered from a three-goal deficit, a hat-trick from Zambian sensation Barbra Banda and a brace from the most expensive signing in women’s football Racheal Kundananji, to somehow emerge victorious. If the Matildas needed a heart attack to restart their Olympic campaign, they got one – and the three points that might just keep them at Paris 2024 beyond the group stage.
Perhaps never before has such an exciting game of Olympic football been enjoyed first-hand by so few. Only several thousand spectators had made the trek to the Stade de Nice, on the outskirts of the Mediterranean city. But they were treated to something spectacular and surreal, a see-sawing clash of attacking brilliance and defensive frailty of the kind rarely witnessed at this rarefied international level.
Already the obituaries were being written for the Matildas’ Olympic campaign. Already fans back home were sharpening their knives. Like the Marie Antoinette character in Friday’s opening ceremony, Matildas boss Tony Gustavsson’s head was firmly on the chopping block. Until suddenly it wasn’t.
1-0 Zambia. 1-1 Australia. 2-1 Zambia. 3-1 Zambia. 3-2 Australia. 4-2 Zambia. 5-2 Zambia. 5-3 Australia. 5-4 Australia. 5-5 Australia, through a VAR-awarded penalty, coolly slotted home by captain Steph Catley.
And then, at the death, super-sub Michelle Heyman found herself through on goal.
You can read the full report below:
