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As Women's World Cup Rolls on, USWNT Eager to Start Its Title Defense
si.com ^ | June 10, 2019 | Grant Wahl

Posted on 06/11/2019 4:41:50 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper

REIMS, France — The U.S. and Thailand will be the last two teams to make their 2019 Women's World Cup debuts when they meet here on Tuesday (3 p.m. ET, FOX, Telemundo), and you could tell on Monday that U.S. star Alex Morgan has been ready to start for a while now.

“We’re feeling quite left out that we’re the last ones,” she joked at a loose pregame press conference with coach Jill Ellis (who for her part showed off some impressive French language skills).

The defending champion Americans didn’t appear to be overlooking Thailand—a wise call, considering 2011 champ Japan’s 0-0 tie against supposed also-ran Argentina on Monday—but the fact remains that the U.S. beat Thailand 9-0 in 2016 and could put up another eye-popping scoreline on Tuesday. The U.S. has drawn by far its easiest group ever at a Women’s World Cup, and the first two games against Thailand and Chile could get ugly before the group finale against Sweden.

(Excerpt) Read more at si.com ...


TOPICS: Sports
KEYWORDS: uswnt; worldcup2019
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Good Luck USA!
1 posted on 06/11/2019 4:41:50 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper
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To: KC_Lion; dfwgator; kabar; neverevergiveup; sphinx
Happy Opening USWNT World Cup 2019 France Game Day PING!🤞⚽😃🏆
2 posted on 06/11/2019 4:44:34 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper
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To: Berlin_Freeper
On the eve of the team's World Cup opener, United States women's national team coach Jill Ellis shrugged off recent criticism from former goalkeeper Hope Solo.
3 posted on 06/11/2019 4:46:04 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper
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To: Berlin_Freeper

Tuesday, June 11

New Zealand vs. Netherlands, 9 a.m. (FS1)

Chile vs. Sweden, 12 p.m. (FS1)

United States vs. Thailand, 3 p.m. (Fox)


4 posted on 06/11/2019 4:57:52 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper
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To: Berlin_Freeper
It would be a staggering upset if the U.S. team failed to advance to the knockout rounds. Once there, however, they will face four peer level teams, each of which are perfectly capable on any given day of beating the U.S. My biggest concern is that inflated expectations are putting an unneeded monkey on the backs of the U.S. players.

I'd rate the U.S. as a very thin favorite against Germany, England and Australia, and probably dead even against France, especially since France has the home field advantage and Wendie Renard. Renard is a very, very good player. She's also 6'2" and is generally a head taller than anyone else on the field. She is a scoring machine on set pieces. All a defense can do is surround her with its tallest players, block her without fouling her, and hope the service is a bit off target. She's like Wilt Chamberlain or Lew Alcindor back in the day when they were the only seven footers around.

5 posted on 06/11/2019 5:16:48 AM PDT by sphinx
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To: sphinx
About Germany, they have an injury,

German midfield stalwart Dzsenifer Marozsan will miss the rest of the women’s World Cup group phase after breaking a toe in their Group B opening win over China on Saturday.

6 posted on 06/11/2019 5:19:44 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper
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To: sphinx
And then there are Canada and Japan, just half a whisker behind the top four.

In any sport, the top ranked team comes into a tournament with a bullseye on its back. (How often does the regular season #1 win the NCAA men's basketball tournament?) Germany is the only team to have repeated as a WWC champion. I'd love to see the U.S. win. But the odds are not with them. It would be a tremendous achievement to play through.

Women's soccer is much healthier internationally than men's soccer (on the field, not financially or in terms of fan support). Men's soccer is pretty much all Europe with an honorable but increasingly dated argument from Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay. Women's soccer is much more diversified, with a lot of terrific teams in Europe, a solid representation from Asia, plus Canada and the U.S. in the Americas.

The U.S. is the top program in terms of historical results, but parity is the reality today. Go USA.

7 posted on 06/11/2019 5:26:19 AM PDT by sphinx
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To: Berlin_Freeper
USWNT lang:en
8 posted on 06/11/2019 5:28:12 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper
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To: sphinx

We’ll know much better how we stand after Sweden.

Till then I hope we don’t score too many goals because I am a big Law of Averages type of person.


9 posted on 06/11/2019 5:31:48 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper
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To: Berlin_Freeper
Ouch.

The U.S. players all seem to be healthy at this point. That surprised me; at least half a dozen of them have been battling longstanding injuries over the last year. Some considerable credit is due to Jill Ellis and her staff for careful player management. But that can change in an instant on the field.

10 posted on 06/11/2019 5:36:09 AM PDT by sphinx
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To: sphinx

I would hang a poster of Trump in the locker rooms to make sure they are not too relaxed (I went there.)


11 posted on 06/11/2019 5:40:49 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper
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To: Berlin_Freeper
Thank You for the ping and post!

Looking forward to these matches :)

12 posted on 06/11/2019 5:44:18 AM PDT by KC_Lion
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To: Berlin_Freeper
Re: the scoring. One of the things I like about this U.S. team is the scoring balance. Alex Morgan attracts a lot of attention, and her goal scoring rate (goals per game) is the third-highest all-time for the U.S. team. But everyone marks Morgan. She draws so much defensive attention that her presence opens up space on the wings. The U.S. game is Rapinoe and Heath on the wings feeding the midfielders making runs through the box. Morgan has also developed impressively as a playmaker. She's not just a striker anymore. She very often has the first pass to start the break.

I'll get nervous very fast if either Health or Rapinoe go down; they're irreplaceable. Or if anyone on the back line goes down; we're thin there. Sam Mewes has come on very strong recently so that's good insurance in the midfield.

13 posted on 06/11/2019 5:46:16 AM PDT by sphinx
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To: Berlin_Freeper

LOL. A picture of Trump? Let’s not push Rapinoe over the edge again so soon, please. Her politics are still out there, but she’s dialed it down considerably. Obviously she got a stern lecture about not creating distractions. This is still a team recovering from the Hope Solo drama queen era.


14 posted on 06/11/2019 5:49:58 AM PDT by sphinx
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To: Berlin_Freeper

Meet The 7 Openly Gay Players of the National Women’s Soccer League

https://www.autostraddle.com/meet-the-openly-gay-players-of-the-national-womens-soccer-league-335767/


15 posted on 06/11/2019 5:56:48 AM PDT by aMorePerfectUnion
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To: Berlin_Freeper

Isn’t the women’s team mostly comprised of communist feminazis?


16 posted on 06/11/2019 6:17:18 AM PDT by ohioman
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To: ohioman

Damn. I left out lesbos.


17 posted on 06/11/2019 6:18:10 AM PDT by ohioman
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To: Berlin_Freeper

2019 Women’s World Cup debuts . . . Can’t wait . . . Sorry, but I have to watch the grass grow and paint dry.


18 posted on 06/11/2019 6:39:09 AM PDT by laweeks
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To: laweeks

Seriously.

I wonder if they’ll wear their “gay pride” uniforms. You know, the one the Christian player refused to wear which led to her becoming a non-person.

I hope they lose 5-0 to Thailand or whatever craphole country they play next.

Screw ‘em.


19 posted on 06/11/2019 6:45:24 AM PDT by Skooz (Gabba Gabba we accept you we accept you one of us Gabba Gabba we accept you we accept you one of us)
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To: Berlin_Freeper

New Zealand Doing very well
0-0 Halftime

Dutch girls are probably the tallest team of the tournament.


20 posted on 06/11/2019 6:50:19 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper
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