Observing women's soccer around the world

Christie Rampone and Hope Solo share their thoughts ahead of tonight’s semifinal clash between the United States and Costa Rica.

The match kicks off at 8 P.M. EST. Hosts Canada then face Mexico at 11:00 P.M. EST. Tonight’s winners will clinch berths in the 2012 Summer Olympics.

{ 0 comments }

By Gavin Day

The United States Women’s National Team was at its overwhelming best as it pummelled rivals Mexico 4-0. As a result, the team is just one win away from the 2012 London Olympics.

Midfielder Carli Lloyd recorded her first career hat-trick for the U.S. and Heather O’Reilly added another to bring the American goal total to an astonishing 31 scored and none conceded. With the emphatic victory, the United States face a much easier semi-finals match-up against Costa Rica. Group A winners Canada will face Mexico.

“It was redemption for us,” said Lloyd referring to Mexico’s 2-1 upset win over the U.S. in their last competitive match in qualifying for last summer’s World Cup. “We came out strong and knew we had to get it done. There’s no second chances for Olympic qualifying so we made sure that we got into the semi-finals and the semi-final is going to be the big one.”

Lloyd dedicated the win and her hat-trick to teammate Ali Krieger who was knocked out of the tournament and possibly the Olympics with a torn ACL and MCL in her right knee.

Playing in front of a largely pro-Mexican crowd, the U.S. pressed early and came close a few times within the first opening minutes. Their pressure paid off in the seventh minute when Lloyd headed a ball to Rachel Buehler, who was starting at right back. Buehler’s close range effort came back off the post but floated back to Lloyd who headed into a largely unprotected goal.

The game was all but over just a minute later. Mexico’s 17-year old goalkeeper Cecilia Santiago made a mess of Amy Rodriguez’ cross from the left side. After Santiago mishandled the ball, O’Reilly followed the play in well to bang the ball home from close range and the U.S. was cruising.

“They are just the best, simple as that. They’re the best team in the world,” said Mexico head coach Leonardo Cuellar after the game.

Though their team was down by two goals, the largely partisan Mexican crowd continued to make noise to try to will their team back into the game but on this night, the Americans just couldn’t be stopped by their neighbors to the south.

Lloyd got her second in the 57^th minute. Lauren Cheney floated in an inch perfect cross and Lloyd timed her jump perfectly to head home from in close at the far post.

She rounded off her hat-trick with four minutes left to play off another set piece. Substitute Megan Rapinoe’s corner kick was redirected by Buehler and into Lloyd’s path and she couldn’t miss from close range.

“Well I’m very happy about our four goals and especially Carli Lloyd– the way she was the end product of set pieces.” said U.S. head coach Pia Sundhage. “So we did well with set pieces.”

The victory sets up a winner take all semi-final against Group A runners-up Costa Rica on Friday. Should the Americans win as expected, they will book their tickets to the 2012 London Olympics.

Post-match comments:

{ 16 comments }

Post-match interviews below:

The USWNT obviously didn’t get all the goals out of its system on Friday against the Dominican Republic. The team put thirteen past Guatemala last night in its second CONCACAF Olympic qualifying group stage match.

With respect to Kelley O’Hara’s hugely serviceable performance and Sydney Leroux’s charmed homecoming, this post will be devoted to two things: numbers and statistics. Might as well hold off printing the 2012 edition of the stats-stacked USWNT Media Guide given how many records have been broken in the past three days.

• The number of players to score five goals in a single game has been increased to six: Chastain (1991), Akers (1991), Milbrett (2002), Wambach (2004), Rodriguez (2012), and Leroux (2012). No player has scored six in a single match.

• Like Leroux and Rodriguez, Brandi Chastain helped herself to five goals after coming on as a second half substitute. And similar to Leroux, who last night collected five goals and a second USWNT cap, Chastain’s glut of goals came in just her third international appearance. And which match was it? The 12-0 win against Mexico on April 18, 1991, no less, which was the USWNT’s largest margin of victory up until Friday night.

• Amy Rodriguez’s five goals and one assist against the Dominican Republic puts her level with Michelle Akers for most points in a single match (11).

• The United States set a new shots record with 49 attempts against the Dominican Republic. The previous record stood at 42 in a 3-0 win against Mexico on March 27, 1999.

• The USWNT has recorded double-digit score lines in ten total matches. Nine of those matches featured opponents from the CONCACAF region.

• Sydney Leroux has become the first foreign-born player to score five goals for the USWNT.

• With her brace on Sunday, Abby Wambach surpasses Birgit Prinz to become the third-highest goal-scorer in women’s soccer history. Sinclair is also within striking distance of Prinz’s total. The top five:

1.) Hamm 158

2.) Lilly 130

3.) Wambach 129

4.) Prinz 128

5.) Sinclair 125

• Wambach and Sinclair have nearly identical games per goal ratios with 1.3 and 1.36 respectively. That’s a hugely impressive feat considering Birgit Prinz finished her career on a 1.6 ratio. Mia Hamm’s was slightly lower at 1.75 while Kristine Lilly’s stands at 2.7. Furthermore, Wambach and Sinclair have each reached their respective milestones before earning 200 caps (168 for Wambach; 170 for Sinclair). Not the case with the other three (214 for Prinz; 275 for Hamm; 352 for Lilly).

• Many subjective adjectives can be used to describe this tournament thus far: weird, spectacular, amusing, unnecessary, sad. But one apt adjective is inarguable, and that’s lopsided. All eight group matches so far have ended in shutouts. That might change tonight with Canada and Costa Rica or tomorrow with the U.S. and Mexico, but when this is all said and done, CONCACAF might be tempted to tweak its Olympic qualification process. The 2008 tournament featured four seeded teams (the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Costa Rica) who received automatic byes to the group stage. Two other berths were won in qualifying to make two groups of three.

And if anyone’s interested, here’s the USWNT’s all-time leaders in appearances, goals, and assists. The tallies were updated following last night’s game. You’ll notice Wambach is now tied with Carla Overbeck in 11^th place with 168 caps. If you notice any omissions, suspicious looking numbers, or errors, just holler. Go ahead, find your favorite player.

[click to continue…]

{ 8 comments }

Some folks’ worst fears have been realized. U.S. Soccer announced Ali Krieger tore both her MCL and ACL in a challenge that occurred in last night’s match versus the Dominican Republic. According to the release, “[Krieger] will likely miss the London Olympic Games should the USA qualify.”

Krieger was one of the standout players from this summer’s World Cup, and was arguably the tournament’s finest right-back. The 27-year-old’s accurate passing and defensive prowess made her an indispensable asset to the USWNT in Germany. The FFC Frankfurt defender had made marked progress since returning to the USWNT set-up in 2010 following a two-year absence.

The loss of Krieger could have major impact on the USWNT, especially when considering possible replacements. Heather Mitts is the only natural right-back in the squad. The USWNT veteran will turn 34 on June 9. Should Pia Sundhage elect to convert other defenders to right-back, Whitney Engen, Becky Sauerbrunn, Stephanie Cox, and Brittany Taylor spring to mind as possible options.

Regardless of the player picked to fill the void, Krieger’s absence will likely not be forgotten.

{ 7 comments }

By Gavin Day

The onslaught started just 38 seconds in and didn’t let up for the rest of the 90 minutes as the United States came out flying and flattened their ill-fated opponents. Abby Wambach got that first goal and one other as the U.S. began its qualification campaign for the 2012 Olympics with a 14-0 drubbing over the Dominican Republic.

Carli Lloyd netted the team’s second just moments before the four minute mark. A U.S. cross missed everyone and came back off the post and Lloyd was there to tuck in from close range before Rachel Buehler converted off a Lauren Cheney corner kick.

After the third, the Americans were forced to wait for their fourth, but not for long. Heather O’Reilly was played through on the right side and she scored to make it four in the 17^th minute and Wambach added another just two minutes later.

“Soccer is an amazing sport and there’s all different levels of competition all around the world. Obviously the score makes people feel like it wasn’t even a competition,” explained Wambach. “We, as a team, feel like we have so many things we need to work on. This was a game that gave us the opportunity to work on some things.”

Tobin Heath got the U.S. back on the score sheet on the half hour mark. Heath nicely controlled a chip pass from O’Reilly and had acres of space to put the ball away.

[click to continue…]

{ 6 comments }

So, the USWNT/Dominican Republic game. Where to begin? Any soccer match that ends with a two-touchdown score line is sure to ignite debate.

The U.S. ran up the score against hopelessly inferior opposition. But the team showed respect by not ‘playing down’ to its competition.

The USWNT took the ‘padding the goal differential’ thing way too seriously. But what happens if Mexico dismantles the Dominican Republic 11-0 and then Guatemala beats the U.S. 4-0?

Sundhage should have instructed the team to lay off after goal 10 or 11. It’s just needlessly excessive after that. So she was supposed to tell her strikers not to score goals? And saying ’14 goals is too much’ is totally arbitrary. If 14 goals is excessive, then what about 11 or 12? When does it cross the line into ‘classless’ territory? And plus, the Dominican Republic goalkeeper didn’t exactly inspire much sympathy. She punched her own teammate in the chest for goodness sake!

Ali Krieger might be out of commission for awhile thanks to a terribly clumsy, reckless, ill-advised tackle. But that’s soccer and it could have happened in any game or training session.

The CONCACAF commentators were spot on in their criticism of Pia Sundhage’s gratuitous goal celebrations. But she was proud of her team for doing what it’s supposed to do. Plus she’s just a super jolly person. And they’re excessively polite, manners-minded Canadians.

The U.S. has no business playing such lowly sides. But as the great Tim Vickery says, national teams will never improve by exclusion.

The team should have focused less on scoring goals and more on maintaining possession and executing cleaner passes. This is the same old USWNT we’re talking about, right?

The oft-maligned Amy ‘five goals in one half’ Rodriguez looked like a world-beater while Alex ‘WHY DOESN’T SHE START?’ Morgan was, well, goalless. I dunno, it was a weird game. But in all seriousness, it should do wonders for A-Rod’s confidence. And that last goal? What a strike!

It was a thoroughly joyless match. The team showed no mercy in demoralizing its opponent and there was even a serious injury to a beloved player. But look at this damn pictures. Do the players look joyless to you?

With all that said, it was hard to derive much enjoyment from Friday’s game. There was no sense of schaudenfraude in watching a hapless Dominican Republic side get trounced so mercilessly. And to the objective viewer, fourteen goals does seem to be a bit much, particularly when the dominant team is so well-endowed. That’s what the CONCACAF commentators were hinting at when referring to the USWNT’s inherent edge. Superior resources, better funding, and an undeniable cultural advantage. The contest just wasn’t on a level playing field, and some would say that a 14-0 victory screams of arrogance.

Still, Pia’s viewpoint is at least partly understandable, even if she failed to express it in her post-match comments. The team put forth quite an effort, which Pia praised. Some commentators (not I) felt the USWNT’s loss in the World Cup final was an epic choke job. If the USWNT now adheres to a kind of siege mentality, the team has the right to showcase quality deserving of its no.1 world ranking, regardless of the competition. The team has the right to score goals, and Pia – as head coach – has the right to celebrate. It wasn’t an exhibition match intended to spread goodwill.

Germany came under similar fire last October after its 17-0 tanking of Kazakhstan in Euro 2013 Qualifying. It was a ruthless and haughty performance, critics cried, but Silvia Neid obviously begged to differ. “There is no reason for any criticism today,” she said. When the final whistle blew, the team celebrated as if it had won a medal.

To put Friday’s victory in context, it’s the largest margin of victory for the USWNT in team history. The Dominican Republic is ranked 88th in the world, sandwiched between Malaysia and Guyana. And as Jeff Kassouf points out, it also suggests that the gap between the established powers and the fledgling programs isn’t actually closing. Like, at all. Indeed, the gulf between the top 30 ranked teams and the rest of the world remains canyon-like.

In historical terms, double-digit routs are truly a thing of the past. The last time the USWNT reached that margin in a single match was 2006 when the team defeated Chinese Taipei 10-0. Christie Rampone, Abby Wambach, Heather Mitts, and Carli Lloyd all played in that match too. But prior to 2006, the most recent shellacking’s occurred back in 1994 against Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica respectively. In 1991 there were four consecutive matches that saw double-digit shut-outs, all versus CONCACAF competition once again.

For me, Saturday morning’s most pressing question is not whether the team ran up or the score line or if it showed a lack of class in its goal celebrations. It’s…sadder. Will the best right-back from the World Cup miss the Olympics? If so, what will that mean for the USWNT and who will replace her?

Twitter was in fine form last night. Here’s a collection of some of the most memorable Tweets:

[click to continue…]

{ 12 comments }

Canada and Costa Rica each earned emphatic victories Thursday night as CONCACAF Olympic qualifying commenced in Vancouver. Christine Sinclair led Big Red past Haiti with four goals in a 6-0 trouncing, becoming the all-time leading goal-scorer in tournament history. Highlights are here, if you can get the video to play. Earlier Costa Rica topped Cuba 2-0 with a commanding performance.

The United States face first-time opponents the Dominican Republic tonight at 10:30 P.M. ET. Yesterday we caught up with Alex Morgan and Hope Solo ahead of the USWNT’s first competitive match of the new year. Morgan also makes reference to the fatal shooting that occurred at the team’s hotel on Tuesday.

More on the USWNT’s quest for Olympic qualification: ESPN’s Lizzie Haldane highlights five talking points, Soccer America provides a broad overview of the competition, The Globe and Mail keys in on Sydney Leroux’s homecoming, and The Washington Post has an informative article on the dangers of underestimating one’s opponents.

If you encounter any CONCACAF geo-blocking, this link might be your best bet.

Possible topics of post-match discussion will hopefully include the status of the team’s continued tinkering with new tactics and personnel.

{ 7 comments }

CONCACAF Olympic qualifying is just days away and AWK has got you covered. We’ll have a man on the ground throughout the duration of the tournament.

Gavin Day has done freelance work for The Canadian Press, CONCACAF, Major League Soccer and Red Nation Online. We’re excited to announce he will be providing both written and video coverage.

Yesterday Gavin caught up with Becky Sauerbrunn, Sydney Leroux, Pia Sundhage, and Abby Wambach. You can watch both videos below.

As a reminder, Stephanie Cox and Jillian Loyden were the two players dropped from the United States’ World Cup roster this summer. Sydney Leroux was added to the mix. The USWNT will take on Group B opponents the Dominican Republic on Friday, Guatemala on Sunday, and Mexico on Tuesday. Group A is comprised of hosts Canada, Haiti, Costa Rica, and Cuba. The semifinals will be held on Friday, January 27 and the final will occur on Sunday, January 29.

The matches will be broadcast on the Universal Sports Network and Telemundo (online only). CONCACAF will also be streaming the matches free of charge, which brings one back to the play-by-play calling from the 2011 CONCACAF World Cup qualifying tournament (‘Little bit’, ‘Sour brown’, ‘Gollllll de Alex Morgan!’). Hopefully the commentary will be just as memorable this time around. Register at the CONCACAF website here.

And of course, I’d be remiss not to mention the latest turn in the WPS/Dan Borislow narrative. This morning Beau Dure and @BuyMyShirts reported that several USWNT stars (Abby Wambach, Hope Solo, Christie Rampone, Megan Rapinoe) are planning to suit up for magicJack once more. The team will play seven exhibition games in 2012 and perhaps 2013.

We’ll see if this a component of a compromise that ultimately sees the adjournment of Borislow’s lawsuit against the league.

{ 8 comments }

I know, I know, twenty points off for tardiness. Chalk it up to a few technical glitches. 

To round off our 2012 WPS Draft coverage, here’s a collection of quotes in both audio and visual form from the four WPS coaches in attendance at Friday’s draft.

Sky Blue FC head coach Jim Gabarra

On drafting goalkeeper Jillian Mastroianni:

I had her as a draftable player since her freshman season at BU. She’s physically got the build and stature for this and she’s played in a very good conference. When we got down to the point when we had to pick in the draft we could afford to wait because we knew Philly were going to pick a goalkeeper. We’d be happy with Henninger or Mastroianni. I don’t think we could go wrong with either one. I kind of had them even, time will tell, with our evaluation.

On securing Ingrid Wells’ rights for the 2012 WPS season:

We’ll have her rights for a year and fit she’s unhappy there then you can always get yourself out of a contract if you’re unhappy but I think we have the best chance of getting her to sign in WPS being a kid from Jersey.

I talked to her before she signed in Sweden and I talked with her coach. She had just made that decision to go there mostly with a lot of kids coming out of college, they don’t see a lot of opportunities and they see a chance to go abroad to experience that and increase your own stock and know you’re going to get considerably more time playing. You can’t argue with that. We have her rights, so if things don’t work out over there and she gets homesick then she won’t end up signing with Philly or Boston or somebody.

On signing more USWNT players and continued squad building:

I don’t know that we’ll be able to afford two [USWNT players], but certainly one, we’re close to one. There are two other players we have under contract that we just can’t announce yet. You look at our roster and it’s a little deceiving because there are some other midfielders and a forward that don’t show up but should in the coming weeks.

On WPS’s continuous challenge:

Our problem has always been awareness. In Washington you had the best players in the world and you could have someone walk to the Maryland SoccerPlex and not know there was a women’s soccer team. You had [former Washington Freedom players] Abby, Sawa, Sonia Bompastor all score in a [World Cup] semifinal game and two of three are up for Player of the Year. You had a kid around the corner who probably played and didn’t know there was a women’s league.

Philadelphia Independence head coach Paul Riley

On Sarah Hagen’s temporary absence:

It’s disappointing she’s not here, but in all honesty, we’re deep enough the squad we’ve got to do without her. But I think she’s going to be a fantastic player in the year after. I had breakfast with her agent this morning and I told him I think she’s going to be the future on the national team.

On WPS’s competitive advantage and disadvantage:

[You] will never see the quality we have in this league anywhere around the world. If you go to Sweden and watch the two top teams you’ll see five players on one team, five players on the other team. You come to our league, you’ll see 19 players, you come to a warm-up and you’ll get a better game than in some other countries. People will say some of the best foreigners aren’t here, well, there’s reasons they aren’t here. I think [Caroline] Seger would be here in this wasn’t an Olympic year. I do think we need to lengthen the season a little bit to get the foreigners more interested. I think that’s what scares them away. There they’ll play for nine months; here they’ll play for only six. When you’re a footballer, you want to play.

On imminent player signings (like Lauren Cheney!):

We should some great announcements in the next weeks with Vero and Cheney and all these players finishing these contracts off and hopefully we’ll be okay.

Now on to the audio clips.

Atlanta Beat head coach James Galanis on targeting Sydney Leroux, the team’s fresh outlook, and possible formations:
 

Lisa Cole on the Boston Breakers’ draft day, the recent exodus of defenders, being the league’s first female head coach since 2010, and filling out the roster:

Paul Riley on coaching Amy Rodriguez and Tasha Kai:

(Note: This being a Paul Riley interview, some explicit language will be heard. So if you’re offended by that kind of thing, be advised)

Paul Riley on his interest in the USWNT job and his coaching philosophy:

(The note above applies here as well)

{ 1 comment }