Olympic Final: USA vs. Brazil (Your Running Commentary)

The U.S. women's national team has a chance for some sweet revenge, and a taste of gold this morning as the Americans face off against Brazil in today's Olympic women's soccer final.

You may recall Brazil is the same team that roasted the U.S. team, 4-0, in the World Cup semifinals last year. The U.S. team has overcome the loss of Abby Wambach, and a tournament-opening loss to Norway, to reach the final against a Brazil team that will be favored going in.

The game is set for 9am and will be aired on USA as well as the NBC Olympic soccer channel). If you will be at work, or can't watch it on TV, you can watch live streaming video of the match on the NBC Olympic website.

If you will be watching the match, please feel free to share your thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below.

Enjoy the match

Comments

[Beckster]

1st 39 minutes, USA midfield isn't keeping possession. Defense is looking pretty good. Don't understand why Lloyd hasn't been replaced with Aly Wagner in this tournamnet. We could use a good playmaker

[ManicMessiah]

Marta just split two US defenders on the right flank before ripping a shot that went wide right by a couple of feet! That was nice.

Through the first half hour, Brazil has had more chances and has been the better side. Also, the game has been pretty physical.

[HristoMourinho]

Non soccer news from AEG.http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/feedarticle/7741991

[Jamie Z.]

I like whoever is doing the female commentary for the match. She's actually providing useful insight and analysis into the game, as opposed to Foudy'ing or Balboa'ing her way through the match.

[thespecialone]

Good to see the Swiss referee did not get awarded the final. Why does FIFA feel compelled to have all female referees?

USA playing well so far. I think Brazil is the better side overall, but we'll see what happens in this one!

[ManicMessiah]

It seems like once a minute Marta is running past a US defender before getting off a shot or putting in a dangerous cross. Still, the US has coped very well with it so far.

[thespecialone]

After a slow start to the tourney, Shannon Boxx is playing well this game. I've actually never seen them defend so well as a team. Hooray for Pia!

[Beckster]

Half Time. US needs much better control in midfield and some fresh legs. I'd get Wagner and Kai in there. Long kicks over the midfield aren't doing it.

[Jamie Z.]

Oh, it's Brandi Chastain. If nothing else, I'll give her credit for "not being retarded."

[FrankR]

Have to agree with Jamie Z.'s comment. The play by play commentator is doing a great job. Concise, but obviously understands the game and adding meaningful comments!

[Steve]

Heather Mitts is getting abused by Christianne.

[thespecialone]

I was just going to write the same thing. Mitts has never been strong enough on the ball for me, although she's pretty quick.

Christiane is a great player, but she is a diver. The ref's don't want to seem to card women for diving like the men.

[Beckster]

I'm watching online. Can anyone watching on tv see who we have warming up?

[mig22]

The US ladies are hanging on by their fingernails. I hope some substitutions are coming soon. Solo is controlling her area and making good decisions when to attack the ball.

[thespecialone]

That was a nice field goal by Marta.

[thespecialone]

I don't understand the horrible refereeing. Yes, that's a foul by Mitts. But a male ref would have carded Daniela for asking for a yellow card. Benny Feilhaber got carded for asking for a card in this tournament. I think Brazil gets away with a lot of dirty fouls.

[Beckster]

We really could use some subs. Brazil is killing us with pressure and we look exhausted

[Gabe]

U.S. is relying on physical play, often going through the Brazilians. So far the ref seems to be allowing it, but as a fan of the beautiful game, you almost hope that Brazil pulls it out to force the U.S. to adapt in the future.

[mig22]

Geez, they simply cannot move the ball right now. I can see the coach waiting a bit since extra time is a real possibility.

[baconboy]

We are playing too slow and as a result are constantly getting balls poked away from behind. The Brazilians are too fast, especially for players like Boxx. On the other hand, we are playing a lot better against them then we did last year. Pia's done a good job.

I'm hoping we make it to penalties. Have we even had a shot?

[Larry Y]

Enough with the speculative hopeful long balls by the US. Build up an attack or play it better into space.

[mig22]

Gabe, the US women have played attractive ball very often but technically, this group is not good enough to do it vs. Brazil.

[Gabe]

By the way, I'm a big Pia fan, but are we EVER going to see Aly Wagner? What in the world did she do to get in that doghouse?

[thespecialone]

Hope Solo just saved our butts!

[baconboy]

Hope Solo!!

[Beckster]

Cheney? That's our response?

[Larry Y]

Maybe Solo really could have made those saves against Brazil....

[Beckster]

Solo is saving it for USA. Guess she is vindicated for her World Cup comments.

[baconboy]

Hope Solo is making Greg Ryan look like even more of a fool than we all thought he was last year.

[Gabe]

Absolutely. Solo's the player of the game so far.

[thespecialone]

We just need to stay organized on defense and hope that we can make it to overtime.

[thespecialone]

I am starting to question the Lauren Cheney substitute decision, especially after her poor clearance and getting stripped of the ball.

[mig22]

Does Marta EVER get tired? Simply amazing.

[thespecialone]

Isn't that a yellow card on Brazil? Foul from behind? Or am I missing something?

[Larry Y]

Where is Kai?

[thespecialone]

Nice shot by Hucles. Darn, it would be great if we could sneak one in here.

[mig22]

Turning up the heat a little. looks like a bit of a second wind.

[AM]

Kai might be fun to watch but she does not hold the ball for possession. that is why she is not in the game right now. you might see her if brazil scores. cheney is better at holding the ball and finding the pass if not the shot.

[Gabe]

Marta may be well-conditioned but the U.S. overall looks a bit more energetic at this point. That might just be because we've been in somewhat of a shell absorbing wave after wave of Brazil's attacks. Or maybe we just run more sprints in practice. Who knows?

[thespecialone]

That's the biggest dive I've ever seen!

[Drew]

wow, unbelievable miss

[ricecloudnine]

Take that at the keeper...

[Brant]

what the hell was that?! Go AT the damn keeper, don't try to chip over her from 20 yards! It was just you and her! That shoud've been the game right there!

[baconboy]

It was a bad miss, but in her defense, and as I mentioned above, we've been caught from behind all day, so she was probably expecting someone to poke it away.

[thespecialone]

I'd rather dribble it and have the keeper take it off my foot, than miss a weak chip like that. But A-Rod is young and will be awesome in a couple of years. She reminds me of Tiffeny Millbrett.

[Beckster]

Best chance of match. Did we do a 2nd sub? I missed that?

[thespecialone]

A-Rod should have slipped that back to Cheney there.

[baconboy]

Yes!!!

[baconboy]

Great finish. And not a great effort by the keeper.

[Larry Y]

Finally, nice combination play near the box. Goal!

[Beckster]

GOAL!!!!!!!!!!!!111 Lloyd invisible all game comes through with a beauty!

[Gabe]

Use a sub. Now.

[baconboy]

If we thought the Brazilians were down our throats 20 minutes ago, the next 22 are going to be really tough.

[Drew]

I had to leave for 3 minutes and missed the goal. typical...but well done gals!

[Larry Y]

US needs to still attack for that insurance goal.

[baconboy]

Kobe's in the house. I really appreciate him coming and supporting so many of our Olympic teams.

[thespecialone]

Me too. I left for a minute and we scored. Makes me want to take a walk for 15 more minutes (ha ha).

[thespecialone]

That was a good shot by Marta just over the bar.

[Larry Y]

Will Marta quiet her critics that she doesn't come through in big games?

[Gabe]

Kai has been nonexistent since coming on. Meanwhile, props to Kobe. I thought he was all talk at first (about his love for soccer) but he really has been an avid supporter.

[thespecialone]

Oh my...miscommunication by the US defense and the free kick almost went in!

[baconboy]

Hanging on

for

dear life

[Drew]

i have no respect for kobe, could care less if he's at the game.

[Brant]

Marta is just sick... I could think of several MLS teams she could play for (joking, joking!)

C'mon ladies!

[thespecialone]

Isn't that how it usually is though in overtime in an Olympic Final?

[Brant]

Was that a kitchen sink I just saw in a yellow jersey?

Brazil is throwing everything forward...

[Drew]

US almost puts it away w/a shot off the post...Lloyd again.

[baconboy]

Wow, how close was that! Great run by Lloyd.

[Gabe]

All jokes aside, Marta lacks the speed and strength of an MLS player, but her creativity (especially under pressure) is far ahead of the average MLS player.

[baconboy]

How upset are the Brazilians going to be if they lose this game after dominating for so long?

[thespecialone]

Please, please, please go USA!

[baconboy]

And I sure hope Dunga gets fired from the men's team. It's sad when only the Brazilian women play like Brazilians.

[Larry Y]

Now this is a finish.

[Gabe]

Someone needs to hug Hope Solo. Show her some love.

[Brant]

Let the "Hope Solo Vindication Tour" start....

You know that's going to account for 80% of the press conference questions.

[baconboy]

Well done ladies!! Gutted that one out and created enough chances at the end to justify the win. Probably a harsh result for the Brazilians, but they didn't take their chances.

Hope Solo was outstanding. Totally vindicated from last year.

[soccerroo]

The women redeemed the loss and now Greg Ryan looks even worse with Solo playing great against Brazil.

[Aguinaga]

Wow, we need Marta on the Red Bulls. She was RIDICULOUS to still be running and making plays like that after 120 minutes Great game, what a gamer. Great result for the USA overall, sweet sweet revenge, and not at full strength either. GO USA!

[Jim]

Wow,

A tough gritty win for the US, great job withstanding the incredible pressure in the last part of the overtime. How sweet would it have been if that shot that banged off the post went in?

Well deserved win.

[Brant]

I normally hate post-game press conference, but you just know this one will be fun.... :)

[martha]

Wow.

Brazil kicked the US a$$ on the pitch even worse than last time. USA lucky. Great to win but you have to be concerned. Showed an a complete inability to string two passes tegether. Heck they had problems with 1.

Hope Solo MVP what was greg ryan thinking?

[mark]

Marta is good but a ballhog. Had she passed to wide open teamates they likely would have scored.

US had no business winnig this game. Glad for the win but sad for the growing lack of ability when compared to Norway and Brazil.

They have improved their technical ability while ht US has the same as they had 8 ys ago. Maybe less.

Thier is definatly a regression of talent on US womens team.

[ag nigrin]

Congratulations USWNT! You are truly Golden! Props to Rutgers alum Carli Lloyd on the game winner! Props to Hope Solo who played great and took so much sh*t for the last year! Woo Hoo!

[thespecialone]

Unfortunately, soccer is not about who plays more beautiful, it's about who gets results. And the USA did just that. Don't get me wrong -- I love the way that Marta plays. I love the way that Christiane plays. But I am the most thrilled by the USA winning! I've never seen them defend like that as a team before.

Nobody that I talked to gave them a chance against Brazil. People said that they were not progressing and other nations were catching up. People said that they couldn't win without Abby. But the USWNT didn't care -- they went out and won when it counted the most. Here's to you USWNT gals!!!!

OOSSAA -OOSSAA-OOSSAA -A FOREVER!

[ag nigrin]

Martha and Mark.. you guys are both delusional. Brazil may have good technical skills but they don't play as a team. The USWNT was w/o 4 of its best players and still found a way to win the whole enchilada because they play as a team...

[Beckster]

I would agree that Brazil was the stronger offensive team. However, US Defense in general and Solo in particular played a very, very strong game.

[martha]

Specialone you are right on the great win.

But its very apparrent the World is catching up to us. Plus the quality Germany, Norway and Brazil has id far superior to the US. Couldnt say that 4 years ago.

This was a huge upset. That alone shows how far the US has dropped in class.

Enjoy the Gold it maybe the last championship the US has for a while.

[mark]

ag nigrin

they had those four starters when Brazil wholloped them in the last WC. They seemed to play fine as a team that day AND had superior technical ability. Today they did the same.

We just got VERY lucky. Two real shots on goal and one went in. US midfield manhandeld for 70 minutes,

Like I said great win, but cant say this team has imporved technically. It was a great win they had no business winning.

So stop eing dillusional, and enjoy the win. Hope you have it on tape so you can shw your grandkids how the US was good back in the day before the world caught up.

[EDB]

I think the fact that the US was undermanned makes this all the better.

[thespecialone]

They are showing the medal ceremony now. Yeah, USA!

[Matt]

you know what all you nae-sayers need to give the team credit. Guess what, no matter how phenomenal the brazil side is technically they have yet to win a major tournament. 3 2nd places, you arent the best if you cant beat the best, brazil has failed to beat germany once, and the USA twice in championship matches. i played for the university of new mexico for 3 years then maryland my final year, i dont give a damn how flashy you are with the ball if you cant put the ball in the back of the net you have no business beeing on that field.

Tell me something Mark how much high level game experience do you have? im a former very high level collage player, and am currently a grade 5 referee.

The same thing goes for our mens team with Freddy Adu, he can dribble through a ton of players but thats all null and void if you fail to make that end pass or put the ball in the net.

Not only has Brazil failed to win a championship game, theyve been SHUT OUT in EVERY single one they have played in.

[Matt]

my mistake, they have one goal for but 5 against in championship matches, not a very good ratio if you ask me

[Joseph D'Hippolito]

It's more than ironic that Hope Solo, whom that idiot Greg Ryan brazenly sat on the bench against Brazil in the WWC semifinals last year, kept the U.S. in the game for 85 minutes.

It's more than ironic that Carli Lloyd, perhaps the only player on the WNT who supported and befriended Solo during her "exile," scored the winning goal.

This is called divine payback.

What makes this even more gratifying is that the victory came without the lead troublemakers who persecuted Solo (Lilly, Wambach, Whitehill) and the person who could have ended the whole controversy with some public comments (Scurry) but didn't.

All four of those "persons" need to come out right now and apologize publicly for the cruel way they treated Solo.

And none of them should ever wear the national uniform again in international competition. Ever.

[mark]

Wow matt you played in college your such an expert! New mexico soccer powerhouse at that!

Shocked your not in MLS. College soccer sucks so that doesnt impress me in the least. Quality of play matters. Had that been Germany they would have spanked the US. A 4-0 win by Brzil isnt an indication of the bridge in quality of play between the two countries and neither is a goal against the run of play in ot isnt either.

The US won, and won with heart. Bt moving forward the technical abilities of our players must be improved. RElying on college players wont do because again...college soccer sucks. Hopefully the new league has lasting power.

Brazil was the better team on the pitch....thats a FACT. So the us womens team didnt beat a real quality team the whole OLympics. The only other good team they played was Norway who spanked them.

If your happy bunkereing down against Brazil and taking your cahnces every tournament is dangerous. Didnt work out to well in the World Cup semifinals did it? those tactics wouldnt work against Germany o Norway but lucky for us Brazil did the dirty work in knocking them out.

by the way

Im sure Marta laments never winning a herman trophy..

College soccer...wow!!!!

[martha]

US womens soccer heavy underdogs going into the championship game and come out with gold.

Us womens softball team heavy favorites going into the championship game and come out with silver.

Indication of the direction of each sport in the US?

Mark I agree. I think there is a correlation between the league collapsing and the regression of quality in the womens team.
At the same time pro ball disapeared Brazil Germany and Norway continued to improve. Wambach for example had tie to hone her skills. There really hasnt been a "marquee player" since the league folded.

And college soccer does suck it cant be depended on to improve the quality of the womens team. Im sure the Chicago Magic could beat the Universtiy of New Mexico, Maryland and Virgina.

But regardless great win the women should be commended and hopefully this will help the new league. We shouldnt sit on our laurels we need to start working on getting that third star.

Otherwise US womens soccer may go the way of US womens softball.

But like I say soccer is for athletic chics, softball is for fat manchicks!!

Go USA!!

[Joseph D'Hippolito]

It's more than ironic that Hope Solo, whom that idiot Greg Ryan brazenly sat on the bench against Brazil in the WWC semifinals last year, kept the U.S. in the game for 85 minutes.

It's more than ironic that Carli Lloyd, perhaps the only player on the WNT who supported and befriended Solo during her "exile," scored the winning goal.

This is called divine payback.

What makes this even more gratifying is that the victory came without the lead troublemakers who persecuted Solo (Lilly, Wambach, Whitehill) and the person who could have ended the whole controversy with some public comments (Scurry) but didn't.

All four of those "persons" need to come out right now and apologize publicly for the cruel way they treated Solo.

And none of them should ever wear the national uniform again in international competition. Ever.

[Scott A]

Good job USA

[A.S.]

Whether or not the US was outplayed is completely beside the point. They won - that's all that matters.

I'm just very happy for Hope Solo.

[Thom]

What a wonderful performance and a great game by both teams. They should both be proud.

1. Can we get Brandy Chastain to call the men’s games? See is soooo much better than anything American born on the men’s side it is just amazing.
2. Winning is better than losing with style- maybe we men's team fans should learn this fact and repeat it daily. It you don't believe this look at the players faces on the medal stand vs. the Brazil players faces.
3. I love the way the woman play with grit and determination to the bitter end. What a great sports spectacle this game was regardless of what sports you prefer!

[Matt]

One thing your failing to realize is that other teams are going to catch up. there is absolutely no way to avoid that. There reaches a point where you just cant improve as much as the weaker teams, theres just not that much room for improvement.

One thing your ignoring too is the fact that Technical play has NEVER been the US's style of soccer, nor is it germanys. Nor is it the style for englands mens national team. Beeing technically good with the ball does not make you a great player.

Look at Hucles, she wasnt the leading score for the US because of her technical ability, it was because of her positioning.

Dancing with the ball has always been south americas style. Mens side if you put Brazil against England, its a gaurantee that brazil would have more position, would look like the better team in the run of play, but there is a very good chance that england would win based on finishing chances alone. This game Brazil had all of their top players, the US was lacking a major player in every part of the field, Wambach up front, Cat Whitehill in back.

If you want to talk about a team dropping off look at germany. Germany has played absolutely terrible this entire tournament, and have a semi final ass kicking to show for it.

(BTW UNM was ranked 14th in the country when i played there, Maryland second, i joined the ODP program when i was 15, and no longer play due to literally snapping my ACL in collage)