Regardless of how the tournament ends, great to see the USWNT players united and having fun on the pitch together. Haven't enjoyed watching the team as much since the 2015 WC. I thought Lynn Williams had a very good game as a sub. Was excellent in the press and with her hold up play. Did a nice job stretching the defense at times. Definitely justifies leaving off Alex Morgan from the roster, despite her contributions in the past. Horan is going to need to get back to her prior standards, if she wants to keep her the shirt beyond this tournament. I think she in particular would have benefited from rotation earlier in the tournament but hopefully the extra day of rest does her well.
EH is definitely emphasizing youth in order to always keep the cupboard full. As they say, "When you're good enough, you're old enough". She had Shaw instead of Williams on the original roster. I have been quite happy with Rodman, a break out tournament for her. Haven't seen the statistics but I would expect she has carried the ball forward the most on the team and has the most successful 1 v1 dribbles. She has put in a ton of dangerous crosses in addition to her 3 goals. In addition to what she does on the ball, she has an incredible motor, which isn't surprising given her family tree.
She is the best defensive forward on the team as well, and is the only one of the three forwards that can win header.
I agree on Horan... not impressed. Why was Lavelle out? I've read she's available but maybe not fit for '90?
People need to read the offside law as the goal quite clearly was not offside. No one's ability to play the ball was impacted. A defender taking a step in the wrong direction following a player in an offside position does not constitute an offside infraction. Meanwhile, tournament football is a results business and the USWNT came home with the ultimate prize. The team has a lot of areas for growth but the attack overall was so much better than the WC. An amazing start to a new era!
While that may not be the case in situations, in this situation - the offside player did impact play. She ran towards the ball, blocking the line to the ball and Swanson and causing the defenders to have to slow down and think about what they need to do to get around Smith and Swanson because they couldn't just run hard at the ball.
I played in college. I know what the rule is. When you bring subjectivity into it, in terms of how and whom is affected by a pass or cross, it's not that simple.
SOOOO clear that she was on. I don't know what that other person is talking about.
I think it's head body or feet..........any part of the body that can "play the ball".
If it's SOOOO clear, why was the first thing out of the announcer's mouth, "probably offside but the flag stays down for now"?
I'm basing my comment on the photo that was posted. Not when the actual play happened. When the actual play happened, to the naked eye, I can see why the announcer mentioned offside because it looked very close in real time. OR........maybe the announcer had their eye on Smith who WAS in an offside position.
My point is the rule is subjective. The official has to determine how much influence the "offside" player had. That's difficult to determine unless you're a mind reader.
It hardly matters. The 3 Brazilian defenders were yards behind both US players. Both US players went towards the ball before Smith peeled off into the center. Swanson was still in the clear.
