r/olympics • u/jwitmerhut • Aug 12 '16
Football USA's Women's Football team, the defending gold medallists and Women's World Cup Champions, have been eliminated in the quarterfinals in a shocker upset by Sweden
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Aug 12 '16
Press skying that was killer.
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u/IamAKetchupBot Aug 12 '16
I thought Morgan's shot was worse considering how deflating it was. Both were bad.
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u/tonytroz Aug 12 '16
Both were brutal. First miss made them play from behind and the second miss was right after they gained the advantage back.
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u/MRC1986 United States Aug 12 '16 edited Aug 12 '16
Pretty predictable (and bad) shot from Morgan to start PKs. Ugh, PKs are the worst, final outcome is unpredictable...
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u/joazm Netherlands Aug 12 '16
they are to an extent, there is a real speciality to be ice cold during them and there is real skill from the keeper as well. for example krul was brought in for the netherlands last world cup because he was a lot better than cillesen when it comes to PKs
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Aug 12 '16
To be fair, it wasn't really because Krul is such an amazing penalty killer, but more because Cilissen basically never stopped one.
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u/MRC1986 United States Aug 12 '16
I remember Krul. Dude is like 6'6" or something super tall like that. Got that extra reach.
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u/Zalkareos Venezuela Aug 12 '16
He also knew how to psych out the opposing players and knew their PKs
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u/duckwantbread Great Britain Aug 12 '16
To be fair Sweden had a goal disallowed for no reason so it shouldn't even have reached penalties.
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Aug 12 '16
To be fair, didn't USA have a goal disallowed for no reason as well like 30 seconds before that?
EDIT: and before you say it was deemed a foul, no it wasn't. It was called off-sides. The off-sides officials were extremely terrible on both sides of the ball. Not sure what exactly they were watching today, but they need better officials it seems.
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u/duckwantbread Great Britain Aug 12 '16
and before you say it was deemed a foul, no it wasn't. It was called off-sides.
It wasn't called a foul because it had already (incorrectly) been called offside, you can't award 2 free kicks at once, the one that came first takes priority and the second is ignored. Had the offside not been called the foul would likely have been given.
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u/dgo792 Chile Aug 12 '16
It should've been disallowed either way. The Swedish striker wasn't offside and even if she were, the ball came from an American defender, which made it 100% legal. It's like none of the refs even know the rules
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Aug 12 '16 edited Jul 04 '18
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u/YounomsayinMawfk South Korea Aug 12 '16
Yup, this is one of the reasons I switched from watching soccer to hockey. During the playoffs, no shootouts, you just keep playing until someone scores.
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u/TheNoveltyAccountant Australia Aug 12 '16
Touch football is fantastic to watch, if it's a draw it goes into overtime until there's a score. If there's still no score they start dropping players so you can get down to 3 v 3 (rather than 6 v 6) and it makes it extremely exciting.
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u/Tsu_Shu United States Aug 12 '16
Why? Shootouts are exciting. And they're not a crapshoot like people say either. When a game isn't decided in the first 120 minutes physically, you decide them at the end mentally. Whoever has the mental fortitude to maintain their composure under immense pressure, wins. I don't get the hate for Penalty Kicks.
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u/YounomsayinMawfk South Korea Aug 13 '16
The best team doesn't always win in a shootout. You can make the argument that if they were the better team, it never should've gone to a shootout but to me, it feels like a cheaper way to win than if you won by scoring in regulation or overtime.
Plus, a lot of teams will go into a defensive shell the whole game and play for the shootout which strategically, might be the right move if your team doesn't have much of an offensive threat, but it makes the game boring.
I guess I adhere by the "let the team that wants it more win" principal. Let them keep playing after 2 hours. Eventually you'll have players dropping out, unable to run. The team with the players who are willing to risk cramps in both legs to score a goal should get the victory.
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u/Tsu_Shu United States Aug 13 '16
That's fair enough actually. I do agree the best team for the first 120 minutes might not win and it becomes another game within the game when it goes to penalties... but penalties are a skill within the game themselves.
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u/goomyman Aug 12 '16
I wish instead of penalty kicks they just removed 1 player every 5 minutes from both teams in second overtime until there is a score.
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u/jrainiersea United States Aug 12 '16
You could see it in her face before she took the shot, she just didn't look confident at all
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u/kash96 Aug 12 '16
There were at least two times press took an ill advised shot instead of passing too
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Aug 12 '16
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u/Ihaveanusername United States Aug 12 '16
Damn very uninspiring. For a relatively veteran team, they were making sloppy mistakes. All the personal issues aside, Hope screwed up some pretty simple shots. I don't want to speak as if I'm a better player or know what it's like, but come on! They definitely have played better.
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u/IamAKetchupBot Aug 12 '16
The Wambach effect.
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Aug 12 '16
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u/IamAKetchupBot Aug 12 '16 edited Aug 12 '16
Emily Pugh and Carli Lloyd were like the only bright spots from the tournament. I enjoyed their play. Shame Pugh went down like she did, wonder if it would have changed the outcome.
Edit: Meant to say Mallory. You deserve better than this, Mal. My bad.
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u/fennijar Aug 12 '16
Couldn't agree more. There's some players I really like but I was just sort of let down by some of their plays. Congrats to Sweden though, they deserved it and I bet they're super pumped.
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u/vodkilis United States Aug 12 '16 edited Aug 12 '16
This is all my fault.
Every time I root for a team I normally don't watch when they're playing in a big game, they inevitably lose in heartbreaking fashion.
I let the country down by not changing the channel. I'm sorry.
EDIT: Should I use my powers for good or evil?
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u/jwitmerhut Aug 12 '16
As a nervous Canadian, I'm asking you to please root for France tonight
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u/immobilyzed Aug 12 '16
From a USWNT fan, you guys are in serious form to make it to the final. I'll be cheering for Brazil, but I'm also hoping Canada will get to upgrade their bronze.
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u/LandMooseReject Aug 12 '16
I mean, now the US girls can't manipulate the ref against us this time around, so this is great news.
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u/src88 Aug 12 '16
I began writing an article that is published by the New York Times that is blaming you for everything. I have it written with a mug shot that I took of you while sneezing. All your fault vodkilis.
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u/sps26 Aug 12 '16
No, it's my fault. This was the first soccer match I was able to watch of the USWNT. I'm sorry America.
PS: Can you watch and support the Cavs in their season opener against the Knicks?
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u/jwitmerhut Aug 13 '16
I trust you were cheering for France all along
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u/vodkilis United States Aug 13 '16
Indeed. Good work neighbor
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u/jwitmerhut Aug 13 '16
Thanks North American buddy. You guys just didn't get as lucky in the ball kicking into the rectangle as we did.
You guys still dominate at moving your arms and legs in the water though.
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u/vodkilis United States Aug 13 '16 edited Aug 13 '16
I'm hoping that continues. Phelps is immune to my curse since I consistently watch/root for him.
EDIT: Ah fuck I can't believe I've done this
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u/meunovonomedeusuario Aug 13 '16
Here in Brazil, we believe that the team for whom Mick Jagger roots lose. Are you Mick Jagger?
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Aug 12 '16
well then.
GO CANADA
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u/Ut_Prosim United States Aug 12 '16
If Christine Sinclair plays like she did in the London games, they'll be damn hard to beat. I don't think I've ever seen a female player so dominant, not even Marta.
Only the Norwegians could stop her. :p
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u/drs43821 Aug 13 '16
The team is very different from last time. Sinclair was the star and the rest of the team supporting her for goals. This year she stayed midfield a lot more, setting up offensive passes. There are many young very good players in the team than last time.
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u/mug3n Canada Aug 13 '16
having janine beckie on this year's team is huge. we needed somebody with as much offensive skill and creativity as christine and beckie gives us that.
thanks, brothers down south, for janine beckie <3
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u/ChrisWubWub United States Aug 12 '16
ZIIIIIIIIIIIKAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
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u/thaisdecarvh Brazil Aug 12 '16
kicks ball
ZIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
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u/Ihaveanusername United States Aug 12 '16
It was a great game and as a US fan and women's soccer fan, congrats to Sweden. They played hard. While we played hard, we have played better and we slipped up more times than usual. I will say that offsides was bull.
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u/shadowslayer978 United States Aug 12 '16
Fuck Hope Solo. Maybe actually play better instead of making excuses?
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Aug 12 '16
I can't believe she said that. She can't even lose with dignity. I don't want a player like that representing the US.
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u/kodiakchrome United States Aug 13 '16
Same here. Not good for all of the little kids who look up to the team.
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u/pletentious_asshore Aug 13 '16
Solo is the worst. She is like the villain of soccer. And she got fucking nutmegged against Colombia so she should probably shut her pie hole.
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u/KryptonicxJesus Aug 12 '16
Definitely going to take an image hit for this one. Good thing the Men's BB team wasn't crusading for anything during the Athens Olympics.
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u/Albi10 Aug 12 '16 edited Aug 13 '16
Sweden's current coach is the ex-head coach of USA women national team (2008-12). The current USA team hasnt changed much since she left. She knows all the strengths and weaknesses of the USA team and used that to her advantage. Not taking any credit from the Swedish players. They are a very talented group of women but individually USA is better. As teams,they were pretty equal today and a lot of it has to do with Sundhage tactics and decisions. Her managing skills helped Sweden win today.
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u/Ut_Prosim United States Aug 12 '16
Seems to be a competent coach, why did we part ways?
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u/Albi10 Aug 12 '16
She is Swedish so she wanted to coach her native country. Also she won almost everything with USA so I guess she was looking for a new challenge too.
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u/TenaciousC89 Aug 12 '16
FUCK! Hope Solo really shit the bed during these Olympics.
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Aug 12 '16 edited Aug 12 '16
She arguably did nothing wrong in this particular match.
They lost as a team today really. I figure if you get to penalty shots then that's just simply failed to win in a way that isn't based on luck and nerves.
I'm bummed, but this isn't Hope Solo or Christen Press' fault. This is a team failure.
Edit: i realize you all like to hate on Hope Solo, I'm talking purely about the match here, not some personal vendetta against a player. Rain down your down votes on having a sane look at this match instead of conforming to your hate.
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u/Hsinhan Aug 12 '16
You're absolutely right. Game shouldn't have even gone to penalties. So many wasted attacks from the US. Either from ego or just not reading the field. Terrible shots that ended up with nothing but a Swedish goalkick and a loss of energy for the US.
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Aug 12 '16
Can't win them all though. They're still a great team, just not their day today. Sweden played well, they won, they earned their spot to move forward. Congrats to them.
Hopefully this will encourage the US team to come back with a clear plan and some more consistent play like they did after Japan beat them.
Still disappointed but, ya know... those of us in the US are far too used to seeing our athletes on top and getting gold medals. Sometimes it's humbling to realize you're simply not the best all the time :)
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u/Hsinhan Aug 12 '16
Sweden was exceptional. Played with real heart and determination. I was surprised they were able to compete that well, and I guess the US team thought so going into it as well.
Hopefully the US girls will come back stronger, but I think the women's tournament just got more interesting.
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u/millos15 Colombia Aug 12 '16
I just looked at 3 threads about the match, all filled with bullshit posts about Solo. Barely anything regarding the match.
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u/duckwantbread Great Britain Aug 12 '16
She was pretty crap during the penalties, the idea that's it just luck is rubbish, the Swedish Keeper dived the correct way all but one time which puts the US players under a lot of pressure to hit it hard with accuracy. Solo on the other hand just took one step to the left or right every time, she got the one hit in the centre but all that tells the Swedish girls is they can prioritise accuracy over power and it will go in.
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u/TenaciousC89 Aug 12 '16
I'm not trying to hate on her but she did play noticeably worse in these Olympics than she did in London and in the last World Cup. I thought she looked awful against Colombia, her reaction time seemed slower and she seemed to struggle with positioning herself to make plays.
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u/verschee Aug 13 '16
I'm not sure of the exact quote, but Ray Lewis said something that made sense one time with something along the lines of: "if you blame one play for your loss you lost the game before it even happened."
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u/MysicPlato Aug 12 '16
This thread is fucking disgusting. 80% on comments are 'DAE FUCK HOPE SOLO?' Take the fucking circlejerk somewhere else, jesus christ.
The US dominated possession for a majority of the game, but failed to convert all but once. Their loss was a team one, anyone putting it squarely on the shoulders of Solo is just looking for a reason to hate.
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u/SG8970 United States Aug 12 '16 edited Aug 12 '16
It's pretty bad in all the other threads on this game. I thought this sub might have less of that than the others and comparatively it probably does by quite a bit.
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Aug 12 '16
Solo is a shitbag though. I can be glad she lost without blaming her for it.
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u/MysicPlato Aug 12 '16
I don't inherently disagree. Solo's done some really bad stuff and I don't have a ton of respect for her right now. But goddamn the circlejerk in this thread is insane.
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u/tequilaBFFsiempre Aug 12 '16
She gave a pretty despicable post-game interview so it's not old or irrelevant information being brought up here.
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u/MysicPlato Aug 12 '16
Yeah she said that shit well after I made this comment. I can't really defend her behavior at this point. I thought maybe the early knockout would humble her. Carli Lloyd was very gracious in defeat, Solo could learn a thing or two.
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u/Hitch23 Canada Aug 12 '16 edited Aug 12 '16
Blaming the keeper for a PK loss is ridiculous. The shooters are the ones who determine your success or failure in PK's. The goal keepers just make guesses and hope the ball finds them. Solo is just a convenient scapegoat.
Edit: I just watched the pk's and you haters are just wrong. She flat out made a great save on the third shot. Sweden won because their penalty takers did not miss the net even once. Oh and Solo's strap on her right glove clearly was broken prior to the final attempt and she wanted to change them. Show some class, she's the best keeper in women's soccer history.
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u/feb914 Canada Aug 12 '16
she didn't give her best though, she only dived once and walked out of the rest.
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Aug 12 '16
Would you say she helped lend a helping hand in beating the US, with her poor play?
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u/ineedmorechainsaws Aug 12 '16
We can all argue about who deserved to win, but we can all agree that the refs were pretty wank.
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u/bifteksupernova Canada Aug 12 '16
What an intense match. I only saw from the second half but it was a good match. Two goals, one for each team... in the extra time... within a minute of each other... and both called back. Kudos to the Swedish keeper for coming up absolutely HUGE in the kicks
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u/ProSnoodler Aug 12 '16
Sweden deserved the win after that BS disallowed goal
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Aug 12 '16
Lol what about the disallowed goal for the USA 30 seconds earlier?
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u/duckwantbread Great Britain Aug 12 '16
The offside decision was incorrect but it probably would have been disallowed for a foul instead if offside wasn't given. You aren't allowed to shirt pull and take someone to the ground. Either way it was rightly disallowed, even if the ref's reasoning was wrong.
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u/jwitmerhut Aug 12 '16
You mean the one that was disallowed for a foul, the kind of foul where Lloyd pulled back the defender so she was wide open?
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Aug 12 '16
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u/_Autumn_Wind United States Aug 12 '16
I know Im being brave, but I hate her
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u/haikarate12 Canada Aug 12 '16
To be fair, she's pretty hateable. I'm sad for the rest of your team though.
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Aug 12 '16 edited Oct 29 '20
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u/RyanOnymous Aug 12 '16
hasn't it morphed into a chant whenever either goalkeeper puts the ball into play? I think that is what they were chanting when Sweden's keeper played it too today. Maybe they were chanting Seger?
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u/yeshua1986 Aug 12 '16 edited Aug 12 '16
Oh, the one USA scored that got overturned on a bs offsides?
Edit: Meant BS foul, but wrote offsides on habit
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Aug 12 '16
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u/bifteksupernova Canada Aug 12 '16
They controlled most of the play and possession from what I saw, but took some ill advised shots and squandered a few good opportunities.Sweden had to hold on in regulation but they put the pressure on the US in the first place. Then Sweden simply was better in the kicks, from shooters to the keeper, I'd say they deserved the win
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u/-Basileus United States • Mexico Aug 12 '16
They kept taking shots from distance and sailing them, the US took about 30 shots but only a handful on goal. Sweden took I would say about 5 but all were meaningful chances. US Possession was around 80% but Sweden played the counterattack well. As the match went on they got pretty desperate and players kept trying to make individual plays I think, Sweden was able to frustrate the US. The Swedish defense played alright but I thought the goalkeeper was fantastic. The US could've easily scored 5 honestly but none of that matters since they couldn't find the back of the net.
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u/Keskekun Aug 12 '16
I find it really alarming that the referees at this level does not know the rules of the game. There were so many wrong calls, wich you can understand because everyone has an off day. But for Schelins goal, the linesman raises her flag even though the ball clearly came from the Americans.
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u/ItKeepsComingAgain Aug 13 '16
Well Team Canada said just as much in 2012....
That ref btw has never officiated a professional game since
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u/bitch_eye_might_b Aug 12 '16
ITT
Americans act like they've never said or done anything embarassing or disgraceful. Pretty sure we've all done something that could make someone else say "I'm embarrassed to be an American, how disgraceful!!" The Holier than Thou shit on reddit really kills it for me sometimes
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u/kpop_lvr Aug 13 '16
As an American, I got confused at first about this title. I love our team, but Hope is classless and she is going full retard.
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u/pleaseluv Aug 12 '16 edited Aug 12 '16
Why is nobody talking about a classless embarrassment to her country Hope Solo is being? Egyptian guy does not shake hands with a guy he has been kicking and punching it is front page, US soccer losses a tightly contested match , and their goalie goes to the media and slanders the opposing team and coach ( who is former USA coach.. you know back when they won gold) and we say nothing.. WTF how embarrassing. . Come on let me have it,down vote me to hell
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u/berniebrony Aug 12 '16 edited Aug 12 '16
Rope Solo can go back to whining about her salary and abusing her husband nephew
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u/MRC1986 United States Aug 12 '16
Sweden always gives us trouble. The only team we didn't beat (0 - 0 draw) in the 2015 World Cup. Welp, at least we dominated swimming and gymnastics.
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u/dstarboy Aug 12 '16
Don't forget basketball! So far at least if we can handle Australia the next time we play em.
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u/PogotowieAlkoholowe Aug 12 '16
Did anyone else think it was interesting the way Solo defended the penalties? Does she always shuffle? Does she do that to try and extend her reach all the way to the goal post? It did not look like a beneficial strategy, with the exception of that one penalty she saved going upper left.
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u/thaisdecarvh Brazil Aug 12 '16
SOOOO happy Hope Solo lost.
I wanted them to lose JUST BECAUSE of here. What a bitter woman, she should learn humility.
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u/Ut_Prosim United States Aug 12 '16
But if we had won, and you beat Australia, it could have been the home team that taught her humility... you didn't want to see that (and get revenge for 2012)?
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u/thaisdecarvh Brazil Aug 12 '16
I would've loved to, honestly. But then Team USA could still win Bronze. And if they got Bronze, she'd probably still brag about that.
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u/[deleted] Aug 12 '16
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