U.S. women’s soccer team: On Saturday, the gold medal match at the 2024 Olympics starts. Things feel a lot more certain now. It’s been 12 years since the U.S. last competed in the Olympics. In Paris, they will play Brazil. With Emma Hayes as head coach, the team has been brought back to life, and the young players have made it their own.
What’s the big change between now and last year? Hayes deserves the most credit. She came to the U.S. job having won a lot of awards with her old team, Chelsea FC. There was some risk in hiring Hayes because she had never been in charge of an international team before and only had a few games with the U.S. before the Olympics started because she had to work with Chelsea. The risk paid off, though. A lot of people knew Hayes for making his players feel good about what they did on the field. From what people in the U.S. camp have said, Hayes has given them more faith than they’ve had in a long time.
Star forward Sophia Smith said, “We’re a different team since she came in,” after the U.S. beat Germany in extra time in the quarterfinals. “All we needed was someone to believe in us.” Emma is doing that very thing.
Is the team sure of itself because it’s winning or because it’s winning? After all, a lot of teams that are sure of themselves lose all the time. It’s clear that Hayes is getting to know each person as an individual. A lot of coaches wouldn’t sneak up on their players during a game and have a nail tech come in to do manicures.
Hayes has only been in charge of 10 games before the gold medal game. This is a record-low for a U.S. head coach at a major event. Even though things aren’t great yet, the work she has already done has gone above and beyond what was expected.
Hayes’ choice to have young players over seasoned veterans has also paid off, especially with the attack getting stronger. Alex Morgan, a striker who has scored more than 120 goals for the U.S., was not on the Olympic list, which was a surprise. But Smith (23), Swanson (26), and Rodman (22)—who call themselves “Triple Espresso,” have scored or helped score 10 of the US’s 11 goals, which is the most in the event. Swanson, who is back after being hurt for a year, is a perfect fit for Smith and Rodman’s styles of play. The U.S. is more lively now than it was a year ago because of their natural energy and ability to move quickly.
To be fair, the U.S. has only scored two goals in the quarterfinals and semifinals. But it has been hot and tired because it has played five games in thirteen days, and two of them went into extra time. The team will be fully rested for the final on Saturday. Think about what the U.S. team will be like when it can hit the turbo button. The Olympics saw them attack in third gear.
The players may get all the attention with their goals, but Smith’s friend Naomi Girma’s defense is what has made the U.S. so strong in France this summer. Girma is one of the few players who can cover a lot of ground. Those who do often get beaten by the other team’s attackers, leaving their goalie open to danger.
Girma never has that happen to her. A lot of the time, her positional discipline stops dangerous attempts before they even start. When players push her, she’s always ready for them. She easily catches up and gets the ball when they run past her without fouling the other team. Hayes said after the quarterfinals, “She’s the best defender I’ve ever seen.” “Always.”
The U.S. has only given up two goals in the event and is the only team in the knockout stage that hasn’t done so. Girma is a big reason for this. She’s only 24 years old, but she’s already the best fighter in the world.
What are you going to do on Saturday? There is a lot of history between these two teams. In 2004 and 2008, they played in the gold medal games. Both were won by the US. The team also beat Brazil 1-0 in the final of the CONCACAF W Gold Cup in March. Marta, who is probably the best female soccer player of all time, will play her last game for Brazil. In Paris, where Brazil is trying to win its first big title, many people will be cheering for her team.
Since the Americans have been changing their squad and coach over the last year, no one would have been surprised if they weren’t in the running for a gold medal. But they are here, and they have once again proven that they are the best women’s soccer team in the world.
