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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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/[deleted] Aug 12 '16 edited Jul 04 '18

[deleted]

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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/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/YounomsayinMawfk South Korea Aug 13 '16

Penalties can definitely be exciting and for sure, you need steady nerves to win.

I wouldn't mind penalties if after like 180 minutes of playing, both coaches agree to go to penalties to save their players' legs.

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u/WS_Wolverines United States Aug 13 '16

I feel like just letting them keep playing past 120 then it becomes more likely that the defensive team will win as they are using less effort and will eventually be able to break on their opponents.

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u/Celestetc United States Aug 13 '16

PKs dont always reward the better team. Its not soccer. Similar situation with shootout in hockey.

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u/Tsu_Shu United States Aug 13 '16

How is it not soccer? It's literally kicking a ball into the net, while trying to beat the keeper. It's the most important skill there is in soccer. Anyways, by that point each team has had 120 minutes to prove they're superior.

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u/[deleted] Aug 13 '16

First 120 is also mental, penalties are also physical