The semi-finals are upon us and I have to admit that I was very wrong in my predictions. I only predicted correctly that EnGerLand would qualify for this stage. The other three nations to have made it are the US of A who face EnGerLand and Holland who will face Sweden all of whom I thought would lose in the Quarter Finals. Shows how much I know....
In the links below you can see how those three teams made it through.
It was not a good day for the the Blues
It was an even worse day for the Blues
Volvo's are better than Audi's
Although he would never admit it in public, I have a sneaky feeling that POTUS (aka Mr Trump) would like to see EnGerLand beat the US of A in their match up on Tuesday. He has become involved in a rather public spat with one of the leading stars of the American team, Megan Rapinoe, and probably hopes that he does not need to fulfill his promise of inviting the squad to the White House if they win the cup.
Megan, a well known Lesbian activist, has stated quite categorically that she would refuse such an invitation on the grounds of her disagreeing with the president on many issues. Of course he would never admit to this as that would not be patriotic and his slogan is after all make America great, but still.
It does not seem to have bothered the team so far, but I am sure they would prefer the press coverage they are receiving to be concentrating on their performances rather than on the views of one of their players.
It is interesting to note here, that being open about one's sexuality is completely acceptable in the women's game, as opposed to the men's game where you can count on the fingers of one hand, the number of players who came out during their career. This may be due to the nature of football fans in general who are not known for their liberal minded views, but still it is something to think about.
So to the game itself, the US of A have to be the favourites, as they have been in every game they have played, but I believe that this will be the hardest test they have faced, more so than the game against France.
EnGerLand have only conceded one goal in the whole tournament, whilst the Yanks have conceded two. If you ignore the 13-0 thrashing of Thailand, the "goals scored" is pretty even as well.
Tactically, I think the US of A will come to park the bus tonight, for those not in the know, that means they will look to be strong at the back, soak up the pressure and then try and catch EnGerLand on the break with the pace of their front three who I have mentioned in previous posts, Morgan, Heath and Rapinoe.
They did this against France, they scored a somewhat opportunistic early goal and then sat back and invited the French to come at them. This type of play puts a huge emphasis on the full backs and center backs and the defensive midfielders who act as the first shield in front of the defense.
Accordingly, two players to watch out for, who will be vital to the hopes of the US of A are
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| Becky Sauerbrunn a rock in the defense |
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| Sam Mewis has a a great engine |
EnGerLand, as I wrote, have only conceded once, but to be honest they have made a number of mistakes which they have got away with but against the US of A, those mistakes would be punished. So they need to be super alert in defense to stop the counter attacks of the US of A.
In attack, Parris, White and Scott have shone so far, today I think it is the turn of Toni Duggan, the Scouser, to step up and lead the way in attack. In defense, Millie Bright and Steph Houghton, the no nonsense Geordie who used to play for Leeds will need to be on top of their game.
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| Duggan will be looking to nick a couple tonight |
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| Bright using her noggin will look to blind the opponents |
I hope it is a good game and that of course EnGerLand win, because it will be epic if they do.
We will be back tomorrow to review this game and to preview the rather surprising second semi final between Holland and Sweden
Until then, Is it coming home?
